LOS ANGELES | Downtown Project Rundown 4.0

[JDRCRASH]

I don't know about you guys, but i'm really sick and tired of the mood on this thread changing drastically from positive outlooks for the future as a result of uplifting news, to negative impressions of the status quo stemming from comparisons of LA to certain other cities when it comes to each other's development patterns, connectivity, livability, culture, personality, fashion, etc.....

I hope what i'm saying makes sense. It's just that it seems like the same argument is rehashed over and over again, especially during these past couple years as the recession really destroyed the real estate market. Sure such observations are something to ponder over, and can help lead LA in the right direction. However, after a while, it gets old, and, in my opinion, makes the thread less enjoyable. And one doesn't need to irrationally tread on LA and it's progress while reiterating that it still has a long way to go. One also doesn't need to continue to proclaim "Angelenos are stupid" and other nonsensical general statements to try and make their point.

Originally Posted by Westsidelife

The Temple Street at-grade crossing is, thankfully, being eliminated under the new plan that calls for a 100% grade-separated Regional Connector. I agree that the current configuration is unacceptable.

I believe an upgrade last year allowed the Gold Line to run a little faster on the viaduct. Still, part of me wishes that the Union Station stop was on Mission St.

[Illithid Dude]

Originally Posted by JDRCRASH

I believe an upgrade last year allowed the Gold Line to run a little faster on the viaduct. Still, part of me wishes that the Union Station stop was on Mission St.

Good. Looking at those videos posted, it was painfully slow. Like, someone could walk faster then that.

Anyhow, I shlepped off to downtown today for a little lunch. I found that there is one major problem with downtown, one that may be irreversible. That would be the the Bunker Hill redevelopment project. Besides adding tall buildings, I can' think of one good thing that project did. The spaces that were once so vibrant are replaced by empty plazas. In some cases, the buildings are downright hostile to pedestrians. The podium of the Westin Bonaventure? Awful. Sometimes, I feel like everything past eight street is a lost cause. Is there any way we can fix what was destroyed with that 'redevelopment'? I can't think of any way.

[colemonkee]

YMCA Women's Center

They've started unwrapping the southern half of the building. These shots are looking north along Olive, so not the side of the render. That side is still covered in scaffolding. The glass looks decent in person. The stucco - especially that of the doo-doo brown variety - doesn't.





And a bonus shot of the skyline from South Park, with Watermarke and Concerto making their impact. Anyone in the market for "mannikins" can get them at the one-story building in the foreground.



All pictures taken by me.

[LosAngelesBeauty]

I went downtown last night (Friday) and spent all day there today (Saturday) and I noticed one thing that is definitely different about DTLA: There are people there day and night now!

I was so pleasantly surprised to see that Little Tokyo has TRULY turned the corner and is now really activated constantly. Last night, the area surrounding the Japanese Village Plaza was bustling and today in the afternoon, it was crowded! There was karaoke last night and a band playing music today. It's just so wonderful to see what was once forlorn, now relevant and alive again!

Also, I am VERY curious to see who rented out the former Okada Japanese restaurant on 7th Street. The "For Lease" sign has come down and when I passed by today, there was active construction work going on inside. The cage door to the front entrance was locked so I couldn't really ask anyone inside what was going on.

Check out the pics (Imageshack may be a little inconsistent with the images loading):


Union Station retail/restaurants are wonderful and we need more



Starbucks coming soon



Subway offers travelers something affordable and quick to eat



See's Candies



Famima as busy as ever



The LA Athletic Club gets a much needed cleaning and new paint job



LA Athletic Club gets cleaning



The new painting drying along the side of the LA Athletic Club



A peek inside shows that Chipotle at 7th/Grand is almost done



Someone has leased the former Okada space!!! The FOR LEASE sign is gone and I saw work being done inside! This will add a lot to the restaurant row.



The Historic Core is slowly but surely cleaning up and changing for the better




Walgreens has signed a lease to take the entire 5th Street side of the Chester Williams building!! (Again, they are going to go head to head with Rite Aid across the street)



Another view from the Jewelry Trade Building looking down at the multiple spaces that will be combined to form one large space for a brand new Walgreens.



Rumor has it that Cedd Moses may do another one of his beloved/famous bars on the roof top of this beautiful Art Deco building on Broadway.



The owners are investing a lot into providing access to the roof, which supports the rumor that Cedd Moses (or another bar owner) may do a concept up here.



The Green Hut Cafe (part of Wockano) replaces Panino and opening soon on 7th Street



7-Eleven taking over the space by Edible Arrangements (you can see the white covering the window)



Dublins has reopened after being closed after some kitchen violations!



Dublins was packed already!



7+FIG renovations have begun



Scaffolding has gone up to remove the "monkey bars"



More scaffolding



Another view of 7+FIG renovation



Little Tokyo is looking better than ever!



The Japanese Village Plaza was bustling last night and today



This was taken around 830PM last night



Stores in LT are starting to get business again



Strolling through Japanese Village Plaza on a Friday night



All new signage inside the newly remodeled Japanese Village Plaza



Even families with young kids are coming back to DTLA at night



Really a great feeling to see so much activity in a place that was once a ghost town.

[sopas ej]

Originally Posted by pesto

I agree that there is a considerable SGV Asian contingency coming DT for the clubs; but I find it harder to picture their parents and grandparents making the same trek when Pasadena is right there, clean and very walkable.

And not to get petty, but Hancock Park is small in population and (I know I'll get heat on this) not for the Neiman, Hermes, etc., crowd (homes are large but much cheaper than Brentwood, BH, Bel-Air; not that many over $1.5M). In any event, why go DT when Beverly Center and the Grove are close and parking is easy?

You hit it right on the money in regards to Hancock Park. Obviously a wealthy contingent of people live there, but it's a different kind of wealthy people. Similar, I would imagine, to the same wealthy people that live in the "old money" neighborhoods of Pasadena, and in San Marino-- conservative, not flashy at all, low-key... that type (I put old money in quotes because I think the real McCoy old money people of Pasadena and San Marino have long since left). It's very telling that the Saks Fifth Avenue and Maserati car dealership in Pasadena closed down, well before the economic crisis of 2008; and they both had only been in business for about 5 years or so; maybe even less. The people of the area just aren't into those kinds of things. If the "Beverly Hills" type of wealthy person wanted to be near that kind of retail, then they'd move to, well, Beverly Hills. Larchmont Village, the de facto commercial center for Hancock Park/Windsor Square, was never really a shi-shi commercial center, even back when Windsor Square and Hancock Park first developed-- and it still isn't. For a wealthy community, even San Marino's commercial areas lack any kind of upscale designer brand stores. If you wanna see the real old school, blue-haired patrician white people of San Marino, go to the Colonial Kitchen on Huntington Drive. It's such a hokey, old-fashioned place, and it's a San Marino institution. You wouldn't think that these people lived in multi-million-dollar homes.

So, I would think the marketing people of these upscale stores would know what areas to set up shop in; they'd see if an area had a market for it. And IMO, the more locations an "upscale" store has, to me it makes it less "exclusive." Example, I remember when Abercrombie & Fitch used to have somewhat of an exclusive, upscale appeal; there was a time that the only one I knew of in California was in San Francisco. And then they started popping up everywhere and became basically an overpriced ripped jeans and t-shirt store. And now it seems nobody really shops there anymore. It's become what Eddie Bauer became after the 1990s ended. I feel the same way about Tiffany & Co.; Walnut Creek in the East Bay Area has a Tiffany's. So much for an "exclusive" store.

I think right now, downtown LA has the most regional appeal it has ever had in the last 40-50 years, now that there's more going on downtown. But before it has an even greater regional appeal, it has to cater to its residents first; if more people move to downtown, then the services and amenities that they demand will follow.

[patriotizzy]

BrighamYen:

Those are some great pictures and updates! I've never been to LA, and never had a soft spot for the city. I guess it was the bad rep it got, of dirty roads and streets, and heavy gang activity, that had me disliking the city. The more I check up on updates, the more downtown seems like a great place for anyone with money to live in. I would certainly like to visit and stroll around sometime in the near future

[RAlossi]

Wow, Brigham, there is a LOT to digest in that update, and I will highlight some of the more important ones for the neighborhood: First off, the Okada restaurant and LA Athletic Club cleaning are so important for 7th Street, it's pretty amazing that these things are happening. Every building that gets cleaned really does improve the perception of the area. I knew something was going into Okada because I saw people in suits and hard hats going in and out one day. That's a butt-ugly building, that's for sure. Hope they will be doing something about it.

Walgreens at 5th and Broadway?? Are you KIDDING me!? That's awesome! 5th between Hill and Main is really coming along these days. Rite Aid, as usual, just isn't cutting it. That location across the street has to be the worst in the entire chain. You also captured a good shot of the Metropolitan Lofts, which recently took down all the construction barriers at the sidewalk and is now leasing.

I noticed a new office space took the ground floor of the Title Guaranty Building. It might be a travel agent or temp agency? I can't tell, but I'm glad it's there instead of blacked-out windows. I hate to say it, but I do hope it gets leased out for retail sometime in the near future. I don't like ground-floor office space. Again, much better than blacked-out windows though.

I thought Dublin's was never going to open again. I met the owner, who was very dismissive. That left a bad feeling for me and Dublin's, so I won't go there. Still glad that it's open. And if Green Hut can actually open (since I haven't seen people working there in months - I thought it was dead), that will really help cement 7th Street as restaurant row. The owners of Green Hut are bringing Le Ka to 6th and Flower as well, which is under construction.

Which brings me to... 7+FIG! My head is spinning with all the changes going on in the FinDist.

[Quixote]

LOL, another Walgreens across the street from a Rite Aid!

[Illithid Dude]

DTLA is going to look like Chicago, with a Walgreens on every corner! On the topic of Little Tokyo, I was there earlier today for a little Lazy Ox action. I have to say, it might be the first completely and truly gentrified neighborhood in downtown! I mean, it looks extremely nice, with nothing really wrong with it besides a few parking lots. I never really go down there when I shlep of to downtown, as I normally venture into South Park or the Historic Areas, so I was very pleasantly surprised.

[tommaso]

We're talking about a population boom here setting off a domino effect. It's plain and simple. Build residential high rises and people will come? Yes, that is correct. We are talking about financial investments in the hundreds of millions of dollars that will lift the real estate industry in DTLA. Yes, the money is sitting in banks right now. And yes, developers are eying the DT market with bulls' horns attached to their heads. Now, as soon as the banks start lending en masse we will watch and observe how the big money players move and shake DTLA. Talk about change we can believe in. This is already in the works. It's just that if you have any affiliation with the developers or banks, well then you may be better informed about the specifics of this process.

[202_Cyclist]

Westsidelife:

LOL, another Walgreens across the street from a Rite Aid!

Here in DC, there are more CVS stores than Starbucks. What's the joke-- you can stand in one CVS and see the next one from there.

[citywatch]

Originally Posted by BrighamYen

I went downtown last night (Friday) and spent all day there today (Saturday) and I noticed one thing that is definitely different about DTLA: There are people there day and night now!

TY! this thread greatly needed an update right about now.

really a relief to see old bldgs getting cleaned up after yrs of neglect. Now that the LA athletic club is being shined up, I hope the bldg not too far to its west is eventually done too. when I was looking out the window from the restaurant in the brockman bldg, I noticed the bldg across the street could use a once over.

It will be interesting if a rooftop bar is added to the bldg in one of your pics, since it's not too far from the Pershing Sq bldg which is also going to have a rooftop restaurant/bar....

Rumor has it that Cedd Moses may do another one of his beloved/famous bars on
the roof top of this beautiful Art Deco building on Broadway.

pershingsquarebuilding.com


The LT plaza was starting to get rundown, so it's a good thing the new owner finally did a makeover on it. It's a lot better than before, now ready for more visitors & all the residents who've moved into the hood over the past few yrs. only letdown was that the owner tore out the old fountain & replaced it with mainly a plain concrete pad.

I love seeing the diversity of ppl in hoods that several yrs ago were starting to lose all their original main base of visitors & customers. I know the big worry has been that LT will vanish cuz ppl of japanese descent are moving to the burbs. In nearby chinatown, I read that the new years parade not long ago attracted a diverse crowd, so that is good too.

one of the last main gaps in LT is this parking lot across from the kyoto hotel. A devlpr was supposed to have started building an apt complex on it several months----if not longer----ago.....



^ these are a few high visibility streets in dt, just a few blocks from city hall. So that parking lot is long overdue for replacement, & it's also about time things like that makeshift street light be replaced with a real light fixture.

[citywatch]

Originally Posted by Illithid Dude

I found that there is one major problem with downtown, one that may be irreversible. That would be the the Bunker Hill redevelopment project. Besides adding tall buildings, I can' think of one good thing that project did. The spaces that were once so vibrant are replaced by empty plazas.

Bunker hill doesn't feel right to me mainly cuz it's often so devoid of ppl. not enough ppl walking about. not sure how much of that is cuz there isn't enough housing around there, & how much of that is just the longtime nature of LA. Overly quiet sidewalks & stores without many or any customers has been an issue throughout DT for a long time. Only broadway has been known for yrs as having some hustle & bustle. however, cuz it's also long been known as having mostly fugly discount stores & struggling shoppers, it's been off the radar compared with those cities where shops & customers are higher up the income scale.

beyond that, I'd say the biggest problem is it's still impossible to go very far in bunker hill----& dt in general----& not run into deadzones & gaps like these....







^ the new art museum hopefully will soon start rising on the parking lot to the left. I notice the city at least has installed green gates around these lots, probably for security or to make them look less makeshift?

some good news to end things on, which I just saw today.....

Law firm Haight Brown & Bonesteel will leave the Westside for downtown Los Angeles in July.

The 72-year-old California firm will move its headquarters from Howard Hughes Center near Marina del Rey to City National Plaza, where it will sublease 27,280 square feet, according to brokerage Jones Lang LaSalle.

Downtown’s office market is still soft, with vacancy of more than 17%, but the decade-long boom in restaurants, residences and recreational options has made it more desirable to some white-collar companies.

“Not that long ago, if you worked downtown, as soon as you got off work you couldn’t wait to get out,” said Chris Stouder, managing partner of Haight Brown. “Now there is Staples Center, Nokia and the concert hall. The revitalization has made it a more attractive place to run your business.”

[dktshb]

From the Los Angeles Times:

Tough questions began to emerge Thursday at City Hall over some of the promises and forecasts being used to promote development of a National Football League stadium on public land in downtown Los Angeles.

Westside Councilman Bill Rosendahl wrote city negotiators and the head of a special panel reviewing the $1.4-billion proposal asking for details on a key promise: that the stadium would dramatically improve the city's ability to attract major events and conventions.

The move comes as a blue-ribbon commission created by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa prepares to hold its first meeting Friday in North Hills...

Full article here:
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-stadium-20110304,0,2894903.story

[JDRCRASH]

So, the price tag has doubled.....

[dktshb]

That was a real decent update of Downtown, LAB, thanks for sharing.

I like going to dinner at the Japanese Plaza if I see a show up on Grand or if I have guests visiting from out of town. The cosmetic improvements look nice. In the last couple of years little tokyo has turned into quite an active neighborhood.

[Illithid Dude]

Originally Posted by JDRCRASH

So, the price tag has doubled.....

No, not really. As far as I know, it has always been a 1 billion dollar project. If you mean the stadium, it is supposed to cost 750 million. The 1.4 refers to the Convention Center hall, and other various things.

[JDRCRASH]

Originally Posted by Illithid Dude

No, not really. As far as I know, it has always been a 1 billion dollar project. If you mean the stadium, it is supposed to cost 750 million. The 1.4 refers to the Convention Center hall, and other various things.

Oh, okay. Thanks for the correction.

[DistrictDirt]

Originally Posted by 202_Cyclist

Westsidelife:


Here in DC, there are more CVS stores than Starbucks. What's the joke-- you can stand in one CVS and see the next one from there.

Haha...I used to a good bit of my shopping at the CVS at 10th and L. One thing that annoyed me a bit about the CVSs in the District is their tendency to nab some of the nicest, historic retail spaces, and then completely cover the windows. I guess there's really no need for window displays in a drug store but still, it looks terrible when they just cover them up like that.

Pleased to hear about the Walgreens at 5th and Broadway, as that RiteAid is pretty so-so. Still- isn't downtown saturated with drug stores yet?

In other news, CoffeeBar looks like it's off to a great start...they were packed all weekend. Also heard through the grapevine thatthe last 2 remaining retail spaces in 600 S Spring are going to be a nail salon and a computer store that sells Apple products (not to be confused with an actual Apple store.)

[LosAngelesBeauty]

Originally Posted by DistrictDirt

Haha...I used to a good bit of my shopping at the CVS at 10th and L. One thing that annoyed me a bit about the CVSs in the District is their tendency to nab some of the nicest, historic retail spaces, and then completely cover the windows. I guess there's really no need for window displays in a drug store but still, it looks terrible when they just cover them up like that.

Pleased to hear about the Walgreens at 5th and Broadway, as that RiteAid is pretty so-so. Still- isn't downtown saturated with drug stores yet?

In other news, CoffeeBar looks like it's off to a great start...they were packed all weekend. Also heard through the grapevine thatthe last 2 remaining retail spaces in 600 S Spring are going to be a nail salon and a computer store that sells Apple products (not to be confused with an actual Apple store.)

This is just from my experience, but it seems that the most urban/walkable cities in the world that I've been to all have drug stores/convenient stores EVERYWHERE. Places like Manhattan, Taipei, and London that I've been seem to have "Duane Reade, Family Mart, 7-Eleven, etc" on every block.

After seeing that in those cities, it made sense to me because the density of the population supported these convenience/drug stores because people don't want to walk very far to get their basic necessities from these stores.

I don't think Downtown LA has hit that "saturation mark" yet because there are still a lot of places that seem pretty under served by basic neighborhood serving businesses.

I think there should be convenient stores on every few (maybe 3-4?) blocks in Downtown LA so people never have to walk too far to get what they need (if the density demands it in the future).