Shows
A Developing Story.After the Fire: will local businesses survive?The January fire in Pacific Palisades is having a significant economic impact on Santa Monica businesses. On this episode, Daily Press publisher Ross Furukawa and host Brian Peter Falk discuss how the fire, road closures, and beach shutdowns have led to decreased foot traffic, with some businesses reporting a 60-80% drop in revenue.
Jennifer Taylor from the City of Santa Monica shares efforts to support affected businesses, including fee waivers and partnerships with tourism agencies. Restaurateur Jenny Rush describes the struggle of local restaurants to stay afloat. The message is clear: now is the time to support local businesses.
2025-02-0521 min
A Developing Story.Palisades Fire burningHost Ross Furukawa and journalist Brian Peter Falk discussed the ongoing Palisades Fire on January 10th, 2025. Cal Fire reported the fire has burned 21,317 acres with 8% containment and threatens 11,171 structures, while warning about false social media posts claiming cleanup work opportunities. In Santa Monica, evacuation orders remain in effect north of San Vicente, while the area between Montana and San Vicente has been downgraded to an evacuation warning, and the area between Wilshire and Montana has had evacuations lifted. Looting has become a major concern, with the Santa Monica Police Department reporting 573 calls for service, 240 of which came from the evacuation...
2025-01-1115 min
A Developing Story.Reopening Santa Monica Malibu SchoolsA deep dive into the facts and opinions around the reopening of in-person instruction at the Santa Monica Malibu School District. Ross Furukawa and Matt Hall interview parents, the Superintendent, and the President of the teachers union.
2021-02-2555 minA Developing Story.Local Election DebriefRoss Furukawa, Todd James, and Matt Hall discuss the surprising 2020 election results for City Council, Board of Education, SMC Board, and Rent Control.
2020-11-1144 minA Developing Story.New rules for reopening, Laurel Rosen, CEO of the Santa Monica Chamber of CommerceRoss Furukawa and Todd James discuss the new reopening rules for California. Ross talks with Laurel Rosen of the Santa Monica Chamber about the current business climate, leases, and how we can support our local business community during the pandemic.
2020-08-2950 minA Developing Story.The state of retail, commercial rents, the Plaza, Introduction to Clara Harter.Todd James and Ross Furukawa have a chat about the state of commercial real estate, some discussion about not paying residential rent, and some new ideas on the Plaza development in Downtown Santa Monica.
Ross introduces Clara Harter, our new reporter at the Santa Monica Daily Press. They discuss her background, how she got here, and some interesting story ideas.
Feel free to send story ideas to clara@smdp.com.
2020-08-0629 minA Developing Story.The aftermath. A conversation with Chief of Police Cynthia Renaud and Interim City Manager Lane DilgRoss Furukawa and Matt Hall describe the state of the city after the riots and looting, and the questions that listeners and readers are demanding answers. Matt has a discussion with Chief Renaud and Interim City Manager Lane Dilg on their accounts of what they saw that day, where they were, and how decisions were made in the deployment of Santa Monica police, neighboring police forces and the National Guard.
2020-06-0455 minA Developing Story.E-scooters and micro-mobility. The concept was born in Santa Monica, almost banned, and now beginning phase 2 of regulation. Here's what the City of Santa Monica is doing, and what the scooter companies have to say about it.Ross Furukawa and Todd James talk about scooters and micro mobility, then Matt jumps into a conversation with Francie Stefan, Chief Mobility Officer for the City of Santa Monica. They talk about what the City is doing to regulate the micro mobility companies, how the pilot program worked, how they manage devices and how they plan to manage the programs in the future. Matt then interviews Karla Owunwanne head of Socal Community and Government Relations for Lime. They talk about how cities are regulating, how many people are riding, how some cities have done it right and w...
2020-02-0549 minA Developing Story.Looking forward into 2020, what will be the hot topics of the coming year.Ross Furukawa and Matt Hall discuss what they see are the main topics of news coverage going into 2020. Election year, voting districts, homelessness and some possible amendments to some of the propositions that are blamed with causing the increase in crime across the state. With lots of retail square footage coming online while retail in general is declining will create news stories, and the changing use of retail space will also be very reportable.
2020-01-0313 min2019-11-0716 minA Developing Story.Interview with attorney Rob Lemle discussing surfing lawyers, dogs, scooters and accidents.Publisher Ross Furukawa interviews attorney Rob Lemle of Lemle Law Group. They discuss the Surfing Lawyers, dog bites and who's responsible. Scooter liability, what to do if you're injured. Auto accidents, insurance and who's at fault.www.lemlelaw.com
2019-10-2425 minA Developing Story.The Genesis of the Daily PressBlake interviews Ross Furukawa and Todd James, owners of the Santa Monica Daily Press. First Ross discusses how the Daily Press was started, the origins of the free daily newspaper model, and how the are managing the changing environment of local media. Next Todd discusses his involvment with the Daily Press, how he became and owner, and what he envisions for the future of the company.
Music is provided courtesy of the Brig Band, a LA based jam band comprised of professional studio and touring musicians, whom have performed with the likes of Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock...
2019-09-0416 min