Westside Pavilion Shopping Center

People suddenly find themselves pumped up by Beverly Hills' eyesore oil well. That's because the petroleum derrick that for two decades has stuck out like a sore thumb at Beverly Hills High School has blossomed into a 155-foot-tall artwork--compliments of children throughout California. Youngsters in schools across the state joined hospitalized pediatric patients in painting stylized flowers on vinyl fabric panels that now cover the tower.

Painting has earned a bad rap among film makers because of its sedentary nature. It just sits there, forcing the camera to do all the work by searching its surfaces for insights into the passion and virtuosity that created it. One obvious way to inject life into art is to film it in process. French film producer Henri-Georges Clouzot didn't discover that, but he proved himself a master of the genre in his 1955 work "The Mystery of Picasso."

Two public hearings will be held this month to deal with parking and traffic problems in the increasingly congested Rancho Park area of West Los Angeles. The Westside Homeowners Alliance will sponsor a community forum at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at St. Timothy's Church to air neighborhood concerns about the impact of development in the area where the popular Westside Pavilion shopping center opened last June, spokeswoman Sara Berman said. Many of those concerns center on parking.

Matthew Sabal said he understands why Nordstrom department stores are popular. The 46-store chain carries the finest clothing and salespeople treat customers right, according to Sabal. "If I were Joe Shopper, it's the place I'd want to shop," the 20-year-old Hermosa Beach resident said recently. "They're nice people." The stores were also a nice place to steal, according to Sabal, who pleaded guilty to grand theft and four charges of burglary this week.

Hungry for millions of dollars in sales-tax revenue, the Culver City Council is expected to give final approval Monday to construction of the controversial Marina Place shopping center despite its potential for snarling traffic as far away as Santa Monica.

Hungry for millions of dollars in sales-tax revenue, the Culver City Council is expected to give final approval Monday to construction of the controversial Marina Place shopping center despite its potential for snarling traffic as far away as Santa Monica.

Opportunities to enroll children in choice public schools outside their neighborhoods, a well-received program that began four years ago during a downturn in enrollment, have dwindled significantly because of surging demographics. The Los Angeles Unified School District announced last week that only 7,400 seats are available this fall in its open enrollment program, about two-thirds of last year's number and down from a high of nearly 22,000 when the program began in 1994.

This aspiring city seeking to lend some color to its bland downtown has reshaped a former red-light district into an imaginative retail complex and repainted it in pastels. Covering about six city blocks totaling 11.5 acres, the complex known as Horton Plaza is a dazzling display of urban design, architectural allegories, festive decorations, sprightly coloring and conspicuous commercialism.

Opportunities to enroll children in choice public schools outside their neighborhoods--a well-received program that began four years ago during a downturn in enrollment--have dwindled significantly because of surging demographics and second thoughts about private schools.