Car Wash Manager Larisa Estebanez and owner Trevor Gray welcome customers to the Car Wash.
Photo: RICH SCHMITT
Like most people evacuating the fire, the car became a temporary storage place for the few belongings were able to rescue — it was true, we were living out of our car. Then, we hauled plants, and ashy remains from our home on Radcliffe. The inside of our car looked like a cave. The outside had blue markings and mud on the bumpers.
We desperately looked for a place to have it washed and detailed after we found a temporary apartment in Marina Del Rey.
(For midwestern readers – because of lack of rains, the Santa Ana dirty winds, and trash along the roadways, cars can become filthy beyond belief. And if you live in an apartment there’s no place to wash them – and in Southern California car wash water has to be recycled.)
Then, Hallelujah! The gas/station car wash in Pacific Palisades reopened last week. The owner Tevor Gray was there on February 27, and said the car wash is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. The gas station, cheaper than most places in the city, is open 24/7.
“We’re just trying to get the word out,” Gray said. “We have four guys here every day.” Before the fire they had a staff of between nine and 13 people working. “We’re trying to get our business back up.”
The car wash had to wait to reopen until the power was restored, which happened last week. He introduced his manager Larisa Estebanez. The store is also open and sells snacks and drinks.
Then, Gray was asked if the car wash was open for detailing. “Yes,” he said.
Today, this editor dropped the car off at 11:30 a.m. and two workers turned it into something so clean and shiny, that one felt like they should take a shower before getting in.
The workers spent three and a half hours getting into every nook of the interior and even polishing the outside. So amazing. And Manual, who has worked there for 25 years, said he was offering some discounts.
If you’re sifting through your property, consider leaving the auto at the car wash. And if you finish before they do, go sit in the American Legion, which will continue to host SBA workers and Army Corp of Engineer personal. (FEMA’s last day at this site is tomorrow.)
Residents and businesses have suffered. If there’s any way you can support these businesses who are reopening, please do.
And since the car wash is next to Anawalt, stop by and get a broom or a door mat for your temporary home. Let’s keep that business in town, too.
THANK YOU for this great news, our cars have never looked worse having to park on the street, with drippy fog and under messy-ass trees 🙂