Block Parties, Gallery Openings, and 11 Weekend Picks

Watch for construction cones along Wilshire Boulevard heading into the evening, but once you clear the commute, a packed autumn weekend is wide open.

---

The Lead

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority board gave final authorization Thursday to a $337 million contract to acquire 220 battery-electric buses from manufacturer El Dorado National California. The purchase represents a major leap for an agency whose active fleet of roughly 2,000 buses remains only seven percent electric, boosting zero-emission vehicles past the 20 percent threshold. The decision followed months of debate between environmental advocates pushing for rapid zero-emission adoption and transit officials weighing the long-term mechanical reliability of legacy natural gas models. Under an amendment introduced by local leaders, the board funded the initial 220 buses immediately while requiring dedicated votes and performance reviews before staff can exercise contract extensions. Factory tooling and final technical specifications now move to the manufacturer’s Riverside County assembly floor ahead of the first rollout.

---

Local Pulse

• Wilshire Boulevard Lane Restrictions Start Tonight Roads Crews will reduce Wilshire to one lane near La Cienega through Sunday night for subway station street resurfacing.

• Free Countywide Concert Series Opens Tonight Parks NextFest LA launches 108 free live performances across 27 county parks running through Sunday evening.

• City Launches Americans With Disabilities Survey City Hall Transportation officials are collecting resident input through mid-October to guide major accessibility upgrades across public sidewalks.

---

Today's Outlook

• High 84°F · Low 65°F — Fog
  • Expect stubborn morning fog before warm air moves in, making light layers your best bet.

---

What's On Around Town

Today

• Monrovia Friday Night Street Fair Myrtle Avenue (500 S Myrtle Ave), Monrovia, 5:00–10:00 PM · Free Pedestrianized blocks with indie vendors, farm produce, and live sidewalk tunes.

• Iron Maiden BMO Stadium (3939 S Figueroa St), 6:15 PM · Paid Decades of heavy metal anthems filling Exposition Park on their world tour.

• Riley Green Greek Theatre (2700 N Vermont Ave), 7:00 PM · Paid Acoustic grit and country songwriting under the Griffith Park evening canopy.

• Water for Elephants Hollywood Pantages Theatre (6233 Hollywood Blvd), 8:00 PM · Paid High-flying circus choreography and sweeping Broadway romance on the historic stage.

• Yandel Sinfónico Crypto.com Arena (1111 S Figueroa St), 8:00 PM · Paid Orchestral arrangements backing urban reggaeton hits across a landmark solo career.

Tomorrow

• Love Letters to L.A. Block Party Autry Museum of the American West (4700 Western Heritage Way), 10:00 AM–5:00 PM · Free
• The Horror Show Exhibition Opening Academy Museum of Motion Pictures (6067 Wilshire Blvd), 10:00 AM–6:00 PM · Paid
• Los Angeles Kings vs. Anaheim Ducks Crypto.com Arena (1111 S Figueroa St), 1:00 PM · Paid

Sunday

• Harvest Days at the Skirball Skirball Cultural Center (2701 N Sepulveda Blvd), 10:00 AM–5:00 PM · Paid
• The Other Art Fair Barker Hangar (3021 Airport Ave), Santa Monica, 11:00 AM–6:00 PM · Paid
• Jon Batiste Greek Theatre (2700 N Vermont Ave), 7:30 PM · Paid

---

Spotlight & Story

• Bunkado
  • Founded in 1946 by Tokio and Suye Ueyama at 340 East First Street—the very footprint of the city’s first Japanese business from 1884—this Little Tokyo shop endures under third-generation owner Irene Tsukada Simonian, sustained by wooden drawers brimming with imported chiyogami paper and handcrafted folk ceramics.

---

Los Angeles Daily Digest — compiled from local sources as of 6 AM. For breaking updates, follow your local newsrooms.

Sent with care by MailerDot — your city, every morning.