Proposed L.A. River Water Wheel keeps on rolling

An arts organization funded by the Annenberg Foundation has been given the green light to build a $10 million water wheel along the Los Angeles River. The water wheel is described as both an art project and a novel way of creating a watery oasis in the urban core. The 70-foot-high steel wheel would be built underneath the North Broadway Bridge., diverting some water from the river to create a stream and a shady park just north of Chinatown. It will be funded entirely by Metabolic Studio, an arts group headed by Lauren Bon, the granddaughter of philanthropist Walter Annenberg.

Doctors in Long Beach say a baby born with HIV is showing no signs of the infection after aggressive drug treatment that began just hours after birth. The case of the Long Beach girl was revealed at an AIDS conference in Boston. She’s

just the second baby who may have had her infection put into remission – and possibly cured – by very early treatment. The first case was announced last year in Mississippi. Doctors plan to continue treating the Long Beach girl with anti-HIV drugs even though she appears to be virus-free.

This won’t cause shock waves but Los Angeles one again has the dubious distinction of being the most congested city in the country. San Francisco was third, and San Jose came in at number seven. The INRIX National Traffic Scorecard says congestion drive time is up five hours from 2012, or more than 8.5 percent. Translation: Angelenos spent an average of 64 hours waiting in traffic last year.

Speaking of traffic, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s retinue caused a major tie up on PCH yesterday. Today it’ll be the Westside as

Netanyahu address local Jewish leaders at the Museum of Tolerance on Pico Boulevard. He’ll be discussing the Middle East peace process and efforts to curb Iran’s nuclear program. Police say drivers should expect delays on Pico and Santa Monica boulevards and other nearby streets until almost 1 this afternoon. Netanyahu singed a trade and technology pact with Gov. Jerry Brown earlier this week.

The Los Angeles Marathon has been accompanied in recent years by another kind of race – an unsanctioned bicycle race: But not this year. City officials call the nighttime race a hazard. and

they’re taking preemptive steps to make sure the bikers stay away. They’ve issued a cease-and-desist letter to Don Ward, founder of a bicycling group called Wolfpack Hustle – preventing him from organizing races without a permit. Ward says the permit would cost up to $250,000.