Quote:
Originally Posted by GaylordWilshire
The house to the north of Temple Emanu-el (opened 1923, congregation dissolved 1929--building sold to Christ Church) no doubt predates 1923 and is one of hundreds in the more-or-less English style built in Los Angeles from the mid 1900s to about WWI. The temple would have paid more for a lot facing Wilshire--with the money saved, they could build a better building on the side street. Also...there was already a house on the northwest corner of Wilshire and Manhattan. It was addressed 647 South Manhattan, home of Dr. Cecil R. Luton in the '20s--he died there in 1933. St. James Church at the northwest corner of Wilshire and St. Andrews was built on an empty lot--to its west was 646 South Gramercy: http://wilshireboulevardhouses.blogs...e-see-our.html
The development of residential Wilshire Boulevard was actually rather spotty--there were always quite a few empty lots, many later filled with billboards. |
Thank you for the information-laden response.
I presumed the existence/preexistence of a residential structure on Wilshire proper. But, as you noted, since there were many vacant lots on Wilshire, I also would have assumed a few owners of unimproved land "might" have gladly negotiated a development deal for any substantial structure. It might have even improved the nearby property values. For all we know, absent specific research, the property could have been gifted to the organization. However, there could have been many "unknown" factors for the building's location, exclusive of cost, including influential congregants who refused to patronize a location built in the west Wilshire "outback." Another possible consideration, which is pure speculation on my part, could have been restrictive covenants, discussed elsewhere in this thread. One last thought concerns the structure's outward appearance. It is substantial and impressive, but notably missing are the typical bell towers, that distinguish many houses of worship from their secular contemporaries.
'26
http://jpg1.lapl.org/00081/00081607.jpg