Feud erupts over pink emoji house
LOS ANGELES — The houses on 39th street in Manhattan Beach were once painted a neutral color palette of tans, whites and grays, complemented by an adventurous splash of light yellow or blue. But not now: One of the homes is sporting a bright paint job decorated with two giant emojis.
Neighbors say it’s retribution in a property dispute that has turned into a battle with the city.
A neighbor reported the home’s owner, Kathryn Kidd, to the city for using the property for short-term rentals, such as Airbnb, which is illegal in Manhattan Beach. Now the property is painted bright pink with yellow emojis.
Frustrated homeowners and renters in the El Porto neighborhood plan to raise their concerns again at a City Council meeting Tuesday night, marking the latest chapter of a saga that began in May. It was first reported by Easy Reader News.
The mocking nature of the paint job, neighbors say, is in the emojis. An emoji on the duplex’s top floor shows one smiling face with its tongue sticking out and eyes looking in different directions crowned by long, bold eyelashes. Another on the lower level shares the same eyes and lashes but has a zipper across the mouth, representing the “shut up” emoji. Susan Wieland, the neighbor who reported Kidd, told Easy Reader News that she was wearing eyelash extensions when she once met Kidd.
The artist who spraypainted the design onto the home, known as Z the Art, posted a photo of the painted home to his Instagram account in May with the hashtags #TheEmojiHouse and #eyelashextensions.
The paint job appeared shortly after Kidd was found in violation of the city’s rental laws and was fined $4,000. Kidd told Easy Reader News that the emojis were not intended to mock Wieland and that while people are entitled to their opinions, she is not in violation of any laws.
“I’m trying not to offend anybody,” Kidd said. “I did it for the purpose of being happy, being positive, and I think it’s cute and quirky and kind of funny, and certainly was a time for the emoji.”
Kidd doesn’t live in the home but resides elsewhere in Manhattan Beach. The home on 39th Street appears occupied, although no one came to the door when a Times reporter knocked on Monday.
Wieland said that while the situation may seem like a joke to Kidd, it’s not funny to residents who feel the city is doing nothing to protect them. She said neighbors have sent letters and numerous emails to city officials in hopes some action will be taken over the paint job. Wieland said she and her husband have invited City Council members to their home to see the mural, but no one has taken them up on the offer.
“It’s almost like they’re afraid of her. And we really feel it is our city’s responsibility to have these regulations in place because people can do anything,” Wieland said. “That’s the most frightening thing. I feel like we’re not being protected against bullying.”
A representative for the city did not respond to a request for comment.
Dina Doll, a homeowner who has lived in the tightknit neighborhood for 18 years, said she was the first resident who notified the city about the emoji situation. She said she was told by a staff member that the paint job was an exercise of Kidd’s First Amendment rights and that the city could do nothing about it. Doll then contacted the City Council in early June and was told councilmembers would consult the city attorney.
“And then there was a lot of nothing,” Doll said, adding that a group of neighbors then went to a city planning commission meeting in July seeking help.
In a video of the July 10 meeting, City Atty. Mike Estrada explained to commission members that the city has “very little, if any” jurisdiction over murals painted on private property with no public funding or public involvement.
“We plan on speaking about it (on Tuesday) because the sense I’ve gotten from speaking with council people since then is that they’re a little bit reluctant to take action,” Doll said. “I think the city is afraid of (Kidd) coming after them.”