Los Angeles in Decline? City commission seems to think so

[dennis1]

I just want to say the discussion on LA has been very good.


I love the transit you guys are building out right now.



To me this is just such a turn around.

[Quixote]

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-f...501-story.html

Soaring home prices spur a resurgence near USC


Mark and Jillian Dillon and their 1-year-old daughter, Staley Rae, and dog Guv'nor hang out in front of their home in Jefferson Park.
The Dillons, who had been renting in Venice, purchased the rehabbed Craftsman home a year ago.

By Andrew Khouri
April 30, 2014

Priced out of much of Los Angeles, young professionals are zeroing on several neighborhoods around USC and to the west, as the expanding Expo light rail line delivers new residents to the area.

Communities such as Jefferson Park, Leimert Park and West Adams are attracting buyers — and investors — seeking their relative affordability, location between the Westside and downtown Los Angeles, and the rail link between the two.

The influx comes as the once-struggling communities now see potential for new investment along major boulevards of South Los Angeles such as West Adams, Jefferson and Crenshaw. Prices are shooting up: In the ZIP Codes covering these neighborhoods, the median home price jumped 40.6%, to $450,000, in the first quarter compared with a year earlier, according to San Diego research firm DataQuick.

"There is great potential on a variety of streets," said Los Angeles City Councilman Bernard Parks, whose district includes neighborhoods west and south of USC. "People are finding what fits their pocket book."

Many of the newcomers once lived in the neighborhoods, or their families did, but moved away, Parks said. "Many of them have ties here ... and decided to reconnect."

Real estate professionals are taking notice. Agent Dino Buiatti is opening a West Adams office in June and plans to staff it with 30 agents.

"In the next five, 10, 15 years, the whole neighborhood is going to change," he said. "There is a lot of money being poured in."

A key indicator of residential activity is the amount of house-flipping taking place — investors buying, renovating and reselling properties.

Of all home sales in these neighborhoods during the first three months of this year, 11.5% were flips, according to research firm DataQuick.

The flipping rate surpassed even investor and hipster haven Highland Park.

"There is an awful lot of activity," said Timothy Braseth, who last year rehabbed 15 homes in the area. "It's gotten very competitive."

Developers are scooping up older Craftsman and Spanish-style homes, fixing them up and selling to new arrivals from the Westside, downtown and West Hollywood.

Jillian Dillon bought a Jefferson Park remodel from Braseth last year. The fashion stylist and her music-industry husband came from Venice, where they rented. The couple scooped up a 1908 Craftsman bungalow for $442,000. It's a mile from an Expo light rail stop, which Dillon predicts will boost their property value in years to come.

"Our home in Venice would easily be a $1.5-million home," the 33-year-old mother said, recalling bidding wars they endured before realizing the Westside was out of reach.

Leimert Park, West Adams and Jefferson Park were among Los Angeles' first suburbs. Their demographic shifts reflect immigration waves that swept Los Angeles over the last century.

Racial covenants kept the area predominantly white for decades. But in 1948, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled those racial deed restrictions unenforceable. Middle- and upper-class African Americans moved in, while many white residents left.

In the 1970s, jobs moved elsewhere and crime increased. The relatively new 10 Freeway now segregated South L.A. from the rest of the city, even splitting West Adams in two.

After a more recent wave of Latino immigration, only Leimert Park remains majority African American. Many new arrivals are white. The neighborhoods — largely west of USC and south of the 10 Freeway — are distinct.

Stately Victorian and Craftsman mansions of West Adams once housed Los Angeles' white, and later, black elite. It is also home to the well-known First African Methodist Episcopal Church of Los Angeles.

Farther west, off Crenshaw, Leimert Park Village was a lively hub of African American arts and culture, but less so now.

Jefferson Park, centered along Jefferson Boulevard, is home to smaller Craftsman bungalows, brick warehouses, colorful wall murals and small, aging storefronts. Also there is the upscale restaurant Harold & Belle's, a Jefferson Park institution serving Creole specialties in an area once known as Little New Orleans.

Newcomers are attracted to the historic housing stock, falling crime rate, proximity to a booming downtown and access to the region's growing rail network.

The Expo line, running from downtown to Culver City, cuts through the neighborhoods and eventually will reach Santa Monica. Meanwhile, construction is underway on the Crenshaw line, which in 2019 will link the Jefferson Park area to just outside Los Angeles International Airport. It will also stop in Leimert Park Village, where a revitalization effort is underway.

In years past, investors shunned South Los Angeles, and residents watched businesses flee. Even now, Councilman Parks expressed dismay that businesses haven't acted on the unmet demand for nicer restaurants and more retail options.

"New residents coming in are going to bring a list of demands," he said. "Then it's up to businesses."

More investments are coming. USC plans to break ground in September on a massive retail and student housing development on Jefferson Boulevard, across from its campus. A contemporary art gallery opened to hundreds in February at Leimert Park Village. And developer Nick Hadim has leased a collection of old brick buildings on Jefferson to artists and plans to fill corner space there with coffee shops and cafes.

That influx has spurred hopes of economic revitalization, but it has also sparked concerns.

"There are those fearful it will push out current business owners and current residents, and there is equally a large number of people that are tired of driving out of their communities to get what they want," Parks said.

Amid fears the USC retail project would spur gentrification and displace residents, activists secured a $20-million investment from the university for affordable housing, up from the $2 million that USC originally proposed.

But some neighborhood residents and business owners welcome the influx of new residents and the potential for more amenities.

"We embrace the change that is coming," said Heather Presha, a Leimert Park resident and real estate agent. "We want a coffee shop.... I want to be able to go, like in Highland Park, and have a wine."

The owner of the new Leimert Park art gallery, Michelle Papillion, doesn't think the community will have to wait long. In particular, she hopes to see a new health-food restaurant, she said. "I am pretty optimistic that we will have something pretty soon."

[ChrisLA]

I can't say I'm surprise especially areas like Leimert Park, View Park, Baldwin Hills those areas are beautiful. The hills in those areas have awesome views of downtown LA.

My wife's mom lives in that area and we noticed in the last four years the demographics has changed dramatically. In fact I remember when I would visit the Starbucks on Crenshaw the patrons was almost always 100% black. The last two times I've visit within the past three weeks notice it's only about 50% black and the rest are White and Asians.

Although what's really surprising to me is how much a house sold for next door to my dads home in Watts. It just sold for $395,000, that is unreal for that neighborhood.

[destroycreate]

Are black communities in LA still thriving or are blacks really leaving in droves as many recent articles point out? I always wonder if that's really the case, or if neighborhoods are just becoming less segregated and more integrated (i.e. more Asians and Latinos moving in), which skews the percentages.

[lovemycity21]

Originally Posted by destroycreate

Are black communities in LA still thriving or are blacks really leaving in droves as many recent articles point out? I always wonder if that's really the case, or if neighborhoods are just becoming less segregated and more integrated (i.e. more Asians and Latinos moving in), which skews the percentages.

Somebody tell me what a drove is? Yes, there are still a lot of black people in Los Angeles.

[destroycreate]

Originally Posted by lovemycity21

Somebody tell me what a drove is? Yes, there are still a lot of black people in Los Angeles.

It's an expression, "They arrived in droves to the Britney Spears concert."

Droves: herd, flock, pack

[LosAngelesSportsFan]

Originally Posted by destroycreate

Are black communities in LA still thriving or are blacks really leaving in droves as many recent articles point out? I always wonder if that's really the case, or if neighborhoods are just becoming less segregated and more integrated (i.e. more Asians and Latinos moving in), which skews the percentages.

I think its a bit of both but more some of LA integrating. We are seeing communities mix rather than being isolated except for areas like the san gabriel valley which seem to be going the other way

[Quixote]

Gentrification in South LA is still in its infancy. Despite what the article claims, I somehow find it very hard to believe that West Adams and Jefferson Park are outpacing neighborhoods like Echo Park and Highland Park. EP is now gentrification central and that torch will be handed over to HP very soon.

The part of South LA that has the biggest chance of turning around anytime soon is the area around USC because of University Village and MyFigueroa. That's what I'll be monitoring most in that part of town.

[DenseCityPlease]

Originally Posted by Quixote

The part of South LA that has the biggest chance of turning around anytime soon is the area around USC because of University Village and MyFigueroa. That's what I'll be monitoring most in that part of town.

University Park, Jefferson Park, and West Adams will become the first parts of South L.A. to gentrify, but I wouldn't attribute that to the new UV development and MyFig. Certainly those projects will speed the process by making the area more desirable, but there are a number of more concrete reasons why it would happen in these neighborhoods anyway (and indeed it has already begun):

1. Gentrification reliably targets quality housing stock that has fallen into disrepair and underinvestment...it goes to neighborhoods with good bones. Let's not forget, in the era from 1900-1930 West Adams was akin to Beverly Hills for city's wealthy elite. While this is obviously no longer the case, many historic buildings remain, along with stately tree-lined streets.

(https://www.google.com/maps/place/Fi...3c1f83041dfa2c)

2. Simple proximity to the employment centers and cultural attractions of DTLA and USC/Exposition Park. These neighborhood are the furtherest north you can be while still being in South LA, and thus closest to the increasingly middle class neighborhoods just north of the 10 freeway and at the same time furthest from the county's epicenter of poverty and crime.

3. Mass transit access: Just wait to see how property values rise once a critical mass of people realize they can live next to the Expo line and be halfway in between DTLA and Santa Monica, and just 15 minutes from Culver City.

4. Quantity of formerly industrial space available to be converted to studios and creative commercial space. What Adams Blvd. is to residential development potential, Jefferson Blvd. is to commercial development potential.

[Altauria]

USC's planning an enormous gentrification of its existing University Park neighborhood.

http://upcmasterplan.usc.edu/

This coupled with a major revitalization of the West Adams area will be a well overdue, and badly needed, attraction for the school (and city as a whole).

Now if they can improve the quality of air in the area...

[delts145]

Infact, I just received the "GOING OUT OF BUSINESS" notice from Superior Market at the USC Village. That was a very busy grocery market, and one of my favorites, but I'm glad to see that acreage get some redevelopment attention.

I live in the historic Alvarado Terrace neighborhood, and have witnessed first hand a noticeable positive change. From what I'm told there has been a dramatic improvement over what existed with gang activity, street trash, etc. of five years ago.

Not the only ethnicity, but certainly making a huge impact for good in many central areas would be the Korean community. I've noticed this in and around Wilton, especially Country Club Park. Also, big changes brought on by the Koreans in the Lafayette Park area, and now starting to affect not only immediately west of Macarthur Park, but also creeping through to Alvarado and all around Pico Union. I was a bit surprised to see how much of a claim the Korean community had laid on the north side of Macarthur. Without a doubt, a huge amount of Korean Capital is pouring into Central Los Angeles.

If you ever take a long walk down Wilshire, from Macarthur Park to Museum Row, you'll understand what they mean when they say that Los Angeles is South Korea's second capital.

[Altauria]

Originally Posted by delts145

If you ever take a long walk down Wilshire, from Macarthur Park to Museum Row, you'll understand what they mean when they say that Los Angeles is South Korea's second capital.

You're right. I have/had friends living in that area, and it's quite impressive what's happening. Is it that wealthier Koreans are moving into the neighborhood, or the upward mobility of the children of immigrants? Both perhaps?

Building off of what you were saying, I think Koreatown is a bit of a misnomer. Neighborhoods that include 'town', 'village', 'little', etc., tend to not be a square mile in size. Koreatown is not only enormous, but well diversified; not so much a quasi-amusement park like other such cultural enclaves can be. This is sort of ironic as LA is basically one big amusement park

[Crawford]

Originally Posted by Altauria

You're right. I have/had friends living in that area, and it's quite impressive what's happening. Is it that wealthier Koreans are moving into the neighborhood, or the upward mobility of the children of immigrants? Both perhaps?

I was always under the impression that the opposite was happening, but I don't live in LA, so don't know the neighborhood well.

My impression of Koreatown was that it wasn't really a Koreatown at all, but a super multiethnic (really mostly Hispanic) area where Koreans had extremely high business and property ownership, as well as a residential presence. On street level, it seemed to be ultra-diverse, but far from exclusively, or even mostly, Korean. Even many of the Asians appeared to be South Asian.

And I assumed the gentrification taking place would make the area less Korean still, as people cash out and move to the suburbs, like most immigrant groups.

Also, Koreans are highly economically mobile, and much of Koreatown is rather, uh, less than fancy, for typical upper middle class immigrant preferences. It's still a bit rough around the edges and the second generation probably doesn't want to live next door to an apartment with 10 Guatemalans or something, nor some scruffy hipsters (no offense to Guatemalans or hipsters ).

[LosAngelesSportsFan]

Originally Posted by Crawford

I was always under the impression that the opposite was happening, but I don't live in LA, so don't know the neighborhood well.

My impression of Koreatown was that it wasn't really a Koreatown at all, but a super multiethnic (really mostly Hispanic) area where Koreans had extremely high business and property ownership, as well as a residential presence. On street level, it seemed to be ultra-diverse, but far from exclusively, or even mostly, Korean. Even many of the Asians appeared to be South Asian.

And I assumed the gentrification taking place would make the area less Korean still, as people cash out and move to the suburbs, like most immigrant groups.

Also, Koreans are highly economically mobile, and much of Koreatown is rather, uh, less than fancy, for typical upper middle class immigrant preferences. It's still a bit rough around the edges and the second generation probably doesn't want to live next door to an apartment with 10 Guatemalans or something, nor some scruffy hipsters (no offense to Guatemalans or hipsters ).

This was true 15 years ago, but now, you are seeing younger and more affluent Koreans (along with all races) moving into Ktown. The food scene, the bar scene, the lifestyle, metro access, central location.... its all very appealing.

[RaymondChandlerLives]

http://www.sfvbj.com/news/2014/may/1...t-drops-april/

L.A. County Unemployment Drops in April
By JOEL RUSSELL
Friday, May 16, 2014

L.A. County’s unemployment rate fell to 8.3 percent in April as 30,000 more residents found jobs during the month, according to state figures released Friday.

The state Employment Development Department figures represent a noteworthy drop from the unemployment rate of 8.7 percent in March. Just a year ago, the rate stood at 10 percent. The 30,000 residents who found jobs was the highest one-month figure in more than 20 years.

The infamous 3.1% decline in total employment since 1990 is down to 0%.

[Altauria]

Originally Posted by Crawford

My impression of Koreatown was that it wasn't really a Koreatown at all, but a super multiethnic (really mostly Hispanic) area where Koreans had extremely high business and property ownership, as well as a residential presence. On street level, it seemed to be ultra-diverse, but far from exclusively, or even mostly, Korean. Even many of the Asians appeared to be South Asian.

I think this is accurate as well. It's probably the spread out nature of LA that redefines these patterns, even if such definitions are only applicable to itself.

It almost becomes something like Astoria, Queens. Only less concentrated, and its diffusion much more nebulous.

[Illithid Dude]

Originally Posted by Crawford

I was always under the impression that the opposite was happening, but I don't live in LA, so don't know the neighborhood well.

My impression of Koreatown was that it wasn't really a Koreatown at all, but a super multiethnic (really mostly Hispanic) area where Koreans had extremely high business and property ownership, as well as a residential presence. On street level, it seemed to be ultra-diverse, but far from exclusively, or even mostly, Korean. Even many of the Asians appeared to be South Asian.

And I assumed the gentrification taking place would make the area less Korean still, as people cash out and move to the suburbs, like most immigrant groups.

Also, Koreans are highly economically mobile, and much of Koreatown is rather, uh, less than fancy, for typical upper middle class immigrant preferences. It's still a bit rough around the edges and the second generation probably doesn't want to live next door to an apartment with 10 Guatemalans or something, nor some scruffy hipsters (no offense to Guatemalans or hipsters ).

I think Koreatown is pretty close to being exclusively Korean. Maybe a quarter of the businesses in K Town are non Korean, if that.

[mello]

Another huge sign of decline: LA lost its exclusivity on hosting the X Games, will be in Austin this year... Looks like everything is going to Texas.

[Illithid Dude]

Originally Posted by mello

Another huge sign of decline: LA lost its exclusivity on hosting the X Games, will be in Austin this year... Looks like everything is going to Texas.

"huge"

[caligrad]

^^^ Exactly..... LOL. looking at previous posts from Mello, especially in regards to LA, He has a "everything is wrong with LA" attitude to him.. seeing that hes from San Diego, maybe its because San Diego tends to be overshadowed by LA since its so close in proximity to give it its own identity. I had some cousins from Texas visit recently who thought San Diego was part of L.A. County and not its own city LOL.

I'm waiting for one of the Moderators to close this thread up. It really doesn't make any sense and everything Happening in LA at the moment seems to be going against the original post so why keep this one on ??? A similar post about Houston was shutdown after 2 weeks........... And this thread has started to jump all over the place and became off topic.... so......yeah...