🔥 Vegan food, catnip, and wildfires

Welcome to your weekly Valley update! Today is Thursday, September 12, 2024.

In this week’s NoHo Nick:

• 🔥 Wildfires

• 🥕 Vegan food festival

• 📽️ Burbank Film Festival

• 🎃 Early spooky celebrations

Thank god the heatwave is over.

How many more Instagram stories of my car’s thermometer could I have possibly posted?

My electric bill is going to be a mess.

Here’s what’s happening this week:

News

🤖 Uber Eats is rolling out more sidewalk delivery robots in Los Angeles, allowing customers to select 'robot' for delivery. 1,000+ robots have already completed 300,000 deliveries. Now in Santa Monica, Venice, and Hollywood, with city-wide expansions soon. (Robot Report) After the strikes, even Wall-E found a new gig.

🚃 L.A. Metro finally scored an $893 million federal grant for a 6.7-mile light rail line through the San Fernando Valley, from Van Nuys to Pacoima. This 7-year project will serve nearly 19,000 daily riders, cutting commutes by 15 minutes. (LA Times) At least until they put In-n-Out in the train stations.

🦁 A park ranger in Tapia Park killed a mountain lion. The cougar attacked and grabbed a five-year-old during a family picnic and ran off. The child was airlifted to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Cougar attacks are rare. A new wildlife bridge at Liberty Canyon may help by giving them safer hunting places. (CNN) TIL, cougars and mountain lions are the same thing.

🚒 A wildfire in San Bernardino has grown to nearly 37,000 acres and is spilling smoke and ash into the SFV. The fire is at only 18% containment and threatens over 35,000 structures. Evacuation warnings are in effect. (Cal Fire)

📽️ Media executives and philanthropists donated $15 million to strengthen local LA news. The nonprofit aims to provide free access to local news, filling gaps left by shrinking local news outlets. The initiative will create 36+ journalism jobs and expand community-first reporting. (LA Times)

💼 Suits, the most watched show on Netflix, is officially moving production to Los Angeles, thanks to California’s tax credit program. Along with Shailene Woodley’s Janis Joplin biopic, the show is one of 19 projects receiving a share of $52 million in incentives. This move is expected to generate $284 million in spending and create thousands of jobs for local crew and actors. Jane Krakoswki has been preparing for years.

Food and Drinks

🚚 Vegan Food Festival (North Hollywood). A vegan exchange to celebrate Latin Heritage Month. 14+ food vendors from all over SoCal at Lawless Brewing. African, traditional Latin, and plenty of desserts. Food, beer, wine, and dog friendly. Free entry. Sunday, September 15 from 3 PM to 9 PM.

🍻 Oktoberfest Celebration (Northridge). Enjoy authentic Paulaner Oktoberfest beer, local brews, and live music by the Barn Burners. At Blue Palms Brew House. Pre-order a $40 deal for a liter stein, two refills, and a German sausage sandwich. Saturday, September 14th, from 3 PM to 7 PM.

🤠 Country Nights (Valley Village). Hooch, games, and country music at Thirsty Merchant. Bring your cowboy boots for line dancing, country music, and a barn burner vibe. Cowboy-sized drinks, snacks, and country hits from a DJ every Sunday night: Sunday, September 15 at 8 PM.

Things to Do

📽️ Burbank International Film Festival (Burbank) is returning for the 16th year. Educational events and industry Q&As. Diverse feature films, shorts, and TV scripts. Special honoree Paul Feig, known for films like Bridesmaids and Ghostbusters, will be celebrated too. September 25 - 29, 2024

✨ Walt Disney’s Barn (Griffith Park) is the original 1950 barn where Walt built miniatures and ran the “Carolwood Pacific Railroad” before focusing on Disneyland. Filled with trains, personal items, and tools from Walt’s collection, this free experience is open every 3rd Sunday. Parking included. Free. Sunday, September 15, from 11 AM to 4 PM.

👨‍🎤 Free Summer Concert Series (Northridge): Dance to iconic 80’s songs at the Devonshire Reseda shopping center summer concert event. Hear classic cover bands in front of the shops through September. Family-friendly every Thursday. Near restaurants and outdoor seating. Free. Thursday, September 12 at 7 PM.

🎶 Ukulele Lessons for Kids (San Fernando). Introduce your child to the joy of music. They’ll learn the basics of playing the ukulele, guided by an instructor. Ukuleles are provided. Foster musical skills! $30 per month. Every Monday at 5 PM.

😺 Catnip Flea Crawl (Burbank) is three parking lots of vendors selling vintage clothing, upcycled goods, local art, craft food, and a special section for all things cat: cat-themed vendors, charities, and fun cat carnival games. Proceeds help support cat charities. Sunday, September 15, from 10 AM to 4 PM.

🎃 Halloween Nights of the Jack (Calabasas) is a magical 3/4-mile trail of glowing pumpkins, cider from the Spookeasy, and fall treats at an immersive Halloween experience. Family-friendly. $40. Opens September 27.

💃 Noche de Cumbia (Hollywood). Three of Latin America’s biggest Cumbia bands are coming to Los Angeles. Lace up your dancing shoes for traditional music from Colombia, Mexico, and El Salvador. Hosted by KCRW at the Hollywood Bowl. $75. Sunday, September 22 at 7 PM.

🎉 Senior Prom Supporting Alzheimer’s (North Hollywood). Dance the night away with all generations, enjoy hors d'oeuvres, drinks, and music—all supporting family caregivers of Alzheimer's and dementia patients. Join the fun. Help make a difference! $75. September 19th from 7 to 9 PM.

Cute Home Alert

🏠️ 2-bedroom, 2-bathroom condo (North Hollywood). Minutes from theaters, shopping, and the Metro. Recently remodeled condo with a new kitchen, black quartz countertops, stainless steel appliances, and renovated bathrooms. Updated bamboo and tile flooring, dual-pane windows, and a new HVAC system. Two-car assigned parking, guest parking, and a pool. $599,000.

LA By the Numbers

Here are some of the most eye-popping heat wave stats:

🌡️ The average temperature in Burbank was 108.8 degrees this week. It peaked at 114 degrees, making it the hottest five-day stretch since 1940.

⚾ Dodger Stadium saw its hottest game ever at 103 degrees, tying with the 2017 World Series.

⚡ Over 3,980 lightning strikes were detected over the Line Fire in San Bernardino. The fire clouds are so large that they’re making their own extreme weather.

Random

🔌 LA is building 10,000 electric vehicle chargers under existing street lamps.

See you next week!

NoHo Nick

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