Saturday, April 26, 2014

Donald Sterling, Vanessa Stiviano, Rochelle Sterling, Magic Johnson, racism, racist

UPDATE: V Stiviano supposedly lost the trial court. I find it hard to believe. Shelly and Donald Sterling claim V Stiviano got her "black and mexican" friends at the bank to put her name on the deed without Donald Sterling's knowledge. I just looked at the deed. The person who signed it works for Donald Sterling and is middle eastern. There was no bank, just a grant deed. There's no reason for a bank as I see no current bank loan. Sterlings lied in court. I bet they used their connections, money, power to influence the Judge. I've seen a lot of this in Los Angeles.

I don't see the court order yet. It's not final for another 15 days. As far as I can tell Donald Sterling gave those gifts freely just like he has to many other women. Shelly's known this for years. She tried to sue another ex-friend in the past. The cars were in the name of Stiviano and even had personalized plates with her name on them. Everyone knew they were gifts to her.

Below is the last MLS listing before Donald bought the property for Stiviano. You should be able to see all the pics. I looked at all the deeds and see nothing fishy until February 2014. Sterlings are trying to change a prior transfer. They also filed a lis pendis on the property. I'm sure this case will be appealed. I think the attorney did a fine job. It just smells like corruption.

-
Mary Cummins
Cummins Appraisal Services
www.MaryCummins.com
(310) 877-4770


STATUS:  SoldADDRESS:  8437 W 4TH ST , LOS ANGELES 90048 SP:  $1,779,375
   
RESIDENTIAL INCOMEDOM/CDOM: 39/39AREA: (19) Beverly Center-Miracle MileMLS#: 13-714409LD: 10/24/2013
APN: 5511-033-009ADP: STYLE: MAP:  633/A1SP: 1,779,375
NUM UNITS: 2APX LSZ: 6,250/ASPOOL: NoCVD PKG: 3SD: 12/09/2013
SUB: APX SF: 3,748/ASAPX LDM: TRASH: NUM PKG: 4
YB: 1929GI: $0GRM: 0.00SCHED/ACT: ScheduledWATER: 
RC: GOI: $0CAP: TAXES: VAC: 100
CONST: AOE: INS: GRDN: MGMNT: 
NUM STO: 2ATE: $0.00ELEC: MAINT: POOL EXP: 
ZONE: LAR2NOI: $0GAS: MGR: ELEV: 
ASSED IMP VAL: $49,946ASSED TOT VAL: ASSED LND VAL: $56,581LT: ER

TypeNumber of UnitsBedroomsBathsFurnished(y/n)Revenue
Unit 1132.00No$0
Unit 2132.00No$0

DIRECTIONS: West of Orlando, South of 3rd st
REMARKS: Spanish revival with hints of Moorish architecture renovated, modernized and updated. Each unit is 3Br 2Ba.Sparkling wooden floors. Chef's kitchen with walnut colored cabinets, Island with breakfast bar, Caesar stone counters and stainless steel appliances. Great location near Beverly Hills,WeHo, Cedars and trendy 3rd.street restaurants.  Click here to community information: schools etc.  Click here to see the Walk Score

AIR: CentralHEAT: Central
ROOF: FIN: 
WATERFRONT: DISC: As Is
SEWER: TYPE: up and down
EQUIP: Built-Ins,Dishwasher,Gas Dryer Hookup,Range/Oven,RefrigeratorTENANT PAYS: 
OWNER PAYS: OCC/SHOW: 
SPA: SALE TYPE: Standard
LAND TYPE: 

LP: $1,995,000DOM: 39LD: 10/24/2013SP: $1,779,375SSP: BLOG Y/N: YesLP/SF: $532.28
OLP: $1,995,000CDOM: 39CD: 12/02/2013SD: 12/09/2013WD: AVM Y/N: YesSP/SF: $474.75

LA1: Rosalie KleinDRE: 01115025
PH: 323-935-8680CELL: 323-935-8680FAX: 310-777-7517
LO1: Engel & Volkers Beverly HillsPH: 3107777510 x 112
Email Rosalie Klein rflaster@pacbell.net Click here for Facebook
LA2: DRE: N/A
PH: CELL: FAX: 
LO2: PH: 

SA1: Rosalie KleinDRE: 01115025
PH: 323-935-8680CELL: 323-935-8680FAX: 310-777-7517
SO1: Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California PropertiesPH: 310-777-7800 x 112
Email Rosalie Klein rflaster@pacbell.net Click here for Facebook
SA2: DRE: N/A
PH: CELL: FAX: 
SO2: PH: 

CSO:  2.25%LT:  ERLBA:  BAC:  YesLS:  NoEO:  NoPROBATE:   

Broker/Agent does not guarantee the accuracy of the square footage, lot size or other information concerning the conditions or features of the property provided by the seller or obtained from Public Records or other sources. Buyer is advised to independently verify the accuracy of all information through personal inspection and with appropriate professionals. 

Case update: Here are recent filings. Lots of legal filings. 

11/26/2014NOTICE OF DISASSOCIATION OF COUNSEL OF RECORD FOR PLAINTIFF AND CROSSDEFENDANT ROCHELLE H. STERLING3$7.50
11/24/2014Minute Order1$7.50
11/20/2014ROCHELLE H. STERLING'S NOTICE OF MOTION AND MOTION FOR ATTORNEY'S FEES ON ANTI-SLAPP MOTION; MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES; DECLARATION OF CAROLINE S. HEINDEL IN SUPPORT THEREOF27$8.69
11/20/2014L.A. SPORTS PROPERTIES, INC. AND THE STERLING FAMILY TRUST'S NOTICE OF MOTION AND MOTION FOR ATTORNEY'S FEES ON ANTI-SLAPP MOTION; MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES; DECLARATION OF CAROLIN S. HEIND22$8.34
11/14/2014NOTICE OF RULING7$7.50
11/14/2014NOTICE OF RULING7$7.50
11/13/2014Minute Order1$7.50
11/13/2014#6 TENTATIVE RULING2$7.50
11/13/2014ORDER ON CROSS- DEFENDANTS L.A. SPORTS PROPERTIES, INC. AND THE STERLING FAMILY TRUST?S SPECIAL MOTION TO STRIKE CROSS. COMPLAINT PURSUANT TO CODE OF CIVIL PROCEDURE ?425.163$7.50
11/7/2014NOTICE OF WITHDRAWAL OF PLAINTIFF ROCHELLE H. STERLING?S MOTION FOR TERMINATING SANCTIONS, OR, IN THE ALTERNATIVE, EVIDENTIARY SANCTIONS, AND FOR MONETARY SANCTIONS IN THE AMOUNT OF $4,250 AGAINST DEF4$7.50
11/6/2014NOTICE OF CONTINUANCE OF HEARING ON PLAINTIFF ROCHELLE H. STERLING?S NOTICE OF MOTION AND MOTION FOR TERMINATING SANCTIONS, OR, IN THE ALTERNATIVE, EVIDENTIARY SANCTIONS, AND FOR MONETARY SANCTIONS IN4$7.50
11/5/2014CROSS-DEFENDANTS L.A. SPORTS PROPERTIES, INC. AND THE STERLING FAMILY TRUST?S OBJECTIONS TO V STIVIANO DECLARATION IN OPPOSITION TO SPECIAL MOTION TO STRIKE CROSS-COMPLAINT8$7.50
11/5/2014REPLY OF CROSS-DEFENDANTS L.A. SPORTS PROPERTIES, INC. AND THE STERLING FAMILY TRUST TO OPPOSITION TO SPECIAL MOTION TO STRIKE CROSS-COMPLAINT PURSUANT TO CCP ?425.16; ETC.20$8.20
11/5/2014STIPULATION AND ORDER CONTINUING HEARING ON PLAINTIFF ROCHELLE H. STERLING'S MOTION FOR TERMINATING SANCTIONS, ETC5$7.50
11/5/2014EVIDENTIARY OBJECTIONS OF THE STERLING FAMILY TRUST AND L.A. SPORTS PROPERTIES, INC. TO THE DECLARATION OF MAC E. NEHORAY8$7.50
11/4/2014Minute Order1$7.50
10/31/2014OPPOSITION TO CROSS DEFENDANTS? L.A. SPORTS PROPERTIES, INC., AND THE STERLING FMILY TRUST?S MOTION UNDER AND PURSUANT TO CCP ?425.16 (STRATEGIC LAWSUIT AGAINST PUBLIC PARTICIPATION)59$10.93
10/30/2014REQUEST FOR DISMISSAL1$7.50
10/30/2014NOTICE OF HEARING ON DEMURRER; DEMURRER TO CROSSCOMPLAINT; MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES9$7.50
10/30/2014CROSS-DEFENDANT L.A. SPORTS PROPERTIES, INC.'S ANSWER TO CROSS-COMPLAINT7$7.50
10/23/2014CIVIL DEPOSIT1$7.50
10/21/2014CROSS-DEFENDANTS L.A. SPORTS PROPERTIES, INC. AND THE STERLING FAMILY TRUST'S NOTICE OF MOTION AND SPECIAL MOTION TO STRIKE CROSS-COMPLAINT PURSUANT TO CODE OF CIVIL PROCEDURE ?425.1621$8.27
10/21/2014DECLARATION OF CAROLINE S. HEINDEL IN SUPPORT OF CROSS-DEFENDANTS L.A SPORTS PROPERTIES, INC. AND THE STERLING FAMILY TRUST'S SPECIAL MOTION TO STRIKE CROSS-COMPLAINT PURSUANT TO CODE OF CIVIL PROCEDU144$16.88
10/20/2014RULING ON SUBMITTED MOTION6$7.50
10/20/2014ORDER ON CROSS DEFENDANT ROCHELLE STERLING'S SPECIAL MOTION TO STRIKE CROSS COMPLAINT PURSUANT TO CODE OF CIVIL PROCEDURE ?425.164$7.50
10/20/2014Minute Order2$7.50
10/17/2014Minute Order1$7.50
10/17/2014ORDER APPOINTING COURT APPROVED REPORTER AS OFFICIAL REPORTER PRO TEMPORE1$7.50
10/14/2014Minute Order1$7.50
10/10/2014PLAINTIFF ROCHELLE H. STERLING'S NOTICE OF MOTION AND MOTION FOR TERMINATING SANCTIONS, OR, IN THE ALTERNATIVE, EVIDENTIARY SANCTIONS, AND FOR MONETARY SANCTIONS IN THE AMOUNT OF $4,250 AGAINST DEFEND102$13.94
10/9/2014CROSS-DEFENDANT ROCHELLE STERLING?S REPLY IN SUPPORT OF SPECIAL MOTION TO STRIKE CROSS-. COMPLAINT PURSUANT TO CODE OF CIVIL PROCEDURE ?425.16; DECLARATION OF CAROLINE S. HEINDEL16$7.92
10/9/2014CROSS-DEFENDANT ROCHELLE STERLING?S EVIDENTIARY OBJECTIONS TO DECLARATION OF V STIVIANO IN SUPPORT OF OPPOSITION TO SPECIAL MOTION TO STRIKE CROSS-COMPLAINT PURSUANT TO CODE OF CIVIL PROCEDURE ?425.168$7.50
10/3/2014OPPOSITION TO PLAINTIFF ROCHELLE STERLING?S MOTION UNDER AND PURSUANT TO CCP 425J6 (STRATEGIC LAWSUIT AGAINST PUBLIC PARTICIPATION)22$8.34
10/3/2014PROOF OF SERVICE SUMMONS3$7.50
10/2/2014Unknown6$7.50
10/2/2014Unknown1$7.50
9/29/2014CASE MANAGEMENT STATEMENT6$7.50
9/24/2014DECLARATION OF CAROLINE S. IIEINDEL IN SUPPORT OF CROSS-DEFENDANT ROCHELLE STERLING?S SPECIAL MOTION TO STRIKE CROSS-COMPLAINT PURSUANT TO CODE OF CIVIL PROCEDURE123$15.41
9/24/2014CROSS-DEFENDANT ROCHELLE STERLING?S NOTICE OF MOTION AND SPECIAL MOTION TO STRIKE CROSSCOMPLAINT PURSUANT TO CODE OF CIVIL PROCEDURE ?425.1623$8.41
9/11/2014COURT?S NOTICE OF CASE MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE3$7.50
9/8/2014NOTICE OF CASE MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE1$7.50
8/28/2014NOTICE OF RULING8$7.50
8/28/2014TENTATIVE RULINGS2$7.50
8/28/2014Minute Order1$7.50
8/27/2014NOTICE OF ASSOCIATION OF COUNSEL3$7.50
8/21/2014NOTICE OF CONTINUANCE OF PLAINTIFF?S NOTICE OF MOTION AND MOTION FOR ORDER COMPELLING DEFENDANT TO ANSWER PLAINTIFF?S FIRST SET OF SPECIAL INTERROGATORIES AND ETC4$7.50
8/21/2014CROSS-COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES7$7.50
8/21/2014ANSWER TO COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES4$7.50
8/21/2014SUMMONS CROSS-COMPLAINT2$7.50
8/18/2014PLAINTIFF?S SURREPLY BRIEF IN SUPPORT OF HER MOTION FOR ORDER COMPELLING DEFENDANT TO ANSWER PLAINTIFF?S FIRST SET OF SPECIAL INTERROGATORIES AND SECOND DEMAND FOR PRODUCTION OF DOCUMENTS; SURREPLY DE9$7.50
8/18/2014NOTICE RE: CONTINUANCE OF HEARING1$7.50
8/18/2014NOTICE RE: CONTINUANCE OF HEARING1$7.50
8/15/2014PLAINTIFF?S REPLY BRIEF IN SUPPORT OF HER MOTION FOR ORDER COMPELLING DEFENDANT TO ANSWER PLAINTIFF?S FIRST SET OF SPECIAL INTERROGATORIES AND SECOND DEMAND FOR PRODUCTION OF DOCUMENTS; REPLY DECLARAT8$7.50
8/15/2014DEFENDANT V STIVIANO?S OPPOSITION TO PLAINTIFF?S NOTICE OF MOTION TO COMPEL RESPONSES TO FIRST SET SPECIALINTERROGATORIES AND SECOND DEMAND FOR PRODUCTION; OPPOSITION TO REQEUST FOR SANCTIONS23$8.41
7/31/2014#5 RULINGS4$7.50
7/31/2014Minute Order1$7.50
7/31/2014NOTICE OF RULING10$7.50
7/30/2014MEDIA REQUEST TO PHOTOGRAPH, RECORD, OR BROADCAST1$7.50
7/30/2014ORDER ON MEDIA REQUEST TO PERMIT COVERAGE2$7.50
7/30/2014ORDER ON MEDIA REQUEST TO PERMIT COVERAGE2$7.50
7/30/2014MEDIA REQUEST TO PHOTOGRAPH, RECORD OR BROADCAST1$7.50
7/24/2014NOTICE OF MOTION AND MOTION FOR ORDER COMPELLING DEFENDANT TO ANSWER PLAINTIFF?S FIRST SET OF SPECIAL INTERROGATORIES AND SECOND DEMAND FOR PRODUCTION OF DOCUMENTS; ETC34$9.18
7/24/2014PLAINTIFF?S REPLY BRIEF IN SUPPORT OF MOTION FOR ORDER COMPELLING DEFENDANT TO FURTHER RESPOND TO FIRST DEMAND FOR PRODUCTION OF DOCUMENTS AND TO PRODUCE ALL RESPONSIVE DOCUMENTS; ETC31$8.97
7/21/2014DEFENDANT V STIVIANO?S MEMORANDUM/BRIEF REGARDING MOST APPROPRIATE PLACE FOR HEARING OF DEMURRER AND ALL SUBSEQUENT PROCEEDINGS, INCLUDING TRIAL; ETC6$7.50
7/21/2014PLAINTIFF?S BRIEF REGARDING TRANSFER OF THE ACTION5$7.50
7/18/2014DEFENDANT V STIVIANO?S OPPOSITION TO PLAINTIFFS NOTICE OF MOTION TO COMPEL PRODUCTION ACCOMPANIED BY MOTION STRIKE9$7.50
7/8/2014Minute Order1$7.50
7/7/2014MED1A REQUEST TO PHOTOGRAPN, RECORD. OR BROADCAST1$7.50
7/7/2014ORDER ON MEDIA REQUEST TO PERMIT COVERAGE2$7.50
7/7/2014NOTICE OF ERRATA TO PLAINTIFF?S MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN OPPOSITION TO DEFENDANT V STIVIANO?S GENERAL AND SPECIAL DEMURRERS TO COMPLAINT3$7.50
7/1/2014DEFENDANT?S REPLY T0 PLAINTIFF?S OPPOSITION TO DEMURRER TO PLAINTIFF?S COMPLAINT; MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT THEREOF7$7.50
6/30/2014PLAINTIFF'S SEPARATE STATEMENT OF DISCOVERY IN DISPUTE FILED IN SUPPORT OF PLAINTIFF?S MOTION TO COMPEL FURTHER RESPONSES TO PLAINTIFFS FIRST DEMAND FOR PRODUCTION OF DOCUMENTS SET NO. ONE26$8.62
6/30/2014NOTICE OF MOTION AND MOTION FOR ORDER COMPELLING DEFENDANT TO FURTHER RESPOND TO FIRST DEMAND FOR PRODUCTION OF DOCUMENTS AND TO PRODUCE ALL RESPONSIVE DOCUMENTS; ETC.51$10.37
6/24/2014PLAINTIFF?S MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN OPPOSITION TO DEFENDANT V STIVIANO?S GENERAL AND SPECIAL DEMURRERS TO COMPLAINT21$8.27
6/11/2014ORDER ON MEDIA REQUEST TO PERMIT COVERAGE2$7.50
6/11/2014MEDIA REQUEST TO PHOTOGRAPH RECORD, OR BROADCAST1$7.50
4/21/2014DEFENDANT V STIVIANO?S NOTICE OF DEMURRERS AND DEMURRERS TO PLAINTIFF?S COMPLAINT; MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT THEREOF18$8.06
4/3/2014NOTICE OF FILING OF NOTICE OF PENDENCY OF ACTION14$7.78
3/14/2014PROOF OF SERVICE SUMMONS2$7.50
3/7/2014SUMMONS1$7.50
3/7/2014VERIFIED COMPLAINT FOR: (1) SET ASIDE OF COMMUNITY PROPERTY WITHOUT SPOUSAL CONSENT; ETC27$8.69

UPDATE: Donald Sterling permanently banned from the NBA and fined $2.5M. I support their decision. This should have been done long ago.

V Stiviano, Vanessa Stiviano, Donald Sterling, Clippers, racist, racism, bigot
V Stiviano, Vanessa Stiviano, Donald Sterling, Clippers, racist, racism, bigot

By now most people have heard the racist rant by Donald Sterling to his then girlfriend V Stiviano aka Vanessa Stiviano, aka Maria Vanessa Perez aka V Stiviano Inc. Her real name is Maria Vanessa Perez born October 21, 1982. She legally changed her name in 2010 to V Stiviano. I pulled up the documents but will not post them. She is 31 years old and has been involved in a few lawsuits, DUI and possibly a divorce with a minor child. Her mother's maiden name is Perez.

I've met Donald Sterling quite a few times in the last 30 years at real estate events here in Los Angeles, Beverly Hills, California. That sounds like his voice and what he says. He is creepy, disgusting, cheap, egomaniac, racist and will try to rip you off in a business deal. This I know personally.

Everyone in real estate knows he's racist against African Americans and Mexicans besides poor people. The Korean thing was new to me. Previously he said he was fine with "Asian" tenants. I hadn't worked with his people since the 1980's so I think the "no Koreans" is newer. His people would constantly ask me for buildings for him to buy but he didn't want any in "certain" areas if you know what I mean. I was going to give him two of my pocket listings on Wilshire then someone told me he's a total shark who'll try to take every single penny in the deal so I sold them to someone else. Here is the original TMZ audio.

http://www.tmz.com/2014/04/26/donald-sterling-clippers-owner-black-people-racist-audio-magic-johnson/

Below is Donald Sterling's "official" reply to this mess. This is just spin and damage control most likely from Rochelle Sterling, Donald's wife through their rep. Stiviano's reply clearly states Donald is not a party to the action. The demurrer filed by Stiviano farther below is fantastic!

"Donald Sterling has come out swinging, with the Clippers organization right behind him ... saying he and his team don't know if the audio TMZ Sports released is legit ... but he says it does NOT reflect his views toward African Americans.

Sterling and the Clippers organization tell TMZ Sports, "We have heard the tape on TMZ.  We do not know if it is legitimate or it has been altered."

The statement goes on ... We do know that the woman on the tape -- who we believe released it to TMZ -- is the defendant in a lawsuit brought by the Sterling family, alleging that she embezzled more than $1.8 million, who told Mr. Sterling that she would 'get even.'"

And the statement goes on, "Mr. Sterling is emphatic that what is reflected on that recording is not consistent with, nor does it reflect his views, beliefs or feelings. It is the antithesis of who he is, what he believes and how he has lived his life."

And there's this: "He feels terrible that such sentiments are being attributed to him and apologizes to anyone who might have been hurt by them.""

Below is the lawsuit which only Rochelle Sterling filed against V Stiviano. The Sterling family, Donald Sterling did not file this lawsuit. It was filed March 7, 2014. The audio was made April 9, 2014 AFTER the lawsuit was filed. Donald Sterling and V Stiviano were still boyfriend and girlfriend at this time. The audio was released April 25, 2014. Rochelle claims that Donald gave Stiviano community funds because they are still married. Donald has had girlfriends and has been giving them expensive gifts for years. Just because they are still legally married doesn't mean he can't spend his money as he likes. We're talking about pennies in relation to his overall wealth. I think it was the duplex that really pissed off Rochelle or maybe the fact that Donald is dating an African American Mexican.

Everyone knows that Sterling and his wife have been separated for years. The lawsuit states that Donald Sterling and Stiviano were dating at the time only the wife filed the lawsuit. Rochelle claims Stiviano is a gold digger. No duh. Rochelle states Stiviano induced Donald into giving her a $1.8M duplex 8837 W 4th St, Los Angeles, CA 90048, $240K cash, two Bentleys, a Range Rover and a Ferrari. All cars were worth about $500K. Rochelle never says embezzled. She says Donald gave her the items.

http://www.mary.cc/vanessa_stiviano_lawsuit.pdf

V Stiviano, Vanessa Stiviano, Donald Sterling, Rochelle Sterling, racist, racism, bigot
V Stiviano, Vanessa Stiviano, Donald Sterling, Rochelle Sterling, racist, racism, bigot

Stiviano filed a demurrer April 21, 2014. I just pulled it up and it proves everything I just said. It's below. In my opinion Rochelle doesn't have a case. Donald knowingly gave gifts to Stiviano. Wife knew all about it for four years. Donald has been doing this openly for almost 50 years, their entire marriage. I'd see him at events with young women and people would tell me he was still married to Shelly. Shelly obviously accepted this because he is so in your face with it. Shelly states that Stiviano has a history of doing this to old men. I don't see this history. I do see that she filed legal documents in forma pauperis, i.e. she claimed she is broke. She did this with her name change. She worked as a volunteer in the DA office at the time.

http://www.mary.cc/stiviano_demurrer.pdf

Donald Sterling, V Stiviano, Rochelle Sterling, Clippers, Magic Johnson, racist
Donald Sterling, V Stiviano, Rochelle Sterling, Clippers, Magic Johnson, racist
Some juicy bits from V Stiviano's demurrer. It gets even juicier near the end. You can read the pdf or the text here.

"Plaintiff's "husband" is the exquisitely involved "on top of his game" infamous real estate mogul, professional basketball team, the Los Angeles Clippers, owner who, in accord with the verified complaint of Mrs. Sterling…is alleged to have transferred voluntary gifts to Stiviano over four years. It is axiomatic that Mrs Sterling is not even hinting that her billionaire philandering husband had performed any clandestine acts behind her, as it is alleged that Mr Sterling was making gifts to V Stiviano since 2010. Mr Sterling who is infamous for his gold plated dalliances. At no time did Rochelle state "the exceptionally successful and business brilliant Donald T. Sterlng was duped, taken advantage of, cajoled or in any manner or fashion, outsmarted. Nowhere in the complaint is it alleged that defendant so acted nor that the feminine wiles of Ms Stiviano overpowered the iron will of Donald T. Sterling who is well known as one of the most shrewd businessmen in the world."

"Instead of chastising her philandering husband, let alone curtailing his carousing, Mrs Sterling seeks to punish the defendant who has done nothing wrong. Lawsuit and claims are in the theater of the absurd."

"This is an action brought by a very angry wife whose husband is a highly public figure and who is well known to be "keeping women" other than his wife and who has done so for very many years with a big toothy grin brandishing his sexual prowess in the faces of the Pararazzi and caring less what anyone else thought, the least of which, his own wife.

Donald T. Sterling, curiously not a party in this action, has flaunted that grotesque lifestyle in front of and in his wife's face for nearly their entire marriage of 50 years. The person least fooled and least affected  and least "robbed of her due" is Mrs. Rochelle H. Sterling.

At a minimum, she has been complicit for over 50 years and, here, particularly, has "looked the other way" if not put hands over her mouth, covered her eyes and attempted to cover her ears. Further, this is not the "first rodeo" as the expression goes. Mr. sterling has been very publicly involved with numerous women time and time again, whether for a particularly short "contracted" period of time, or a near four (4) year relationship as is the alleged case in this matter. It is clear from past conduct, that Mrs. Sterling has at a minimum, either "enabled" Mr. Donald T. Sterling to do, over and over again what he does, or that she approved of the varied and many gifts as described in the complaint.

The "relationship" (whatever it may have been or not been) between Mr. Donald T Sterling and Ms. V Stiviano was open, notorious, obvious and long standing. Ms Stiviano attended hundreds of events, participated in myriad charity functions sponsored by Mr Sterling and was a veritable "fixture" at his business offices over the last four years. Mrs Sterling absolutely tacitly if not openly approved of the relationship and the gifts."

I'm sure this is going to be messy. Donald Sterling is a racist and everyone knows it. What he said about Magic Johnson was really horrible. I thought they were friends. They give success seminars together. Magic is a really nice guy. I don't blame him for feeling betrayed. Magic has done so much for the community and children. He is a true philanthropist. I knew him as he used to go to my gym and I'd see him at all the parties.

Donald Sterling, V Stiviano, Rochelle Sterling, Clippers, Magic Johnson, racist
Donald Sterling, Rochelle Sterling, V Stiviano, racist

I just realized that Donald Sterling still has an active law license. I just filed a complaint, request for investigation and demanded that they disbar Donald Sterling. Below is a jpg of the first page. The second page was just my name. Donald Sterling has been licensed since 1961.
Donald Sterling, disbar, California Bar Association, complaint
I just pulled up the Donald T Sterling Foundation which is a private charity. He took out an ad and claimed he gave $5,000,000 in 2011. He gave $350K in $5K and $10K increments to schools, Jewish centers, Hispanic centers and African American charities. Here is his 990.

http://www.guidestar.org/FinDocuments/2011/208/731/2011-208731101-0837f0d8-F.pdf

Here's the ad he took out saying he gave $5,000,000

Donald Sterling Foundation lies about donations, scam, con
He also claims to have bought a building in downtown LA to build a $50M homeless center. Never happened.
Donald Tokowitz Sterling birth certificate in Illinois April 26, 1934

Donald S Tokowitz and Rochelle H Stein marriage certificate, married August 21, 1955 in Los Angeles, California

Maria Vanessa Perez birth certificate, V Stiviano born October 21, 1982 in Los Angeles, California. Mother's maiden name is Perez.

Mary Cummins of Animal Advocates is a wildlife rehabilitator licensed by the California Department of Fish and Game. Mary Cummins is also a licensed real estate appraiser in Los Angeles, California.

Mary Cummins, Mary K. Cummins, Mary Katherine Cummins, Mary Cummins-Cobb, Mary, Cummins, Cobb, real estate, appraiser, appraisal, instructor, teacher, Los Angeles, Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, Pasadena, Brentwood, Bel Air, California, licensed, permitted, single family, condo, pud, hud, fannie mae, freddie mac, uspap, certified, residential, certified resident, apartment building, multi-family, commercial, industrial, expert witness, civil, criminal, orea, dre, insurance, bonded, experienced, bilingual, spanish, english, form, 1004, 2055, land, raw, acreage, vacant, insurance, cost, income approach, market analysis, comparative, theory, appraisal theory, cost approach, sales, matched pairs, plot, plat, map, diagram, photo, photographs, photography, rear, front, street, subject, comparable, sold, listed, active, pending, expired, cancelled, listing, mls, multiple listing service, claw, themls,

Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Downtown LA has worst pollution, Mary Cummins, Real Estate Appraiser, Animal Advocates

Los Angeles, pollution, downtown, Mary Cummins, Animal Advocates
LA Times has a good article on pollution in Los Angeles. (I made a snap shot of downtown LA only in the map above. Links to full maps below.) I wrote an article few years back about pollution in downtown Los Angeles in the newer loft areas such as South Park, Business District, Jewelry District, Art District, China Town, Fashion District. You have the worst diesel particulate matter next to freeways. Downtown LA is in the middle of 110, 10, 5, 101 and 710 freeways. Downtown LA has the flower, produce, clothing, toy, pinata, kitchen accessory, fish marts so there are many trucks on the streets polluting the air while they make deliveries.

The City has been promoting downtown LA as a place to "live and work." Most of the projects that got subsidies or were given density bumps are all located right next to the freeways. These projects are heavily polluted. They don't have screens on the windows because they know no one will ever open them. If you open your window in downtown LA, your entire place will be covered in black soot within a day.

Not only is there particulate matter pollution but there is also sound pollution from the freeways, Metro and sports arenas. They try to mitigate the sounds with fountains but they don't help. The ones built on the Metro route are extremely loud. One in particular is 1130 S. Flower.

The city gave developers incentives to build in these polluted, dense, crime ridden areas to help the local economy. This is really the worst place for someone to live with the pollution and crime. I lived there for a year then moved. The pollution made my cat's eyes and nose run.

The developers lured buyers and renters by saying it's a safe place to walk to work, walk to the store, walk to Starbucks. The lofts were cheaper than West LA condos. These were soft lofts which are missing walls and ceilings with exposed plumbing. They were supposed to be arty cool. Instead they were just poorly made units with no bathroom, stove or dryer vents, few walls, no floorings. The developers skimped on the projects to optimize profits.

Some people did move into the units. This has caused car theft and robberies to explode. Before there were just sweat shops and run down apartments for very poor people. There was no one and nothing to rob. Now there is. While the City did up security and police in the area there is still high crime.

The City allowed the developers to build the bare minimum units with smallest parking spots, fewest parking spots per "bedroom," narrowest driveways, highest density of units per ground space... City allowed them to convert industrial, commercial buildings and zones to residential units or business/residential units. They did not make them upgrade plumbing from industrial use to residential use. These things have caused so many problems in the lofts from the last loft boom. I advise people to steer clear of these units. If you really want to buy one, get one that has been upgraded. Caveat emptor indeed.

http://www.latimes.com/science/la-me-0423-pollution-neighborhoods-20140423,0,1487851.story#axzz2zjPw0NgZ

http://graphics.latimes.com/responsivemap-pollution-burdens/

Mary Cummins of Animal Advocates is a wildlife rehabilitator licensed by the California Department of Fish and Game. Mary Cummins is also a licensed real estate appraiser in Los Angeles, California.

Mary Cummins, Mary K. Cummins, Mary Katherine Cummins, Mary Cummins-Cobb, Mary, Cummins, Cobb, real estate, appraiser, appraisal, instructor, teacher, Los Angeles, Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, Pasadena, Brentwood, Bel Air, California, licensed, permitted, single family, condo, pud, hud, fannie mae, freddie mac, uspap, certified, residential, certified resident, apartment building, multi-family, commercial, industrial, expert witness, civil, criminal, orea, dre, insurance, bonded, experienced, bilingual, spanish, english, form, 1004, 2055, land, raw, acreage, vacant, insurance, cost, income approach, market analysis, comparative, theory, appraisal theory, cost approach, sales, matched pairs, plot, plat, map, diagram, photo, photographs, photography, rear, front, street, subject, comparable, sold, listed, active, pending, expired, cancelled, listing, mls, multiple listing service, claw, themls,

Sunday, April 6, 2014

Mary Cummins receives award from City and Mayor of Beverly Hills. Real estate appraiser, Animal Advocates

Mary Cummins of Cummins Real Estate Appraisals receives an award from the City of Beverly Hills, California. Mary Cummins received this award May 28, 1981 at the Eighth Annual Recognition Breakfast for Youth in the Community Service. The award is from Donna Ellman-Garber then Mayor of the City of Beverly Hills and Charles Bolla the President of the Beverly Hills Chamber of Commerce and Civic Association. I did so much volunteer and other work in high school that I don't remember which program this was from.

Mary Cummins, award, Beverly Hills Mayor, Beverly Hills Chamber of Commerce

Mary Cummins of Animal Advocates is a wildlife rehabilitator licensed by the California Department of Fish and Game. Mary Cummins is also a licensed real estate appraiser in Los Angeles, California.

Mary Cummins, Mary K. Cummins, Mary Katherine Cummins, Mary Cummins-Cobb, Mary, Cummins, Cobb, real estate, appraiser, appraisal, instructor, teacher, Los Angeles, Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, Pasadena, Brentwood, Bel Air, California, licensed, permitted, single family, condo, pud, hud, fannie mae, freddie mac, uspap, certified, residential, certified resident, apartment building, multi-family, commercial, industrial, expert witness, civil, criminal, orea, dre, insurance, bonded, experienced, bilingual, spanish, english, form, 1004, 2055, land, raw, acreage, vacant, insurance, cost, income approach, market analysis, comparative, theory, appraisal theory, cost approach, sales, matched pairs, plot, plat, map, diagram, photo, photographs, photography, rear, front, street, subject, comparable, sold, listed, active, pending, expired, cancelled, listing, mls, multiple listing service, claw, themls,

Mary Cummins, Hollywood Park, Willy Shoemaker, makinanhonestbuck winner, horse racing

Many years ago I went to the track on Friday and Saturday nights. We'd all sit at RD Hubbard the owner's table. I never gambled. I later realized that horse racing is actually cruel. I no longer go.

RD Hubbard, Mary Cummins, Willy Shoemaker, Makinanhonestbuck,  Hollywood Park
This is "The Mr. Prime Minister, $55,000 added purse. Horse is "Makinganhonestbuck" Breeder Joanne H Nor fromKentucky. Owned by Eclipse Stable and Papiano, Trained by William "Willy" Shoemaker, 5 1/2 furlons on turk in 1;05.2 Royalty 3rd, December 16, 1994.

I actually remember this time at the track. My birthday is December 17. After the race we went to the sport bar next door which had horse betting from around the world. You could bet on any race in any country from here. When it was midnight RD said "Happy Birthday, Mary!" Then he gave me a winning ticket on a horse race in Japan I think. I said "thanks!" without looking at it. The ticket was worth $1,400!

Mary Cummins of Animal Advocates is a wildlife rehabilitator licensed by the California Department of Fish and Game. Mary Cummins is also a licensed real estate appraiser in Los Angeles, California.

Mary Cummins, Mary K. Cummins, Mary Katherine Cummins, Mary Cummins-Cobb, Mary, Cummins, Cobb, real estate, appraiser, appraisal, instructor, teacher, Los Angeles, Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, Pasadena, Brentwood, Bel Air, California, licensed, permitted, single family, condo, pud, hud, fannie mae, freddie mac, uspap, certified, residential, certified resident, apartment building, multi-family, commercial, industrial, expert witness, civil, criminal, orea, dre, insurance, bonded, experienced, bilingual, spanish, english, form, 1004, 2055, land, raw, acreage, vacant, insurance, cost, income approach, market analysis, comparative, theory, appraisal theory, cost approach, sales, matched pairs, plot, plat, map, diagram, photo, photographs, photography, rear, front, street, subject, comparable, sold, listed, active, pending, expired, cancelled, listing, mls, multiple listing service, claw, themls,

Saturday, April 5, 2014

Mary Cummins 2007 Acura LA Bike Tour, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa

Mary Cummins was at the 2007 Acura LA Bike Tour. Event was endorsed by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, Kondo of American Honda and William Burke President of the Los Angeles Marathon.

Mary Cummins, 2007 Acura LA Bike Tour, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa

Mary Cummins of Animal Advocates is a wildlife rehabilitator licensed by the California Department of Fish and Game. Mary Cummins is also a licensed real estate appraiser in Los Angeles, California.

Mary Cummins, Mary K. Cummins, Mary Katherine Cummins, Mary Cummins-Cobb, Mary, Cummins, Cobb, real estate, appraiser, appraisal, instructor, teacher, Los Angeles, Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, Pasadena, Brentwood, Bel Air, California, licensed, permitted, single family, condo, pud, hud, fannie mae, freddie mac, uspap, certified, residential, certified resident, apartment building, multi-family, commercial, industrial, expert witness, civil, criminal, orea, dre, insurance, bonded, experienced, bilingual, spanish, english, form, 1004, 2055, land, raw, acreage, vacant, insurance, cost, income approach, market analysis, comparative, theory, appraisal theory, cost approach, sales, matched pairs, plot, plat, map, diagram, photo, photographs, photography, rear, front, street, subject, comparable, sold, listed, active, pending, expired, cancelled, listing, mls, multiple listing service, claw, themls,

Wednesday, April 2, 2014

Fleur de Lys 350 N Carolwood, Los Angeles, CA 90077 sells for $102,000,000. Mary Cummins, real estate appraiser Los Angeles


UPDATE: It actually sold for $88M. Fleur de Lys at 350 N Carolwood, Los Angeles, CA 90077 just sold for all cash for $102,000,000. This home is 1/4 mile from my house but couldn't be more different. Here are some photos from the 2007, 2011 and 2014 listings. Obviously buyers needed to pre-qualify just to look at the home.

The 50,000 sf home was sold by socialite Suzanne Saperstein who built it in 2002 with her then husband, Metro Networks founder David Saperstein. They divorced three years after work was finished, and she first listed property in 2007 just as the Great Recession took hold. It was relisted, expired then relisted just now and sold in four days. The market has changed dramatically.

12 bedrooms, 15 baths on rare flat 4.6 acres in prime Platinum Triangle. The Platinum Triangle consists of very large, luxury homes on large lots above Sunset in Holmby Hills, Bel-Air and Beverly Hills. This area has the most expensive homes in the area for this reason. They are much more expensive than Beverly Hills. It's listed as Beverly Crest but it's too low on the hill to actually be Beverly Crest. Beverly Crest was the name of a development on Mulholland near Coldwater Canyon in Beverly Hills 90210 post office. As a real estate appraiser, broker for over 30 years there are many little niche areas in this area because of the topography, view, lot size and zoning.

Mary Cummins, Real Estate Appraiser, Los Angeles, California, 350 N Carolwood, Fleur de Lys, $102,000,000


Below is the only photo shown on the MLS. You need to prequalify to see the other photos. I have posted them here. The sale included furniture.
Mary Cummins, Real Estate Appraiser, Los Angeles, California, 350 N Carolwood, Fleur de Lys, $102,000,000


Mary Cummins, Real Estate Appraiser, Los Angeles, California, 350 N Carolwood, Fleur de Lys, $102,000,000

Mary Cummins, Real Estate Appraiser, Los Angeles, California, 350 N Carolwood, Fleur de Lys, $102,000,000

Mary Cummins, Real Estate Appraiser, Los Angeles, California, 350 N Carolwood, Fleur de Lys, $102,000,000

Mary Cummins, Real Estate Appraiser, Los Angeles, California, 350 N Carolwood, Fleur de Lys, $102,000,000

Mary Cummins, Real Estate Appraiser, Los Angeles, California, 350 N Carolwood, Fleur de Lys, $102,000,000
Below is the summary of the MLS listing as a jpg.

Mary Cummins, Real Estate Appraiser, Los Angeles,  California, 350 N Carolwood, 90077, $102,000,000
Mary Cummins, Real Estate Appraiser, Los Angeles, California, 350 N Carolwood, Fleur de Lys, $102,000,000

"Fleur de Lys on L.A.’s Westside has changed hands for $102 million, making it the highest-priced home sale ever recorded in L.A. County. Three billionaires engaged in a bidding war for the nearly five-acre trophy estate, the winner closing in 10 days in an all-cash deal that included antique furnishings.

The 50,000-square-foot residence was sold by socialite Suzanne Saperstein, who had the mansion custom built in 2002 with her then husband, Metro Networks founder David Saperstein. They divorced three years after work was finished, and she first listed property in 2007 just as the Great Recession was taking hold.

The buyer of Fleur de Lys was initially identified as a French billionaire, but a copy of the grant deed obtained by The Times shows the taxes will be mailed to Milken Institute in Santa Monica. The nonpartisan think tank is chaired by businessman, philanthropist and onetime “junk bond king” Michael Milken.

The taxes go to the law firm of Maron & Sandler also located at the Milken Institute. Richard Sandler has represented Milken in the past. A representative for Milken denied that Milken or the Milken Institute purchased the property, which was taken in the name of a limited liability company.

The sale does not top the U.S. record set last year when a mansion on nine acres in the Northern California community of Woodside went for $117.5 million. That deal's buyer and seller were business partners and may have included other considerations.

The transaction does beats the long-held local record established in 2000 when Dole Food Co. billionaire David Murdock sold a Bel-Air property to financial executive Gary Winnick in a $94-million deal that involved a parcel of land in trade.

This affluent Westside stretch of Holmby Hills, Bel-Air and Beverly Hills known as the Platinum Triangle for its wealth and top-dollar estate properties was ripe for a home sale of such magnitude.
The ranks of the ultra-wealthy continue to grow, and L.A. prices seems like bargains compared with other major cities -- particularly to foreign buyers, real estate experts say. And there are only so many mega-estates to choose from.

“This is a very thin market, in a similar vein to an art market,” said economist Gary Painter, director of research for USC’s Lusk Center for Real Estate. “There’s only one of that type.”

Kurt Rappaport of Westside Estate Agency, who represented Saperstein in the sale, echoed that sentiment. “This is one of the greatest estates in Los Angeles, if not the country.”

Completed in 2002, the compound stretching between Carolwood and Angelo drives was years in the making. Purchases of the adjacent parcels that make up the estate took five years and an additional six years were spent in various stages of construction, from groundbreaking to fruition.

Wrought-iron gates open to a 600-foot-long tree-lined driveway that leads to a cobblestone courtyard in front of the house. Just inside the front door is a marbled-floored two-story entry hall topped by a gold-leaf paneled ceiling. A pair of staircases lead upstairs, and a doorway flanked by columns looks out to the back yard and gardens.

Inspired by Vaux-le-Vicomte, a palace outside Paris, the mansion has also been likened to miniature Versailles surrounded by formal gardens, mature trees and a soccer-field size expanse of lawn. The 4.6 acres of grounds include two motor courts, a swimming pool and spa complex and a tennis court.
Imported limestone blocks enclose a massive steel frame, set on rollers in the foundation, to safeguard the structure in an earthquake. Interior spaces include a ballroom for parties of 500, a two-story wood paneled library, a movie theater, a music room, a dozen bedrooms and 15 bathrooms.

Services spaces include a commercial kitchen, a room for the cutlery and dishes, a butler’s pantry, a staff dining room, staff offices and a security center.

The 3,000-square-foot wine cellar and tasting room is larger than most American houses, as is the manager’s house.

Those who have never stepped foot in the palatial estate may have had an unknowing glimpse on television or at the movies. Parts of it were used for the ABC drama “Big Shots” (2007-08), Audi commercials during the 2008 Super Bowl, and the 2011 film “The Green Hornet.”

Others were able to purchase a piece of the estate two years ago when Sotheby’s auctioned some of Saperstein’s antique furniture. The more than $8 million in sales was topped by a 21-light German chandelier from the 1700s that brought about $602,500.

Although the neighborhood containing Fleur de Lys is generally accepted as Holmby Hills, the L.A. Times Mapping Database considers it to be Beverly Crest.

Fred Bernstein of Westside Estate Agency represented the buyer, who beat out billionaires from England and China."

http://www.latimes.com/business/money/la-fi-mo-fleur-de-lys-20140331,0,7233094.story#ixzz2xkb95Ben


Mary Cummins of Animal Advocates is a wildlife rehabilitator licensed by the California Department of Fish and Game. Mary Cummins is also a licensed real estate appraiser in Los Angeles, California.

Mary Cummins, Mary K. Cummins, Mary Katherine Cummins, Mary Cummins-Cobb, Mary, Cummins, Cobb, real estate, appraiser, appraisal, instructor, teacher, Los Angeles, Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, Pasadena, Brentwood, Bel Air, California, licensed, permitted, single family, condo, pud, hud, fannie mae, freddie mac, uspap, certified, residential, certified resident, apartment building, multi-family, commercial, industrial, expert witness, civil, criminal, orea, dre, insurance, bonded, experienced, bilingual, spanish, english, form, 1004, 2055, land, raw, acreage, vacant, insurance, cost, income approach, market analysis, comparative, theory, appraisal theory, cost approach, sales, matched pairs, plot, plat, map, diagram, photo, photographs, photography, rear, front, street, subject, comparable, sold, listed, active, pending, expired, cancelled, listing, mls, multiple listing service, claw, themls,

Saturday, March 22, 2014

100th Anniversary of the City of Beverly Hills - Mary Cummins, Animal Advocates

Beverly Hills City Hall, Mary Cummins, Real Estate Appraiser

My family lived in Beverly Hills, California. I grew up going to Beverly Hills Catholic School now called Good Shepherd Catholic School on Linden and Charleville. We attended Good Shepherd Catholic Church on Santa Monica Blvd and Roxbury. I then attended Beverly Hills El Rodeo elementary school then Beverly Hills High School. I was on the swim and water polo team. Below is a brief history of Beverly Hills from the Beverly Hills Historical Society. There's a link at the bottom if you want to see images and videos.

"BEVERLY HILLS, A BRIEF HISTORY

Throughout history, there appears to have always been something special about the land that became Beverly Hills. The original inhabitants, the native Tongva, recognized it as a kind of oasis in a semi-arid basin, the place they poetically called "the gathering of the waters." The Spanish explorer Don Jose Gaspar de Portolà realized it, too, and when his expedition happened upon the Tongva's Eden, he recorded the locals' name for it in Spanish, El Rodeo de las Aguas.

The Tongva native above the electric fountain. Intersection of Wilshire and Santa Monica Boulevards.

With Europeans, however, came a series of difficulties, beginning with smallpox, which wiped out the majority of Tongva. In 1838, the governor of the Mexican-controlled California territory deeded a land grant of 4,500 acres that make up the core of present-day Beverly Hills to Maria Rita Valdez Villa, the African-Mexican widow of a Spanish soldier. It became a cattle and horse ranch, El Rancho Rodeo de las Aguas. She built an adobe home at what is now the intersection of Alpine Drive and Sunset Boulevard. As was the custom, livestock grazed wherever they liked but were herded annually at a festive rodeo where a giant eucalyptus stood near today's intersection of Pico and Robertson Boulevards.

In 1852, Maria Rita survived a siege and shoot-out with Native Americans who attacked the rancho. This may have influenced her to sell her land two years later to Henry Hancock and Benjamin Wilson. Unfortunately for the new owners, the waters dried up a few years later, followed by a long drought that left their livestock to die (Hancock and Wilson are remembered today with Hancock Park and Mt. Wilson, respectively). By 1868, the land came into the hands of Edward Preuss, who sought to establish a community for immigrant German farmers, to be called the City of Santa Maria. In the meantime, he turned the ranch into a lima bean field, selling his crop to cover taxes. Santa Maria was never to be after yet another drought ensued, thwarting Preuss' dream.

Early in the 1880s, Henry Hammel and Charles Denker acquired the land with the intention of creating "Morocco," a subdivision with a North African theme. The U.S. economic collapse of 1888 put a quick end to that scheme. In 1900, the fortunes of the former rancho began to improve. A group of oil-speculating investors, led by Burton E. Green, bought the bean field on behalf of Amalgamated Oil Company. Green drilled a series of wells that failed to strike oil; however, they did strike water, a lot of water -- enough to support a town. In 1906, Green and his partners reorganized as the Rodeo Land and Water Company. Inspired by Beverly Farms, Massachusetts, Green and his wife renamed the bean field “Beverly Hills.”

In 1907, landscape architect Wilbur D. Cook was hired to design a street plan for Beverly Hills. Applying the tenets of the great Frederick Law Olmstead, Cook laid out curving streets with larger lots on the north side and a basic grid with smaller lots on the south side, with a triangular commercial district in between. All streets were (and remain) tree-lined. A plentiful amount of land was set aside for public parks, plus four elementary schools and a high school. The vision was to make the area affordable to a range of incomes, as long as the buyers weren’t black or Jewish. These shameful restrictive covenants would eventually fall in a lawsuit brought by Hattie McDaniel, Ethel Waters, and other notable African-Americans in the 1940s.

The first house was completed in 1907, but sales were slow. To bolster the interest of potential buyers, Green, in 1912, completed construction of the Beverly Hills Hotel on the site where the waters once gathered. The luxurious establishment served not only travelers but the locals as a de facto city hall, community center, movie theatre, and religious worship venue. Sitting in what was then the middle of nowhere, the hotel was reached by the specially-constructed Dinky Railroad, a wondrous attraction in itself at the time. By 1914, the local population was large enough to support incorporation of Beverly Hills as a city, but real growth didn’t take off until the era’s most glamorous couple, Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks, bought a lot on Summit Drive, where they built their home, Pickfair. Following their fashionable lead was a host of film industry stars, directors, and producers, who began the celebrity mystique that remains a constant of Beverly Hills to this day.

What also brought fame to the young city was the addition in 1919, of the Beverly Hills Speedway, the site of auto races second in importance only to Indy. The course, covering most of the southwest quadrant of the city, barely made it through half of the Roaring Twenties. Among the notable structures built on land formerly traversed by race cars was the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in 1928. The same year, Edward L. Doheny completed Greystone, a 55-room mansion and estate, a wedding gift for his son, which is now owned by the city and operated as a museum, park, and event venue.

With growth came the return of a problem that haunted the 19th-century rancho, a potential shortage of water.  In 1923, an effort to secure a steady water supply through annexation by the City of Los Angeles was defeated by the voters thanks to opposition led by Mary Pickford, who feared the loss of local identity.  Celebrities continued to be important to civic life, most notably the nationally-cherished humorist and honorary mayor of Beverly Hills, Will Rogers, in whose memory the park across Sunset Boulevard from the Beverly Hills Hotel was renamed after his death.

The 1930s brought construction of the magnificent Beverly Hills City Hall (architect, William Gage) in the Spanish Renaissance style, the main post office opposite City Hall, and the extension of Santa Monica Park, across the street from the new civic buildings, from three blocks to the entire length of the north side of Santa Monica Boulevard from Wilshire Boulevard to North Doheny Drive, along with being renamed Beverly Gardens Park. The elegant “Electric Fountain,” featuring a central pillar atop which is posed a kneeling Tongva native amidst the spray of the “gathering waters,” was installed at the northeast corner of Wilshire and Santa Monica boulevards.  The jets of water effuse a multi-color glow at night, thanks to a programmed lighting system.

In the late 1940s, as the nation entered the post-World War II recovery, the city began to develop rapidly.  With Rodeo Drive as its focus, the commercial district became known as the Golden Triangle as an ever-increasing number of internationally-renowned retailers opened there.  By the 1950s, the city’s reputation as a haven for the renowned, locale for grand homes, center of luxury shopping, and go-to place for fine dining spread worldwide with the production of films and television series set within it.  The city also grew physically with the annexation of a large tract of land in the hills above the east side of town, the area known as Trousdale Estates, originally part of the Greystone estate.

Facing stiff competition for shoppers from new nearby shopping malls, Beverly Hills moved to shore up its status as the region’s premier shopping area.  In 1989, Two Rodeo and its pedestrian path, Via Rodeo, opened, quickly becoming not only a shopping and tourist magnet but a popular photo and film backdrop.  By the 1990s, the demand for services and the need for seismic retrofitting moved the city to restore and strengthen City Hall and build an expanded civic center with a modernized main fire station and library and an entirely new police headquarters (architect, Charles Moore).  In 1996, the Paley Center for Media opened its west coast location, a significant new building by Richard Meier, at the southwest corner of North Beverly Drive and South (“Little”) Santa Monica Boulevard.  In addition, the shopping blocks of North Rodeo Drive were enhanced with new landscaped medians and sidewalks, as well as improved street lighting.  Similar sidewalk and lighting enhancements were made to the shopping streets of North Beverly Drive and North Cañon Drive.

Moving into the 21st Century, the city added two new important attractions, the 9/11 Memorial, a striking design containing an actual steel beam recovered from the ruins of the World Trade Center, and the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts (design:  SPF:a – Studio Pali Fekete architects), a significant cultural resource that repurposes the classic U.S. Post Office building that was decommissioned by the U.S. Postal Service.  The grand hall of the old post office with its enduring ceiling murals (artist, Charles Kassler, Jr.), a product of the WPA during the Great Depression, is now the lobby, with what was once the work area behind the clerks’ windows and post boxes turned into a flexible 150-seat theatre, a theatre school with three classrooms, a café, and gift shop.  A modern addition, the 500-seat Goldsmith Theatre, is a state-of-the-art-facility for presenting a wide range of world-class performers.

As Beverly Hills approached the 100th anniversary of its incorporation, concern began to grow over the lack of an historic preservation ordinance to protect significant structures located within the city limits.  In response, the City Council enacted one with the honor of Historic Landmark No. 1 being bestowed upon the Beverly Hills Hotel.  Upon achieving its centennial in 2014, Beverly Hills continues to mature with renewed appreciation for its past, remaining true to Burton Green’s vision of an oasis of refinement, while meeting the challenges of the future."


http://www.beverlyhillshistoricalsociety.org/home

Mary Cummins of Animal Advocates is a wildlife rehabilitator licensed by the California Department of Fish and Game. Mary Cummins is also a licensed real estate appraiser in Los Angeles, California.

Mary Cummins, Mary K. Cummins, Mary Katherine Cummins, Mary Cummins-Cobb, Mary, Cummins, Cobb, real estate, appraiser, appraisal, instructor, teacher, Los Angeles, Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, Pasadena, Brentwood, Bel Air, California, licensed, permitted, single family, condo, pud, hud, fannie mae, freddie mac, uspap, certified, residential, certified resident, apartment building, multi-family, commercial, industrial, expert witness, civil, criminal, orea, dre, insurance, bonded, experienced, bilingual, spanish, english, form, 1004, 2055, land, raw, acreage, vacant, insurance, cost, income approach, market analysis, comparative, theory, appraisal theory, cost approach, sales, matched pairs, plot, plat, map, diagram, photo, photographs, photography, rear, front, street, subject, comparable, sold, listed, active, pending, expired, cancelled, listing, mls, multiple listing service, claw, themls,

Take 3 Film Festival at Plaza de Cultural y Artes by Mary Cummins, Maria Rivera

Take 3 Film Festival presented by East LA Film Festival , Panamanian International Film Festival/LA and La Plaza de Cultura y Artes was hel...