By Lookout Staff

December 29, 2022 -- In August, the first two homicides of the year are reported, two School Board members announce they will not seek reelection and a dog goes blind after a walk in the park.

A fatal stabbing in the courtyard of the Main Library involving two homeless men marks the first homicide in Santa Monica this year ("Man Fatally Stabbed in Library Courtyard," August 1, 2022).

Five days after igniting a firestorm with a last-minute proposal to address near record rent increases, Councilmember Lana Negrete pulls her plan ("Negrete Pulls Proposal to Address Rent Increases," August 1, 2022) .

The City Council's "Change" slate joins in a unanimous vote to place a proposed Charter Amendment on the November ballot that would reduce rent increases pushed by Santa Monica's political establishment ("Council Unanimously Backs SMRR's Proposal to Cut Rent Increases," August 3, 2022 .

Craig Foster -- the only Malibu resident on the School Board and an outspoken champion of the city's efforts to split from the District -- announces he will not seek reelection ("Foster Not to Seek Re-Election to School Board," August 8, 2022).

As the School Board prepares to debate COVID policies on Thursday, a lack of interest, and even skepticism, about the dangers the virus poses appears to be growing ("As COVID Cases Drop, Complacency Grows," August 9, 2022).

The story of a dog who went blind after swallowing oxycodone during a walk in Palisades Park on Sunday quickly spreads nationwide ("Dog Goes Blind After Walk in Palisades Park," August 19, 2022 ).

Police seek possible victims of a registered sex offender arrested for allegedly groping a 16-year-old girl in Downtown Santa Monica ("Sex Offender Arrested for Sexually Assaulting Minor," August 11, 2022).

A man is arrested for murder after he is seen exiting a Downtown apartment where a woman was found dead. The homicide comes two weeks after a man was fatally stabbed in the courtyard of the Main Library ("Suspect Arrested for Murder in Year's Second Homicide," August 12, 2022) .

With the spread of the highly contagious Omicron variants slowly ebbing, Santa Monica records the lowest number of coronavirus cases in more than four months ("COVID Cases Drop to Lowest Level in Over 4 Months," August 22, 2022) .

Despite the drop, Santa Monica City government remains in COVID mode with continued testing, contact tracing and remote meetings for most Boards and Commissions ("City Council Poised to Approve COVID-Related Contracts," August 17, 2022) .

The Council approves an emergency ordinance that allows rent control tenants who receive a rent increase of more than 3 percent to defer their rent for up to five months ("Council Approves Emergency Eviction Moratorium After Heated Debate," August 24, 2022).

Incumbent Keith Coleman abruptly drops out of the race for four open seats on the Santa Monica-Malibu School Board but does not give a reason for his decision ("Incumbent Abruptly Drops Out of School Board Race," August 26, 2022) .

Coleman's withdrawal leaves two of the four incumbents in the November 8 race after Craig Foster announced he would not seek re-election to a third term.

After slowly rising over the past five months, rents in Santa Monica dip in August by less than 1 percent ("Rents Dip in Santa Monica After Slowly Inching Up," August 30, 2022).

Santa Monica officials announce the City has hired an Equity and Inclusion Manager to oversee efforts to diversify the City's institutional culture ("City Hires Equity and Inclusion Manager," August 31, 2022).

School Board member Keith Coleman resigns from his appointed position but will still appear on the November ballot in the race for four open seats ("Coleman Resigns from School Board," August 31, 2022).

Coleman's resignation comes five days after he announced his withdrawal from the School Board race.