Top 5 Westside Stories: New L.A. Mayor, Marijuana, Budget Shortfall, Frozen Bananas

by John Schreiber

Close out your weekend with a recap of the newsiest and most popular Patch articles from last week. Here are the five stories that topped the headlines on Westside Patch sites:

• City Councilman Eric Garcetti emerged victorious Wednesday in the race to become the next mayor of Los Angeles, ending a nearly two-year campaign that saw record-breaking spending and was punctuated by a spate of attack ads in the waning weeks of the race.
• The number of medical marijuana dispensaries will be limited in Los Angeles and the tax on the drug will be higher under a regulation measure approved by voters Tuesday. The city will cap that number to 135 dispensaries.
• New financial projections from the city of Santa Monicaindicate a dramatic decrease in the expected budget deficit over the next five years. The analysis shows a best case scenario of a $5.8 million budget deficit by fiscal year 2017-18, down from an estimated $15 million.
• The driver of a sedan allegedly fled the scene of a fiery motorcycle accident Wednesday in Pacific Palisades. A westbound motorcycle was run off the road by a dark sedan at around 9:40 p.m.  The motorcycle burst into flames after hitting a tree in a front yard.
• Fans of the television show Arrested Development were in for a treat Monday as promoters of the show set up a replica of Bluth's Original Frozen Banana Stand in downtown Culver City and handed out free frozen bananas.

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