‘Macbeth’ Goes to the
Desert Arts District Production Refocuses Shakespeare’s Epic Tragedy
AUGUST 12, 2019 I VOL. 48 I #32
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a spike in homelessness in skid row Page 10
ty segall gets a summer home in downtown
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Broadway Hotel To Open in October
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roadway’s emergence as a boutique hotel corridor continues, as representatives for the Hoxton Hotel have announced that its project will open in early October. The 174-room hotel in a 10-story Beaux Arts building will have rates starting at $229 a night. The Downtown location will be the first Los Angeles outpost for the London-based hotel group; the project is being developed by the hospitality firm Ennismore. The hotel at 1060 S. Broadway will reactivate the former Los Angeles Railway Building, and will include a ground-floor diner, as well as a rooftop pool and a Mediterranean-themed restaurant. The Hoxton will be a block south of the Ace Hotel, and just north of the Proper Hotel, a 148-room boutique establishment also slated to open in the fall. More information is at thehoxton.com.
Close-Up Magic to Appear in Downtown
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n the fall of 2017, close-up magician Siegfried Tieber caused jaws to drop with his solo show See/Saw. Nearly every
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performance in a tiny Historic Core space sold out, and now the Ecuador-born performer is returning. Last week, Tieber announced that his new show, Red Thread, will debut Oct. 3, and will run for six weeks until Nov. 10. There will six performances per week with shows limited to 34 audience members; tickets are $74. Tieber, who also made a splash in 2017 when he appeared on the TV show “Penn & Teller: Fool Us” and stumped the magic masters with a card trick, describes Red Thread as an exploration of chance and chaos. “Every outcome is the starting point of further possibilities,” he said in a press release. “It doesn’t take long before this starts to look like a labyrinth: some paths converge, some run parallel to each other, some are dead ends. Like the Greek mythological princess, Ariadne — who gave Theseus a thread when he entered the labyrinth — my hope is to take the audience with me and guide them through this journey.” Tickets are available at atlasobscura.com/events.
Bridge Housing Site for Women Opens This Week
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he severe shortage of temporary emergency housing for homeless individuals will be relieved a bit this week. That’s because longtime provider the Downtown Women’s Center will open its Enhanced Bridge Housing facility on Tuesday, Aug. 13. Located at 442 S. San Pedro St., the project, part of Mayor Eric Garcetti’s citywide A
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Bridge Home program, will have 25 beds. It will provide nightly shelter between the hours of 5 p.m.-5 a.m. to women in and around Skid Row; it then will transition to a day shelter, where women can still access services. In addition to the beds, there will be health and permanent housing services available. According to the 2019 Homeless Count, 834 of the nearly 1,500 women living in Skid Row go without shelter each night. Funded by the city and Wells Fargo, the location will be the second Bridge Home facility in Downtown, joining the 45bed El Puente project that opened near Olvera Street in September 2018.
After Ups and Downs, Duello Closes
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he long saga of the Arts District eatery Duello seems to have come to an end. The high-profile restaurant at 449 S. Hewitt St. has shut its doors and scrubbed its social media accounts, putting an end to one of the most curious string of events in the Downtown restaurant scene. The reason behind the closure remains unclear and an email to Duello’s general manager was not returned; previous media representatives confirmed that they no longer represent the restaurant. Duello first opened last September as Simone, with wellknown chef Jessica Largey at the helm and Joe Russo, a film director who helmed the last two Avengers movies, behind the scenes. Early hiccups and poor reviews foreshadowed the removal of Largey in March, and in April the
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restaurant briefly closed. It returned in May with a more accessible menu from chef Jason Beberman. Eater Los Angeles first reported the news of the closure.
Two Big Speaker Series Team Up
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or more than 80 years, the organization Town Hall-Los Angeles has been holding regular discussions and events in Downtown that touch on a variety of topical issues. For nearly 70 years, the Los Angeles World Affairs Council has been doing the same, though usually outside Downtown and with an international bent. Now the two organizations are joining together, and the formation of the Los Angeles World Affairs Council & Town Hall was announced last week. The union will allow each group to reach more people and widen the type of coverage that their respective members enjoy, and programs will take place both in Downtown and on the Westside. “The new partnership is about keeping the spirit of public discussion alive for another 150 years,” said Kim McCleary Blue, the president of the combined organization, said in a prepared statement. “We want to dive deeper, hear questions, explore answers and rise to the challenge of current events.” The next Downtown event for the new entity is a luncheon with Samantha Power, the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, who appears at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel on Sept. 19. Continued on page 9
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TAKE MY PICTURE GARY LEONARD
Where Are Downtown’s Basketball Courts and Playing Fields?
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ast month, a team of city representatives and designers unveiled the latest details and renderings for the First and Broadway Park. The updates show a project with some green space, hardscape pathways and a three-level restaurant complex with outdoor seating. Plans call for the $28 million park to blend seamlessly into the adjacent Grand Park. City representatives said the goal is to position the park for a changing Civic Center, as the community is slated to see a proliferation of office and housing high-rises. FAB Park might indeed serve that audience, but a look at the design sparks to mind something that is sorely missing in Downtown Los Angeles: public recreation facilities. This proposed park, like almost every other park in Downtown, lacks the outdoor basketball courts that lure people for pick-up games or league play (Gladys Park in Skid Row has a court, but few people from greater Downtown will go there to play). FAB Park doesn’t have volleyball or handball courts. The design is bereft of the fields that could attract legions of softball- and baseball-playing Downtowners. We’re singling out FAB Park, but only because the facility, scheduled to break ground next year and open in 2022, is now in the public mindset. The bigger problem is that there are zero plans to create playing courts or fields or baseball diamonds anywhere in Downtown. Why should the community lack something that is taken for granted in many residential neighborhoods? Public athletic facilities are good for a community. They provide an opportunity to exercise and bring people together. The recreation centers run by the city and sprinkled across Los Angeles improve every neighborhood where they exist. Yet there is no talk about bringing one to Downtown. It’s not hard to figure out why. Creating a recreation center requires acres of land, and property values in this particular real estate market are nutty. It’s questionable whether Quimby fees, charged to developers for park creation, could cover the price tag. Still, in a community of smart people, many of them avid exercisers or sports lovers, there should be options or ways to offset the cost of doing it elsewhere — some day, somehow. Maybe the solution is not an entire recreation center, but a few scattered basketball or other courts or fields. The transformation of Pershing Square appears to have ground to a halt, but when it picks up again this seems like a natural location for some public outdoor recreation facilities. Downtown is growing, and is expected to have 200,000 residents by 2040, and not everyone will want to spend or be able to afford the monthly fees at the litany of local gyms. Plus, sometimes people just want to be together and play a game outside under the L.A. sun or in the cooler evening air. Downtown needs many things as it builds toward a complete community, and basketball, volleyball and other facilities may not be at the top of the list. But they can pay long-term dividends. Downtown can’t be a place for people to live, work and play if there’s nowhere to actually play.
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COMMENTS
Regarding the article “Metro Charter Elementary School Closes,” by Sean P. Thomas I’m sorry to read this — it was an exciting and promising chapter for DTLA when this school opened in my neighborhood. I am not a parent, but imagining the deteriorating quality-of-life is just too much for even diehard Downtowners with school-age children. And the lack of a public-private partnership to secure the necessary space required for the school at reasonable rental rates shines a light on where the public/private focus is. Apparently it’s not on drawing or keeping families in Downtown. —Dawn Davis Regarding the article “A Push for a Later Last Call,” about the proposal to allow bars to stay open past 2 a.m., by Nicholas Slayton NYC: 4 a.m. New Orleans: 24/7. Tokyo: 24/7. London: 5 a.m. Shanghai: 24/7. Florence: 24/7. Moscow: 24/7. L.A. needs to follow the crowd if it wants to be a major metropolitan city. —Josh Gray-Emmer It would be interesting to know the types of safety laws that are in effect in those cities and the percentage increase or decrease in potential injuries and the cost of hospitalization and police protection. The L.A. police are
EDITOR: Jon Regardie STAFF WRITERS: Nicholas Slayton, Sean P. Thomas CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: Tom Fassbender, Jeff Favre
July 26, 2019
spread out as it is. Do we need to compete with Las Vegas on that level? —Jan Atkins Nothing good happens after 2 a.m. Does MADD know about this? The alcohol industry is fueled by greed. —Donald Ferguson Regarding the editorial “Again, Los Angeles Needs a Homelessness CEO” From my experience of living in Downtown L.A. for the last eight years, a very large number of these cases involve mental illness. These people are not going be able to be housed in shelters. We need mental care hospitals. It needs to be a national effort, and not just left up to a single city. It requires participation from the state and federal governments. —James Macri
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Downtown Receives More Foot Beat Officers By Sean P. Thomas he number of Los Angeles Police Department officers walking the streets of the Central City has increased. In June, community group DTLA Strong, in partnership with the LAPD Central Division, announced that up to 10 additional officers have been authorized to walk foot beats in Downtown Los Angeles at various times throughout the day. It follows a prolonged campaign by the group to address concerns over public safety.
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In response to an outcry from community members, LAPD Central Division Capt. Scott Harrelson has shifted resources that will allow up to 10 additional officers to be walking on the streets of Downtown, rather than in a patrol car or at a desk
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According to a press release issued by DTLA Strong, despite the City Council’s failure to provide additional funds to Central Division for more foot beats, the division was able to explore alternative avenues to bring more resources to the area. Central Division Capt. Scott Harrelson told Los Angeles Downtown News that by shifting resources, he was able to ensure that different units within Central will dedicate portions of their shifts to patrolling the streets. That includes bike units, the Vice unit, the Special Problems Enforcement Unit and his Senior Lead Officers. The location of the redeployed staff will be based on crime trends. The number of officers on the street can also vary depending on the daily resources available. Previously, 13 officers and two sergeants were dedicated to patrolling Downtown streets; they are divided into pairs and spread through various districts. With the new allocations, up to 25 officers could be walking Downtown streets at any one time, though that does not mean the maximum figure will always be deployed. “Central Division prides itself in our long-standing commitment to community policing,” Harrelson said in a prepared statement. “Our efforts around foot beats underscore our understanding that successful policing means meeting the community where they are.” Shawn Smith, founder of the community watch group WatchDTLA, said that he has recently noticed an improvement in certain trouble spots such as Seventh and Spring streets in the Historic Core due to the increase of foot beats. He said it is particularly pronounced when the officers hold roll call openly on the streets, though he added that the impact waxes and wanes depending on the deployment. “It does work, of course it works,” Smith said. “We just need more dedicated resources. Our city is growing, so we need more support.” According to the LAPD, crime rose 6.1% in Downtown in 2018, the fifth consecutive year that it has increased. The most serious infractions, known as Part 1 crimes, rose to 7,442 incidents in 2018, up from 6,963 in 2017 and 6,151 in 2016. Violent crime however, decreased 7.7%, from 2,080 incidents in 2017 to 1,925 in 2018. “As Downtown’s population — and tax base — has increased draContinued on page 9
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LOCAL JOURNALISM MATTERS ies has been publishing stor s ar ye 47 r fo d an , 72 19 n News was launched in dents. Among the most si re d an rs ke or w es Los Angeles Downtow el s Ang r most to Downtown Lo te at m at th melessness crisis. es su ho is e e th th s es on dr ad at th e e community are thos important stories for th printed in-depth stories s ha ly nt ue eq fr d an y, ivel rted on the topic extens . po re s ha s ew N n ow nt Dow ed. Here are two of them ok lo er ov en be ve ha at sness th about facets of homeles TWITTER: @DOWNTOWNNEWS
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In October, Downtown News published an article about the spike in homeless family members in the community. It noted that on one night in September 2018, a stunning 270 children slept in the Union Rescue Mission.
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JUNE 11, 2018
Number of Homeless Women Spikes in Skid Row Neighborhood Sees 35% Increase in Females Living on the Streets
photo by Sean P. Thomas
The Union Rescue Mission in Skid Row is serving so many homeless women that it has taken to setting up inflatable mattresses in the hallways on some evenings.
By Sean P. Thomas n May 31, the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority made waves by reporting that homelessness in L.A. County had decreased by 3% in a one-year period, while the number of homeless individuals in the city had fallen by 5%. The headlines overshadowed an alarming statistic contained deep in the 2018 LAHSA Homeless Count: The number of women living on the streets of Skid Row has jumped by 35%. The community replete with tent encampments and people living in unsafe and unsanitary conditions saw the number of women without permanent shelter skyrocket from 1,072 people when the three-day count was conducted in January 2017, to 1,442 during the count this past January. The 2017 homeless count reported that women made up 23% of the people living on Skid Row. This year, that figure has jumped to 34%. LAHSA says 4,294 homeless people reside in the community. The numbers are a stark difference from what is being seen across L.A. County. According to the 2018 homeless count, the number of women living on the streets decreased by 4%, from 17,148 in 2017 to 16,410 this year. Tom Waldman, communications director for LAHSA, said that it is unclear why the number of homeless women in Skid Row has jumped so dramatically. The increase is not a surprise to Andy Bales, CEO of the Union Rescue Mission, which operates a shelter and a string of support services at 545 S. San Pedro St. In fact,
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Bales said that the overall decrease reported by LAHSA is a little hard to believe based on his daily experience at the shelter. “Maybe my vision is skewed from where I work, but the dip of 3%-5% could just be explained by a margin of error,” he said. “I’m really grateful it didn’t grow 25%, but I wouldn’t want anyone to pat themselves on the back and say we solved this.” The Union Rescue Mission was founded 126 years ago and provides services such as emergency housing, skills training and meals for the homeless population. It has been headquartered at its current site since 1994. Bales has been on the front lines as homelessness has worsened; despite the reported decline this year, last year homelessness in the county soared 23% over 2016 levels. In response to the rising number of people on the streets, the mission 2 1/2 years ago began utilizing its first floor day room as an emergency shelter. Later, the facility’s chapel was drafted as an overnight emergency shelter specifically for women. Now, on some evenings, blow-up mattresses trail out of the chapel and are placed throughout the hallways for women seeking a safe place. “We never turn away a single woman away from our door,” Bales said. “We never turn away a family from our door. We’ve just had to make space and continue to accommodate.” The shelter houses 1,100 people in their Downtown location. Bales estimates that 630 are women and children, and 350 are likely single women. Continued on page 8
Last June, Downtown News published the article “Number of Homeless Women Spikes in Skid Row.” It revealed that, even after a reported 5% decline in homelessness in the city, the number of women on the streets of Skid Row surged by a startling 35%. The article detailed the situation and how local service providers struggled to respond.
The Next Skid Row Crisis: Rising Numbers of Children Resources Are Limited as More Families Lose Housing By Nicholas Slayton arly this year, Joel Guzman lost his home in a low-income housing project. He tried staying with family and looking for another apartment, but couldn’t find a place he could afford. He and six of his seven children ended up on Skid Row in April. They soon were staying in the Union Rescue Mission. “It was hard for the kids in the beginning. Real hard,” the 35-year-old Guzman said last week as he sat in a meeting room at the facility on San Pedro Street. “They’re used to having their own room. For them it was a huge change. ‘Why can’t we go outside? Why can’t we do this?’ So me, as a dad, I pretty much had to learn to manage and control them and make them feel safer.” Guzman is not alone, as the number of homeless families across the city and in Skid Row is soaring to unprecedented levels. On Sept. 17, the Union Rescue Mission reported 270 children staying overnight, an all-time high, according to mission CEO Rev. Andy Bales. The mission is not an outlier. The May Homelessness Count released by the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority reported 5,111 homeless family members in the city, a 13% rise over the previous year. That comes
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and households. “We haven’t really seen this before. I think in the past two or three years before last year, we were averaging about 3,500 families per year. Last year we saw over 4,000 families.” The Union Rescue Mission is the only provider on Skid Row that accepts families overnight. The mission since 2007 has also operated the Hope Gardens center in Sylmar for homeless women and children, but that has a capacity of 225 beds. The mission regularly uses its overflow space in Downtown, including its gym, to accommodate homeless families. During a recent visit by a reporter, scores of air mattresses were set up ahead of an expected nighttime crowd. Bales said there has been only a small reprieve since the Sept. 17 high. “We’ve seen numbers sticking around that level, just a hair down,” Bales said. “We stepped up efforts to move moms and kids to our Hope Gardens space. We’re at just a bit under the all-time high.” Overloaded System When it comes to the reasons for the high number of homeless families in Skid Row, many point to the overall increase in homelessness. Bales said that families are frequently being forced to the streets by rising rents, a
Union Rescue Mission, the only Skid Row services provider that accepts families overnight, has been setting up mattresses in its gymnasium to handle the crowds.
photo by Gary Leonard
even as overall homelessness in the county and city dipped 3% and 5%, respectively. The homelessness count reported that Council District 14, which includes Downtown Los Angeles, has 702 family members, down 2% from the previous year. Yet that was countered by a steep increase within Skid Row: LAHSA (based on counts conducted in January) identified 478 homeless family members on Skid Row (42 were unsheltered), a 111% increase over the 227 of the previous year. That included 309 children under the age of 18, a 109% rise over the 148 counted in 2017. “We are seeing a significant increase in families coming into the system overall,” said Josh Hall, associate director for LAHSA’s coordinated entry system, which organizes housing and resources for homeless individuals
factor worsened by the limited housing supply, which pushes up demand. Hall echoed the rising rents concern, and noted that in the May count, 46% of the people identified as newly homeless were in that situation due to some sort of economic factor. He added that this in turn places more pressure on the crisis housing LAHSA uses. “We’re seeing more families come into the system and they’re also having a hard time finding housing on the back end. In the past, you’d have that kind of churn and be able to place them into housing,” he said. “Caseloads were more manageable, and the crisis housing stock was able to meet the needs. “But what we’re seeing now, because of the housing market, families are staying longer. Turnover in the shelter system isn’t as fast.” Ana Velouise, director of communication
and policies for the Downtown Women’s Center, said single women with children frequently end up in Skid Row in the effort to escape domestic violence. She said that the DWC often serves as a domestic violence center, offering trauma recovery and resources to help women cope with and recover from abuse. Life on Skid Row presents a unique set of challenges for families. Guzman, who is working as an apprentice at Union Rescue Mission, helping out where needed, said one of the hardest parts is telling his kids they can’t go outside to play. Sitting with his 4-year-old son Romeo, he said he is lucky that the children attend the nearby Ninth Street School. “ They ’ve got their friends at school. During the day they forget about all of this,” he said. “I wake them early so they can get dressed. They get a break from being here.” School can provide a bit of stability for homeless children, said Andy Herod, vice president of student and community services at Para Los Niños, a longtime services provider that operates an approximately 400-student charter elementary school serving kindergarten through fifth grade at 1617 E. Seventh St. (another option is the public Ninth Street School). He said that homelessness among students is something the school prepares for, as it impacts how children learn and develop. In some cases, children in Skid Row are unable even to attend school, Velouise said, due to circumstances and concerns for safety. Herod said that Para Los Niños, Ninth Street School, Union Rescue Mission, the county and other entities have formed an advisory committee to coordinate aid for homeless students, with help both academically and in coping with trauma. The city and county are dedicating billions to address homelessness through Proposition HHH, approved by voters in 2016 to create permanent supportive housing, and Measure M, an initiative passed the following year that will provide services to help homeless individuals. But Hall acknowledged that the immediate demand for shelter, particularly from families, continues to rise. In increasing instances the effort is to prevent people from becoming homeless in the first place. Hall said more resources are being dedicated to, for example, resolving a crisis so people don’t wind up in a shelter. That can involve mediating conflicts with family members or helping people deal with a lack of resources. “One of the things we’re trying to increase focus on is limiting inflow at the front door,” he said.
OCTOBER 29, 2018
Joel Guzman and his 4-year-old son Romeo have been staying at the Union Rescue Mission since April. CEO Rev. Andy Bales said the mission reported a record of 270 homeless children one night in September.
photo by Gary Leonard
Those seeking to care for children in Skid Row note that effects can be long term. Herod said that students at Para Los Niños are sometimes traumatized from not feeling safe in their surroundings, and that the children can become hyper-vigilant, even when they are safe. Another difficult factor for kids’ mental health is the lack of stability that comes with homelessness, as they might suddenly move to another neighborhood or part of the city, disrupting lives and friendships. He noted that the school offers food and after-school programs for kids in need. Velouise echoed the concern. “For the average woman coming down here, not being able to have a routine, that can be really detrimental. For children, that’s compounded,” Velouise said. The DWC has a trauma recovery center that offers services to single adult women, but not families or kids. Velouise said that the center provides referrals to help connect families to counseling. With so many families arriving, Union Rescue Mission is looking to provide more services for children and mothers, including more beds and connecting kids with educational or after-school programs. But Bales acknowledged that the building can only hold so many people. Guzman is looking to get his children out of the mission. As he played with Romeo he said that, despite the market, and the influx of new families to Skid Row, he remains positive. He said that as long as he remains in the mission, he’ll seek to help new incoming families avoid feeling trapped. nicholas@downtownnews.com
een ovember 11, and betw N de lu nc co ill w s rie Matters” se pics Downtown News to d an The “Local Journalism s ie or st e th of e will detail som e of journalism to nc rta po im d now and then this page an e at st e th “Local t information about has tackled, and presen ng you to donate to our ki as be ill w e w e su is that final keep your voice relevant lp he local communities. For ill w n tio na do ur ecial feature. Yo Journalism Matters” sp re you work or live. he w ity un m m co n ow ownt and connected to the D fice A. Downtown News of L. e th t ac nt co n, tio na to make a do For more information or m. alpeople@downtown.co re or 48 14 148 ) 13 (2 at
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A Tale of Three Cities Pondering Bikes, Rivers and Homelessness in Berlin, Paris and Los Angeles By Jon Regardie his summer, I traveled to Europe with my family. As we visited Berlin and Paris, I couldn’t help but continually compare the cities to and contrast them with Los Angeles. There are points in common; all three are buzzing international cities with thriving arts
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THE REGARDIE REPORT and cultural scenes. Just as Los Angeles is in the midst of a building boom that is changing its urban fabric, Berlin has been transformed since the fall of the Wall three decades ago. Meanwhile, construction was everywhere in Paris as the city preps for the 2024 Summer Olympics, which will precede the 2028 Games in L.A. I was also struck by how much Los Angeles could learn from these cities, and in certain dramatic ways, how Los Angeles lags so far behind Berlin and Paris. Don’t get me wrong or demand “Send him back!” I love L.A., and the portion of the city east of Alvarado has been my home for more than two decades. I have no desire to live anywhere else, including west of Alvarado. Still, these modern metropolises have L.A. whupped when it comes to a trio of is-
sues that impact daily life. Los Angeles could be a friendlier, more habitable place if it takes cues from what Paris and Berlin have achieved in regards to bicycling, rivers and homelessness. On Two Wheels Visit central Berlin and you’ll be struck by how many people ride bikes. You’ll also be struck by how many people walk around and swig from large bottles of beer, particularly in the late afternoon, but that’s a whole other matter. Many Berlin residents ride their own bike, though there are also rentals, dockless options and racks similar to the Metro Bike Share system. Few people wear a helmet, but that’s in part because Berlin has an extensive network of safe biking lanes. It’s not as much of a bike-opolis as The Netherlands, but Berlin has common-sense car-less solutions such as extra-wide sidewalks where half the space is for pedestrians, and half is reserved for those using pedal power. While shared sidewalks are not everywhere, they are extensive and provide an opportunity to safely crisscross much of the city. My family, with a 10- and 12-year-old in tow, did exactly that. I’d take the family on long bike trips
photo by Jon Regardie
Los Angeles could take from cycling tips from Berlin, where pedaling is safer thanks to a network of wide sidewalks that have lanes for both pedestrians and people on two wheels.
through the heart of Los Angeles, but I’d prefer that we not die. Despite some city leaders’ occasional chirps about promoting local biking, L.A. lacks an extended network where cycling lanes are separated from vehicles. Avid cyclists may be fine with speeding down busy thoroughfares, but I shudder when I think of pedaling the length of the $20 million MyFigueroa project. Yes, some segments contain physical buffers that protect cyclists from cars, but these are interspersed with long stretches with only painted lines on the street and little sten-
cils of a bicycle, and I’m pretty sure that a white stripe won’t stop a texting driver from plowing into me. Creating a network of sidewalk bike lanes is neither easy nor inexpensive. Further, L.A. drivers go ballistic whenever you even hint at removing a vehicular lane, almost as if they believe that having an abundance of car lanes is a Constitutional right. There are countless hurdles to clear. That said, if cyclists must continue to share the streets with two-ton vehicles, then good Continued on page 8
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THREE CITIES , 7 luck getting masses of people out of their cars and onto two wheels. If Berlin figured it out, then L.A. should be able to do the same. A River Runs Through Them Among the loveliest sights in central Berlin is the Spree, the river that rolls through the heart of the city. Thousands of tourists each day take advantage of the copious short, affordable boat tours or longer floating cruises. Paris too is filled with companies providing pacific excursions, some passing by sights such as Notre Dame and the Eiffel Tower, and others built around an evening on-boat meal. Even if you never take the tourist-oriented trek, the banks of the Seine and the city’s canals practically beg people to sit and linger. During my visit, one evening I saw long lines of small groups of young Parisians hanging out on the concrete edges of the canal for hours, drinking wine, making out with each other and smoking like crazy. The city builds on the inviting infrastructure with the Paris Plages program. “Plages” means “beaches,” and during the summer extended stretches are turned into urban gathering points complete with trucked-in sand, lounge chairs and umbrellas, enclosed swimming spots, free tai chi classes and more public programs. Los Angeles would achieve wonders if it could capture even 20% of what Paris and Berlin do with their rivers. I’m not the only one who feels that way, and the stalwart group Friends of the Los Angeles River has spent decades trying to convince the public of the value of reclaiming the 51-mile waterway. It’s also not as if the city totally ignores the concept — a few years ago L.A. was pushing a $1 billion overhaul of portions of the river. However, it required ample federal funding, and the momentum dried up when Donald Trump was elected President. As with better biking options, restoring or improving the L.A. River would be mega-complicated and pricey. There are safety concerns, too — after all, the Army Corps of Engineers encased the waterway in concrete decades ago because flooding during winter rains would wipe out neighborhoods. L.A. wound up with an unsightly project that protected a growing metropolis. Yes, there have been some river improvements, including portions where people can now kayak. But you can’t take a leisurely
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cruise through Downtown Los Angeles like you can through central Berlin or Paris. I suppose someone could push you in a shopping cart on the concrete portion of the river, and you can fish for carp, but it’s not the same thing. And considering everything that gets tossed in the direction of the river, sunbathing on the banks would be less Paris Plage and more L.A. Plague. On the Home Front The most striking difference I witnessed between Los Angeles and the European cities concerned homelessness. I didn’t see a single trash-strewn tent encampment, or even a single tent, in Berlin. I glimpsed one long line of partially tree-obscured tents in Paris as we rode from the airport to the center of town, but none within the city. This led to the frustrating realization that in Los Angeles I’ve become habituated to seeing lines of tents nearly everywhere, and people in rags lying on sidewalks or talking to themselves. I’ve been conditioned to expect this, and what was truly stunning is that I was truly stunned by not seeing teeming tent encampments in the heart of Berlin and Paris. Local leaders have sought to get a handle on homelessness, and between government spending and funds approved by voters, billions are going to the effort. Still, as every Angeleno knows, homelessness is getting worse, not better. More people are suffering than ever before. The money/difficulty line mentioned above is magnified here, and in addition to NIMBYism, the homelessness situation in Los Angeles has been impacted by court rulings that might flummox Paris and Berlin. Plus, as one longtime Berlin resident I spoke with said when we discussed the topic, “We’re a welfare state,” with citizens bearing much of the cost. Angelenos would put down their pumpkin-spiced lattes and rebel if taxes rose to the point that local government could adequately care for and house everyone who needs care and housing. Still, when you see clear streets and sidewalks, there’s an argument that whatever is being spent in Berlin and Paris is worth it. It’s possible that reversing homelessness, improving the L.A. River and making biking safer will never happen in L.A. But if two leading European cities can pull off these feats, a great metropolis like Los Angeles should be able to do the same. regardie@downtownnews.com
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FOOT BEATS, 5 matically over the past five years, deployment and allocation of public safety resources has not kept up,” Anthony Bejarano, co-founder of DTLA Strong, said in a prepared statement. “With a spike in crime in our neighborhood, we wanted to spotlight this inequity and demand our fair share of City resources.” DTLA Strong has been lobbying the City Council to allocate more money for public safety in Downtown. The group organized a petition campaign that gathered 1,750 signatures from local residents and workers. In May, it sent nearly 100 Downtown residents to City Council budget hearings to lobby for additional public safety resources. sean@downtownnews.com
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AROUND TOWN, 2 Controller Details Summer Fun in L.A.
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he office of the City Controller is primarily known for audits and handling fiduciary matters. Now, it’s also a source for summer entertainment. Controller Ron Galperin last week released a new online database that catalogs more than 800 city-owned parks, programs and services open during the summer months, with a healthy number of options in Downtown Los Angeles. Dubbed Summer Fun in L.A., it is geared toward people seeking family-friendly activities, and the Downtown sites include the Central Library, City Hall, Grand Hope Park and the Los Angeles Theatre Center. “Everyone who lives in or visits Los Angeles knows that landmarks like the Griffith Observatory and the L.A. Zoo are wonderful summer destinations, but there are hundreds of other exciting activities throughout the City,” Galperin said in a prepared statement. The map is at lacontroller.org/summerfun.
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South Park Residential Building Breaks Ground
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et more housing is under construction in Downtown. This month Jade Enterprises broke ground on Emerald, a 154-unit building at 1340 S. Olive St. It’s the latest seven-story jewel-named project from Jade, which last year opened the Onyx in South Park and the Topaz in the Historic Core. The new project will have studio to three-bedroom apartments. As with previous Jade projects, architecture firm MVE+Partners is handling the design, which includes a terraced pool deck. Plans also call for nearly 11,000 square feet of commercial space on the ground floor. Construction is expected to last two years. The news was first reported by the website Urbanize L.A.
New Life for Empty Skid Row Hotel
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kid Row’s currently empty Drake Hotel might not be that way much longer. According to documents filed recently with the successor to the Community Redevelopment Agency, building owner David Duel plans to modernize the edifice’s infrastructure and turn it into an affordable housing facility. The three-story property at 675 Kohler St. was built in 1922 as a hotel, and later became an apartment building. Most recently it served as a single-room occupancy building for low-income tenants. Only eight of the 33 rooms currently have bathrooms; Duel plans to add bathrooms to the other 25. Rents would be restricted to people making less than 40% of the area median income, and Duel would enter into a covenant to ensure the building serves low-income tenants for at least 55 years. Construction is expected to last nine months, and will begin once building permits are secured. The budget was not revealed.
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10 DOWNTOWN NEWS
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AUGUST 12, 2019
Number of People on Skid Row Spikes Count of Homeless Individuals in Community Climbs 11%
AN INSIDER’S GUIDE TO EXPLORING THE CITY
Publishes October 28, 2019 photo by Gary Leonard
There are now more than 4,750 homeless people in Skid Row, according to the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority. That includes a significant rise in the number of homeless families and chronically homeless individuals.
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By Nicholas Slayton n June, the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority reported a sharp uptick in homelessness in the region, with a 16% increase in the county and a 12%, rise in the city. Now, to one’s surprise, LAHSA has also reported a boost in homelessness in Skid Row. On July 29, LAHSA released its findings for communities across the region. Based on a three-night count conducted by volunteers in January, it found 4,757 homeless individuals in Skid Row, up 11% over the previous year. That means the 50-block community accounts for approximately 13% of the 36,135 homeless individuals in city limits. The county has nearly 59,000 homeless people. Along with the overall increase in the number of homeless individuals in Skid Row, the number of sheltered people decreased from 2,149 to 1,974. The number of unsheltered individuals spiked by 23%, from 2,145 to 2,783. The results reflect what Skid Row service providers have been noticing for months. Union Rescue Mission CEO Rev. Andy Bales said the shelter at 545 S. San Pedro St. recorded a record number of 1,279 homeless men, women and children one night last November. That was two months before the LAHSA count. “We expected it. We expected even greater numbers,” Bales told Los Angeles Downtown News. “Just the numbers on the streets are more than ever. We’ve continued to operate at capacity or over capacity.” According to the LAHSA count, the number of chronically homeless people, defined as those who have experienced homelessness for more than a year, rose 45% over the previous year, from 1,203 individuals to 1,787. John Maceri, CEO of the People Concern, which operates showers and restrooms on Skid Row, said that in recent months it has become increasingly difficult to get people off the streets and into temporary or permanent housing due to limited space and greater demand. As a result, he said, people end homeless for longer periods. G. Michael Arnold, president and CEO of
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Skid Row’s Midnight Mission, called the spike in chronic homelessness the most worrying takeaway from the LAHSA count, in part because the city and county’s strategy to address homelessness has been centered on helping this particular population. “The arguable logic behind that is if we get the most difficult to serve into appropriate housing, it frees up other resources for those with lesser degrees of needs,” Arnold said. “After enormous investments in focusing on chronically homeless people, that number going up should cause us all to step back and reexamine the strategy.” LAHSA did not identify a principal cause for the increased numbers, but a severe shortage of affordable housing throughout the region is frequently cited. The worsening situation on Skid Row is putting a strain on resources, as more people are in need of the services offered by providers. The City Council recently allocated $2.7 million in state Homeless Emergency Aid Program funds to hygiene and sanitation programs on Skid Row, but providers say that the results are limited. “Housing of course is the top need, but second to that is access to showers and restrooms and basic hygiene,” Maceri said. “As you have more people on the streets, there’s a greater demand for what little is already there.” The office of Mayor Eric Garcetti is seeking to expand sanitation and hygiene services on Skid Row, according to Kirkpatrick Tyler, Garcetti’s director for Skid Row strategy. He pointed to the HEAP funds, and also said that two facilities, the Skid Row Community ReFresh Spot (which has toilets, showers and laundry machines) and The Bin (a storage facility where homeless people can safely keep their belongings), are moving to new, larger locations in the coming months. Tyler also said the city is working to expand a pair of Skid Row restroom facilities known as “Pit Stops” so they can operate 24 hours a day. Additionally, he said the city is in the process of setContinued on page 16
AUGUST 12, 2019
DOWNTOWN NEWS 11
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‘Macbeth’ Goes to the Desert
DT
CALENDAR
By Nicholas Slayton ouble, double, toil and trouble. It’s time not for the fire to burn and the cauldron to bubble, but instead to welcome Macbeth back to Downtown Los Angeles. The local theater company 134 West brings William Shakespeare’s tragedy to the Arts District this week. Over four weeks the group will stage 12 shows in a new space in the ArtShare L.A. complex in the Arts District. Previews begin Thursday, Aug. 15, and opening night is Saturday. Tickets are $20 and the play runs through Sept. 7. Macbeth is one of the Bard’s most staged plays, and has been mounted numerous times in Downtown. Last year the City Westbased Shakespeare Center of Los Angeles produced an immersive version of the work for Halloween (it returns this fall). This production is taking a different approach, moving away from a focus on medieval aesthetics and trimming some of the heavy, supernatural elements. Instead, said director Alyssa Escalante, the cast is playing up Macbeth’s coming-of-age elements. Escalante said that too often, given the complexity of Shakespeare’s writing, the text comes across in a very direct, black-and-white framing. “Within a youthful context, it becomes an examination of what ambition means to the young. There’s kind of an innocence in it,” Escalante said on a recent weekday afternoon in front of the theater. “I’d love for the audience to be totally with Macbeth’s decision until they just can’t any more.” Getting there involves refocusing the relationship between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth (Megan Ruble). Tristan Waldron, who plays the title character, said the new production concentrates on enhancing the camaraderie and affection between the couple in the effort to present Macbeth as someone trying to secure his family’s future. “I’ve seen it too many times and the love story gets lost. He refers to his wife as his ‘dearest partner of greatness,’” Waldron said. “Often she’s this menacing villain that’s going to corrupt him. The love story gets glossed over.” Escalante and Waldron said they had been working on the idea for their version of Macbeth for two years, and that the production really got underway last August when the team started looking for a space. They struck up a relationship with ArtShare and began talking about utilizing its theater, which the nonprofit allows artists to use.
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For ArtShare, Macbeth marks an opportunity to host a full run of a show. The nonprofit, which provides studio and exhibition space for artists, and also provides arts education programming, has housed numerous theatrical events, but none that ran for a full month. Cheyanne Sauter, executive director of ArtShare, said that the current set-up allows 134 West to occupy the 75-seat theater at night and during rehearsals, while leaving the space available for classes and other artists during the rest of the week. “It also works with our current show, The Future is Now,, which is about bad futurism,” Sauter said, waving at the art exhibition in the room, which features paintings and sculptures depicting dark extrapolations of our current time. The new version of Macbeth also stands out for its staging. It’s set not in a Scottish castle, but rather in a post-apocalyptic desert. Just don’t expect a Mad Max-type -type landscape — Escalante described it as Macbeth by way of Joshua Tree. The creative team said the touches are somewhat subdued, with the costumes inspired by desert fashion. Macbeth, Macduff and others will still fight with swords, Waldron said, but the set includes a lot of found items and metal objects, including car parts. There’s even a coyote skull on the table at Macbeth’s banquet hall, Waldron said with a laugh. The ArtShare theater has a few support columns, which the crew has to work around. That helped inspire a somewhat minimalist and modular set, with pieces that can be easily removed or added to fit into landscapes. Waldron said the layout propels some creative uses, including frequently having the three witches appear through shadow play. There are other changes from the expected. Escalante said in some places text is moved around. Many roles are double-cast, and some characters have been cut. She stressed that all the changes have been made to enhance clarity and to hone in on the theme of youthful ambition. While the idea of fiddling with Shakespeare’s text might raise some eyebrows, the creative team stressed that this Macbeth remains true to the original plot and themes. Sure, there’s a desert landscape, but there is also plenty of scheming, revenge, sword fights and death. Macbeth runs every Thursday-Saturday, Aug. 15-Sept. 7, at ArtShare L.A., 801 E. Fourth Pl. or macbethla.com. nicholas@downtownnews.com
A new production of Macbeth at ArtShare L.A. in the Arts District transports Shakespeare’s tale from Scotland to a post-apocalyptic desert. Tristan Waldron plays the title character and Megan Ruble is Lady Macbeth.
photo by Ashly Covington
New Arts District Production Refocuses Shakespeare’s Tragedy and Plays Up the Love Story
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12 DOWNTOWN NEWS
AUGUST 12, 2019
Wine Time Near
Chinatown L.A.’s First New Winery In a Century Looks to Draw Crowds to a Tasting Room By Nicholas Slayton rive north on Spring Street out of the Civic Center, pass Olvera Street, traverse the eastern edge of Los Angeles State Historic Park, and you’ll see a 94-year-old brick building. On the outside of the single-story structure is a mural of Tupac Shakur with angel wings. On the inside, wine is being produced, bottled and poured. It comes from the Angeleno Wine Company, the first winery to open in city limits in 102 years. The operators began producing various vintages on site last year, and on July 13 a 1,500-square-foot tasting room opened in the facility at 1646 N. Spring St. Visitors sit at tables next to aging barrels and a large tank inside the 1925 building. The tasting room opens at noon every Saturday and Sunday (and by appointment during the week). The winery, run by Jasper Dickson and Amy Luftig Viste, produces wines made mostly with Spanish varietal grapes — tannat, albariño and others. Most of the grapes are sourced from a vineyard near Agua Dulce, though the entire production process takes place in the Downtown Los Angeles facility. In the last 12 months the winery produced 2,000 cases of wine. Angeleno Wine Company expects to boost that to 2,500 cases this year. “We feel right at home,” Dickson said during a recent tour of the facility. “L.A. is the biggest wine market in the country and people are so enthusiastic about wine and supporting local businesses, and wanting to drink local. They love the idea that they can come to a place and taste wine that was made where they’re standing and was made from local grapes.” The duo started the winery in 2015, and made small batches out of a friend’s business, DeRose Winery, in Northern California. They secured a small business loan from the Los Angeles County Development Commission and found the Spring Street space in late 2017. At the time it was empty, with only an aged piano as decoration. The piano remains, and is now complemented by everything needed for a wine production and serving facility. Although breweries and distilleries are a growing industry
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Jasper Dickson and Amy Luftig Viste started Angeleno Wine Company in 2015, and moved into a space on Spring Street last year. A tasting room opened in July.
in Los Angeles, and particularly in Downtown, wineries haven’t taken off. The lone exception is San Antonio Winery, a Lincoln Heights business that started in 1917. It has operated ever since and has an on-site restaurant.
photo by Gary Leonard
Angeleno Wine Company produces 14 types of wine, with a focus on Spanish grapes.
Dickson and Luftig Viste point to Los Angeles’ past heyday in wine production. That goes back to 1833, when JeanLouis Vignes started making wine in the area around what is now Union Station. Dickson said that an early seal for the City of Los Angeles prominently featured a grape vine. Vineyards filled Downtown and other nearby areas until the early 20th century, Luftig Viste said, when a combination of vine disease, Prohibition and the rapid urbanization of Downtown left the wine industry all but dead, with San Antonio Winery one of the few survivors. Although other alcohol makers have flocked to the Downtown area in recent years, urban winemaking has not. “I don’t know why we’re the first to do this in a long time,
but we hope there are many more after us. San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, Austin, they all have urban wineries,” Dickson said. “L.A. just deserves it. It’s part of our heritage.” Drinking Locally Angeleno Wine Company has only one full-time employee, Dickson, with Luftig Viste working part-time. They produce up to 14 types of wine throughout the year. Most of the grapes come from a vineyard owned by the Alonso family (a blue, orange and red mural of Juan Alonso, the vineyard’s head, fills the wall behind the bar), though others come from additional parts of Los Angeles County. The wines are available online, and can be found around the state at certain liquor and wine stores (in Los Angeles, that includes Silverlake Wine and Hi-Lo Liquor). Dickson and Luftig Viste hope to expand to markets including Chicago and New York City. Wines make sense for how people live in L.A., Dickson said, referring to the region’s temperate climate. The winery makes a number of rosés and white wines for hot days. The reds, Dickson added, including the Zanja Madre blend and a Grenache, aren’t “big honking reds,” but instead are meant to be drunk during warmer temperatures. “We have a lot of chillable reds, like the Super Bloom red, and we’re about to bottle one called Bike Path,” Dickson said. “They’re great for 10 months out of the year in L.A.” The pair said that initial traffic has been strong, a result of word of mouth and the location near Los Angeles State Historic Park. That said, the vinters acknowledge some customers arrive at the tasting room unsure what to expect. “Nine times out of 10 people walk in and their faces are like, ‘Wow, that is actually a winery,’” Luftig Viste said. “I think people walk in thinking it’s a wine bar or something.” Now that the tasting room is open, the pair is focused on preparing for the next harvest season, which is fast approaching. Most of the fruit for the next wave of wines is due in the first week of September. Angeleno Wine Company is at 1646 N. Spring St. or angelenowine.com. nicholas@downtownnews.com
AUGUST 12, 2019
DOWNTOWN NEWS 13
DOWNTOWNNEWS.COM
Ty Segall Makes Downtown Home Lauded Local Alt Rocker Is Playing 10 Consecutive Fridays at the Teragram Ballroom By Nicholas Slayton f you haven’t seen Ty Segall live in concert, this week is your chance. If you miss it, don’t worry — there are six more opportunities. The prolific and itinerant L.A. alternative rocker performs across the city almost weekly, but is making City West’s Teragram Ballroom his home for the summer. Segall began a 10week residency at the venue on July 26 in support of his new album First Taste. He’ll be there every Friday night through Sept. 27. Although he’s a regular fixture in Los Angeles, this stint is unique. Angelenos seem interested — a limited number of $200 tickets for all 10 performances quickly sold out. Residencies at Los Angeles music clubs are common, though most feature lesser-known artists performing early in the week, often on a Monday. Here, Segall and his backing Freedom Band are headlining each Friday. Later there will be extended stays in a few other cities, including New York and London. Long-term stays are something Segall had been pondering for a bit. The whole idea started as “a way to stay at home for the summer and still work and still play,” he told Los Angeles Downtown News. Segall, who lives in Topanga Canyon, has been a regular performer at the Teragram over the years, often doing
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multi-night stays. Segall said he was talking with the Teragram staff during the spring when someone put forward the idea to do 10 shows. He admits he can’t remember who first seriously suggested it. “Someone said something crazy and the other person called the other person’s bluff,” Segall said. Segall will play two albums each night from start to finish, beginning with First Taste and then going through selections from his catalogue. On Aug. 2 and 9 he played his 2010 breakout Melted. He plays Goodbye Bread Aug. 16 and 23, Emotional Mugger Aug. 30 and Sept. 6, and closes out the run with 2014’s Manipulator. Scott Simoneaux, music booker at the Teragram, said Segall and the venue have a deep history, and that pretty much everyone at the 600-person-capacity Teragram is a fan of his work. The residency was a natural fit. “In the four years we’ve been open, he’s played here as much if not more than any other artist,” Simoneaux said. First Taste is a departure from Segall’s guitar-driven predecessor Freedom’s Goblin. The album lets the Freedom Band mix up instrumentation and places a greater emphasis on drums (for the First Taste set, Segall is playing
photo by Denée Segall
Los Angeles alt rocker Ty Segall is marking the release of his new album First Taste by playing every Friday night at the Teragram Ballroom for more than two months. Each evening he’ll play the new record and another album from his catalogue.
drums in addition to singing). It mixes some jam-centric shredding with more laid-back riffs reminiscent of late-era Beatles. Segall said it was difficult to decide which al-
bums to play at the residency, as First Taste is his 13th studio album since 2008. He favored Emotional Mugger and Goodbye Bread, and when he Continued on page 16
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Writer/director Nick Richey puts a twist on the familiar coming-of-age story in his new indie film Low Low, which docks at the Downtown Independent this week. Launching on Friday, Aug. 16, the film follows four girls on the final day of their senior year of high school. Each girl is on a different life trajectory, struggling with an uncertain future, and there are encounters with sex, drugs and violence over the course of 36 hours. It sounds bleak, but fret not — atonement is promised. There are three screenings each day on Friday-Sunday. Low Low runs through Aug. 22. At 251 S. Main St., (213) 617-1033 or downtownindependent.com.
1720 1720 E. 16th St. or 1720.la. Aug. 14: Enjoy the wholesome, calming sounds of the Summer Slaughter tour. Aug. 15: Touché Amoré. Continued on page 15
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ROCK, POP & JAZZ
For the past 11 years, the video and performance collective Everything Is Terrible has released edited clips from the bizarre nether regions of dead VHS tapes. That brand of organized weirdness is prevalent in their live shows, and the next chance to catch one is on Thursday, Aug. 15, at The Regent. Need more? Well, the troupe intercuts the videos with large puppets and colorful costumes. Doors open at 7 p.m. Fun note: The collective has amassed a hoard of 24,000 Jerry Maguire VHS tapes that will eventually become a permanent pyramid in the desert. At 448 S. Main St. or spacelandpresents.com.
photo © R Cifarelli
The second and final Black Fire Sessions, a complement to The Broad’s excellent exhibit Soul of a Nation: Art in the Age of Black Power, 1963-1983, will fill the halls of the Grand Avenue museum with music on Wednesday, Aug. 14. The event melds the sounds of Anthony Braxton, a legend of free jazz, with younger musicians working in that hard to pin down space between hip-hop, soul, jazz and R&B. Jacqueline Kerrod, Kelsey Lu, Beans, Jimetta Rose and Maurice Harris are on the bill and will provide music BY Sean P. inspired by the art show. Doors open at Thomas 8:45 p.m. and a ticket includes access to the exhibit and the third floor galleries. At 221 S. Grand Ave., (213) 232-6250 or thebroad.org.
Do you need to be reminded again that woman can rock out? Whether you answered yes or no, head to Los Angeles State Historic Park on Sunday, Aug. 18, for the female-powered Yola Día Festival. Backed by distiller Yola Mezcal, which was founded in part by Swedish songstress Lykke Li (shown here), the festival features performances from a top-notch lineup of women musicians, including indie rocker Cat Power, former Hole frontwoman Courtney Love and Megan Thee Stallion. There will also be food vendors, art and more. The show starts at 3 p.m. and a portion of the proceeds will benefit the Downtown Women’s Center. At 1245 N. Spring St. or yolafest.com.
Maestro Victor Vener and the California Philharmonic will wrap up their summer Downtown series on Sunday, Aug. 18, and they’re going out with a bang, presenting a slate of classic and pop performances. The Emperor’s Roundup, which starts at 2 p.m. at Walt Disney Concert Hall, will including renditions of Jerome Moross’ “The Big Country,” Elmer Bernstein’s “The Magnificent Seven,” Aaron Copland’s “Billy the Kid” and Ferde Grofé’s “Grand Canyon Suite.” Pianist and composer Daniel Lessner will guest star, with a performance of Beethoven’s “Emperor.” Pro tip: Arrive an hour early to catch an informative chat with Vener. At 111 S. Grand Ave., (323) 850-2000 or calphil.com.
Send information and possible Don’t Miss List submissions to calendar@downtownnews.com.
photo courtesy the California Philharmonic
WEDNESDAY, AUG. 14 Black Fire Sessions at The Broad The Broad, 221 S. Grand Ave., (213) 232-6250 or thebroad.org. 8:45 p.m.: It’s the second and final installment of a music series created to complement the museum’s “Soul of a Nation” exhibition. Come for a selection of jazz from established greats and rising stars. THURSDAY, AUG. 15 KCon 2019 Los Angeles Convention Center, 1201 S. Figueroa St. or kconusa.com. 2 p.m.: Celebrate all things Korean at this convention. There will be K-pop performances, food pop-ups, panel discussions and more. The convention runs through Aug. 18. Everything Is Terrible The Regent, 448 S. Main St. or spacelandpresents.com. 7 p.m.: The video collective is back with its latest batch of twisted collages and montages. FRIDAY, AUG. 16 Dance DTLA Grand Park, 200 N. Grand Ave. or musiccenter.org/dancedtla. 7 p.m.: It’s the penultimate installment of this free dance series. This week, learn the moves behind Motown grooves. Instructors will show newbies how it’s done. SATURDAY, AUG. 17 Risk! L.A. Bootleg Theater, 2220 Beverly Blvd. or bootlegtheater.com 7 p.m.: Hear wild true stories at this live podcast taping. SUNDAY, AUG. 18 Metro Art Presents: Capoeira Exchange X Union Station, 800 N. Alameda St. or unionstationla.com. 12 p.m.: Enjoy a free class in the martial art, inside Union Station’s Ticketing Hall. Yola Día Los Angeles State Historic Park, 1245 N. Spring St. or yolafest.com. 3 p.m.: Los Angeles State Historic Park becomes a center for music as Lykke Li, Cat Power, Courtney Love and more perform at a women-focused festival.
AUGUST 12, 2019
the don't miss list
EVENTS
photo courtesy Downtown Independent
DT
CALENDAR LISTINGS
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photo courtesy Ground Control Touring
14 DOWNTOWN NEWS
AUGUST 12, 2019
LISTINGS, 14 Aug. 16: AHZ. Aug. 17: Red Store Bums and Gabriela Penka. Ace Hotel 929 S. Broadway or acehotel.com/losangeles. Aug. 17: Get trippy with the experimental music collective Godspeed You! Black Emperor. Blue Whale 123 Astronaut E.S. Onizuka St. Suite 301, (213) 620-0908 or bluewhalemusic.com. Aug. 12: Fabiano de Nascimento. Aug. 13: Pedro Martins and Michael Pipoquinha. Aug. 14: Miro Sprague Quintet. Aug. 15: Emmet Cohen Trio. Aug. 16: Daniel Rotem Group. Aug. 17: John Tegmeyer Group. Aug. 18: Candi Sosa Group. Bootleg Bar 2220 Beverly Blvd., (213) 389-3856 or bootlegtheater.org. Aug. 12: Folk singer A.O. Gerber’s residency continues, as residencies do. Aug. 13: Electro-funk group Planet Booty is not Sir Mix-aLot’s home world. Aug. 14: Manhattan Murder Mystery knows where the bodies are buried. Aug. 15: FYONHA does what many bands do — atmospheric electro pop. Aug. 16: Get back in touch with roots music with Matty O’Reilly and the Old Souls Orchestra. Aug. 17: Neo-soul sounds from Fat Night. Aug. 18: Luke Scott. The Escondite 410 Boyd St., (213) 628-1800 or theescondite.com. Aug. 16: Ponce. Exchange LA 618 S. Spring St., (213) 627-8070 or exchangela.com. Aug. 16: Sam Feldt with Hook N Sling. Grammy Museum 800 W. Olympic Blvd. or grammymuseum.org. Aug. 13: Come original with 311. Ham and Eggs Tavern 433 W. Eighth St. or hamandeggstavern.com. Aug. 12: Headless Palms, The Cabin Fever, Gen Z, Electric
Machines. Microsoft Theater 777 Chick Hearn Ct. or microsofttheater.com. Aug. 17: Bronco. Moroccan Lounge 901 E. First St., (213) 395-0610 or themoroccan.com. Aug. 12: Spencer Sutherland’s pop sounds might not be for everyone, but his current musical trek is called “The Freaking Out Tour,” and that is something we can all relate to. Aug. 13: Cosmo, Ejaaz, Brian McKnight Jr. Aug. 14: Alt-pop with Leah Capelle, backed by The Dumes and The Nova Darlings. Aug. 15: Zealyn has your electropop fix for the week. Aug. 16: Bilingual, energetic rock with The Soft White Sixties. They’re backed by the wonderfully named Them Evils and King Dream. Aug. 17: Songwriter Leslie Stevens plays the early show. Aug. 18: Post-progressive rock from the Dezorah, a band that sounds like a Godzilla villain. Meanwhile, if you miss the mid-2000s and its emo pop-punk fad, Pity Party is for you! Pershing Square 532 S. Olive St. or laparks.org/pershingsquare. Aug. 14: The Reel Band. Aug. 17: Blues Traveler. Resident 428 S. Hewitt St. or residentdtla.com. Aug. 18: Brain Treyes, Cali Dreamz, Coast 2 Coast, King Finessin, Metaphysical. Seven Grand 515 W. Seventh St., (213) 614-0736 or sevengrandbars.com/la. Aug. 12: Scott Gates & The Bluegrass Boys. Aug. 13: The Makers were considering unveiling their three-hour concept album about “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” tonight but decided to hold off a bit. Aug. 14: Reverend Tall Tree has an evocative name. Aug. 15: Louis Van Taylor. Aug. 16: The California Feetwarmers. Aug. 17: Midnight Blues Revue. Aug. 18: Fabrice You Trio. The Novo 800 W. Olympic Blvd. or thenovodtla.com. Aug. 12: Mustard and special guests. The Redwood 316 W. Second St., (213) 680-2600 or theredwoodbar.com.
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FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE NO. 2019 184343 The following person(s) is (are) doing business as: (1) VINTAGE VORTEX V V, 5213 HOLLYWOOD BLVD, LOS ANGELES, CA 90027 LOS ANGELES COUNTY are hereby registered by the following registrants: MICHELLE SHARPLES, 724 ECHO PARK AVE APT A, LOS ANGELES, CA 90026. This business is
conducted by an Individual. Registrant(s) started to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above: 05/2014. This statement was filed with DEAN C. LOGAN, Los Angeles County Clerk on July 2, 2019. 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 the rights of another under federal, state, or common law (see Section 14411 et. seq. Business and Professions Code). Pub. 7/29, 8/5, 8/12 and 8/19. NOTICE OF SALE 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
Aug. 13: Rikkha, Drac, The Swamp Rats, Ouija. Aug. 14: Seamstress, Delanova, Lo Haze. Aug. 15: Wrinkling Brothers featuring George Hurley, Mecolodiacs featuring Joe Baiza, Sweet and Cruel. Aug. 16: Teenage Goo Goo Muck (band name of the week), Bella Novela, Rumours, The Damed, Vanessa Silberman. The Smell 247 S. Main St. in the alley between Spring and Main or thesmell.org. Aug. 12: Good Boy, Novacane, Blue Velvet Drapes. Aug. 16: Plumber, Chud, Different Plants. Aug. 17: Kwesi, Fadedmane, Supplement, Treeshyne. Teragram Ballroom 1234 W. Seventh St. or teragramballroom.com. Aug. 13: Murder City Devils, with The Intelligence, for a well-named rock night. Aug. 15: Now-jacked musician and comedian Reggie Watts performs with his band Karen. Aug. 16: The strange and hypnotic Ty Segall continues his residency, playing new album “First Taste” and modern classic “Melted.” Aug. 17: Industrial metal act 3Teeth have the aesthetic of a late-90s cyberpunk film. Opening act Lana del Rabies went there with that name, didn’t they?
FILM
Alamo Drafthouse 700 W. Seventh St. or drafthouse.com/los-angeles. Through Aug. 18: Love, Antosha (12:30 and 3:15 p.m.); Luce (12:40, 1:55, 3:35, 4:50, 6:30, 7:45, 9:25 and 10:35 p.m.); Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark (1, 1:40, 4, 4:40, 6, 7:30, 9:30 and 10:25 p.m.); The Nightingale (12:40, 4, 7:30 and 10:50 p.m.); Fast and Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw (12:05, 3:25, 6:45 and 10:10 p.m.); Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (12:15, 1, 2:10, 4:10, 5, 6, 8, 9 and 9:50 p.m.); Booksmart (1:30 and 4:25 p.m.); The Farewell (1, 3:45, 6:30 and 9:15 p.m.); Midsommar (9:40 p.m.). Downtown Independent 251 S. Main St., (213) 617-1033 or downtownindependent.com. Aug. 16-18: Four young women have a wild two days as summer dies down in Low Low. IMAX California Science Center, 700 State Drive, (213) 744-2019 or californiasciencecenter.org.
& Professions Code, Section 2328 of the UCC, Section 535 of the Penal Code and provisions of the Civil Code. The undersigned will sell on the 13th day of August 2019 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 Valerie Arreola Personal effects $1071.00 Jose Domingo Morales Personal effects $840.00
D-28
E-2
Greg Wiele Personal effects $716.00
E-12
Yvette Del Muro Personal effects $1001.00
D-15
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 Dated at Los Angeles, CA by Felipe F. Islas / Manager Agust 5, 2019
Dogs can do more than just slobber over your shoes. Check out all of their unique abilities in Superpower Dogs 3D. Witness the destructive and raw power of volcanoes as Volcanoes 3D: The Fires of Creation tours different hot spots around the globe. Celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Moon landing with the documentary Apollo 11. Pershing Square 532 S. Olive St. or laparks.org/pershingsquare. Aug. 16: Ryan Gosling is Neil Armstrong in First Man, about the attempt to land a man on the moon. Will he make it? History buffs, don’t answer. Regal Cinemas LA Live 1000 W. Olympic Blvd., (213) 763-6070 or lalive.com/movies. Through Aug. 18: Dora and the Lost City of Gold (11 a.m., 1:50, 4:30, 7:10 and 10 p.m.); Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark (11 a.m., 1:50, 4:40, 7:30 and 10:20 p.m.); The Art of Racing in the Rain (1, 4, 7 and 10:10 p.m.); The Kitchen (11:10 a.m., 2, 4:50, 7:40 and 10:30 p.m.); Fast and Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw (12:20 and 3:40 p.m.). Rooftop Cinema Club Level Furnished Living, 888 S. Olive St. or rooftopcinemaclub.com. Aug. 13: Holly Golightly lives the good life, or tries to, in Breakfast at Tiffany’s. Pay attention to the cat named Cat. Aug. 14: Shakespeare meets 1996 Venice Beach in Baz Luhrman’s Romeo + Juliet (this is the one with DiCaprio).
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started playing Melted in rehearsal it quickly became fun for him. But he acknowledged that some of his friends are unhappy that their favorite Ty Segall records didn’t make the cut. The Teragram’s 50 10-show passes were snatched up in a day, Simoneaux said. Individual tickets for upcoming dates are on sale for $28-$30, and given Segall’s strong local support, Simoneaux expects that other fans will also wind up at all 10 Downtown Los Angeles dates. “It falls mostly in the summertime, so some people’s schedules are weird. They might get out to only two or three shows, but they have flexibility to get in and see some of the later concerts,” Simoneaux said. Each show will last about two hours, Segall said, though he added that every evening will be different. He called First Taste kind of an “open jam style,” but other albums differ in emphasis and pacing. He also plans to do additional songs outside of the albums each night, mixing in favorites and deep cuts. Segall plans to mix up the evenings through his selection of opening acts. He chose local bands including Ruth Garbus and The Intelligence to play first (the one exception is Japan’s DMBQ, which plays the last two shows). The Teragram residency is the longest stop on the First Taste tour. Segall said that is in part because he lives in L.A., and also because of the support system he has in the city. Hometown shows are “always slightly more insane” he said. “I don’t know how insane,” Segall said with a laugh. “You’ll have to find out.” Ty Segall plays every Friday through Sept. 27 at the Teragram Ballroom, 1234 W. Seventh St., (213) 689-9100 or teragramballroom.com. nicholas@downtownnews.com
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SKID ROW, 10 ting up temporary water fountains on Skid Row to provide access to clean drinking water during the summer heat. The LAHSA community figures also revealed a rise in homeless families on Skid Row. According to the findings, there was a 22.2% increase in homeless family members last year, from 478 to 584. This continues a trend that has been seen in recent years. Bales said that in November the Union Rescue Mission one night counted 390 family members on the premises. Another problem, said Bales, is safety. He mentioned that with more people living without shelter, and rising summer temperatures, mission staff have witnessed an increase in the number of assaults outside the building. “Our guests are always vulnerable,” Bales said. The city is seeking to build up to 1,200 permanent supportive housing units through funds from Proposition HHH, which voters approved in 2016. However, no apartments have yet come online, and the overall number of residences that will be created is in question as costs have soared to approximately $500,000 per unit. Garcetti has also sought to create emergency shelters across Los Angeles through his A Bridge Home program, though only four have opened in the city, and just one, with 45 beds, is in Downtown Los Angeles. A second facility, geared toward women, will open at the Downtown Women’s Center on Tuesday, Aug. 13. Service providers throughout Skid Row maintain that there is an urgent need for interim and bridge housing in the community. Bales said the Union Rescue Mission will open a large, tent-like structure for homeless women next month, but he called on the city and county to look at finding new approaches to sheltering people. Maceri said conditions in Skid Row have been worsening for years, in part because rapid development has had a “squeezing effect” on the community. He called the situation in Skid Row untenable and unsustainable. nicholas@downtownnews.com