LOS ANGELES | Downtown Project Rundown 4.0

[citywatch]

Originally Posted by LAofAnaheim

Anyways, Church & State changed everything when you said places in desolate places will not survive. Church & State is in the most industrial section of downtown LA (surrounded by 2 island residential buildings), but people go there in droves.

Make a good product and people will come.

laofanaheim, I think there's a variety of reasons why a store may not do well. But as you mention, thank goodness businesses like church & state or other similar places in the still gritty east side of dt do well.

the owner of babycakes said a lack of foot traffic was the problem they were facing in their location in the PE bldg. That is disappointing, cuz just about everyone here is unhappy when new bldgs don't include retail on their first level, or when older bldgs are stuck with vacant spaces or the type of swapmeet found on broadway. So when a store that fits the ideal opens but then closes, that's not a matter of easy comes, easy goes.

I do recall reading about babycakes opening 2 yrs ago & thinking it was one of those ideal fits for the hood. After seeing these pics of the store for the first time, I'm a bit more since it looked like a cute little place.

Whether new stores in dt are well run & serve a great product....& getting or not getting enough customers....I'd guess all of their owners won't be unhappy if the hood ends up with far more ppl....with decent incomes....living in it 24/7.

the story of babycakes is one more reason why I hope the big gap across Main St from the PE bldg.....the parking lot that the infamous Barry Shy wants to build a new highrise apt tower on....sees groundbreaking ASAP.


happycow.net


happycow.net


happycow.net


happycow.net

^ The kicker in things like this is a nice little business, new to dt, doesn't survive more than 2 yrs, while the horrible swapments on broadway manage to hang on yr after yr, after yr, after yr.

[citywatch]

this is a major reason why the news of the small bakery in the PE bldg closing caught me off guard & is very disappointing....It seems like it was only yesterday that I read this story & felt the bakery would do well enough to exist beyond 2 yrs...

ladowntownnews.com

When Sean Brennan opened the doors to The Pie Hole in the Arts District on Oct. 18, he knew he was on to a good thing. Still, he was unprepared for the response. By noon on opening day, Brennan and his business partners, Matt Heffner and Rebecca Grasley, had sold out of their first batch of pecan, peanut butter pretzel and other pies. The second batch was depleted by 4:30 p.m.

"Demand has increased every day," said Brennan last week during a visit to his Traction Avenue bakery and cafe. "We can't make enough of anything right now."

Brennan isn't the only one learning about Downtown's appetite for fresh-baked sweets and breads. At least seven baked-goods purveyors have opened since the summer of 2009, with four of them firing up their ovens in the last two months.

Pie Hole is similar to, but still different than, the other new arrivals. MF Gourmet, which opened in September, focuses on artisan breads such as ciabatta and baguettes. Semi Sweet, whose first day was Oct. 25, is a pastry driven shop. Babycakes delivers vegan cupcakes and other goods, Big Man Bakes concentrates on cupcakes and Hygge offers Danish pastries in South Park.

Semi Sweet doesn't resemble a small town bakery. It's squeezed between Pussy & Pooch, a boutique pet store, and Las Perlas, a tequila bar. The Sixth Street space is a blend of tradition and urbanity, with light blue walls, cement floors, vintage furniture and a large display window.

As with Pie Hole, the crowds are coming. Fong said the bakery produces about 300 items a day, and that by closing time, almost everything is sold.

Erin McKenna, who opened Babycakes in early 2010, said business has been steady since the vegan bakery began serving on Sixth Street. Although a lack of parking and streets closed due to film shoots sometimes reduce foot traffic, in general she continues to draw customers from the growing interest in Downtown and the residential base in the area.

"It has a lot to do with so many more restaurants, bars and cafes rolling the dice on Downtown and contributing to its livelihood," she wrote in an email. "Anything interesting that is happening with food in L.A. right now is happening Downtown, so it's a great community to be a part of."

[LA/OCman]

I am not a vegan and I found they did have a good product but I visited there only three times...and they are pricey. Plus, the desserts at Semi-Sweet, the Pie Hole, Nickel Diner, Figaro, Bottega Louie, Homegirl Cafe and Bakery and the cupcakes at Big Man Bakes are quite good. Now Sprinkles is opening Downtown and I bet Babycakes figured it would be better to offer their desserts at the Artisan House on 6th and keep the Larchmont location. I personally have driven to Urth Caffe in the Artist's District to buy desserts as they are baked there and excellent. Don't fret over a place closing. It happens everywhere.

[brudy]

Originally Posted by citywatch

this is a major reason why the news of the small bakery in the PE bldg closing caught me off guard & is very disappointing....It seems like it was only yesterday that I read this story & felt the bakery would do well enough to exist beyond 2 yrs...

Once I discovered it I went there a few times and there were always people in there. Maybe there's something more? I have heard from a few vegans (I'm vegetarian, but not vegan) that they didn't really like babycakes all that much, so who knows. I thought they were pretty good personally. I still think it was partly the location, people just aren't going to stroll down that part of 6th.

Perhaps downtown just hasn't reached critical mass in terms of population. I was trolling 2010 census data for some of the dtla zip codes and the amount of people not in the workforce was >50% (something like 53% for 90013). The age numbers skewed older and poorer. Similar but slight better numbers for 90014. There are times at night when I feel like I'm the only person who isn't poor or homeless and it's almost like a gentrified bedroom community. All these people with at least some money, who are representative of the "new downtown" are supposed to be here, but I don't see them. Other times I don't feel that way, but more population would help support places like Babycakes and some of these restaurants. Perhaps major retailers are looking at this same data and opting out of downtown for now.

[ConstructDTLA]

Originally Posted by brudy

Once I discovered it I went there a few times and there were always people in there. Maybe there's something more? I have heard from a few vegans (I'm vegetarian, but not vegan) that they didn't really like babycakes all that much, so who knows. I thought they were pretty good personally. I still think it was partly the location, people just aren't going to stroll down that part of 6th.

Perhaps downtown just hasn't reached critical mass in terms of population. I was trolling 2010 census data for some of the dtla zip codes and the amount of people not in the workforce was >50% (something like 53% for 90013). The age numbers skewed older and poorer. Similar but slight better numbers for 90014. There are times at night when I feel like I'm the only person who isn't poor or homeless and it's almost like a gentrified bedroom community. All these people with at least some money, who are representative of the "new downtown" are supposed to be here, but I don't see them. Other times I don't feel that way, but more population would help support places like Babycakes and some of these restaurants. Perhaps major retailers are looking at this same data and opting out of downtown for now.

Its nice to hear other people be frank about DTLA and not pretend that its something nicer than it actually is (yet). It'll be a long time before the Downtown zipcodes change from 'poor' to something decent.

I think a lot of these people with decent income may be using Downtown as a 2nd address? (Or in South Park - a 3rd, 4th, or 5th address).

[citywatch]

Originally Posted by LA/OCman

I am not a vegan and I found they did have a good product but I visited there only three times...and they are pricey. ....Don't fret over a place closing. It happens everywhere.

I do wonder if there was some sticker shock when ppl walked into that store, cuz I did hear ppl say the pricing on their items could be rather high...and we still are going through a time when jobs or paychecks can be iffy.

btw, I like dealing with the details of dt itself, so that includes my wondering about the specific news of a small bakery in the PE bldg no longer being open. Posts about things like that are harder to keep going in this thread when forumers....like me!....don't live in the hood, or spend lots of time there. I admit that. that's why I think the thread often meanders over to very generalized, even vague postings about city issues, or transit, or height of bldgs, or matters than can be discussed in just about any forum at ssp. So I'm not necessarily fretting as much as I like seeing posts with the type of specificity like the one from brudy about.....

Originally Posted by brudy

Once I discovered it I went there a few times and there were always people in there. Maybe there's something more?

Perhaps downtown just hasn't reached critical mass in terms of population. I was trolling 2010 census data for some of the dtla zip codes and the amount of people not in the workforce was >50% (something like 53% for 90013). The age numbers skewed older and poorer. Similar but slight better numbers for 90014. There are times at night when I feel like I'm the only person who isn't poor or homeless and it's almost like a gentrified bedroom community. All these people with at least some money, who are representative of the "new downtown" are supposed to be here, but I don't see them.

the owner of babycakes did mention business being affected by film shoots, or what I guess were days when ppl had trouble seeing or getting to her shop. I relied on google's street cam to see what the store was like....& notice how they were driving by when a film shoot was taking place out in front....



maps.google.com

^ it wasn't all that long ago when the area around the PE bldg was truly dead & judged by many ppl to be dangerous. It's still a work in progress, but in some ways it's one of the parts of dt that's more friendly on foot than the more burban like hoods throughout the rest of LA.

6th St east of Main looks rather ok in this shot.....


maps.google.com

your mentioning the hood may not having as many ppl 24/7 as assumed, or needed, is a point worth keeping in mind. It was just about a ghost town within the past 10 yrs....or almost no residents with a decent income, & instead plenty of homeless ppl. So that may make ppl today overestimate who or what is there.

I sometimes find myself assuming that cuz a few old bldgs have been converted to housing, that the quota for 24/7 residents is almost satisfied. But like you & hunterK describe, that isn't necessarily true on certain days, or in general.

when a person goes west on 6th St, past the PE bldg, & the now closed babycakes store, they'll run into one of the big gaps in the hood....the parking lot at the SW corner of 6th & Main, across from the Artisan house restaurant.....


maps.google.com

^ unlike Hunterk or others, I lazily grab pics of the hood from online sources....but they still show what has to be done to make up for what you & he say is a lack of critical mass of ppl living in the hood. that's why I hope this devlpr, who has a controversial history, isn't just pulling a fast one on everyone. But if he knows what he's talking about, & wasn't scamming the reporter late yr, then his proj will be one of the next major ones to break ground......

Historic Core apartment king Barry Shy has been sitting on big plans for a new tower at Sixth and Main streets ever since he bought the site for $30 million in 2006. Now, he’s eyeing an April groundbreaking on a 40-story, 350-unit complex dubbed SB Omega.

Shy’s plan calls for 35 levels of apartments above a five-story, 1,200-space parking facility. The structure would stand more than twice as tall as most Historic Core buildings.

“The rental market, it’s amazing,” said Shy, who already owns some 1,200 apartments in five Downtown buildings. “I have no vacancy and the rent keeps going up.”

Shy said the SB Omega plans meet the site’s land-use allowances and will not require special city approvals. But zoning records for the property at 601 S. Main St. indicate that the plan may actually require special signoffs, or only allow a smaller building.

[LAofAnaheim]

Just bear in mind, when film companies hinder access to a business due to a shoot, the business receives an estimate of that day's total sales from the film company. So that wouldn't be a reason why Babycakes went under.

[Dale]

I can only tell you that I was in LA this past week, spent a goodly amount of time downtown, and would say it's an immeasurably more vibrant a place than when I was there last, about ten years ago.

[Valyrian Steel]

9th & Olive





8th & Grand



8th & Hope crane





Grand Ave.



Edit: Courtyard Marriot from a distance

[jamesinclair]

Was the person who ordered this




Be turned into this




Put in jail?

[StethJeff]

Just got back from Figaro. The place can definitely use some signage as others have pointed out. With that said, the facade and entrance are very well done and inviting. Figaro is such an enormous step up from is surroundings that it almost feels out of place, which is of course a good thing. With respect to the interior, I can sort of see what someone above meant when they said that its looking for its identity. It does seem like a combination traditional bar + French cafe + Armenian banquet hall. Somehow it still works. Elegant without being pretentious. Excellent service, very clean, great presentation. The food itself is good. Didn't blow me away but it was certainly good. I'd definitely go again and think that it's a very welcome addition to the 'hood. Hope it does well.

[citywatch]

Originally Posted by Dale

and would say it's an immeasurably more vibrant a place than when I was there last, about ten years ago.

your comment & my wondering about the possibility of the devlpr who wants to put up an apt tower at 6th st & Main....& who's gotten bad press over the yrs....made me think of a similar big devlpr in dt.....who's also been looked upon as cuz of his run ins with local govt ppl, & is a favorite of forumers ......& what things were like over 10 yrs ago....


ghpalmer.com

^ It's easy to forget what things were like around the time you mention you were last in dtla, or actually longer ago. that's why I don't take what's going on today for granted. It has been a long road from a time when one of the first devlprs of major new housing projs in the hood felt he was taking a big risk, to 8th & Grand, 9th & Olive, the tower next to the broad museum, 8th & Hope, the proj on Fig south of Pico, projs in little tokyo, chinatown, Wilshire & bixel, & so on & so forth.

someone posted about GH Palmer filing an EIR for his site across from the old UA bldg, which is currently being converted to a hotel. meanwhile, he's putting up another one of his faux euro wonders, whose website now is online. this is the bldg map of that proj....


thedavinciapts.com

Originally Posted by Pink Floyd

I appreciate the pics....I was wondering if the little parking booth at the 9th & olive site at least had been removed. It appears it has.

Your pic of the marriott hotel is from an interesting angle.....I'm guessing taken from the upper level of the 9th/fig shopping ctr. It's a good example of what I mean when I say a person has to actually be IN dt, feet on the ground, eyes looking around, to get a better sense of what things are like.

since tomorrow is going to be the day of this country's biggest sporting event, which draws the largest TV audience per yr, I look at that pic & think of what things will be like if the stadium next to LA live is built.

This will be the 20th yr since a Super bowl was last held in LA, or in pasadena. 20 yrs have gone by!!

Next yr's big game is going to be held in NYC....in an outdoor stadium. Oh my! What will the weather be like?!

[citywatch]

Originally Posted by StethJeff

Just got back from Figaro...... Figaro is such an enormous step up from is surroundings that it almost feels out of place, which is of course a good thing...... I'd definitely go again and think that it's a very welcome addition to the 'hood. Hope it does well.

will be nice if reports like yours also also includes, if not now then in the near future: the place was quite busy!

[Illithid Dude]

Originally Posted by LosAngelesSportsFan

Coco Laurant has been getting busier and busier and as the weather improves, i suspect that the patio will become very popular

I drove through downtown yesterday and saw that the patio for Coco Laurant was packed. A Figaro this is not.

[StethJeff]

Originally Posted by citywatch

will be nice if reports like yours also also includes, if not now then in the near future: the place was quite busy!

The dining room is quite large so it'd be pretty impressive to see it packed. Everyone in there seemed to be enjoying their time so I hope the few loud negative voices don't drown out the overwhelming number of positive voices like mine. Think of it as a smaller and less pretentious Bottega Louie with more tolerable acoustics.

On a side note, I do find it ironic that the first restaurant in DTLA that I had any sort of negative reaction to is the one that became the biggest draw.

[Easy]

Originally Posted by blackcat23

http://www.ladowntownnews.com/news/work-...d42de7a-6c98-11e2-ac83-0019bb2963f4.html

According to the Downtown News, Onni currently has plans for two other towers in downtown. One would also be built on Olive street. The other is at 1212 Flower, adjacent to Pico Station. Currently the site of this office building:

According to this article in the LA Times the tower on Olive will be "next door" to the existing tower. Pretty exciting that they will be not only building tall, but building dense and creating a little residential neighborhood that will help bridge the gap between the Historic District and South Park. I wonder how concrete these plans are? These projects may need to be added to the first page.

And speaking of the first page I think that some of the proposed projects should be removed pending additional information. For example there's been no word on Zen for the better part of a decade. Maybe it's time to give up the ghost.

Probably at least half the proposed projects on the first page are dead because they weren't serious proposals to begin with. Also Jade Enterprises apartments needs to be added to the first page if anyone can find a rendering.

[Easy]

Originally Posted by blackcat23

The actual RFP, if anyone is interested in reading it:

http://www.labavn.org/contracts/document...o%20and%20Fig_FINAL_wo%20Attachments.pdf



Looks like ground floor retail is a prerequisite. Also looks like the city's intent is to shoot for the maximum number of rooms possible, which could potentially make for quite a bit of height.

Looks like bidding was extended from Jan 4 (odd deadline) until Feb 15. We should hopefully know something a few weeks after that.

[brudy]

Originally Posted by HunterK

Its nice to hear other people be frank about DTLA and not pretend that its something nicer than it actually is (yet). It'll be a long time before the Downtown zipcodes change from 'poor' to something decent.

I think a lot of these people with decent income may be using Downtown as a 2nd address? (Or in South Park - a 3rd, 4th, or 5th address).

On the flip side, this was my day yesterday. Coffee at Handsome Coffee in the Arts District then walk the dog around State Historic Park in chinatown. Afternoon at LA Art Book Fair at the Geffen Contemporary in Little Tokyo (which was extremely packed). Dinner at a new small Italian place at 3rd and Broadway called Maccheroni Republic (check it out, it is awesome). Then went to Music Center to see the Joffrey Ballet do a recreation of Najinski's 1913 Rite of Spring. All pretty much downtown and walked to everything but the park.

[BrandonJXN]

Originally Posted by Easy

According to this article in the LA Times the tower on Olive will be "next door" to the existing tower. Pretty exciting that they will be not only building tall, but building dense and creating a little residential neighborhood that will help bridge the gap between the Historic District and South Park. I wonder how concrete these plans are? These projects may need to be added to the first page.

And speaking of the first page I think that some of the proposed projects should be removed pending additional information. For example there's been no word on Zen for the better part of a decade. Maybe it's time to give up the ghost.

Probably at least half the proposed projects on the first page are dead because they weren't serious proposals to begin with. Also Jade Enterprises apartments needs to be added to the first page if anyone can find a rendering.

I agree. The first page needs some reorganizing.

[blackcat23]

Originally Posted by Easy

Looks like bidding was extended from Jan 4 (odd deadline) until Feb 15. We should hopefully know something a few weeks after that.

Where'd you hear this?

Hopefully they extended the deadline because there are bidders who need more time and not because they're still waiting for someone to take the bait.