A group dedicated to preserving the ocean and the diverse ecosystem in Laguna Beach’s Marine Protected Areas is looking for photographers who’ve documented the area’s natural beauty and, through their photos, have helped gather evidence to show the statewide effort to protect coastlines is working. The Laguna Bluebelt Coalition holds an annual photo contest and is now accepting entries for its 13th iteration. The contest is open to professional and amateur photographers and is taking submission until June 22. This year’s theme celebrates the success of 10 years since Marine Protected Areas wer ..read more

Brown pelicans have been coming in starved, dehydrated and in desperate need of care, officials with the Wetlands and Wildlife Care Center said as they made a plea for support from the community. A mass stranding of the species seen over the last few weeks, with birds found throughout Orange, San Bernardino and Riverside counties, has rescue teams worried and quickly running out of supplies, said Debbie McGuire, executive director of the center in Huntington Beach. “They are all coming in at starvation level, half their body weight,” she said. “It’s really, really bad.” Lindsey Campbe ..read more

For the first time in more than 30 years, fireworks shells will not blast, streak or explode over Laguna Beach’s Heisler Park in the customary July 4 extravaganza. Instead, the City Council has opted to go with a drone show, a suggestion pushed by the city’s Environmental and Sustainability Committee to be more conscious of the environment, the community’s animals, nearby wildlife and sea creatures impacted by the blast and debris. To put on the show, a unified council supported increasing the funding for the 15-minute display from the $42,000 that nearly 900 pyrotechnic shells would have cost ..read more

A Texas real estate developer and reality TV personality pleaded guilty Monday, April 29, to misdemeanor sexual battery for assaulting an unconscious 16-year-old girl at his vacation home in Laguna Beach in 2021. Four additional counts of sexual battery and one count of rape were dismissed for lack of evidence against William Lewald Hutchinson, 65, who starred in the Lifetime reality TV series “Marrying Millions” and whose company, Dunhill Partners, owns the Laguna Design Center in Laguna Niguel. Hutchinson, who lives in Dallas, avoided jail time during his sentencing in Orange County Superior ..read more

With a flurry of exciting whale sightings off Southern California in recent weeks, it comes as no surprise that the season’s first blue whale has also been spotted and, in continuing dramatic fashion, was observed doing “greyhound lunges” off Laguna Beach’s coastline. The whale – the blue whales is the world’s largest mammal with some growing more than 100 feet long – was spotted on Sunday, April 28, about seven miles out from Laguna Beach’s coastline by Steve Burkhalter and Todd Mansur, both captains for Dana Wharf Sportfishing and Whale Watching, while they were on a special eight-hour chart ..read more

After spending seven days slowly placing grains of sand piece-by-piece, seven Tibetan monks visiting Laguna Beach destroyed the mandala they had created during a dissolution ceremony on Sunday at the Sawdust Festival grounds. A world-peace themed mandala, created by Tibetan monks at the Sawdust Festival, was finished after seven-days of work on Sunday, April 21, 2024. It was then destroyed and spread into the ocean to show how impermanant life is. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG) Elena Garmazhapora, center, a Buddhist from Russia who now lives in L.A., prays in fro ..read more

A frolicking juvenile humpback repeatedly breached from waters among the coves off South Laguna, drawing cheers not only from passengers aboard whale-watching vessels but also from residents in homes along the steep hills overlooking the shoreline. Also spotted were fin whales, minke whales  and dolphins on Sunday, April 21 – a display that couldn’t have been better choreographed to celebrate Earth Day, several people commented. A juvenile humpback whale breaches for more than an hour off South Laguna on Sunday, April 21, 2024, drawing cheers from people on charter boats and from home ..read more

Speakers offering solutions to preserve the planet through topics such as ocean conservation, design, education and spirituality are gathering Sunday, April 21, at the newly revived Rivian South Coast Theatre in Laguna Beach for the city’s first TEDx talks. The theater, a Laguna Beach icon, had sat idle in recent years while city leaders decided how to best use the space. Rivian stepped in and renovated the 1930s-era building, turning it into a communal space. Rich German, a Laguna Beach environmentalist, is shown outside the Rivian South Coast Theater in Laguna Beach on Thursday, April 18 ..read more

The Festival of Arts opened its Fresh Faces 2024 exhibit this week in Laguna Beach, offering a sneak peek at eclectic work from local artists who will be featured for the first-time at the annual show in July. “Usually, the festival welcomes 10 to 15 new artists, but this year marks a record-breaking achievement with 21 new artists,” said Sharbie Higuchi, marketing director. “There’s loads of new talent to check out.” Brian Haberlin’s watercolor on paper entitled, “Alice,” is dislpayed at foaSouth Gallery in Laguna Beach on Tuesday, April 9, 2024. His work and the work of 20 other local ar ..read more

With two intimate dinners remaining, followed by a French bacchanalia brunch on the lawn for Bastille Day, Montage Laguna Beach kicked off its limited and luxe Friends of the Chef dinner series on Friday, March, 5. Hungry? Sign up for The Eat Index, our weekly food newsletter, and find out where to eat and get the latest restaurant happenings in Orange County. Subscribe here. Chef Chad Colby of Antico Nuovo in Los Angeles (and former executive chef of Nancy Silverton’s Chi SPACCA) hosted the inaugural event with a six-course, spring-forward Italian tasting menu. Colby served cake-shaped focacc ..read more