LOS ANGELES | Downtown Project Rundown 3.0

[k3d]

Originally Posted by jlrobe

does anyone know if the LA live buildings can be accessed by the street?

Thanks. Yes, that would be the one of the few complaints I have about LA Live. It does seem to be closed off along Olympic though I think I have seen some renders of wide sidewalks. The largest entrance is the Plaza on Chick Hearn Court, the other is the seeming narrow cooridor off Fig as seen from the webcam. I'm guessing you can enter from the Regal theater. Otherwise it seems mostly closed off.
LA Live

(Photo credit: http://www.aegworldwide.com/)

[alikaalex]

Originally Posted by LAofAnaheim

The Grove is an urban utopia. The people access it by 1 humongous parking garage. It's an entertainment-only area with retail, restaurants, and theaters.

LA Live!, OTOH, will have businesses & residences, which will provide a 24 hour base for customers. Not everybody will have to drive to LA Live! Heck, I'm hoping the taxi cab business in downtown picks up b/c of this joint. Why would you drive from Little Tokyo/Arts District/Old Bank to LA Live!? Unlike the Grove, LA Live! has fantastic access to DASH & the Pico Station. Like I said earlier, my only concern is that retail is only accessible from Nokia Plaza and not from pedestrians lining up on Olympic & Fig. If you get the latter, we have a San Francisco Union Square feel to this development; if it becomes inward, we have a Grove-like feel to it.

I'm not sure I would call the The Grove an "urban utopia", but I see your point.

I agree that we might see some taxi queues forming once LA Live fully launches. However, my experience has been that taxis prefer not to (and occasionally refuse to) transport folks from one point in Downtown to another. For that reason, I'm eargerly awaiting the Green Machine pedicab relaunch as well as the other pedicab service that's currently working out its pre-defined route with LADOT. (The latter company made a presentation at a DLANC Transportation Committee meeting, but of course I can't remember what that company's name is. ) Walking is great on a nice night and if you're feeling up for it, but the Little Tokyo-to-LA Live round trip might be a bit lengthy for some.

[jlrobe]

Originally Posted by k3d

^ None of those places needed or were trying to be an urban catalyst. Except H&H. Also I would give it a b-. Hey I thought nobody wanted to talk about malls.

The Grove wasnt trying to be an urban catalyst, I agree. That is why La live should not be trying to learn too many lessons from the Grove. The Grove an La live have different overall objectives, thus they will have different strategies.

Also, H&H is a mall, but since 90% of the people dont go into it, it doesnt really function as one. If functions more as a catalyst or a TOD.

Anyhow, I dont want to argue the virtues of H&H and the Grove. I care very little about both, but I do go to hollywood blvd and W. third st all the time. Hopefully in the future, I will go to Fig all the time too.

[jlrobe]

Originally Posted by k3d

Thanks. Yes, that would be the one of the few complaints I have about LA Live. It does seem to be closed off along Olympic though I think I have seen some renders of wide sidewalks. The largest entrance is the Plaza on Chick Hearn Court, the other is the seeming narrow cooridor off Fig as seen from the webcam. I'm guessing you can enter from the Regal theater. Otherwise it seems mostly closed off.

That sucks.

Also, that narrow corridor on fig will feel like an alley. It is too narrow compared to those tall buildings. If you cant access those buildings via that "alley" it will be very pedestrian unfriendly. If you can enter those buildings, then they will create a nice contrast to the open plazas.

[jlrobe]

Originally Posted by ThreeHundred

H&H a D? It has issues but I wouldnt' give it a D for crowd pleasing. B- is more apt.

you are probably right. My point was that even though people rag on H&H all the time, it is a succesful catalyst and should be respected as such. Technically speaking, grades are sorta irrelevant and I probably shouldnt have used them. what i maent to say is H&H is does not have alot of "internal" success but has been a great "external" success. My point was that I want olympic and fig to be as energetic as hollywood blvd, but I want LA live to be as busy as the Grove on the inside too. That's all. I have digressed like crazy though. Sorry.

[k3d]

Originally Posted by jlrobe

The Grove wasnt trying to be an urban catalyst, I agree. That is why La live should not be trying to learn too many lessons from the Grove. The Grove an La live have different overall objectives, thus they will have different strategies.

Also, H&H is a mall, but since 90% of the people dont go into it, it doesnt really function as one. If functions more as a catalyst or a TOD.

Anyhow, I dont want to argue the virtues of H&H and the Grove. I care very little about both, but I do go to hollywood blvd and W. third st all the time. Hopefully in the future, I will go to Fig all the time too.

Not to keep on about malls or H&H or anything, but recently the subway downtown has changed my perspective on H&H in the sense that it now seems to me like an extension of Downtown since you can go in one door on 7th/Flower and exit another door at Hollywood/Highland and there you are. It really adds a lot of choices where to go for dinner / entertainment every night without having to go to the parking garage, sit in traffic, find a place to park, etc...

[alikaalex]

Very true. The Red Line does allow one to beat Hollywood's weekend evening gridlock. Now if only the Red Line ran kept running all night. That four hours would cover last call so everyone could stumble home on transit and not have to shell out $$$ for a cab.

[RuFFy]

I'm going to throw one out there.. but the over sized towers with the "small screen" (I wish I could have one 1/2 the size in my living room.. lol) kind of look like the LA Live Figure with the lights beaming out from the tops into the sky.The figure I'm talking about is the one at www.lalive.com.

[Tanster]

Yeah but im sure there might be banners hanging from the top of the towers.

[LAofAnaheim]

Regarding taxis...the culture in LA will have to change. Up 'til 2005, taxis were primarily used to go between LAX & downtown. Lately, since I moved into South Park earlier this year, I've hailed cabs at many spots in downtown (it's actually quite easy to do if you are outside of the Edison, J Lounge, etc...) or walked to 7th/Fig. I haven't had one cabbie complain to me about driving from the Financial District to OBD, but I'm not surprised there will be complaints. They're not use to only getting a $5 - $10 fare. This is very common in major cities. The cabbie culture will have to change, especially if they keep camping out in downtown.

Besides the cabbie culture; the political culture has to change; which is to allow cabs to roam around freely and pick-up/drop-off on any street. For so long we've held on this stupid reason that cabbies "back-up traffic". Boy, do we say anything to defend our private automobiles. And, in turn, City Council has given them taxi zones. Other cities have taxi zones as well, but they also are allowed drop-off/pick-up wherever hailed.

Lastly what has to change is the public perception "I have a car, why should I take a cab?". Cabs are fantastic for short distances (and if you are drinking). Hopefully traffic gets worse in downtown and parking becomes more scarce, for it to be more convenient to take a taxi and possibly even cheaper. I think this will happen once more people live in downtown and not coming from the suburbs.

Taxis do bring a sense of vibracy and excitement into a city.

[funhaus]

Originally Posted by Tanster

Yeah but im sure there might be banners hanging from the top of the towers.

There are, in fact, banners now hanging from the towers. Or more precisely, there is one banner visible from a distance (11th & Flower) tonight. It's a Coca-Cola banner.

The banner and the LCD screen - while both physically large - are not as effective as the early renderings of the towers.

Also, the Nokia sign is now up on the building, and they are testing the lights within it.

[Easy]

There was some sort of city proposition a year or so ago that was supposed to allow cabs to be hailed and allow passengers to be dropped off and picked up from red zones. What ever happened with that?

[k3d]

Originally Posted by jlrobe

That sucks.

Also, that narrow corridor on fig will feel like an alley. It is too narrow compared to those tall buildings. If you cant access those buildings via that "alley" it will be very pedestrian unfriendly. If you can enter those buildings, then they will create a nice contrast to the open plazas.

I may be wrong about my first impression of the width of the "alley". I can't find the floorplan but I'm pretty sure there will be restaurants and / or retail along the "alley". Again, it looks narrow but it may just be a lack of details to give a good sense of scale. When I was looking at the webcam again there was a semi parked at the entrance and it seemed you might be able to fit 5 side by side in the alley. Also there is a lot of scaffolding taking up space and some of that architecture may be overhang. I am curious where tha bowling alley will be. I also wonder if there will be retail on any of the upper floors and if there will be a lot of escalators and elevators.

The screens on the towers do look a little small compared to the towers. I'm hoping the big section that wraps around the espn building on the right is a large screen. I was also disappointed to hear what looked like exterior LCD screens in the renders on Fig/Olympic were not LCD but just billboards.

[jlrobe]

Originally Posted by k3d

I may be wrong about my first impression of the width of the "alley". I can't find the floorplan but I'm pretty sure there will be restaurants and / or retail along the "alley". Again, it looks narrow but it may just be a lack of details to give a good sense of scale. When I was looking at the webcam again there was a semi parked at the entrance and it seemed you might be able to fit 5 side by side in the alley. Also there is a lot of scaffolding taking up space and some of that architecture may be overhang. I am curious where tha bowling alley will be. I also wonder if there will be retail on any of the upper floors and if there will be a lot of escalators and elevators.

The screens on the towers do look a little small compared to the towers. I'm hoping the big section that wraps around the espn building on the right is a large screen. I was also disappointed to hear what looked like exterior LCD screens in the renders on Fig/Olympic were not LCD but just billboards.

Well, I have walked by LA live and that "alley" seems narrow to me. You are right though, the scaffolding could be the problem there, and it might be the perfect size upon completion.

As for the top floors of the buildings, I really dont know how LA live is laid out. There are two corporate headquarters, a large museum, 15 restaurants (5 of which sound massive), a bowling alley, broadcast facilities, and club nokia. I don't know how all of that stuff is going to fit in the two buildings being built?!?

Does anyone know the layout?

As for the billboards along fig, they may not be as bad as we all think. Hollywood and Highland's billboard above the GAP is done very well. Very well lit, very big, and very well made billboards have a more crisp image than LCD's in my opinion, however, LCD's show motion and are FAR brighter. A mixture would have been perfect.

[jlrobe]

Originally Posted by k3d

Not to keep on about malls or H&H or anything, but recently the subway downtown has changed my perspective on H&H in the sense that it now seems to me like an extension of Downtown since you can go in one door on 7th/Flower and exit another door at Hollywood/Highland and there you are. It really adds a lot of choices where to go for dinner / entertainment every night without having to go to the parking garage, sit in traffic, find a place to park, etc...

Okay, this is my last rant about this really, but I am really excited about our subway system. I wish there was a stop at city west, but anyhow

In 3 years, imagine a bustling downtown LA, city-west, ktown, and hollywood. Tourists, AND residents could party and see shows in 4 different neighorhoods, without having to drive between them. I can envision the red line increasing its service and becoming the next thing the national media talks about.

2 years ago it was "hollywood is back"
now the national media is saying "Angelenos discover their downtown core"
3 years from now it will say "Subway usage makes LA a true city"

When I think of all the destinations served, especially if people use taxis, I get a warm fuzzy feeling inside.

Sorry for the digression. I just get excited about the prospects for our second most underutilized resource (The lack of NFL team would be the first).

[LAofAnaheim]

^ Haha...interesting. I just brough up the idea for a CityWest station this morning on the Transit coalition boards. I totally agree, a station at Wilshire/Witmore would be very ideal!

And yes...the Red Line is f'n awesome!

[k3d]

Just saw Transformers again. Many downtown shots especially at Broadway/9th. What is the building with the statues? Does anyone know which building Optimus Prime and Megatron crash through completely from side to side? That would be weird if you lived there and were watching that scene.

[Quixote]

^ United Artists Theater.

[k3d]

Originally Posted by jlrobe

That sucks.

Also, that narrow corridor on fig will feel like an alley. It is too narrow compared to those tall buildings. If you cant access those buildings via that "alley" it will be very pedestrian unfriendly. If you can enter those buildings, then they will create a nice contrast to the open plazas.

I may be wrong about my first impression of the width of the "alley". I can't find the floorplan but I'm pretty sure there will be restaurants and / or retail along the "alley". Again, it looks narrow but it may just be a lack of details to give a good sense of scale. When I was looking at the webcam again there was a semi parked at the entrance and it seemed you might be able to fit 5 side by side in the alley. Also there is a lot of scaffolding taking up space and some of that architecture may be overhang. I am curious where tha bowling alley will be. I also wonder if there will be retail on any of the upper floors and if there will be a lot of escalators and elevators.

The screens on the towers do look a little small compared to the towers. I'm hoping the big section that wraps around the espn building on the right is a large screen. I was also disappointed to hear what looked like exterior LCD screens in the renders on Fig/Olympic were not LCD but just billboards.

[colemonkee]

Is anyone else having trouble getting into the forum? I have to go into a subfolder called temp_files to get in.