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There's plenty of blame to go around — and lessons to be learned — from delays in Metro's 405 Freeway improvement project. LAT editorial
Property tax revenues are starting to rise appreciably at the county and at City Hall. LAT
A $7.7 billion Los Angeles city budget that restores some basic services while beginning to change the development permitting process received unanimous approval on Wednesday from the City Council. DN
The state plan to overhaul the hub of California's water system with two tunnels around the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta will cost nearly $25 billion to build and operate, according to preliminary figures released Wednesday. LAT
The Service Employees Union United Service Workers West is planning an environmental challenge over LAX's expansion plans. LA Weekly
With Eric Garcetti’s election, the mayors of the three largest cities in the United States will be Jews. "This is a remarkable phenomenon, perhaps most of all because of how unremarked upon, and thus unremarkable, it is," writes UCLA's David Myers. Jewish Journal
Ben Lashes, an LA talent manager for Internet pets, has gotten Grumpy Cat a one-picture deal. Profile in the Wall Street Journal.
"Inferno" by Dan Brown and "Let's Explore Diabetes With Owls" by David Sedaris are the top-selling hardcover books at Southern California independent bookstores. Phil Jackson's book, "Eleven Rings: The Soul of Success," is second on the nonfiction bestseller list. IndieBound
UT San Diego closed The Californian newspaper in Temecula. Former longtime staffer John Hunneman writes a farewell. Riverside Press Enterprise
Daniel Olivas interviews Gabriella Gutiérrez y Muhs, editor of the new book, "Rebozos de Palabras: An Helena María Viramontes Critical Reader"(University of Arizona Press.) LA Review of Books
‘World War Z’ author Max Brooks maintains the Santa Monica garden of his late mother, the actress Anne Bancroft. KCRW
UCLA's Special Collections library has acquired artist J. Michael Walker's original color pencil drawing, "City in Mind: A Lyrical Map of the Concept of Los Angeles," a 276-inch wide map of literary LA created for the 2011 Libros Schmibros pop-up store at the Hammer Museum.
Ray Manzarek's and The Doors' local connections to Venice and Santa Monica. The Argonaut
The arts website Arts - meme is celebrating its 5th anniversary on Saturday evening at the Jack Rutberg Fine Arts gallery on North La Brea Avenue. Info
A 22-year-old Disneyland employee was booked on suspicion of possession of a destructive device, held in lieu of $1-million bail, in connection with the prank dry ice explosion Tuesday in Toontown.
The driver that caused the high-speed crash in Newport Beach that killed him and four other Orange County teenagers did not have a license to drive. AP
The Dodgers announced Wednesday that Dodgers Stadium will host Galaxy soccer matches in August. It'll be the first time the stadium will host soccer. KPCC
A broken water main flooded a stretch of Cahuenga Boulevard in Hollywood. KPCC
The Mount Wilson Observatory cam operated by the UCLA Department of Physics and Astronomy has gone dark due to technical problems. There's no date for when repairs will be complete. Cam
The Toyota Tundra that towed the space shuttle Endeavour over the 405 Freeway bridge for a TV ad will be unveiled Friday morning at the California Science Center.
