Laguna Beach Local News

Juneteenth deserves to be celebrated and acknowledged in our history books. Thank you, Laguna Beach Cultural Arts Center, for joining in the celebration, a first for our community. It sounds as though your guests left understanding why it took two and a half years for the slaves in Texas to know of...

The majority of Laguna Beach residents treasure the current building height limits. We have a human-scaled city that meets our needs and has been recognized as a national historic urban landscape. Threats loom. Liberate Laguna/Forward PAC developers and their ilk have been chipping away at the height limits that have...

One just has to read Michael Ray’s column in the June 17 issue of the Indy and then read Gene Felder’s letter to the editor in the June 24 issue to realize that Ray has little regard for the truth and his intent is to malign certain people and...

My wife Kimberly and I serve Laguna in many ways: schools, scouting, dance, soccer, the canyon, ocean, and more. My mom, Beth Leeds, is a Laguna legend for over 70 years and recently honored among Orange County Register’s 125 Most Influential People of 2021. Mom needs support now. Here are ways...

Laguna Beach Independent columnist and Liberate Laguna PAC major donor Michael Ray once again has trouble with the truth. After the 1993 wildfire there was a contentious blame game, but the conclusion was that water pressure, and lack of aerial firefighting capability were the main culprits. Yet now Ray...

Why do the citizens of Laguna Beach provide free office space to the Laguna Beach Chamber of Commerce (CoC)? To hear CoC representatives tell it, long ago their organization gave the citizens of Laguna Beach its cherished property and in return the City agreed to free office space in...

Some people concerned about the residents’ ballot initiative contend it is too complicated. The resident’s ballot initiative is simply a zone change. It’s no different than any other zoning ordinance except for the fact that the City Council refused to adopt it, and instead the voters have a chance...

This Father's Day marks the end of an era for me. By this time next month, I will have graduated to the Grandpa Club.  I realize this is familiar territory for many of my guy pals; but at 73, the arrival of my first grandchild clearly will be something...

Being an ally to any marginalized community is more important in affecting real change than many people realize. However, developing oneself as an ally is a skill that doesn’t happen overnight; it comes from engaging in open conversations, asking questions, recognizing your own biases and blindspots, and stepping out of...