Phase

Playa Vista was the last major coastal community in Los Angeles to be built, but a crucial retail development to give it its own downtown was stalled by legal challenges. That's about to change. With court victories in hand, developers have unveiled the design of a long-anticipated shopping and apartment complex they will begin building in June as the key element of the second and final phase of Playa Vista. The $260-million project, called Runway at Playa Vista, is intended to be the commercial and social heart of the planned community that has been under construction for more than a decade on land once controlled by aviation mogul Howard Hughes south of Marina del Rey. Playa Vista already has more than 3,200 residences and 2 million square feet of offices but lacks a commercial and social town center, said Patti Sinclair, co-president of Playa Capital, the master developer of Playa Vista.

Goodyear, Ariz. -- Dan Haren fought off a case of spring-training "dead arm" to throw 5 2/3 solid innings against the Cincinnati Reds Wednesday, allowing two earned runs and nine hits, striking out two and walking none in the Angels' 5-4 exhibition loss at Goodyear Ballpark. The Reds won the game on Ryan Ludwick's walk-off two-run home run off Angels reliever Loek Van Mill in the bottom of the ninth. "Your arm feels slow; that's all it really is," Haren said, explaining the condition most pitchers experience this time of year.

After numerous delays and cost increases, Los Angeles County transportation officials Friday said the first segment of the long-awaited Expo Line will finally open to the public April 28. The light-rail line will carry commuters 7.9 miles between downtown Los Angeles and the eastern edge of Culver City in about half an hour. "Some of us didn't think we'd live long enough to see this day, but we made it," said Los Angeles County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky, who is also a Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority board member.

A coalition of environmental groups has filed suit against Los Angeles County, claiming the county's decision to allow the development of a massive residential project along the Santa Clara River would harm the waterway, destroy wildlife habitat and despoil cultural sites. According to the suit, filed Thursday in Los Angeles County Superior Court, the county would allow irreversible damage by approving the first phase of the Newhall Ranch development. Construction would also involve unearthing and desecrating American Indian burial sites and would threaten the California condor and the rare San Fernando Valley spineflower, the suit alleges.

Here's what you need to know about the new Expo Line, the latest addition to L.A.'s patchy network of light-rail spurs: It's fast - for about three miles, then it gets pretty slow. It's so brand spanking new that the slimy stuff you feel on the stainless steel handrails is actually oil, not something more infectious left behind by passengers with bad colds. It's quiet as an elevator. And it's opening April 28. Here's what it isn't: The first rail line since the closing of the old Red Car network to connect the Westside to the rest of L.A., as Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and other leaders of L.A.'s transportation scene said repeatedly Friday during a media test ride.

Nissan Motor Co. is bringing back the storied Datsun brand, but American drivers are unlikely to see any new vehicles adorned with the name whose popularity in Southern California served as a springboard to international prominence. Nissan is positioning Datsun as a lower-cost brand in emerging markets. The new line will go on sale in India, Indonesia and Russia in 2014. The Datsun brand dates from 1931 as the nameplate of Japan's DAT Motorcar Co., which was purchased by Nissan in 1933.

The first phase of the multi-stage unveiling of the Fantasyland makeover has moved into "soft opening" mode in advance of an official unveiling later this month at the Magic Kingdom in Florida. Photos: Fantasyland expansion at the Magic Kingdom Three years in the making, the new Fantasyland at Orlando's Walt Disney World resort adds a Little Mermaid dark ride and a Seven Dwarfs roller coaster while updating the classic Dumbo ride and recreating the village from "Beauty and the Beast.

California's distressed state budget will have to allot more than $700 million each year to repay billions of dollars that officials plan to borrow to build the first phase of a proposed bullet train, a nonpartisan government research office has found. The repayment projection by the state legislative analyst's office includes principal and interest on $9.95 billion in high-speed rail bonds approved by voters in 2008. The figure is higher than in the past — partly because of higher borrowing rates — and does not count millions of dollars already being paid annually on about $500 million in debt incurred to plan the system.

Bonnie Addario didn't even know there was a word for what was happening to her. As if lung cancer weren't bad enough, the 54-year-old had lost 30 pounds off her normally 130-pound frame. Her life was limited to her husband's Barcalounger, where she had to recline because she lacked the strength to sit up straight. "It affected everything I did," says Addario, who is alive and well nine years later in San Carlos, Calif. "I literally could not get up and down the stairs. " There is a name for what Addario experienced: cachexia.

Patriots pass offense vs. Giants pass defense This is a closer matchup than some might think, even with Tom Brady running the league's second-most productive offense. Nobody is better at attacking the middle of the field. The health of tight end Rob Gronkowski's ankle is an issue. New York has a ferocious defensive front featuring at least four exceptional pass rushers on the field at any given time. It was that pass rush (with different personnel) that tilted the scales the last time these teams met in the Super Bowl.