June 26, 2025 The Best Source of News, Culture, Lifestyle for Culver City, Mar Vista, Del Rey, Palms and West Los Angeles

WeHo: Another Sin City in the Making?

By Henry Giardina

If WeHo City Council approves a new bill, L.A.’s popular party city could stay liquored up until 4 a.m. But is it a good thing?

First, there was prop 64, the historic law that made the recreational purchase of marijuana legal on the streets of West Hollywood. Now, a new measure could make it possible for the city’s bars and restaurants to sell alcohol until 4 a.m., extending the city’s nightlife two hours past the traditional 2 a.m. sale limit.

Democratic San Francisco Senator Scott Weiner introduced the bill earlier this year as a modification to an older version from 2017.

“Last year we had huge support for extending hours for bars, nightclubs, and restaurants, and this renewed effort builds on that support,” Weiner said in a statement. “Nightlife is central to the culture and economy of many of our cities, and they should be empowered to choose to extend alcohol sales hours if they choose. This bill offers a nuanced and responsible approach to give cities local control to make this determination.”

If passed, SB 905 would go into effect on January 1, 2020, allowing West Hollywood bars to serve alcohol until 4 a.m. It’s up to the West Hollywood City Council to approve the measure.

The new late-night law, also known as “LOCAL” (Let Our Communities Adjust Late-Night) will extend to five cities in addition to West Hollywood: San Francisco, Oakland, Los Angeles, Sacramento and Long Beach.

Most local lawmakers view the bill as a positive change, an amendment to some of the archaic leftover prohibition laws of the early 20th century.

“Cities should be able to choose for themselves whether extending nightlife hours would make sense for a community,” said Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti in a statement. “This bill would give us the tools to look more closely at what is best for public safety and our economy, and to make those decisions at the local level.”

“California is a diverse state with cities and neighborhoods that have different needs for nightlife, and we shouldn’t have a one-size-fits-all closing time,” said Senator Scott Wiener. “Last year we had huge support for extending hours for bars, nightclubs, and restaurants, and this renewed effort builds on that support. Nightlife is central to the culture and economy of many of our cities, and they should be empowered to choose to extend alcohol sales hours if they choose. This bill offers a nuanced and responsible approach to give cities local control to make this determination.”

Some citizens, like L.A. Assemblymember Miguel Santiago, believe that the LOCAL measure will bring more commerce and financial stability to smaller cities within Los Angeles. This could be a help for places like San Francisco and West Hollywood in particular, whose status as sanctuary cities pits them against the federal agenda under Trump’s administration. The thought is that the more independent local commerce and local governments can become, the better off they’ll be when it comes time to fight back against federal measures trying to limit or change their sanctuary status.

However, other members of the West Hollywood community see this measure as a problem. With weed newly legalized and bars staying open later, many citizens fear that SB 905 will bring out West Hollywood’s dark side, in the form of drug scandals, mysterious deaths, and other issues plaguing WeHo’s gay community. Just a week ago, the death of 26-year-old Gemmel Moore, who died of a meth overdose at Democratic donor Ed Buck’s house last summer, came back into the headlines after new allegations surfaced about the donor’s crystal meth habit. A few weeks before that, the news of Discovery Channel star Joel Taylor’s death by overdose aboard a West Hollywood-based Atlantis Cruise line pulled even more attention toward the developing issue of drug use and sex work in the Creative City. With the rest of the country undergoing an opioid crisis leading to more deaths each day in rural areas, the problems of West Hollywood are less discussed by journalists, or otherwise written off as the natural byproduct of a “party” city lifestyle.

While all these questions were in the air before the legalization of marijuana in the beginning of the year, the new bill raises questions about what will happen to the city’s moral fabric in the late after hours. According to a report on the West Hollywood website WeHoBytheNumbers.com, the city is home to 234 active alcohol retail licenses as of late 2016, making it the city with the highest number of liquor alcohol retailers per square foot in the state of California.

If passed, a new bill could extend alcohol sale hours until 4 a.m.
Related Posts

Santa Monica Police Arrest Shooting Suspect After Officer Ambushed Near Downtown Mall

June 26, 2025

June 26, 2025

Man Linked to Waymo Vehicle Gunfire Taken Into Custody Following Tense Manhunt The suspect wanted in connection with a shooting...

Michelin Stars Shine Bright on LA: Somni West Hollywood and Providence Earn Top Honors

June 26, 2025

June 26, 2025

Two Restaurants in Los Angeles Receive Three Stars as Michelin Guide Celebrates Bold Flavors The MICHELIN Guide California 2025 celebrated...

Cherished Culver City Ice Cream Vendor Abducted in Broad Daylight

June 26, 2025

June 26, 2025

Ambrocio “Enrique” Lozano’s Disappearance Led To Grassroots Action Ambrocio Lozano, also known in the neighborhood as Enrique, was abducted around...

Culver City Leaders Address Youth Safety Crisis After Teen’s Death, Gunfire at Vigil

June 25, 2025

June 25, 2025

Leaders Respond Following Tragedy and Shooting at School Vigil Culver City officials convened a press conference Wednesday morning to confront...

Brentwood Home by Landry Design Group Wins Top National Architecture Award

June 25, 2025

June 25, 2025

Landry Design Group Wins Gold Nugget Awards for Brentwood, Crestwood Projects Landry Design Group (LDG) earned two top honors at...

(Video) WISE & Healthy Aging Helps Loved Ones Boost Their Quality of Life

June 24, 2025

June 24, 2025

See How the Nonprofit’s Innovative Programs Advance the Dignity of Life for Older Adults See How the Nonprofit’s Innovative Programs...

Masked Federal Agents Detain Iranian Asylum Seeker and Wife in Westwood

June 24, 2025

June 24, 2025

31-Year-Old Woman was Hospitalized After Possible Medical Emergency On Tuesday, June 24, between 11:00 a.m. and 11:30 a.m., near the...

Culver City Pride Rolls In with Sunset Ride and Rally June 28

June 24, 2025

June 24, 2025

Celebrate With a 6-Mile Pride Ride and Free Block Party Culver City will mark its fifth annual Pride celebration on...

Los Angeles Leaders Push to Ban Masks for Federal Agents Amid Immigration Raids

June 24, 2025

June 24, 2025

Concerns Grow Over Anonymous ICE and CBP Officers in Los Angeles   A growing coalition of California lawmakers and local leaders...

Squatter-Plagued Beverly Grove Buildings Could Be Razed After Hazard Cleanup

June 24, 2025

June 24, 2025

Demolition of Three Abandoned Apartments May Begin in Two Weeks Three abandoned apartment buildings in Beverly Grove may soon be...

From Westwood to DTLA, Angelenos March Against Military Escalation in Iran

June 23, 2025

June 23, 2025

Protestors Rally at the Westwood Federal Building This Weekend Following President Donald Trump’s authorization of airstrikes on three Iranian nuclear-related...

Overnight Traffic Stops in Culver City Lead to Felony Arrests, DUI Bust

June 23, 2025

June 23, 2025

Culver City Police Nab Suspects Wanted for Burglary and Identity Theft Culver City police officers arrested three individuals in separate...

LAPD Sergeant Killed Assisting Crash Victims on 405 Freeway in Brentwood

June 23, 2025

June 23, 2025

Tragic Early-Morning Collision Claims Two Lives, Including Veteran Sergeant Two people, including an LAPD sergeant, were killed early Monday in...

Recent Homebuyer Down Payments Slip for First Time in Nearly Two Years

June 23, 2025

June 23, 2025

April’s Median Down Payment Fell as Buyers Lean Toward Lower-Cost Homes The median down payment made by U.S. homebuyers dropped...

Del Rey Affordable Housing Project to Rise on Former Charter School Site

June 23, 2025

June 23, 2025

Community Corp., Local Faith Group Team Up to Build 122 New Apartments Plans are moving forward for a new residential...