There are many events and celebrations in the South Bay that the community can enjoy to ring in 2025.

Patch Staff

REDONDO BEACH, CA — Whether you had a good or bad year, it's time to kiss 2024 goodbye in the South Bay.

From a night dive at the Aquarium of the Pacific to a New Years party with a rock-and-roll edge, the South Bay community has many ways to ring in the new year.

Here is a look at some additional events happening in the South Bay:

Nearby, additional events will help people ring in the new year:

In the United States, one of the most popular New Year’s Eve traditions is the dropping of the giant ball in New York City’s Times Square. Other U.S. cities have their own versions of this celebration, such as the Peeps Chick Drop in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and the giant Potato Drop in Boise, Idaho.

Find out what's happening in Redondo Beachfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Nearby in Los Angeles, Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve kicks off at 8 p.m. eastern time. The West Coast line up will feature Dasha and DJ Cassidy’s Pass The Mic Live!, starring Ja Rule, Fat Joe, Slick Rick & Doug E. Fresh, Ernest, HARDY, Kesha, Laufey, Natasha Bedingfield T-Pain and Alanis Morissette, with special guest Reneé Rapp.

The transition from one year to the next is often marked by the singing of “Auld Lang Syne,” a Scottish folk song whose title roughly translates to “days gone by,” according to Encyclopedia Britannica and History.com.

The tradition of New Year’s resolutions dates back 8,000 years to ancient Babylonians, who made promises to return borrowed items and repay debts at the beginning of the new year, which was in mid-March when they planted their crops.

Related: What New Year’s Resolution Did You Keep? How Did You Do It? [Patch Survey]

According to legend, if people kept their word, the pagan gods would grant them favor in the coming year. However, if they broke their promises, they would lose favor with the gods.

Many secular New Year’s resolutions focus on imagining new, improved versions of ourselves.

The failure rate of New Year’s resolutions is about 80 percent, according to U.S. News & World Report. There are many reasons, but a big one is they’re made out of remorse — for gaining weight, for example — and aren’t accompanied by a shift in attitude or a plan for coping with the stress and discomfort that comes with changing a habit or condition.

He started flipping burgers from a griddle set up on his driveway to make a living during the pandemic, and now former PR business owner Matthew McIvor is continuing to smash the burger business as he gets ready to open a second location of his popular burger joint, Proudly Serving.

“We’re super excited but super nervous at the same time and I definitely see the challenges because we’ve been super busy, so it’s a good challenge to have,” said McIvor, who is expecting his latest brick and mortar location for his smash burger restaurant to open in Redondo Beach by early January at 1617 S. Pacific Coast Highway.

His restaurant specializes in smash burgers made by pressing on the patty when it’s placed on the grill to intensify the flavor. The menu at the new location will include some of his hit burgers like The Founder, made with a double patty with cheese, raw onions, pickles, yellow mustard and ketchup as well as the PS Burger, another double patty with cheese, griddled onions, pickles and special sauce.

The upcoming 60-seat restaurant, which is opening in Redondo Beach’s Riviera Village, will also serve his new Juicy James burger, made with a double patty with cheese, lettuce, tomato and bacon on a sesame seed bun.

“We’re adding that one new burger in Redondo and we’ll have milkshakes and soft serve there eventually,” he said.

McIvor started his burger business by setting up a griddle on his driveway after the pandemic forced him to go from running a PR agency to flipping burgers in order to make a living. His burgers were a hit and he operated as a pop-up for more than a year before taking over the kitchen and sharing a space with the Project Barley brewery taproom on Redondo Beach’s International Boardwalk in 2022.

He left that space about a year ago to open his first brick-and-mortar 60-seat restaurant at 110 Second St., in Hermosa Beach. The new place quickly gained a following which led to McIvor’s decision to open a second location and he wants to keep expanding with plans for more burger spots in Orange sometime next year as well as a food truck.

“We have some pretty lofty goals ahead of us,” McIvor said.

Originally Published: December 12, 2024 at 9:57 AM PST

LONG BEACH, CA — If you’re planning to put up a live Christmas tree this year, it’s a good idea to scope out what will be available from Long Beach real tree growers.

There are more than 16,000 Christmas tree farms in the United States, stretching over 292,050 acres, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Larger tree farms control about 75 percent of the supply, but if you’re interested in supporting a local business this holiday season, here are some places to chop or pick out a tree within driving distance of Long Beach:

Seasonal lot:

Garden Center:

Home improvement store:

Find out what's happening in Redondo Beachfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

There is one nearby Home Depot store at:

There is also one nearby Lowes store at:

Recent data from the American Christmas Tree Association’s 2024 Consumer Report shows 99 percent of survey respondents intend to display at least one Christmas tree in their homes this year, and among them, 22 percent will opt for a live tree.

According to PickYourOwnChristmasTree, real trees will cost about $13 a foot, depending on the type of tree. At that cost, a typical 7-foot tree would cost about $90.

Years of extreme weather — drought conditions in some parts of the country and excess moisture in others — have affected Christmas tree farms.

This year, attention is focused on the Northeast, where tree farmers are struggling under severe drought conditions that are killing off young trees and could cause future shortages.

According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, about a fourth of the region was in severe to extreme drought, which hits young trees especially hard. It typically takes a tree seven or eight years to grow to the desirable height for decorating.

“Christmas tree farms in the Northeast have, unfortunately, been hit with drought conditions that will impact the crop for several years to come,” American Christmas Tree Association executive director Jami Warner told CNN.

“While consumers will be able to find their Christmas trees this season, some growers in the Northeast will not be able to harvest as many trees as they have in past non-drought years,” Warner said.

Here’s an up-to-date list of all NFL Players from Redondo Union High School in Redondo Beach, California.

The list includes only those players who have played in an NFL game.

See where it ranks among other schools in the state here.

NFL Players from Redondo Union HS

Provided by Pro-Football-Reference.com