Maddeningly little information to offer on the results of last weekend's auction of 39 condos in Long Beach. As previously noted, developer Citi Property Group held a public auction of new condos (the minimum bid on a 834-square-foot unit that was previously listed at $534,000 was $275,000). David Parsky, principal at Citi Property Investors, tells Curbed that "attendance and results of the auction were very positive." He also said they've elected not to release any sales information until sales on the condos have closed. Meanwhile, a resident who lives in West Ocean One tower, the other tower (different developer) reports: "It has been an interesting couple of weeks here; we've seen dueling sign spinners competing on behalf of the TWO onsite sales offices; one for the remaining Tower 1 units owned by the original Developer (Intracorp) and one for the Tower II units being auctioned by the investor-owner Citi Property Investors..." Spinning for dollars in Long Beach!
· Long Beach's West Ocean Two Auctioning Off 39 Condos [Curbed LA]

[Metro Gold Line via Curbed flickr pool member KingOfTheHill]

· OC home values plummet 15.3% in 2nd Quarter [Lansner]
· Charles Phoenix gets own show exploring the wacky OC [Franklin Ave]
· Oriental fruit flies as good as dead after spraying [Press-Telegram]
· Color police coming for you. OC town looks at paint restrictions [OC Register]
· Blog awards winner in City Hall photo taking contest [Foothill Cities]
· Be afraid! Westsiders fearful as crime epidemic goes door-to-door [LA Times]
· Rep. David Dreier thinks Gold Line needed more than Subway to the Sea [Daily Bulletin]

· Derelict high-end condo property on Sunset may finally be completed [Palisadian]
· Ports pledge to clean up the disgusting San Pedro Bay [Daily Breeze]
· Hermosa pier knife attack; son of Easy Reader published nabbed [Easy Reader]
· Hard Rock's Peter Morton stirring hornet's nest in Malibu [Surfside News]
· Decision on Whittier's hookah lounge moratorium delayed [LA Wave]
· First cougars, now leopard sharks doing it in Marina del Rey [nbc4]
· Mortgage Meltdown: Home magazine folds; nobody's buying [WSJ]
· Donald Sterling's phony $50 million homeless shelter ads return [LA Weekly]
· Long Beach celebrates restoration of 1906 house [Press-Telegram]

[CCSM's Tahiti Housing via Frances Anderton's DnA blog]

· Long Beach's Seaside Park gets closer to reality [Press-Telegram]
· Kill all humans: Cat mutilator hits Pacific Palisades [fox11]
· Pasadena's vacant Wild Oats being converted to Fresh & Easy [Eater LA]
· Santa Monica panhandlers may be required to stand while begging [ktla]
· Belmont Station Apartments open for business; who's moving in? [angelenic]
· Culver City's Symantec campus gets LEED Gold [CNNMoney]
· A closer look at Santa Monica's new "Tahiti Housing" [DnA]

[Over Pacoima/ Sun Valley via Atwater Village Newbie's helicopter tour, on flickr]

· Landlords sticking it to the renter; Charging for water now [OC Register]
· Unmerciful, stinging bees attack MGM Tower in Century City [Defamer]
· Valley Anarchists to plan liberation at local tofu restaurant, 8/16 [LA IndyMedia]
· City Council gifts $18.7 million to revitalize Pacoima with shopping center [LAT]
· Inventory of homes dropping: LA's inventory down 2.4% [WSJ]
· Watts takes a dump on Long Beach, local beaches now closed [Press-Telegram]
· Foiled! Redondo's slow-growth initiative has typo, can be challenged [DB]
· Lawsuits fly in Beverly Hills Hotel expansion; Columbo involved [TMZ]

[Runyon Canyon via Curbed flickr pool member superbaka]

· Will "the boot" solve the Long Beach budget deficit [Press-Telegram]
· Buy your home in 2006? You're probably underwater [LA Land]
· It's even worse in the IE. Homeowners are trapped! [PE.com]
· More troubling signs: Delinquency rate for prime loans jumps [CNN Money]
· Palm Desert cactus thieves target innocent plants for sale, replanting [LAT]
· Keeping your pet fish happy in their very own prefab [Designboom]
· There's no shame in loving Yanni, or stenciling his likeness [MetblogsLA]

[The freeway via Curbed flickr pool member james herman]

· High-speed rail bill goes to State Assembly for vote [nbc4]
· No surprise: Shareholders sue failed IndyMac executives [Star-News]
· Send money! Landlords are a target in Craigslist scam [nbc4]
· Fannie Mae reports $2.3 billion loss for 2nd Quarter [IHT]
· Long Beachers heed the call, use less water in July [PR Inside]
· More on Don Knabe's about face, pro Metro tax change [Daily News]
· CRA approves $96 million to improve Bunker Hill sr. housing [LAT]

"We've received lots of comments about the baby and many of them negative. We have received some positive comments but some of the neighbors who live nearby have complained about the presence of the baby." That's Ed Fosmire, director of marketing at the Long Beach Museum of Art, talking to the Press-Telegram's Tiffany Rider about artist Matt Wedel's piece "Child." After eights months, the 16-foot sculpture is leaving the museum (it was always just a temporary stay). This photo was from the installation; more images are here. Replacing baby: A 24-inch egg-shaped sculpture by artist Norman Hines. [Photo via the Long Beach Art Museum]
· Art museum sends "Child" to his room [Press-Telegram]

[Red Line Station via Curbed flickr pool member kingofthehill]

· Asking your broker for reduced fees: you can do it [Lansner]
· What would Buddha do? Temple, church dispute in Long Beach [Press-Telegram]
· Local fatties get skinny, save money, by biking to work [OC Register]
· Homeless and their pets now welcome at Hollywood shelter [Daily News]
· Beat cops bring Santa Monica's crime rate way down [Lookout News]
· Go Metro: The SGV cares about the Downtown Regional Connector [Foothill Cities]
· $4k/day: Court to hire two to restructure bankrupt Newhall land company [The Signal]

Continuing with the trend of building non-garish and subtle-looking developments in Southern California, the owners of the Queen Mary have finally announced their plans for the site: They are creating Queen Mary Island. Granted, there's a ban on residential development on the site, so there's not much which can be done to the docked Long Beach tourist spot, but the Los Angeles Business Journal's Joel Russell reports the project will include a "marina, an onshore amusement park, a hotel and an office building near the landmark ocean liner." The liner, which was retired in 1967 and is permanently anchored in LB, was sold at auction last year, and while at one point a football stadium idea was tossed about, but it looks like the Island theme won out. Ground-breaking is planned for 2011, and developers say they will apply for federal grants to bring in public transportation so visitors have an alternative to the 710 freeway. UPDATED: If it's not clear, it's not an actual island; that's just the name. We think. Renderings are forthcoming.
· Tide’s Turning at Queen Mary Site [LABJ]
· Choose Your Favorite Queen Mary Bidder [Curbed LA]

Given the slowdown in the market, next month Citi Property Investors is planning to auction off 39 condos in West Ocean Two, a 114-unit tower in Long Beach. But after five-story banners went up on the building last week, a resident who lives in West Ocean One, the tower next door, started sending out flyers, complaining the signs are bringing down property values in the first tower. (The two buildings were developed by the same company but have different owners). Sending in these images, a reader writes: "[The] resident took to flyer-posting in the building common areas this last weekend. How 'bout that "million dollar" view?"

[Fandango Salon via Curbed flickr pool member solson]

· South LA fast food ban vote today! World awaits decision [BBC]
· LA trash fee vote today! Angelenos await decision [abc7]
· Terrible economy forces SGV residents to abandon pets [Star News]
· Mind the rubbish: Testing the walkability of Long Beach [Press-Telegram]
· Sale contract tumble: Median prices in OC down $439k [Lansner]
· Rock movements may allow for early warning on earthquakes [ScienceDude]
· Annual decline in LA home prices at 24.5% for May [LA Land]
· Happy Tuesday! Foreclosures up 120% in 2nd Quarter [CNNMoney]

As this Saturday gets underway, check out a selection of some of the top stories on Curbed this week.

Click the image above to view the full photogallery.

Panorama City: Rendering porn. Images of that 504-unit mixed use Panorama Place development emerged. Cars in a mall.

Larchmont: After all the hype, Larchmont Lofts on Melrose Avenue threw in the towel and went rental.

Downtown: The rotating red cup party moves to the roof top pool at the Pegasus.

Century City: The penthouse in The Century sold for $47 million. Related, use that money to finish up The Grand, please.

Studio City: A look inside the John Lautner-designed Tyler House in Studio City, part of the Hammer's current exhibition, "Between Earth and Heaven: The Architecture of John Lautner."

Long Beach: Firesale on Long Beach condos! Citi Property Investors will auction off 39 condos in West Ocean Two on August 24th.

As noted in comments last night, Citi Property Investors, a real estate investment entity that is part of Citi Group, is planning to auction off 39 condos in West Ocean Two, a 114-unit new tower off Ocean Boulevard in Long Beach. The auction takes place August 24th at the Hilton Long Beach. The minimum bid on a 834-square-foot unit that was previously listed at $534,000 is $275,000. "To the best of my knowledge, this is the first beachfront luxury high-rise condominium in Southern California that has gone to auction," David Parsky, principal at Citi Property Investors, tells us. Wow, when you put it like that, David....

· U.S. home prices fell 4.8 percent in May from a year earlier [IHT]
· Port of Long beach likely getting sued next week over truck regulations [PT]
· Downtown office market "stronger than other markets" [Globe St]
· Foul no more: Cabrillo Beach's dirty waters to be cleaned [Daily Breeze]
· Default notices up 125% from year ago [LAT]
· How to totally game Craigslist [Wired blog]
· Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky checks in with Tattoo Removal program (scroll down) [ZY July Newsletter]