INSIDE
Health and Wellness
smmirror.com
February 23 - February 29, 2024 Volume CXXIII Issue 214
See Page 8
Council Votes to Advance City Hall Mural Project Focused on Equity The Recommendations Center on Changes to the Mural Display and Surrounding Space The Santa Monica City Council voted on Tuesday to proceed with ten actions resulting from the Reframe: City Hall Mural project. This decision opens the path for new artwork and educational materials aimed at recognizing and contextualizing the history, depictions, and omissions within the Stanton Macdonald-Wright mural in the City Hall lobby. Proposed by consultant Meztli Projects and endorsed by the City Council, the recommendations center on two key areas: concrete changes to the mural display and surrounding space, and broader equityfocused initiatives aligning with the city’s commitment to Racial Justice, Equity & Social Diversity. The initial set of actions concerning the mural includes commissioning additional
artworks for the City Hall lobby, creating interpretive signage incorporating diverse perspectives, ensuring public art aligns with equity and belonging, and developing educational materials in collaboration with schools and community partners.
Implementation of those actions, led by the Recreation and Arts Department’s Cultural Affairs Division, will commence this year. This initiative, part of Acknowledge + Reframe Together, aims to create public art
and civic memory projects that prioritize community
voices,
fostering
a
more
equitable Santa Monica by acknowledging and
amplifying
historically
excluded
voices.
A Sustainable “Air Taxi” Service Will Operate Out of West L.A. Based on Images and Videos, the Aircraft’s Design Mixes a Helicopter With an Airplane By Zach Armstrong Los Angeles is one of the most traffic congested U.S. cities. As a driver moves at a snail’s pace on its highways, they may look to the sky for an idea on how to bypass the situation. But expedient private air travel is unaffordable for most. Even if one can afford it, using it as an alternative for cross-town commutes has been scrutinized as a factor in environmental destruction. Following a partnership between aircraft
startup Archer Aviation Inc. and aviation service provider Atlantic Aviation, the two entities will develop an sustainable “air taxi” service at the Santa Monica Airport among other U.S. locations. The companies aim to launch these services at initial locations, including Miami, San Francisco and New York in addition to Los Angeles, by 2025. The air taxi service aims to provide 10to 20- minute long commutes in an electric aircraft as a substitute for car commutes that can take up to an hour and a half. The aircraft, Midnight, is a piloted, fourpassenger aircraft which the companies describe as being safe, low noise and costcompetitive with ground transportation. The aircrafts will be engineered for speeds up to 150 mph and optimized for regular 20-50 mile urban trips. Based on images and videos, the aircraft’s design mixes a helicopter with an airplane. Most of its long, narrow body is
reminiscent of an airplane, while a dozen propellers similar to that of a helicopter sit on the wings. “We are excited to work with Atlantic to help electrify their vast portfolio of high-value aviation assets in America’s most congested cities,” said Nikhil Goel,
Archer’s Chief Commercial Officer in a news release. “These initial eVTOL vertiport locations will provide a launching pad for future expansion across Atlantic’s portfolio and ensure that our Midnight aircraft has safe, centrally located landing facilities for our future passengers.”
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