🍹 Summer Movies, Bar Crawl, and Love Island

Welcome to your weekly San Fernando Valley update: July 10–16, 2025.

In this week’s NoHo Nick:

• 🎞️ Summer Movies

• 🍺 Bar Crawl

• 🎸 Live Music

This week, I asked TikTok a question:

“If money were no object, what’s one thing you would change about the San Fernando Valley?”

Here’s what you said:

• 🚇 More trains: Extend Metro beyond NoHo, connect to the beach

• 🚗 Fix the roads: Repair potholes, storm drains, and sidewalks.

• 🌳 More trees and parks: Cool down the Valley and make it walkable.

• 🏘️ Affordable housing: More apartments and more parking.

• 🎶 Nightlife: Music venues, food, and fun without driving to DTLA or Hollywood.

My vote? If LAPD flies a helicopter to the Valley, they should offer free rides back to DTLA.

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Here’s what’s happening this week:

🧑‍⚖️ L.A. sues over ICE raids. L.A. County and eight cities, including Santa Monica, Pasadena, and West Hollywood, joined a lawsuit against the Trump administration, claiming recent immigration raids are unconstitutional and that agents made arrests without warrants or probable cause. (FOX 11)

🏘️ L.A. may allow ADUs to be sold separately. L.A. City Council is considering a proposal to let homeowners sell backyard ADUs separately, boosting cheaper paths to homeownership. ADUs made up 41% of the city’s new housing last year. (LAist)

🗳️ Neighborhood council elections hit record low turnout. Only 7,491 ballots were cast in this year’s L.A. neighborhood council elections. It’s the lowest since 2010. 0.3% of eligible voters participated. The all-mail election required voters to request ballots in advance. (LAist)

• “What’s a neighborhood council?” Los Angeles’ 99 neighborhood councils are volunteer-run groups that make micro-investments in neighborhood improvements ($25k/yr) and advocate for zoning, liquor licenses, development projects, and local services.

These are my favorite events happening this week:

✨ Harry Potter Movie Marathon (San Fernando). All eight films are screening through July. Plus, cold beer and free popcorn. Grab your wands and DM for a table reservation. Free. Multiple dates: July 9, 12, 16, 17, 20, 23, and double features on July 27 at San Fernando Brewing Company.

🎭 Griffith Park Shakespeare Festival (Griffith Park): Catch Love’s Labour’s Lost and Doctor Faustus under the stars this summer. Performed by the Independent Shakespeare Co. Pack a picnic and enjoy one of L.A.’s favorite outdoor traditions. Free. June 25 to August 31, Wednesdays–Sundays at 7 PM in Griffith Park.

🛍️ Freakbeat Records Summer Sale (Sherman Oaks): Freakbeat Records is throwing a massive summer sale. Everything in the store, from vinyl to CDs, DVDs, and Blu-rays, will be marked down 20% to 50%. All 99¢ vinyl, CDs, and DVDs are just 25¢ each during the sale. Thursday, July 10 to Monday, July 14.

🎭 Summer Playwrights Festival #16 (North Hollywood): 16th Annual Summer Playwrights Festival. 24 new play readings over 10 days at the Magnolia Theatre. 200 playwrights, directors, and actors. Friday, July 11 to Sunday, July 20 at the Road Theatre Company.

💘 50/50 Singles Night (North Hollywood): Singles party with 50 men, 50 women, and a chill vibe. Drinks, games, and new connections. $10-15. Friday, July 11 at 7 PM.

📺 Love Island Watch Party (Burbank): Grab your popcorn and a cute mocktail for this outdoor screening of Love Island. Bingo, themed prizes, and all the drama. $12. Friday, July 11, from 7:30 PM to 9 PM at Whitnall Highway Park South.

🐕 Working Dog Training Walk (Sherman Oaks): Walk your pup and practice obedience skills on the move through the park. All breeds welcome. Limited to 30 dogs. Bring treats and water. $20. Saturday, July 12 at 9:30 AM at the Sherman Oaks Recreation Center.

🎬 Movies on the Roof: Black Panther (Sherman Oaks): Watch Black Panther outdoors with popcorn, soft drinks, and sunset views. Seats are first come, first served. $10. Saturday, July 12, at 7:30 PM at the Westfield Mall.

🎷 Summer Jazz on the Patio (Studio City): Enjoy a warm evening with the Elena Gilliam Jazz Trio under the stars. $15. Saturday, July 12, at 8 PM at Vivian’s Millennium Café.

🎸 Social Guitar Practice (Sherman Oaks): Acoustic players meet under the big tree at Huston & Calhoun for a friendly jam session. Bring a chair, guitar, and lyric printouts. All levels welcome. Free. Sunday, July 13, from 12:30 PM to 3:30 PM at Sherman Oaks Recreation Center.

🎤 Comedy & Wine (North Hollywood): Enjoy a night of comedy and wine: local comics and an open mic. Doors open early for first-come, first-served signups. Free. Monday, July 14 at 8 PM.

🎤 Calabasas Open Mic (Calabasas): Open mic night for poets, storytellers, and musicians of all experience levels. Perform or support local talent. Free. Tuesday, July 15, and August 19, from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM.

🎉 Pasadena Heritage Bridge Party (Pasadena): 19th-annual celebration. Celebrate on the historic Colorado Street Bridge with live music on three stages, a kids zone, classic cars, food from 15 restaurants, and no-host bars. A festive community night for all ages. $40. Saturday, July 19, from 6 PM to 11:30 PM.

🍻 NoHo Bar Crawl (North Hollywood): A meetup-friendly bar hop starting at Idle Hour and continuing to CanTiki and El Tejano. Meet people and try NoHo’s best patios. Free. Friday, July 11, from 8 PM to 12 AM.

🌯 Mini Kabob's Caesar Wrap (Glendale): Limited-edition chicken “Cesar” wrap featuring grilled Armenian chicken, falafel croutons, Aleppo toum, and housemade dressing in a flour tortilla. It debuted at a recent food festival and occasionally pops up on the menu at this tiny shop.

🍽️ Dinner with Strangers (Woodland Hills): Sign up for a mystery dinner with 4–6 new people. Let the organizers handle the restaurant and coordination. A fun way to meet locals, support small businesses, and ditch the group chat. $13. Wednesday, July 16, from 7 PM to 10 PM.

🧘‍♀️ Yoga & Wine (North Hollywood): Unwind with a Friday night of gentle yoga and curated wines. Start with a yoga session at Swan Movement Arts, then walk over to Haley’s Wines for a tasting flight—limited space. RSVP early. $30 for both the class and the glass. Friday, July 25 at 6 PM.

🌞 Summer Camp Field Day (Elysian Park): Tap into your playful side with a grown-up field day featuring relay races, freeze tag, parachute games, water balloon toss, dodgeball, and more. PB&J sandwiches and Capri Suns. $10-20 suggested donation. Sunday, July 13 at 11 AM.

🍔 Tournament of Cheeseburgers (DTLA): Taste LA’s top burger spots and food trucks like Bartz Barbecue and Softie’s Burger. Vegan and meat options. RSVP required. Free. Sunday, July 20, from 10 AM to 4 PM at ROW DTLA.

🍕 Chuck E. Cheese is opening an adults-only arcade in Brea, CA (30 minutes from DTLA).

🏡 The median household income recommended for purchasing a home in Los Angeles is $318,000 per year.

🍺 You can now drink alcohol in public in downtown Long Beach.

👩 Scarlett Johansson is now the highest-grossing actor in Hollywood.

❓️ How many miles long is the LA River?

Last week’s question: How many helicopters does LAPD have?

Answer: LAPD’s Air Support Division operates 17 helicopters. The cost of the program is approximately $128,000 per day.

Thank you for reading. See you next week!

PS I saw Jurassic World Rebirth this week. It was a fun popcorn flick! Although I have some notes about the size and shape of the mutant dinosaurs.

PPS Shoutout to “BLK Events LA,” a weekly newsletter for Black Angelenos to discover culture and community.

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