Newsletter: Essential California: What does it take to run L.A. Unified?

Good morning. It is Friday, Oct. 23. A new video shows the competitive nature of canine surfing. Don’t worry — all the dogs wear life vests when they catch the waves. Here's what else is happening in the Golden State:

TOP STORIES

A search for a superintendent

What kind of person can manage the politics and personality of the L.A. Unified Board of Education while bumping up academic achievement? That’s the key question as the nation’s second-largest school district looks for a new superintendent. “I’m worried that no one smart enough to do the job would be crazy enough to take it,” said one attorney who has frequently fought over education issues in Los Angeles. Los Angeles Times

Homeless epidemic

As many as 20% of the 32,000 state prisoners who were released to Los Angeles County under realignment ended up living on the street, according to an estimate. Given those figures, “the homeless services institutions cannot effectively combat much less eradicate homelessness,” said Phil Ansell, a top social services administrator heading up the county’s homeless initiative. Los Angeles Times 

Plant closure

The saga over the closing of the San Onofre nuclear power plant is a step closer to concluding. Southern California Edison has reached a $400-million settlement with its insurer.  Much of that sum will go to consumers, but in the form of rate cuts, not refunds. Los Angeles Times

DROUGHT and CLIMATE

Rain dangers: Californians may soon known plenty about landslides and mudslides. They’re expected to become more common as El Niño brings in heavy rains. “After four years of drought, and four seasons of vegetation-stripping fires, California’s rocky slopes are primed for mudslides.” Wired

Worldwide problems: When El Niño really hits, it could create a mess around the Pacific Ocean, from filling the air with debris to destroying coffee and tea crops. Bloomberg

L.A. AT LARGE

Conflicting reports: Will Southern California have a magnitude 5.0 earthquake in the next three years? The U.S. Geological Survey is slamming a study in the journal Earth and Space Science that says there’s a 99.9% chance of it happening. “That level of certainty, to my knowledge, is just not attainable. We can never be that certain,” said Robert Graves, a USGS seismologist. Los Angeles Times

DWP funds: The city of Los Angeles has the right to audit the books of two nonprofits that received $40 million from the Department of Water and Power. That’s the ruling of a three-judge appeals panel. The fight over the nonprofits has stretched on for two years. Los Angeles Times

Rich dog, poor dog: Beverly Hills is getting its first dog park, and the plans so far indicate it will be pretty exclusive. City officials want to limit access to residents, though they’re thinking about letting in dogs belonging to hotel guests and local business owners. The park will also have a ranger on duty. Beverly Hills Courier

POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

Regulating signs: Once again, the city of Los Angeles is trying to regulate the proliferation of billboards. The Planning Commission endorsed a plan that calls for sign companies to remove 5 square feet of existing billboards for every 1 new square foot they want to erect. Commissioners refused to grant amnesty to signs that either do not have permits or are out of compliance. Los Angeles Times

Transit service: L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti, who is also a member of the Metro Board of Directors, wants to see light rail service extended to the edge of Los Angeles County. Those comments come as the Metro Gold Line prepares for service out to Azusa. Los Angeles Times

Pay more, get less: Writer Joe Mathews believes that should be the new state motto as Californians pay more for rent, education and utilities while simultaneously living in cramped quarters, struggling to find available classes and doing all that they can do conserve water. “The right time to establish a firm ‘More for More’ public ethic would be next year, as we consider literally dozens of proposed ballot measures to raise all kinds of different taxes in the state,” he writes. Zócalo Public Square

CRIME AND COURTS

Elder abuse: Actor Mickey Rooney was a Hollywood legend who spent the end of his life penniless and abused at the hands of his eighth wife and her son. The actor “was bloodied and bruised in multiple altercations, in his final years emerging as a feeble man lying to his doctor about why he was being treated for this black eye or that missing tooth.” Hollywood Reporter

Crossing the border: A drug tunnel connecting warehouses in San Diego and Mexico was uncovered by U.S. and Mexican authorities following a six-month undercover investigation. The tunnel measured 2,600 feet and included ventilation, a cart-and-rail system and lighting. Los Angeles Times

Extradition denied: Britain's High Court has refused to extradite an alleged pedophile back to California, ruling that the possibility of involuntary commitment would violate the European Convention on Human Rights. “According to Orange County prosecutors, [Roger Alan] Giese was providing voice lessons to the All-American Boys Chorus when he met his alleged victim. The abuse began in 1998 and continued for four years, prosecutors said.” Los Angeles Times

GOLDEN STATE PERSPECTIVES

Report card: The leader of the state Senate, Kevin de León, gets a B from the Times’ editorial board. Los Angeles Times

CALIFORNIA CULTURE

Grand reopening: The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art will reopen May 14, 2016, after three years of construction. “This is a game changer for San Francisco. It lifts us to the top ranks for museums of modern and contemporary art in the world,” said Director Neal Benezra. SFGate

Tearing down landmarks: Here are 20 Los Angeles mansions that have been lost to time. Curbed LA

At the end: After 62 years together, Dick and Lynn Gury of Sacramento died just hours apart. They spent their lives raising a family and serving as boosters to local music and sports programs. Sacramento Bee

CALIFORNIA ALMANAC

Los Angeles will have low clouds and 82 degrees. In San Diego, there will be low clouds and a high of 78. Riverside will have plenty of sunshine and a high of 86 degrees. San Francisco will be partly sunny and 71 degrees.

AND FINALLY

Today's California Memory comes from Andrew Hidas:

“I was probably 8 years old when our family took a (rare) summer vacation to visit my uncle in Monterey from our home in Eagle Rock. He took us to the Golden Gate Bridge, and as we walked out I beheld the afternoon fog swirling through the towers, mixing with the pale yellow sun rays to create a hypnotic, magical effect. I remember telling myself in that moment: ‘I’m going to live here someday.’ Some 20 years later, I finished graduate school in Redlands, loaded everything I owned into a small U-Haul, and moved to the Bay Area. Childhood vision realized.”

If you have a memory or story about the Golden State, share it with us. Send us an email to let us know what you love or fondly remember about our state. (Please keep your story to 100 words.)

Please let us know what we can do to make this newsletter more useful to you. Send comments, complaints and ideas to Alice Walton or Shelby Grad.