FEBRUARY 1, 2016 I VOL. 45 I #5
DJs, Drinks and Dinosaurs! First Fridays Returns to the Natural History Museum
dinosaur photo: FreeImages.com/Mario Alberto Magallanes Trejo
See Page 9
Church Inks Deal for Variety Arts Center : 8 Wooster Group Takes on Harold Pinter : 10
Got a Love
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WIN A ROMANTIC NIGHT DOWNTOWN! TELL YOUR... Best Wedding Day/Engagement Story • Most Romantic Story • Best Worst First Date Story
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Red Hot Chili Peppers to Do Sanders Fundraiser on Broadway
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he Red Hot Chili Peppers want you to give it away now — for Bernie Sanders. The Los Angeles rockers will perform at a fundraiser for the Democratic presidential candidate and Hillary Clinton rival at The Theatre at Ace Hotel (at 929 S. Broadway) on Friday, Feb. 5. The long-running rock and funk band endorsed Sanders last year. The concert is sold out, though on some occasions venues have additional seats for sale at the door. Sanders is not scheduled to attend the 8 p.m. show.
Massive USC Project Hits Halfway Mark
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he USC Village project, at the southern end of the Figueroa Corridor, is the biggest development in the university’s history. The $700 million project will create housing for 2,700 students, a Trader Joe’s, and a huge slate of restaurants and shops. The complex just north of the campus along Hoover Avenue and Jefferson Boulevard hit the halfway point of construction last week, and officials on Wednesday, Jan. 27, celebrated the milestone by installing a 12,700-pound rooftop spire on the peak of the
TWITTER: @ DOWNTOWNNEWS future McCarthy Honors College building. The 15-acre development is expected to open in fall 2017, in time for the beginning of the academic year. USC Village touts some eye-popping numbers: 3,200 construction workers, 23 million pounds of rebar and 90,000 cubic yards of concrete — enough to build a sidewalk from L.A. to San Francisco, according to the university. The project’s next phase will flesh out facades and frame interior walls. Construction began in 2014 after the demolition of a smaller shopping center on the site.
February 1, 2016
TAKE MY PICTURE GARY LEONARD
Milner Hotel on Flower Street Is Sold
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here’s yet more change in the Downtown hotel scene. Last week, executives with Irvine-based Pacifica Hotels announced that they had purchased the 1922 Milner Hotel. The 12-story property at 813 S. Flower St., long known as the Ritz-Milner, has 135 rooms and is pitched to budget and international travelers, with advance reservations starting at approximately $100 a night. It is the first Downtown Los Angeles acquisition for Pacifica, which was founded in 1995 and owns 30 properties in California, along with holdings in Hawaii and Florida. No purchase price was given, though in a prepared statement Pacifica called the property a “strategic addition” to the company’s portfolio. Pacifica officials are evaluating a long-term strategy for the hotel but have not released details. “With this acquisition we are excited not only to contribute to Downtown L.A.’s extraordinary revival, but to continue to diversify Pacifica’s portfolio with an investment in such a vital financial and cultural city center,”
Why does this little burger stand attract over a million people a year?
Sixth Street Viaduct
Last Walk
Michael Maltzan • Jose Huizar • Gary Lee Moore
Pacifica CEO Matt Marquis said in a prepared statement. The Milner underwent an extensive renovation in 2004. Some Downtowners know the building for its no-frills drinking spot the Backdoor Pub.
Navajo Rug Sale Lands at El Pueblo
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owntowners this week will have an opportunity to pick up handcrafted jewelry and rugs from Navajo artists. The Hubbell Trading Post in Ganado, Ariz., is bringing a trunk show
full of authentic goods to the Pico House (430 N. Main St.) at the El Pueblo Plaza. The sale will run Friday-Sunday, Feb. 5-7, from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. There will also be talks from the post’s trader, Edison Eskeets, at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. each day on the history and design of Navajo rugs. The event is organized by the Western National Parks Association, which operates the trading post. This will mark the WNPA’s first rug show in Downtown, though it has previously stopped in Calabasas. Entrance is free and the event includes weaving demonstrations throughout the weekend. Additional information is at wnpa.org.
Got A Love Or Worst Date Story? ! 1 y r a u r b e F , y a d n o M e n i l d a e Win a D Tell your... Romantic Night Downtown!
Find out at the landmark location near Downtown. Home of the original Chili-burger. Quality and value since 1946:
Chili Hamburger .............. $2.65 Chili Cheeseburger ........... $3.15
01/27/2016
GRAND PRIZE: • One night stay in an overnight deluxe room at the Omni Los Angeles Hotel at California Plaza including dinner for two at Noe restaurant and parking SECOND PRIZE: • $100 gift card to Patina Restaurant Group THIRD PRIZE: • A gift card for a movie night for two at Regal L.A. Live including popcorn and drinks
• Best Wedding Day/Engagement Story • Most Romantic Story • Best Worst First Date Story (for those less bullish on Feb. 14) Stories should be no more than 200 words!
ENTRIES: Deadline Monday, February 1 at 5 p.m. Email it contests@downtownnews.com (subject line: Love Story Contest) Mail it 1264 W. First St., Los Angeles CA 90026 (postmarked by Jan. 30) All or part of the submissions may be published in our special Romance in the City issue (or online), which hits stands Feb. 8 and become the property of Los Angeles Downtown News.
Must be 21 years of age to enter. Room night subject to availability. Performance tickets subject to availability, artist and program subject to change. Performance tickets will be held at will call under the winners name. All other prizes will be mailed to winners.
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February 1, 2016
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EXECUTIVE EDITOR: Jon Regardie SENIOR WRITER: Eddie Kim STAFF WRITER: Nicholas Slayton TWITTER: @ DOWNTOWNNEWS CONTRIBUTING EDITOR: Kathryn Maese CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: Jeff Favre, Greg Fischer
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EDITORIALS
ART DIRECTOR: Brian Allison ASSISTANT ART DIRECTOR: Yumi Kanegawa
ACCOUNTING: Ashley Schmidt CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING MANAGER: Catherine Holloway ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES: Catherine Holloway, Brenda Stevens, Michael Lamb February 1, 2016 SALES ASSISTANT: Claudia Hernandez CIRCULATION: Danielle Salmon DISTRIBUTION MANAGER: Salvador Ingles DISTRIBUTION ASSISTANTS: Lorenzo Castillo, Gustavo Bonilla
Urban Scrawl by Doug Davis ©2016 Civic Center News, Inc. Los Angeles Downtown News is a trademark of Civic Center News Inc. All rights reserved. The Los Angeles Downtown News is the must-read newspaper for Downtown Los Angeles and is distributed every Monday throughout the offices and residences of Downtown Los Angeles.
One copy per person.
EDITOR & PUBLISHER: Sue Laris
GENERAL MANAGER: Dawn Eastin EXECUTIVE EDITOR: Jon Regardie SENIOR WRITER: Eddie Kim
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Elegy for a Bridge
CONTRIBUTING EDITOR: Kathryn Maese
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: Jeff Favre, Greg Fischer
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S I N C E 19 7 2 Los Angeles Downtown News 1264 W. First Street, Los Angeles, CA 90026 phone: 213-481-1448 • fax: 213-250-4617 web: DowntownNews.com email: realpeople@downtownnews.com
ART DIRECTOR: Brian Allison n the early morning hours of Wednesday, Jan. 27, ASSISTANT ART DIRECTOR: Yumi Kanegawa the Sixth Street Viaduct was closed to traffic. The setting up of barriers — which more or less marks PHOTOGRAPHER: Gary Leonard the physical beginning of a $449 million replacement facebook: ACCOUNTING: Ashley Schmidt L.A. Downtown News project that will take about four years — underplayed CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING MANAGER: Catherine Holloway the significance and history of this piece of urban intwitter: ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES: Catherine Holloway, Brenda Stevens, frastructure. DowntownNews S I N C E 19 7 2 Michael Lamb Los TheAngeles Sixth Street Viaduct opened in 1932, and for Downtown News ©2016 Civic Center News, Inc. Los Angeles Downtown News SALES ASSISTANT: Claudia Hernandez is a trademark of Civic Center News Inc. All rights reserved. W.connected First Street, Los CA 90026 841264 years the Angeles, communities on the east and The Los Angeles Downtown News is the must-read newsphone: 213-481-1448 • fax: 213-250-4617 west sides of the Los Angeles River. It arrived at a far CIRCULATION: Danielle Salmon paper for Downtown Los Angeles and is distributed every web: DowntownNews.com • email: realpeople@downtownnews.com Monday throughout the offices and residences of Downtown different time in Los Angeles, decades before peoDISTRIBUTION MANAGER: Salvador Ingles Los Angeles. DISTRIBUTION ASSISTANTS: Lorenzo Castillo, Gustavo Bonilla ple would ever think of calling a sprawling portion of One copy per person. facebook: twitter: L.A. Downtown News DowntownNews eastern Downtown the Arts District. It is being razed because a chemical condition, known as Alkali Silica Reaction, has caused its conf nothing else, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s EDITOR & PUBLISHER: Sue Larisfigures to get heavy use if the El Niño storms arrive as anticipated. EDITOR & PUBLISHER: Sue Laris The project contains nearly 1,200 solar panels, which a Metro excrete to weaken. The replacement will be a bridge new bus project in Downtown Los Angeles would stand out GENERAL MANAGER: Dawn Eastin GENERAL MANAGER: Dawn Eastin that features a so-called “ribbon of arches” design, for its connections to the adjacent Twin Towers jail. The jail for ecutive estimates will provide the structure up to 10% of the power EXECUTIVE EDITOR: Jon Regardie Jon Regardie it uses. The list goes on, and the building, which has been certified complete with pedestrian and bike access. Renderyears had been dumping 30,000 gallons EXECUTIVE of water aEDITOR: week from its SENIOR WRITER: Eddie Kim WRITER: Eddie Kim LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold, is the ings and models look impressive. sprinkler system into storm drains, whereSENIOR it flowed to the ocean. STAFF WRITER: Nicholas Slayton STAFF WRITER: Nicholas Slaytonmost impressive Downtown governmental building on an environ CONTRIBUTING As the officialEDITOR: website sixthstreetvidaduct.org Now that water is going to Metro’s building and will be used to Kathryn Maese CONTRIBUTING EDITOR: Kathrynmental Maese basis since the Caltrans headquarters (with its copious phonotes, the bridge, at 3,500 is Greg the longest wash buses. CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: Jefffeet, Favre, Fischer of a seS I N C Eon19 7 2Street in 2004. CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: Gregpanels Fischerand other elements) opened tovoltaic First ries of 14 historic bridges spanning the river. Its grace That is just one of the environmentally conscious features in theJeff Favre, DIRECTOR: Brian Allison Angeles Downtown praise for its exterior News design and in Division 13 also deservesLos fulART arcs and the view it affords of the Downtown Los Division 13 Bus Maintenance and Operations Facility. Los Angeles ASSISTANT ART DIRECTOR: Yumi Kanegawa ART DIRECTOR: Brian Allison teraction with the street. The 1264 W. First Street, Los Angeles, CA 90026 project has a distinctly modern look, Angeles skyline have appeared in countless films, TV Downtown News last week wrote about the project at Cesar Chavez phone: 213-481-1448 • fax: the 213-250-4617 ASSISTANT Kanegawa PHOTOGRAPHER: Gary Leonard horizontal lines and wood elements that catch eye — shows and commercials (it’s a favorite for car ads). It Avenue and Vignes Street that opens Monday, Feb. 1.ART DIRECTOR: Yumiwith web: DowntownNews.com also stretches Ashley over part of the 101 Freeway; the re It can be hard to get excited over a place where about 200 buses one would hardly think that the action inside relates to cleaning ACCOUNTING: Schmidt email: realpeople@downtownnews.com PHOTOGRAPHER: Gary Leonard and repairing buses. On the corner is an artwork that references a moval of that portion of the bridge will occur first, will park when they’re not on the road, and where the main busiCLASSIFIED ADVERTISING MANAGER: Catherine Holloway a few blocks away. The leading to a 40-hour shutdown of a 2.5-mile section ness is washing and repairing the big orange vehicles. Yet Metro facebook: ACCOUNTING: Ashley Schmidt 400-year-old sycamore tree that once stood ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES: Catherine Holloway, Brenda Stevens, Michael Lamb L.A.after Downtown News it is lit up piece by Christine Ulke becomes striking dark when of SALES the freeway starting Friday, Feb. 5. has created a standout development. This may be expected given ASSISTANT: Claudia Hernandez like aCatherine lantern. Holloway Just about the only constant in modern Downtown the $120 million price tag, but we have seen many buildings that MANAGER: CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING twitter: CIRCULATION: Danielle Salmon As this page has noted before, MetroDowntownNews most often pops into pubis change. In many cases old buildings have been precost far more end up forgettable or wasteful. ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES: Catherine Holloway, DISTRIBUTION MANAGER: Salvador Ingles Brenda Stevens, Michael Lamb lic consciousness when there’s a problem, and people are quick to served. In this instance, the engineers decided that a The most intriguing elements of Division 13 are its sustainable feaDISTRIBUTION ASSISTANTS: Lorenzo Castillo, Gustavo Bonilla ASSISTANT: ©2016 Civic Center News, Inc. Los Angeles complain about bus or subway service. The reality is, most of the new bridge was required. tures, starting with the aforementioned jail SALES tie-in. It’s shockingClaudia that Hernandez Downtown News is a trademark of Civic Center News time the transit agency keeps hundreds of thousands of Angelenos ©2016 Now Civic workCenter is underway, and Angelenos a a trademark of so much water was being dumped during a devastating drought. It News, Inc. Los Angeles Downtownhave News is Civic Inc. All rights reserved. Center News Inc. All rights reserved. The Los Angeles Downtown the must-read climbing into News theiriscars. short time to snap photos of something that over the makes one wonder what additional green opportunities in Twin CIRCULATION: exist Danielle Salmon moving about the region without The Los Angeles Downtown News is the must-read newspaper for Downtown Los Angeles newspaper for Downtown Los Angeles and is dis Division 13 is a fine addition to Downtown. Its environmental decades has served untold millions of people. It wasofaDowntownTowers or any other large structure. and is distributed every Monday throughout the offices and residences Los DISTRIBUTION MANAGER: Salvador Ingles tributed every Monday throughout the offices andelAngeles. residences Downtown Loswhether Angeles. ements should be a model for otherof buildings, they come landmark. Bye-bye bridge. That’s just the start at Division 13. It has DISTRIBUTION a rainwater capture sysASSISTANTS: Lorenzo Castillo, One copy per person. One copy per person. from government or the private sector. tem that will help stock a 275,000-gallon cistern, something that Gustavo Bonilla
Making a Bus Facility Stand Out
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EDITOR & PUBLISHER: Sue Laris GENERAL MANAGER: Dawn Eastin
S I N C E 19 7 2 Los Angeles Downtown News 1264 W. First Street, Los Angeles, CA 90026 phone: 213-481-1448 • fax: 213-250-4617 web: DowntownNews.com • email: realpeople@downtownnews.com facebook: L.A. Downtown News
twitter: DowntownNews
EXECUTIVE EDITOR: Jon Regardie SENIOR WRITER: Eddie Kim STAFF WRITER: Nicholas Slayton CONTRIBUTING EDITOR: Kathryn Maese CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: Jeff Favre, Greg Fischer ART DIRECTOR: Brian Allison ASSISTANT ART DIRECTOR: Yumi Kanegawa
PHOTOGRAPHER: Gary Leonard ACCOUNTING: Ashley Schmidt CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING MANAGER: Catherine Holloway ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES: Catherine Holloway, Brenda Stevens, Michael Lamb SALES ASSISTANT: Claudia Hernandez CIRCULATION: Danielle Salmon DISTRIBUTION MANAGER: Salvador Ingles DISTRIBUTION ASSISTANTS: Lorenzo Castillo, Gustavo Bonilla
©2016 Civic Center News, Inc. Los Angeles Downtown News is a trademark of Civic Center News Inc. All rights reserved. The Los Angeles Downtown News is the must-read newspaper for Downtown Los Angeles and is distributed every Monday throughout the offices and residences of Downtown Los Angeles.
One copy per person.
February 1, 2016
Downtown News 5
DOWNTOWNNEWS.COM
Pimps, Terrorism and the New Law Enforcement Sheriff Jim McDonnell Lays Out His Vision, But Misses a Chance to Detail Department Reforms By Jon Regardie hen Jim McDonnell ran for sheriff of Los Angeles County in 2014, he played the outsider and reformer card. It was a smart move: McDonnell had clocked nearly 30 years in the LAPD, rising to become Chief William Bratton’s second-in-command. When Bratton de-
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THE REGARDIE REPORT parted and Charlie Beck beat out McDonnell for the top job, McDonnell left the LAPD to become chief of the Long Beach Police Department. He uniformly scored strong reviews. Then there was the state of the Sheriff’s Department at the time. To put things simply, it was a mess. The department was dogged by allegations of corruption, racial profiling and prison inmate abuse, and in December 2013 the feds indicted 18 deputies and supervisors. Things were squishy at the top, too, with controversial Undersheriff Paul Tanaka more or less running the joint while Sheriff Lee Baca traveled frequently. When in town, Baca made questionable decisions, such as the time he appeared in a promotional video for a health supplements company called Yor Health and stated, “I’m going to live to be 100 years old and beyond.” I swear this really happened. Then there were the sheriff’s station cliques, groups of officers with names like the Vikings and the Banditos. Some went so far as to get clique tattoos and, as McDonnell stated at a May 2014 election debate in Downtown Los Angeles, there were accounts of deputies hav-
ing to “earn your ink by being brutal to an inmate in a custody environment.” Holy Blake Griffin, these guys are supposed to protect us. When Baca chose not run for re-election, the conditions were perfect for McDonnell. He got every endorsement that mattered and cruised into office, crushing Tanaka and a handful of other candidates, including a couple department higher-ups. He became sheriff in late 2014. How has the outsider been as a reformer? That’s a good question, and it’s one that McDonnell missed the chance to detail in depth last week. On Wednesday, Jan. 27, he appeared at a luncheon hosted by the organization Town Hall-Los Angeles. The speech at the City Club, on the 51st floor of City National Tower, was a perfect opportunity to communicate any changes he has brought to the department. In a 43-minute address that was at least 14 minutes too long, he laid out priorities and hit the we’re-all-in-it-together theme. When he finished, the crowd cheered heartily. He had won the room. That said, McDonnell’s talk mostly focused on challenges and goals. The erstwhile reformer didn’t touch on cleaning up the department or any reforms achieved. Stuck in Trafficking A couple things stood out during McDonnell’s address. One was the gun holstered on his right hip. This seems unnecessary. I get that the firearm, like the name plate and the shiny
photo by Gary Leonard
Sheriff Jim McDonnell took office in late 2014 and found the job even more challenging than he anticipated. “I’ve come to an appreciation [of the department] I never had before,” he said during a Downtown appearance last week.
six-pointed star, are part of his sheriff’s uniform, and plenty of top cops carry a gun as a matter of course. But was there even a .0001% chance that the Sheriff of L.A. County would be called upon to pull out a weapon during a noon address to about 100 people wearing suits? Did the LASD have intelligence that a tapioca pudding thief was in the area and would need to
be thwarted, possibly by the sheriff himself? My favorite sheriff, Andy Griffith, famously kept Mayberry safe without wearing a gun. Then again, I’m 46% sure Griffith is made up. During the talk, McDonnell touched on topics such as the challenges of policing in the months after the Paris and San Bernardino attacks, and the need to recognize that the worst incidents can happen anywhere. He offered little-known factoids such as the department has an on-call helicopter for rescues, and that the prisons do about 80,000 pounds of laundry a day. He said bad-guy targets at Sheriff’s Department shooting ranges now feature the image of Kylo Ren from the new Star Wars (OK, he didn’t really say that). The centerpiece of the speech was a chilling section on human trafficking, which is slowly creeping out of the shadows as a political hot point. County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas delved into the subject during an address last summer at a Los Angeles Current Affairs Forum luncheon in Downtown. McDonnell took it further. He said girls as young as 13 are being pushed into prostitution, and that pimps often recruit them while they are in the foster care system. He described young girls being forced to have a pimp’s name tattooed on their body as a mark of ownership. Some gangs have turned to prostitution over drugs, he said, because it poses fewer risks and is more lucrative. “When you sell dope, you sell it once,” he said. “You can sell these young girls over and over again.” The department’s response, he suggested, will be potent. A Bureau of Human Trafficking will be established and will ultimately have 50 Continued on page 16
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February 1, 2016
Problems and Potential in the Industrial District
Central City East Association Executive Director Raquel Beard commissioned an economic analysis of the Industrial District, which has lagged even as Downtown has boomed. Homelessness remains a major challenge in the area, but so does a lack of public amenities.
Studies Show Community Lags as Downtown Booms, and Offer a Prescription for Change. Homelessness Is Not the Only Issue By Eddie Kim owntown Los Angeles is booming, with billions of dollars worth of projects rising in South Park, and new residential complexes and restaurants sprouting in the Historic Core and the Arts District, among other communities. The growth, however, has not been equal across all neighborhoods. No community has lagged as much as the Industrial District, which includes Skid Row. A pair of reports completed late last year seek to shine a different kind of light on the community, and to point out that not all of its shortcomings stem from a worsening homelessness situation. In addition to detailing the problems, it offers options that could lead to change. The report, simply titled the Central City East Planning Study, was conducted by the engineering/planning firm AECOM and commissioned by the Central City East Association in partnership with the public affairs and lobbying firm Kindel Gagan. It points out that the Industrial District now has 5,600 jobs — a 9% increase since 2002. While that sounds healthy, it trails the 17% growth across the rest of the Central City. The study lays out reasons for the lags in not
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only job growth, but residential growth. The Industrial District is almost entirely zoned for light-industrial uses, making it extremely difficult to build housing. That, coupled with crushing homelessness and a lack of welcoming streets and public amenities, has depressed retail and commercial opportunities. “This study is not to try and solve homelessness,” said Raquel Beard, executive director of the CCEA. “We wanted to look at the economic and land-use issues that are in play as the district changes. Homelessness is a big part of that equation, but there hasn’t been a real investigation into why the district looks and operates like it does today.” Wanted List The report, which was completed in November and shared with Los Angeles Downtown News, declares that those who live in the Industrial District feel “landlocked” between San Pedro Street and Alameda Street. The former is considered a “psychological” barrier, as the sheer number of homeless service providers, and the people congregating on the sidewalks, breaks a potential connection to neighborhoods like the Historic Core. The study finds that the community has a shortage of places for residents to eat, shop and hang out. Exacerbating the issue are the
Thinking about proposing? New love in your life? A special valentine for mom?
LOVE LINES Express Your Love
in our romantic Love Lines section online publishing February 8.
It’s FREE!
All you have to do is…
Streetcar... I can’t wait to have you ride all over me... Broadway
• Email your message to lovelines@downtownnews.com • 20 words or less • Include your contact info (name, phone and email) • Don’t forget the name of the person you are sending the love line to • Limited to 1 FREE message per reader (don’t try to be sneaky, we know)
DeaDline for entries february 2
photo by Gary Leonard
many subsidized apartments in the area, as small living quarters increase the need for outdoor space. This poses challenges for both housed residents and the homeless, said Gaurav Srivastava, a design and planning principal for AECOM who led the study. Business owners, meanwhile, noted the decline of the seafood industry, historically the dominant job source in the community. While the district covers about 10% of Downtown geographically, it represents just 1%-2% of Downtown’s employment base. Business owners added that the encampments and homelessness make it hard to re-
cruit and retain employees and other small businesses. “The flip side is that there is clearly a sense of compassion about the issue of homelessness. No one wants to see service providers leave,” Srivastava added. “That is not the goal of the stakeholders. They view this as an inclusive, diverse community.” The survey shows that many homeless services providers view Skid Row as at capacity, and they are considering expanding into other parts of the city. The providers see conditions as “more unmanaged than ever before,” Beard said. The report also queried property owners,
February 9,
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Downtown News 7
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and found that, naturally, they want to increase the value of their assets, including by converting them to residential and commercial uses. They hope to echo the advances seen in the Arts District, while acknowledging the Industrial District should maintain its own personality, Srivastava said. “They just don’t want to see that transformation happening piecemeal on a parcel-byparcel basis, which is how it would happen if no policies change,” he said. “They would like to see the city put in a framework for allowing and managing the change.” One constant among the groups is the need to improve the public realm so that it is more welcoming. Katherine McNenny, head of the nonprofit Industrial District Green, which leads community beautification efforts, said she has observed this firsthand. “More shade is a huge need. Planting more trees and putting in seating. The folks in the community and workers need a place to sit outside,” she said. “We need to fill out our bus stops. People are just standing in the rain and sun right now, and it adds to a negative picture of the community.” Serious long-term planning is needed to make the district more attractive to pedestrians, said Kindel Gagan’s Estela Lopez, who served for 10 years as the executive director of the CCEA. “You have blocks that are just window-less walls. The district is an urban industrial park without common management that has rolleddown doors, no lights and quiet streets,” she said. “It feeds this sense of foreboding even without the layers of homelessness.” Shifting Demographics The study lays out several paths to im-
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proving the neighborhood. One is waiting for organic growth along the edges of the district as surrounding neighborhoods continue to expand into it. Other options involve focusing development along main east-west connections such as Sixth Street, or leveraging the biggest parcels of land along Alameda for “once-in-a-generation” mixed-use mega-projects. Then there is the path of pursuing a major zoning change so all uses are fair game. This is complicated in that some stakeholders want to keep the area zoned for industrial uses, as they support middle-class jobs, Beard said. Others want to recognize an outflow of industrial jobs to outlying communities, and respond accordingly. Zoning changes in the Industrial District are currently rare and complicated and require going through multiple levels of city bureaucracy. Greg Fischer, who formerly worked in City Councilwoman Jan Perry’s office and consulted on the study (and who is an occasional contributor of historical pieces to Downtown News), said they also yield the strongest results. “Until you change zoning so that it benefits people rather than warehousing for some uses that may never come back to Downtown, you are going to go nowhere,” he said. “You cannot put in parks, you cannot put in schools, and they put you through torture to build any housing.” The nature of manufacturing jobs has also changed, said Tanner Blackman, a former planning director for City Councilman José Huizar who now works for Kindel Gagan. A live-work complex like the Arts District’s Barker Block has supported hundreds of jobs, he said, with some of those small businesses growing and
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moving into a dedicated retail space. “Industrial uses today, like making hipster jeans, is a lot more compatible with residential than in previous generations,” he said. The CCEA study is not the only one to delve into the district’s economics. Also released late last year was Our Skid Row, sponsored by Skid Row Housing Trust with input from neighborhood stakeholders. The report also points to a lack of basic amenities, stating that the neighborhood is a “healthy food desert,” with a lack of affordable restaurants and especially affordable grocery options. Additionally, it counted only 97 trashcans in the entire 50-block area, and just two public showers and six restrooms to serve the homeless community. Unlike the CCEA study, it presents a slate of explicit recommendations. Short-term priorities include creating “rest stops” with mobile showers, bathrooms and storage; forming “safety zones” with around-the-clock programming and a strict ban on alcohol and drugs; and installing gardens in underutilized lots and rooftops. Long-term goals include establishing Sixth Street as a corridor for new development that links the Historic Core and Arts District, creating a community-run safety initiative, and finding sites for more low-income housing. The two reports will be presented to the Department of City Planning. “There is so much potential in this district,” Beard said. “We just need to push forward with it and keep going until we can make the changes our community wants.” It’s a push that will take a long time, but also has been a long time coming. eddie@downtownnews.com
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n effort is underway in Skid Row to create a standalone neighborhood council, one that would break out from the current Downtown Los Angeles Neighborhood Council, which has board seats for Skid Row representatives. “General” Jeff Page, a longtime activist for Skid Row and a former DLANC member, is leading the charge. He said his years at DLANC showed him that the community needs its own leadership body. “I understand why the DLANC is focused on skyscrapers, top-notch amenities, important business growth, hotel stock, conventions, all that,” Page said. “But we are on a totally different level of issues in Skid Row. We weren’t on the agenda often enough. And what’s coming out of City Hall is not enough. We need to speak up.” The group could find success. In November, the City Council approved a process to subdivide certain neighborhood councils in Los Angeles. Page and members of the Skid Row Neighborhood Council formation committee plan to file an application this fall. A public vote to allow a split could take place in early 2017. —Eddie Kim
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February 1, 2016
Mega-Church Inks Deal for Variety Arts Center Youth-Oriented, Music-Heavy Hillsong L.A. to Occupy 1924 Building By Eddie Kim he Variety Arts Center, a Figueroa Street landmark that has remained stubbornly underutilized even as billion-dollar projects bloom all around it, is finally moving into the future. Its new tenant will be a Christian rock-powered mega-church that plans to reactivate the ground-floor theater and take office space upstairs. Renovations have begun at the five-story building at 940 S. Figueroa St., which is just steps from L.A. Live. The Los Angeles branch of the Australia-based church Hillsong is slated to move into the building by the end of the year. The church currently holds four services every Sunday at the Belasco Theatre on Hill Street. Ben Houston, lead pastor for Hillsong L.A., said he sees the Variety Arts Center as a longtime home, and anticipates the church becoming an active participant in Downtown. The church has signed a lease for 15 years, with two additional five-year options. “L.A. is a transient place, so for people to know that we have a stake here for potentially 25 years is big,” Houston said. “We’re not some church blowing in and out. We want to make a difference in the city.” The change comes thanks to the Robhana Group, a team of investors led by Downtownbased businessman Robert Hanasab. The group purchased the Variety Arts Center in 2012. Its other Downtown assets include the City National Bank Building and the Oviatt Building, both near Sixth and Olive streets.
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The 1924 Variety Arts Center is undergoing a top-to-bottom renovation. It will be the new home to the Christian church Hillsong L.A.
photo by Gary Leonard
It “took some time” for the team to decide what to do with the 1924 edifice, Hanasab said. The decision was complicated by the various elements in the building — it has a groundfloor theater with 1,100 seats, a smaller theater space on the third floor, and room for offices or other uses on the fourth and fifth floors. “We were thinking maybe we could lease the ground floor to a restaurant or retail, or turn the upstairs into apartments. A lot of historic buildings have done that,” Hanasab said. “We worked through a lot of options.” Busy at the Belasco Hanasab said the group’s marketing outreach drew diverse interest, but the team end-
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ed up partnering with Hillsong, the Pentecostal mega-church that began in Australia in 1983 and has spread to London, Paris, New York City, Stockholm and beyond. In Los Angeles, Hillsong grew from monthly meetings at locations around the city (including the Hollywood nightclub 1Oak) to a weekly gathering. The four weekly services at the Belasco are high-energy affairs that feature live Christian rock music. A total of approximately 3,500 people attend services each week, said Houston. As the congregation grew over the past 18 months, Hillsong began looking for a permanent home, said Houston. Other Hillsong branches have struggled to find a headquar-
ters, and Houston figured the L.A. congregation would face the same challenge. Instead, the hunt led them to a site a few blocks from the Belasco. Houston is enthused about the Downtown Los Angeles location, and was undeterred when people tried to discourage him from staying in the community, citing crime and safety issues and a lack of easy parking, he said. “I thought about every NBA and hockey game and how they sell out, and the same with concerts. So people come Downtown from around L.A. if there’s something they really want to go to,” Houston said. “The freeways all converge here and there’s new infrastructure and development and restaurants. I think God guided us there.” Houston said Hillsong hopes to move into the Variety Arts Center in late November. Historical renovation specialist Spectra Company (which is also working on Downtown’s huge Broadway Trade Center) is undertaking a full fix-up of the complex, including restoring parts of the Italian Renaissance Revival façade and the ornate interior detailing. “We’re bringing the entire core shell up to code,” said Troy Parry, a project manager for Spectra Company. “We’re putting in a new mechanical system, electrical, plumbing, new elevators, and making the building [Americans with Disability Act]-compliant. We’re also fixing the windows to make them functional. It’s a total transformation.” Hanasab declined to reveal the purchase price or renovation budget, but emphasized the breadth and depth of the work needed to modernize the Variety Arts Center. “It’s a building that’s been underutilized for Continued on page 16
February 1, 2016
Downtown News 9
DOWNTOWNNEWS.COM
DT
TURNING SCIENCE INTO A PARTY Natural History Museum Brings Back DJs and Discussions in the First Fridays Series
By Nicholas Slayton ow plausible is Jurassic Park? Could the faster-than-light travel seen in Star Wars possibly work? If life started imitating “The Walking Dead,” just how accurate would that show’s zombie mechanics be? These questions and more will be answered in the near future. Interestingly, the information comes not at some movie or pop culture festival, but rather at the Natural History Museum in Exposition Park. The subjects will be addressed during the First Fridays series, which take place, as the name implies, on the first Friday of every month, starting Feb. 5. This marks the 12th annual installment of the series that brings together guest speakers, gallery tours, DJ sets, drinks and live music. This year’s season runs through June. General admission for the programs that go from 5-10 p.m. are $18, and the events are free for museum members. This year the series theme is “Big Screen, Bigger Science.” The discussions will be on Hollywood blockbusters and the reality behind them. The goal, according to NHM Director of Programs Su Oh, is to show guests how much films draw from science. She noted that while many movies take liberties, certain dramas, such as The Martian, are rooted in hard science. “We at the institution are striving to be great science communicators, and film is one of those mediums that both creates inspiration and falsities in the science it talks about,” Oh said. “We want to talk about the great things that happen in science.” This year the NHM is expanding its roster for the discussions,
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bringing in two scientists per night. All of the talks will be moderated by journalist Patt Morrison. Audience members will have a chance to ask questions. This week’s discussion is titled “With Great Powers Come Great Close-Ups,” and looks at the practical and theoretical science of superheroes like Spider-Man and Ant-Man. Spiros Michalakis, a research scientist at the Institute for Quantum Information and Matter at Caltech, will be one of the speakers. Michalakis, who consulted on quantum physics for Marvel’s 2015 film Ant-Man, said he hopes he can show audiences the interplay of science and creativity. “You can only go so far with your own imagination, creativity and curiosity. Once you add science, though, it becomes magic,” he said. “You start wondering, is this possible? Once you start adding the science, it doesn’t take away from the drama.” The discussion starts at 6:30 p.m. Music and Dancing Each First Friday includes tours of the museum. Guests will be able to hear researchers explain their work and the stories behind some of the NHM’s artifacts. There will be three tours a night, each with 15 people. Spaces are available on a first-come, first-served basis. KCRW DJ Aaron Byrd will spin each evening. He’ll have a guest DJ every month, with KCRW’s Anthony Valadez joining him this week. Byrd will set up in the African Mammal Hall. Byrd said the broad diversity of the crowd in age and background makes it akin to DJing a wedding. He said he looks for artists who play a wide range of sounds, with an emphasis on
Americana, as well as variations of R&B and more recent funk. “I’m excited for the challenge of being able to get people dancing and being in a good mood and excited,” Byrd said. “It’s a microcosm of L.A. with every shape, size and age.” The First Fridays lineup also includes live bands in the North American Mammal Hall. Hip-hop duo The Hood Internet headlines this week’s event, with the dance-funk sound of Boulevards as the opening act. Performers for the rest of the season have not yet been announced. After superheroes, the focus turns to fish and the deep oceans in March, and space and time travel in April. The final installment, on June 3, is titled “Mostly Dead Is Slightly Alive.” It will feature UC San Diego assistant professor and neuroscientist Bradley Voytek talking about the science of zombie apocalypses and just what makes the undead tick. Oh said to expect a lot of neuroscience and pop culture references. NHM staff say they hope First Fridays brings a new atmosphere to the museum, and that guests leave seeing the facility in a different light. Bird and Michalakis both said that science and art are increasingly overlapping. In the process, walls are coming down. “Oh, you’re going to a museum. You’re thinking it is just an educational thing,” Michalakis said. “But it’s a lot of fun.” Sometimes the fun means zombies. First Fridays are 5-10 p.m. on the first Friday of every month, from February-June, at the Natural History Museum, 900 Exposition Blvd., (213) 763-3466 or nhm.org. nicholas@downtownnews.com
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February 1, 2016
Doom and Gloom in ‘The Room’ Wooster Group Debuts Pinter Play at REDCAT, Though an Unexpected Legal Challenge Flares
photo courtesy of REDCAT
includes Murphy himself — though he has only seen parts of rehearsal, Murphy said he is thrilled with how The Room melds creeping suspense and complex dialogue. The production feels more like a conventional play than many other Wooster Group works, he added, but with unexpected touches. “The buildup is enhanced by some smart sound scoring and vocal effects that play up that sense of dread,” Murphy remarked. “But as a counterpoint, all the humor becomes that much more pointed and rich. It’s not laugh-outloud, but it’s got a lot of compelling moments.” Developing those beats and dark humor came quickly for the five-person cast, said Ari Fliakos, who plays three roles, among them a narrator calling out Pinter’s stage directions. “We’re being very faithful to the text, even with words Pinter didn’t want to give to the au-
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dience,” Fliakos said with a chuckle. The premiere of The Room, however, comes with a challenge. An unexpected dispute with Samuel French, the licensing company with rights to The Room, means that plans to tour the production around the United States and in Paris are currently off the table. In addition, Samuel French has declared that no media reviews of the L.A. run are allowed. “We are elated and honored to have your company investing in a show like this but, unfortunately, outside circumstances require us to maintain this restriction,” Samuel French Licensing Manager David Kimple said in a prepared statement shared with reporters by Wooster Group and REDCAT. LeCompte said the touring ban is a huge blow to the group’s revenues and an overall “disaster.” “We make our living by touring, so this means we can’t finish our next piece,” LeCompte said. “It is an existential crisis.” Murphy, too, is perplexed by what he described as an unprecedented press by a licensing company. He said it goes against his venue’s mission. “One of the reasons why REDCAT exists is to move culture forward and inspire lively conversation about how our societies and art forms are changing,” he said. “Critical discussion of a work is essential to that, and to stifle it — if they really can — is really limiting the impact.” Valk and LeCompte said the cast continues to discover the depth and honesty of Pinter’s words, even with the specter of legal uncertainty and confusion hanging overhead. The Room runs Feb. 4-14 at REDCAT, 631 W. Second St., (213) 237-2800 or redcat.org. eddie@downtownnews.com
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New York City-based Wooster Group returns to REDCAT to perform The Room. The fiveperson cast includes veteran actors (left to right) Ari Fliakos, Suzzy Roche and Kate Valk.
of age and comfort with language that we’ve acquired since.” The world premiere of Wooster Group’s version of The Room takes place at REDCAT in Downtown Los Angeles on Thursday, Feb. 4. There will be 10 performances through Feb. 14, though due to an unexpected dispute, this may be its only time on stage (more on that below). Unexpected Trouble Pinter’s works mostly lack firm, easily describable narratives. Instead, they often focus on tightly wound conversations that meander from banal to disturbing. LeCompte and Wooster Group founding member Kate Valk (who plays Rose) both resist talking about The Room’s subtext, as they hope audiences will come to their own conclusions. “There is a sense of fear with Rose and Bert, and the fear is cosmic,” Valk said. “Fear of the other, the unknown, the future. And we end up with a body on the stage. Like all great art, it has an ambiguity that the audience can read into.” Wooster Group and REDCAT are longtime partners, as the Downtown theater has hosted eight previous Wooster Group engagements. At this point, REDCAT is “basically like The Performing Garage West,” LeCompte joked, referencing the group’s longtime home in New York City. Another strength in the relationship, said REDCAT Executive Director Mark Murphy, is that Wooster Group members admire the open-minded attitude of L.A. audiences. That
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By Eddie Kim or two decades, Wooster Group cofounder and current director Elizabeth LeCompte wondered whether the day would come for the company to perform Harold Pinter’s first play, The Room. The drama follows older couple Rose and Bert and their conversations with landlord Mr. Kidd, a younger couple and a mysterious blind man named Riley. Written in 1957, The Room is noted for its dark finale and Pinter’s wordy, fleetingly absurdist dialogue, which would become the playwright’s trademark. The Wooster Group did a read-through of The Room in 1992. The company decided not to pursue it. “I just didn’t know how we could do it. It seemed too sophisticated for us,” LeCompte recalled. “We were working with translated works from Chekhov, and a difference is that he works with plots, there’s a story you can follow. Pinter is much more difficult. It’s all about the language with him.” Over the decades, the group tackled ambitious projects and gained prominence in the experimental theater scene, but The Room sat on the backburner. Then, about two years ago, LeCompte realized that the time was finally right. “In 20 years, the company members have changed and grown,” LeCompte said. “I never had anyone who could play Rose — we were all in our 20s and 30s. So it required a certain kind
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Reggie Watts Arrives, the Music Center Goes Sleepless, Airplane-Themed Theater and More Downtown Fun
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The stunner from Stuttgart with the ferocious afro makes an appearance at Downtown’s Teragram Ballroom on Friday, Feb. 5. Perhaps you caught Reggie Watts at last week’s Night on Broadway. Or maybe you experienced his most recent foray into virtual reality at this year’s Sundance festival. Maybe you’ve just seen him countless times on “Comedy Bang! Bang!” or “The Late Late Show With James Corden.” However you know him, the gushing geyser of irreverent melodies, deadpan comedy and world-class beatboxing is one of those true innovators of the spoken word. Won’t you give him a moment of your time? Doors are at 8 p.m. At 1234 W. Seventh St., (213) 689-9100 or teragramballroom.com.
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The Arts District’s Loft Ensemble is an under-the-radar but steady presence in the Downtown theater scene. The Second Street company kicks off 2016 with The Aeroplane or How Low: An Autobiography (sort of). The play packages all the weight of substance abuse and an existential crisis into a dramatic rendition of one particularly heart-wrenching flight. Before you start sweating bullets, no, writer/director Mitch Rosander neither has previous knowledge of nor desires information about your obsession with “flight feet.” Relax. This lofty show runs until March 6 with performances each Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 7 p.m. At 929 E. Second St., (213) 680-0392 or loftensemble.org.
Night owls, vampires and insomniacs will be making a beeline for the Music Center’s Dorothy Chandler Pavilion on Friday, Feb. 5, as the experiential art night Sleepless returns. Within the unlikely home of L.A. Opera one will encounter sound and visual installations, strangely sanctioned dance floors, live music and a slew of other oddities that could easily be written off as a side effect of sleep deprivation. The event is free, but those hoping to sway to beats from Max Exitos, ESP Institute and the Leaving Records family need to snag an online ticket ASAP for the 11:30 p.m.-3 a.m. event. At 135 N. Grand Ave., (213) 972-0777 or musiccenter.org.
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Ken Ehrlich is as much a part of the Grammy Awards as the statues themselves. Since 1980, his role as producer of the show has netted steady TV ratings and a noggin full of memories we’ll bet you can’t top. What does this have to do with you? Well, on Tuesday, Feb. 2, Ehrlich steps into the Grammy Museum for a Q&A that promises to shed some light on the yearly awards show that has earned its very own museum. Free tickets for the 7:30 p.m. event (doors open 30 minutes before) were still available at press time. At 800 W. Olympic Blvd., (213) 765-6800 or grammymuseum.org.
5
When the Colburn School invites you to partake in Baroque Conversations on Thursday, Feb. 4, at 7 p.m. in Zipper Hall, they’re encouraging you to attend a concert, not powder your face and blurt out a staccato of $10 words at anyone within earshot. This installment of the oft-held musical tribute to the finer flourishes of 18th century salon culture serves a dual purpose. The Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra Principal Bassoonist Kenneth Munday will be celebrating his 40th season with LACO, or about the same amount of time that Peyton Manning has been in the NFL. Pieces from Boismortier, Rameau, Telemann, Handel and Zachow are on the schedule. At 200 S. Grand Ave., (213) 622-7001 or laco.org.
y
5 OFF $
By Dan Johnson | calendar@downtownnews.com
unda
TUESDAY, FEB. 2 Cirque Du Soleil: Kurios Dodger Stadium Parking Lot, 1000 Elysian Park Ave., (877) 924-7783 or cirquedusoleil.com/kurios. It’s the last week for the Montreal-based circus that focuses on acrobats instead of animals. Expect all sorts of awe-inspiring feats, including performers who bend in ways a body never should. Performances this week are TuesdaySunday. Closes Feb. 7. THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 4 Elizabeth Alexander and Kevin Young at Aloud Central Library, Mark Taper Auditorium, 630 W. Fifth St., (213) 228-7500 or lfla.org. 7:15 p.m.: Poet Elizabeth Alexander’s words were the attendant abstractions at President Obama’s first inauguration. Wordsmith Kevin Young has a National Book Award to show for his phraseology. Both will be on hand tonight to share. Neither writes the kind of poems where something rhymes with Nantucket. Ship Cats: Adventure, Courage, Betrayal! Last Bookstore, 453 S. Spring St., (213) 488-0599 or lastbookstorela.com. 7:30 p.m.: How many times a day do you think of oceanfaring cats? What, never? D. Paul Koudonaris will change your life with a lecture and slide show. Learn all about a cat named Trim who helped map the coast of Australia. FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 5 Sleepless Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, 135 N. Grand Ave., (213) 972-0777 or musiccenter.org. 11:30 p.m.-3 a.m.: Previous generations once knew all-night programs rich in live music, visual and sonic experimentation as a “happening.” Alas, that word has left our lexicon, but the spirit of the thing lives on in this installment of the Music Center’s most unorthodox bit of free programming. SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 6 Animo Pat Brown Anthology Reading Last Bookstore, 453 S. Spring St., (213) 488-0599 or lastbookstorela.com. 4 p.m.: We’re not sure how former Gov. Pat Brown would feel about having his name tacked on to a charter school, but given that his 1966 loss to Ronald Reagan ushered in a generation of political chicanery, we’re pretty sure Pat Brown’s ghost would be delighted to see a bunch of budding poets share the fruits of their creative birth. SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 7 Rock and Roll Flea Market The Regent, 448 S. Main St. or theregenttheater.com. 11 a.m.: Those expecting a full repertoire of GG Allin biohazards and parasites should be advised that “Flea Market” denotes a casual gathering of vendors who, in this case, deal in musical merchandise. Continued on next page
th M
EVENTS
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February 2, 2016
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Year of the Monkey Celebration Chuan Thien Hau Temple, 750 N. Yale St., (213) 680-0243 or chinatownla.com. 10 p.m.-Midnight: The Year of the Ram is no more. All hail the Year of the Monkey. Chinese New Year kicks off with this ceremony and celebration.
ROCK, POP & JAZZ
Blue Whale 123 Astronaut E. S. Onizuka St., (213) 620-0908 or bluewhalemusic.com. Feb. 1: Richard Sears/Walter Smith III/Sam Gendel/Eric Revis/Roy McCurdy. Feb. 2: Thelonious Monk Institute Ensemble Jam Session. Feb. 3: Kaveh Rastegar Group. Feb. 4: Adrian Terrazas-Gonzalez and Ty Baily. Feb. 5: Brandon Coleman and Sam Barsh. Feb. 6: Poem. Seriously, there’s a band named Poem. Bootleg Bar 2220 Beverly Blvd., (213) 389-3856 or bootlegtheater.org. Feb. 1, 8 p.m.: Thanks to the power of memory and perspective, we can now advise you that when black-clad, pseudo-goth, Lana Del Ray-styled, minimal beat-backed Lena Fayre takes the stage for the first night of her February residency and asks, “Am I an icon of this movement?” you can answer truthfully. Feb. 3, 8 p.m.: Marlon Williams promises that “every song is a character.” We can’t wait to see his rendition of Steve Buscemi in Armageddon. Feb. 4, 8:30 p.m.: We would not be surprised to find out that Benji Hughes’ long and unkempt beard is merely a cunning attempt to mask his true identity as the lead singer of Smash Mouth. Feb. 5, 8:30 p.m.: As if you needed further proof this week, Jessica Lea Mayfield is here to remind you not to record music under your given name. Feb. 6, 9 p.m.: Saved by the ’90s is a paradoxically named dance party celebrating the music that almost destroyed us. Exchange LA 618 S. Spring St., (213) 627-8070 or exchangela.com. Feb. 5: Andrew Rayel. Feb. 6: The New Order Tour. Grammy Museum 800 W. Olympic Blvd., (213) 765-6800 or grammymuseum.org. Feb. 2: Ken Ehrlich relives the glory days of the Grammy Awards. Feb. 4: Expect plenty of people to dress in black when The Cult visits the Grammy Museum. Microsoft Theatre 777 Chick Hearn Court, (213) 763-6030 or microsofttheeatre.com. Feb. 6, 8:30 p.m.: What sets corrido singer Roberto Tapia apart from all the other performers from Sinaloa, Mexico? Come find out. Seven Grand 515 W. Seventh St., (213) 614-0737 or sevengrand.la. Feb. 2: It is not The Makers’ business to potty train local frat boys. Teragram Ballroom 1234 W. Seventh St. or teragramballroom.com. Feb. 5, 8 p.m.: With a voice like sweet enlightenment and a last name carryover from the early steam power metrics of the industrial age, Reggie Watts promises comprehensive entertainment. Feb. 6, 4 p.m.: With the cardiac arresting talents of Mystic Braves, Corners, Part Time, Peach Kelli Pop, Psychomagic and many more, Lolipop Your Heart Out will be packing a defibrillator for this evening gig.
FILM
IMAX California Science Center, 700 State Drive, (213) 744-2019 or californiasciencecenter.org. Journey to Space 3D brings audience members along on an E-ticket ride of exploration to the red planet. Ewan McGregor is the voice of Humpback Whales 3D. Not that the whales aren’t significant enough in their own right, but Obi-Wan narrating means we’re dealing with serious power brokers here.
MORE LISTINGS Hundreds of listings of fun and interesting things to do in Downtown Los Angeles can also be found online at ladowntownnews.com/calendar: Rock, Pop & Jazz; Bars & Clubs; Farmers Markets; Events; Film; Sports; Art Spaces; Theater, Dance and Opera; Classical Music; Museums; and Tours.
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FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE NO. 2016019673 The following individual(s) is (are) doing business as: (1) Tiny Bee Cards, 1528 Yale St. #3, Santa Monica, CA 90404, (2) Lemonade Pixel, 1528 Yale St. #3, Santa Monica, CA 90404, and (3) Lemonade VFX, 1528 Yale St. #3, Santa Monica, CA 90404, are hereby registered by the following registrants: Alexis
$50,000 REWARD NOTICE LOFT/UNFURNISHED
OLD BANK District The original Live/Work Lofts from $1,500 Cafes, Bars, Shops, Galleries, Parking adjacent. Pets no charge Call 213.253.4777 LAloft.com
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EMPLOYMENT PROFESSIONAL GRAPHIC Designer Bachelor’s degree in Graphic Design, Fine Arts or related req’d. Send resume to employer: Al Entertainment Group L.L.C., Attn: Alex Sohn, 735 S. Manhattan Pl. #506, Los Angeles, CA 90005”.
The City of Los Angeles offers a reward payable at the discretion of the City Council to one or more persons in the sum or sums up to an aggregate maximum total sum of $50,000 for information leading to the identification and apprehension of the person or persons responsible for the act of murder against, THOMAS JOHNSON, in the City of Los Angeles. On Tuesday, December 15, 2015, at approximately 2:20 a.m., a dispute erupted into violence outside of the Standard Hotel in Downtown Los Angeles when an individual involved in the dispute produced a handgun and began firing at people. The suspect first shot two people immediately outside of the hotel, before moving on to the adjacent parking lot where he shot two more. One of the victims, 21year old Thomas Johnson, was fatally wounded in the altercation. Detectives are continuing to investigate this crime, and believe that a reward may compel member of the public to provide information on the identity of the person responsible for this crime. The person or persons responsible for this crime represent an ongoing threat to the safety of the people of Los Angeles. Unless withdrawn or paid by City Council action, this offer of reward shall terminate on, and have no effect after, JULY 30, 2016. The provisions of payment and all other considerations shall be governed by Chapter 12 of Division 19 of the LAAC Code, as amended by Ordinance Nos. 158157 and 166666. This offer shall be given upon the condition that all claimants provide continued cooperation within the criminal justice system relative to this case and is not available to public officers or employees of the City, their families, persons in law enforcement or persons whose misconduct prompted this reward. If you have any information regarding this case, please call the Los Angeles Police Department at 1-877-LAWFULL, 24 hours. C. F. No. 16-0010
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February 1, 2016
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The undersigned will sell on the 9th day of February 2016 at 11: 00 A.M. on the premises where said property has been stored and which are located at Thriftee Storage Company LLC, 1717 N. Glendale Blvd. in the city of Los Angeles, County of Los Angeles, State of California, the following: Name of owner: Space number Description of goods Amount Gregory Lucio Personal effects $217.00 Lorenza Lee Personal effects
CROSSWORD
A-13 D-59
U-54 D-54 E-25 D-28 D-19 C-28 U-85
Purchases must be paid for at the time of purchase in cash only. All purchased storage units with the items contained herein are sold on an “as-is” basis and must be removed at the time of sale. Sale subject to cancellation in the event of settlement between Thriftee Storage Co. and obligated party. Thriftee Storage Company LLC
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NOTICE OF SALE NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the undersigned intends to sell the personal property described below to enforce a lien imposed on said property pursuant to Sections 21700-21716 of the Business & Professions Code, Section 2328 of the UCC, Section 535 of the Penal Code and provisions of the Civil Code.
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the rights of another under federal, state, or common law (see Section 14411 et. seq. Business and Professions Code). Pub. 02/01, 02/08, 02/15, and 02/22/2016.
D AROUND
Macias, Deputy, on January 26, 2016. NOTICE—This fictitious name statement expires five years from the date it was filed in the office of the county clerk. A new fictitious business name statement must be filed before that time. The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a fictitious business name in violation of
N IN A
Rawlins, 1528 Yale St. #3, Santa Monica, CA 90404 and Brandon Sachs, 1528 Yale St. #3, Santa Monica, CA 90404. This business is conducted by a married couple. Registrants began to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on 05/19/2014. This statement was filed with Dean C. Logan, Los Angeles County Clerk and by Miguel
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VARIETY ARTS, 8
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PROMENADE TOWERS
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MUSEUM TOWER
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RESIDENCES: SINGLES • STUDIO • ONE BEDROOM • TWO BEDROOM
the past several decades,” he said. “It’s gotten some uses from time to time but we’re finally making it into a state-of-the-art building. We’re excited for this to be reactivated as a living piece of history.” From Chaplin to Gwar The Variety Arts Center was originally built for the Friday Morning Club, a women’s social and activism organization founded in 1891 by suffragist Caroline Severance. The group initially met in the Hollenbeck Hotel at Second Street and Broadway before moving to a two-story structure where the Variety Arts Center stands today, according to documents from the Library of Congress. As the Friday Morning Club grew, its leaders decided to demolish the building and raise a five-story stone structure suitable for large theater performances, meetings and more. The Variety Arts Center opened in 1924 and has had guests such as Charlie Chaplin, Cecil B. DeMille and Eleanor Roosevelt. In 1977, the club sold the building to the Society for the Preservation of the Variety Arts for theater and other artistic uses. It hosted occasional dance nights and concerts with bands such as the costumed, fake-blood-spewing punk act Gwar. Anschutz Entertainment Group acquired the building in 2004 with an eye toward activating it as part of their L.A. Live complex. That plan was scratched, and developer David Houk bought it in 2007. Since then, the building has been used only sporadically, including twice by horror film producer David Blum as a Halloween haunted house. Hillsong will be the first major tenant in decades. The church won’t use all of the center on a daily basis, so it is working with the ownership group to rent out additional spaces to others, Hanasab said. Houston said the church is making a big commitment to Los Angeles and Downtown. He noted that in addition to services, Hillsong touts a philanthropic branch dubbed CityCare, which assists individuals and families in need of financial assistance, counseling and more. eddie@downtownnews.com
SHERIFF, 5 dedicated detectives. The sooner it can established, the better. More Hurdles If there was one takeaway from the speech, it’s that being sheriff is a job almost no one should want. McDonnell ran down a laundry list of legislative and societal hurdles that have popped up in the last 15 years. They range from AB 109, a bill intended to reduce state prison overcrowding that instead swelled the population in county jails, to law enforcement cutbacks spurred by the Great Recession. There’s the need to replace Downtown’s decaying Men’s Central Jail. Plans call for a $2 billion facility where the priority will be treating lawbreakers who have addiction and mental health issues. There are zero easy answers, and McDonnell expressed a desire for transparency and touted the department’s move to share data, including on officer-involved shootings. Still, at Town Hall he missed an opportunity to go farther. He only glossed over a recent vote by County Supervisors to increase outside oversight of the department (McDonnell has supported such an effort in the past). He shrugged off the suggestion of using the kind of body cameras that the LAPD is trying to figure out, citing the costs of cloud storage and administrative staff. Those are legit concerns and the LAPD has encountered challenges, but at least that department is moving forward on the issue. McDonnell is likable, inspires confidence and connects with an audience. Though he acknowledged that the job is more encompassing than he anticipated — “I’ve come to an appreciation [of the department] I never had before,” he said — he seems more likely than any sheriff in decades to pull a Bratton-esque turnaround. He also doesn’t seem like the kind of guy who will peddle kooky health supplements. Hopefully in the future McDonnell will discuss not just what the department faces on the outside, but what is happening inside. Stopping pimps and bad guys is job one, but stopping Vikings and Banditos who have to “earn their ink” is important too. Andy Griffith would agree. regardie@downtownnews.com