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Hawk’s Hitting Sparks Dolphins

By
Steve Galluzzo
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Roman Hawk had four hits, two homers and six RBIs against Taft on April 15.
Photo: Steve Galluzzo

By STEVE GALLUZZO | Sports Editor      

Roman Hawk was locked in at the plate last Tuesday against Taft. The Palisades High baseball senior had four hits, including two home runs and a double, drove in six runs and scored three more to lead his team to a 13-2 tournament victory in Woodland Hills.   

Hudson Ramberg, Jack Kurland and Ian Sullivan added two hits apiece and sophomore pitcher Caleb Gitlin had three RBIs and pitched all five innings, allowing three hits with five strikeouts as the Dolphins posted their seventh win in a row. Three days earlier, Jett Teegardin scattered four hits and struck out 11 batters in six innings in a 6-2 tournament win against North Hollywood.   

Last Thursday, Palisades’ win streak ended in a tough 1-0 loss at Verdugo Hills. David Castaneda drove in Isaiah Guevara in the bottom of the sixth for the game’s only run and senior reliever Milo Medeiros struck out two Dolphins in the top of the seventh to save it for starting pitcher D’Angelo Duran, who allowed one hit (to Kurland) in six innings. Sullivan threw five innings, allowing three hits with seven strikeouts.

On Saturday, Palisades battled Granada Hills in nonleague action and the host Highlanders prevailed 7-0. Sullivan and Andreas Konnari each had two hits for the Dolphins, who dropped their fourth straight to the Highlanders since blanking Granada Hills 2-0 in the quarterfinals of the City Open Division playoffs in 2019.

Palisades returned to its winning ways Monday at Pote Field in Griffith Park with a 15-6 win against University. Logan Bailey, Sullivan, Gitlin and Hudson Ramberg each had two hits and Hawk threw 3.2 innings, striking out four and surrendering just two hits as the Dolphins improved to 12-8 overall and 9-3 in the Western League.       
   Only once has head coach Mike Voelkel, who picked up his 300th win with the Dolphins on March 7, failed to get his team into the Open Division­—last spring when they lost at home to South East in the first round of Division I—but he knows the Dolphins likely need to win their final eight games (including road victories over Western League frontrunner Venice and reigning City Open champion Bell) to have any shot at making the top bracket, which has been reduced from 12 to eight schools.

Track Teams Score in South Bay

By
Steve Galluzzo
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Zach Amster breaks out of the starting block in the 4x400 Open relay at Arcadia.
Photo: Steve Galluzzo

By STEVE GALLUZZO | Sports Editor      

Palisades High’s track and field teams are testing themselves against top notch competition in preparation for next Wednesday’s Western League prelims at Hamilton. On April 12 at the prestigious Arcadia Invitational, Zach Armster, Harrison Carter, Cole Hubbard and Ronin Sherertz were entered in the Boys Open Division 4×400 relay and clocked 3:36.07.   

On April 18-19 the Dolphins traveled to West Torrance High for the South Bay Championships. For the boys, Carter took ninth in the 400 meters in 52.61 seconds. His running and returning helped  the Dolphins’ football team reach the City Division I final in the fall. Fellow junior Jackson Taylor was 10th in the 800 in 1:59.34 while senior Owen Lewicky was second in the 3200 in 9:39.74. Sophomore Marley Duff was eighth in the 110 hurdles in 17.48 and ninth in the 300 hurdles in 43.85. Senior Devin Carey, whose accurate shooting helped the Pali High basketball squad make the City Open Division semifinals in the winter, finished sixth in the triple jump with a distance of 38-07.50. Palisades was 12th out of 19 schools in the varsity boys standings at South Bay, scoring 12 points.      

On the girls side senior sprinter Skyla Jones was 10th in the 200 in 26.58 and seventh in the 400 in 1:00.93 and sophomore Gabriella Gilyard was ninth in the 1600 in 5:32.22. Three Dolphins were in the top 10 in the 3200: sophomore Zoey Morris was fourth in the 3200 in 12:23.01; freshman Hanna Sadzik was eighth in 12:45.34  and sophomore Kendal Shaver was ninth with a time of 12:48.15.

Senior Ava Bondar was fifth in the 100 hurdles in 17.36 and fourth in the 300 hurdles in 49.43 while junior Maia Vasquez was sixth in the 300 hurdles in 50.96.        

The Dolphins’ 4×100 relayers (Kalee Herd, Clara Fleckenstein, Javayah Sole and Jones) were fourth in 51.55. Palisades’ varsity girls accumulated 24 points, placing ninth out of 17 schools in the team standings.

Last weekend, the Dolphins’ 4×800 relay team ran in the rated rcae at the Mt. SAC Relays in Walnut and took second in 9:31.91.

Palisadian and Brentwood School sophomore Amelia Sarkisian competed in the Invitational 3200 meters Friday at Mt. SAC and clocked a personal-best 10:46.46, good enough for sixth.

Confident Cubs

By
Steve Galluzzo
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Loyola High Football Rising Seniors Make College Commitments

Nathan Turk
Photos courtesy of Loyola Athletics
Max Meier

By STEVE GALLUZZO | Sports Editor

Three years ago, Nathan Turk and Max Meier were key contributors on the Loyola High freshman football team, which finished undefeated for the first time in 44 years.

Now, they are poised to lead the varsity squad back to prominence in the CIF Southern Section and after that they plan on making noise at the NCAA level, both having recently committed to Division I programs.        

As eighth-graders in 2021, Turk and Meier were teammates on the Corpus Christi team that captured the Catholic Youth Organization football championship for the Los Angeles Archdiocese. The next year they joined a slew of other boys from Palisades private schools to form a dominant ninth-grade unit that not only won the Angelus League title but outscored its nine opponents 374-66. The starting quarterback on that team was Jack Thomas, who transferred to Palisades High after his sophomore season and led the Dolphins to the City Section Division I final last fall. Meier played with Thomas in the City of Los Angeles Flag Football championship in 2018 and now the 6-foot-6, 250-pound defensive end is ready to take his blitzing skills to Stanford University. The rising senior was the Cubs’ sack leader last fall and received 22 offers from, among others, USC, UCLA, Colorado, Washington, California, Arizona State, Wisconsin, Princeton, Harvard and Northwestern before picking the Cardinal. 

Turk, a 6-foot-4, 279-pound  All-CIF Division 3 and All-State offensive tackle who has committed to Harvard after being heavily recruited by every school in the Ivy League, grew up in the El Medio Bluffs and graduated as Corpus Christi’s first male recipient of the CYO’s Athlete of the Year Award.

Newsom Announces PCH Will Partially Reopen to Public in May

By
Sarah Shmerling
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A map showing the portion of the PCH that has been closed.
Courtesy of Google Maps

By SARAH SHMERLING | Editor-in-Chief

Governor Gavin Newsom announced Saturday, April 12, that Pacific Coast Highway will partially reopen to the public by the end of May.

The statement described an “all-hands-on-deck” effort to support businesses and tourism in the area by “expediting fire cleanup efforts” to reopen a portion of the highway between Malibu and Pacific Palisades that has been largely closed to public travel since the Palisades fire started on January 7.

“Following the reopening, one lane in each direction would be available for public travel,” according to the statement.

The highway is currently open between Chautauqua Boulevard in the Palisades and Carbon Beach Terrace in Malibu only to residents in the Palisades fire burn scar area, essential businesses and repair crews.

PCH reopened one lane in each direction at reduced speeds to the public on February 3 for the first time since the Palisades fire before closing again on February 4 at 3 p.m. ahead of storms in the area that week.

“We understand how essential this route is for daily life and local businesses,” Newsom said. “Reopening PCH is a top priority, and we are going all-in to get this done.”

The Governor’s Office of Emergency Services and Caltrans reported plans to work with United States Army Corps of Engineers—which is leading the government-run debris removal program—to prioritize the cleanup of parcels along PCH. This will be done by “surging additional crews into the area,” so that “these parcels can be cleared of debris quickly.”

“Once the highway is reopened, security checkpoints currently in place on the north and south ends of closure will be removed,” the statement continued, “but a robust law enforcement presence from state and local agencies will remain in place.”

Caltrans confirmed during a virtual town hall hosted by Mayor Karen Bass’ office on Tuesday evening, April 15, that the agency was working on creating a plan for the upcoming reopening. The plan is slated to include conditions similar to the temporary reopening in February, including traffic signals flashing red and a 25 MPH speed limit.

“Also keep in mind that work will be continuing,” Eric Menjivar said during the town hall on behalf of Caltrans. “You will still be seeing some crews out there. Our crews will be working along Pacific Coast Highway, repairing some … infrastructure that was damaged by the fire.”

Commissioner Lara to Host Virtual Insurance Claims Town Hall

By
Sarah Shmerling
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Courtesy of CA Department of Insurance

Obedoza With CA Department of Insurance Community Relations and Outreach Branch Presents on “Sustainable Insurance Strategies”

By SARAH SHMERLING | Editor-in-Chief

Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara will host a Los Angeles County Virtual Insurance Claims Town Hall on Tuesday, April 22, at 5 p.m.

“Join Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara and experts from the Department of Insurance for a Virtual Insurance Claims Town Hall,” read a flyer for the meeting. “This informative webinar will offer valuable insights into insurance policies, the claims process and the resources available to Californians.”

Those who would like to attend are invited to RSVP. Anyone with questions regarding insurance are invited to visit insurance.ca.gov or call 800-927-4357.

Rob Obedoza of the CA Department of Insurance Community Relations and Outreach Branch presented on “Sustainable Insurance Strategies” during Mayor Karen Bass’ most recent virtual town hall on the evening of Tuesday, April 15—noting there remains a “lot of questions” from homeowners about the insurance market in the aftermath of the Palisades and Eaton fires.

“We’ve heard a lot of concerns about … once [the] rebuild is complete … what is the insurance market going to look like and what insurance options are going to be available?” Obedoza said.

He explained that an insurance moratorium is in place for all homeowners in the affected areas as well as the adjacent zip codes, protecting residential policies from cancellation or non-renewal for one year (set to expire January 6, 2026). Homes that suffered a “total loss” are guaranteed two annual renewal periods, Obedoza said.

Obedoza also spoke on regulatory reforms, which were finalized in December 2024, including “insurer commitments to write more policies in wildfire-distressed areas,” “new climate risk management tools in ratemaking,” a “modernization of the California FAIR plan” and “improved rate application approval process.”

The presentation included proposed legislation, including The California Safe Homes Act, which “establishes a grant program for wildfire home mitigation,” and The Business Insurance Protection Act, which “expands [the] insurance moratorium to businesses, HOAs and nonprofits.”

Other legislation, Obedoza explained, includes the Eliminate “The List” Act, authored by Senator Ben Allen.

“This bill is been something that’s been discussed a lot in these town halls, as a lot of consumers are facing challenges from their insurance companies requiring them to provide an itemized list of all their lost belongings in order to collect their insurance benefits,” Obedoza explained. “The passing of this Senate Bill would eliminate that list and require insurance companies to pay out 100% of contents coverage without requiring that itemized list.”

Obedoza encouraged “everyone to register” for the upcoming insurance claims town hall, as they will be “addressing some of the issues that many … have been facing with … insurance companies so far.” They will also provide “guidance on the claims process going forward as the debris continues to clear and rebuilding proceeds.”

“We’ve been seeing a lot of issues that a lot of people have been facing with regards to smoke damage, remediation, living expenses and so forth,” Obedoza said. “As rebuilding continues, there’s going to be a whole host of issues, and we want to guide you through that process as well.”

Public Health Lifts Ocean Water Quality Advisory for Fire-Impacted Beaches

By
Lily Tinoco
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Beach Water Quality Testing as of Wednesday evening, April 16
Courtesy of Public Health

By LILY TINOCO | Assistant Editor

Los Angeles County Department of Public Health has lifted the Ocean Water Advisory due to fire impacts that was previously in place from Las Flores State Beach to Santa Monica State Beach.

The decision came after the LA Regional Water Quality Control Board released results from testing ocean water on January 22 and 27, February 6 and 18, and March 13, as well as sediment/beach sand testing from February 25 to 27.

“The ocean water and sediment/beach sand testing, which looked for metals, nutrients, polychlorinated biphenyls and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, which are chemicals that may be found in water runoff based on previous California wildfires, revealed no chemicals related to wildfires at levels that are dangerous to human health,” according to a statement.

Beachgoers may now enter the ocean water, but are advised to continue to be cautious of fire debris, and to avoid being on beaches on or near burned properties, “as the fire debris may contain harmful substances and physical hazards such as glass, metal and sharp wooden debris.”

“High tides may carry fire debris into the ocean, creating hazardous conditions,” Public Health reported. “In areas along the coast—particularly near burned or destroyed properties on the inland side of Pacific Coast Highway—debris from recent fires has not yet been fully cleaned up. As the tides rise, this debris can be swept into the water, posing a danger to those in or near the ocean.”

Those who wish to visit the beach are advised to follow Public Health’s Ocean Water Advisories, which are non-fire related. Beachgoers are cautioned to avoid entering ocean water when “quality exceeds state bacterial limits.”

At press time, an ocean water use warning was in effect as of April 16 for 100 yards up and down from the Santa Monica Pier, as well as Malibu Lagoon at Surfrider Beach—100 yards up and down the coast from the public restrooms.

“These warnings have been issued due to bacterial levels exceeding health standards when last tested,” according to Public Health.

Previous warnings had been lifted for Topanga Canyon Beach and Mothers Beach in Marina Del Rey.

Recorded information on beach conditions is available on the county’s beach closure hotline: 1-800- 525-5662. To view a map of impacted locations and for more information, visit publichealth.lacounty.gov/beach.

Pacific Palisades Recreation Center Park Advisory Board to Meet

By
Sarah Shmerling
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Palisades Recreation Center on Tuesday, April 15
Photo by Gina Kernan

By SARAH SHMERLING | Editor-in-Chief

The next meeting of the Pacific Palisades Recreation Center Park Advisory Board will take place on Tuesday evening, April 22, via Zoom beginning at 6:30 p.m.

The agenda for the meeting includes an update from Senior Facility Director Jasmine Dowlatshahi, an update on Los Angeles Department of Water & Power’s temporary use of the park facilities and plan for the agency’s exit from Recreation and Parks General Manager Jimmy Kim and LADWP representatives, as well as updates on “necessary remediation and repairs to park facilities,” which includes a “pathway to safety of park use as intended.”

RAP Superintendent Sonya Young Jimenez is also slated to provide an update on a department-approved playground and ADA restroom renovations. There is also time on the agenda for public comment.

The board typically meets quarterly throughout the year—with some special meetings when needed—but has been meeting monthly following the Palisades fire. The next regular meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, May 20, at 6:30 p.m.

County to Host Palisades Fire Community Listening Sessions

By
Lily Tinoco
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Photo courtesy of County of LA

By LILY TINOCO | Assistant Editor

Los Angeles County is hosting a series of three in-person community listening sessions for residents to share their experiences with Palisades fire emergency alerts and evacuations.

“The LA County Board of Supervisors—in a motion led by Supervisor Lindsey Horvath and Supervisor Kathryn Barger—recently commissioned an independent after-action review of alerts and evacuations for the recent LA fires,” read information sent by the county.

The sessions will be hosted by McChrystal Group—a third-party consultant retained by LA County.

“Insights captured in these sessions will help inform recommendations for improvements to emergency alert and evacuation procedures,” the statement read.

The next community listening session will take place Thursday, April 10, from 7 to 9 p.m. at Topanga Community Center, 1440 N Topanga Canyon Boulevard. The final session will take place on Tuesday, April 29, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Malibu Public Library, 23519 Civic Center Way. The first session took place at Santa Monica College on Monday, April 7.

To participate, register in advance here.

“The goal of these community listening sessions is to capture a wide variety of experiences and feedback to better understand the public’s experience with emergency alert and preparedness for wildfires,” the county said.

If residents are unable to attend, feedback can still be provided via a survey. For more information, email lac.aar.inquiries@mcchrystalgroup.com.

Restaurants Care Program Offers LA Fire Recovery Grants, Applications Now Open

By
Sarah Shmerling
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Courtesy of Restaurants Care

By SARAH SHMERLING | Editor-in-Chief

Applications for LA Fire Recovery Grants from the California Restaurant Foundation Restaurants Care Resilience Fund are open through Saturday April 26, for independent restaurants and food trucks affected by the Los Angeles fires.

“In response to the devastating wildfires that impacted Los Angeles County, this initiative is providing $10,000 grants to 242 independent restaurants, thanks to a $2.2 million lead donation from American Express, with additional support from FireAid, Resy and Postmates,” read information about the grants.

Independent restaurants or food trucks that serve food and beverages located within Los Angeles County and owned by a California resident with one to five locations are invited to apply. One location per business can apply, according to the terms and conditions, with annual revenue up to $5 million for that location.

In order to apply, restaurants or food trucks must have been open for at least one year prior to the start of the fires on January 7, and must currently be open or plan to reopen by July 1. They also need to “demonstrate a revenue decline due to the LA fires.”

Businesses ineligible to apply include meal prep companies, home-based food companies, nonprofits, catering companies, and hospital, school or homecare food service.

California Restaurant Foundation is a nonprofit “focused on investing and empowering California restaurants and their workforce.”

“Restaurants are the heart of LA’s neighborhoods—small businesses that employ thousands and enrich communities,” read the grant application website. “By supporting LA restaurants, we’re supporting the comeback of the city itself.”

Bud Petrick

By
the Palisadian-Post
-

Bud Petrick, a beloved father, grandfather and pillar of the Pacific Palisades community, passed away at the age of 91.

Bud was far more than a local businessman—he was a foundational presence in the town he proudly called home for decades. As the founder of Bud Petrick & Associates, a successful residential real estate firm, Bud helped countless families put down roots in the Palisades. But it was his character—his warmth, integrity and his steadfast commitment to others—that made him truly unforgettable.

A tireless community leader, Bud served in numerous civic roles that helped shape the Palisades. He was a longtime member and multiple-time president of the Optimist Club, where he championed youth programs and community initiatives. He also played a key role in organizing the town’s iconic Fourth of July celebrations through his leadership in the Palisades Americanism Parade Association (PAPA). Bud later served as president of the Palisades Chamber of Commerce, a distinction made even more special when his son, John, later held the same title—making them the only father-son pair to ever do so.

Bud lived a life of service, optimism and dedication—values he carried into everything he did, whether leading an organization, mentoring others or cheering on his grandchildren.

He is survived by his loving children—his son John, and his daughters Kimberly and Julie—as well as his cherished grandchildren: David, Delaney, Austin and Riya. To his family, Bud was a constant source of wisdom, pride and unwavering love.

A memorial service to celebrate Bud’s life will be held Friday, April 18, at 10 a.m. at Hillside Memorial Park, located at 6001 W. Centinela Avenue, Los Angeles. All who knew and loved Bud are warmly invited to attend and pay their respects.

Bud Petrick’s legacy will live on through the community he helped shape, the family he nurtured and the countless lives he touched with his generosity, humor and heart. He will be deeply missed and fondly remembered.

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