12-12-16

The Streetcar Wants Measure M Money : 6 James Baldwin Gets the Musical Treatment : 9

December 12, 2016 I VOL. 45 I #50

What Does Downtown Need, Josef Centeno?

The Top Chef Answers Some Questions In a New Column SEE PAGE 10

photo by Gary Leonard

THE VOICE OF DOWNTOWN L.A. SINCE 1972

2 Downtown News

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AROUND TOWN

Triforium Restoration Effort Receives $100,000 Grant

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he musical, light-up Triforium sculpture at the Los Angeles Mall has sat quiet and dark for years. A new grant could help bring it back to life. Last week, a supporter group dubbed the Triforium Project won a $100,000 grant from the Goldhirsh Foundation’s LA2050 campaign.

Created in 1975 by artist Joseph Young, the sixstory work full of bells, colored glass, lights and a sound system garnered a mix of praise and ridicule, and eventually fell into disrepair. Various attempts to bring it back were all short-lived. The Triforium Project — consisting of Tom Carroll, Jona Bechtolt, Claire Evans and Tanner Blackman — plan to update the installation with LED lights and new computer software, along with creating a mobile application to allow visitors to interact with the piece. In a statement to Los Angeles Downtown News, Carroll said the team was at a loss for words at the news of the grant.

TWITTER: @ DOWNTOWNNEWS high-rise features a fairly sleek and straightforward glass-and-steel exterior, with an outdoor deck on the fifth floor with a number of amenities (including a 25-meter pool, cabanas with TVs, and a dog run). Inside, there’s a fitness center, conference rooms and lounges. There is also a rooftop deck. Residences range from around 460 to more than 1,800 square feet, and are outfitted with hardwood-look floors, high-end stainless steel appliances and Nest smart thermostats.

The project representative did not provide pricing information by press time. Atelier is Carmel Partners’ second major project in Downtown Los Angeles, following the massive 700-apartment Eighth & Grand complex across the street from the tower. Information is at atelierdtla.com or at the leasing office at 433 W. Seventh St.

December 12, 2016

TAKE MY PICTURE GARY LEONARD

Price of Sixth Street Bridge Rises by $36 Million

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he replacement for the Sixth Street Viaduct is going to cost $36 million more, and possibly take longer, than previously expected.

According to new city documents, the project budgeted at $446,584,000 is now estimated to cost $482,153,771. Skanska, Stacey and Witbeck, the contracting firm on the project, also said the bridge that will connect Downtown with Boyle March Opening Set for Heights with a “ribbon of arches” design could take eight months longer than the Bureau of Financial District High-Rise Engineering estimated; the firm is looking to extend its contract to the end of 2021. The origihe 33-story apartment tower rising at Eighth nal bridge needed to be replaced because of a and Olive streets now has an opening date: chemical condition that had caused its concrete A representative of developer Carmel Partners to weaken. Demolition began in February. The said the project dubbed Atelier is scheduled new bridge is being designed by architect Mito debut in March. Pre-leasing for 363 studio to price increase was approved three-bedroom apartments last week.

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by the City Council’s Budget and Finance Committee last week. The full council will consider it on Tuesday, Dec. 13.

An Old Building’s New Look

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t looks unassuming from the street, but big plans are in the works for the Norton Building at 755 S. Los Angeles St., on the northern edge of the Fashion District. West L.A.-based developer Urban Offerings recently secured the $25.2 million it needs to buy and redevelop the five-story, 1914 building, according to a press release from lending partner Calmwater

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Capital. Urban Offerings, in conjunction with developer/investor ESI Ventures, plans to break ground early next year and complete work by the close of 2017. The project will transform the building into creative office space, with retail on the ground floor. “Given the growing need for office space in Downtown L.A. driven by new housing options in the area, this deal highlights Calmwater’s key capabilities in originating and allocating capital for high-potential real estate assets and development projects in growing markets,” Calmwater Vice President Gregg Yamauchi said in a prepared statement.

Continued on page 8

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EDITORIALS

EDITOR & PUBLISHER: Sue Laris @ DOWNTOWNNEWS GENERAL MANAGER: Dawn Eastin TWITTER:

ART DIRECTOR: Brian Allison ASSISTANT ART DIRECTOR: Yumi Kanegawa

EXECUTIVE EDITOR: Jon Regardie SENIOR WRITER: Eddie Kim STAFF WRITER: Nicholas Slayton CONTRIBUTING EDITOR: Kathryn Maese CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: Tom Fassbender, Jeff Favre, Greg Fischer, Emily Manthei ACCOUNTING: Ashley Schmidt

PHOTOGRAPHER: Gary Leonard CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING MANAGER: Catherine Holloway ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES: Catherine Holloway, Brenda Stevens, Michael Lamb SALES ASSISTANT: Claudia Hernandez

Urban Scrawl by Doug Davis

December 12, 2016

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.

An Abundance of Small Museums

One copy per person.

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hen it comes to museums in Downtown Los Angeles, people naturally think of a pair of Bunker Hill destinations: There’s The Broad, which opened 15 months ago and has been crowded ever since, and MOCA, which for decades has been luring contemporary art fans to locations on Grand Avenue and in Little Tokyo.

Downtown is rich with other alternatives. The Japanese American National Museum in Little Tokyo has emerged as a modern anchor for the historic comEDITOR & PUBLISHER: Sue Laris munity, and down the Figueroa Corridor one can find GENERAL MANAGER: Dawn Eastin the Natural History Museum, the California Science EXECUTIVE EDITOR: Jon Regardie Center and the California African-American Museum.

SENIOR WRITER: Eddie Kim All of the above are great options, but even they STAFF WRITER: Nicholas Slayton are not the extent of the choices. In fact, the roster is CONTRIBUTING EDITOR: Kathryn Maese S I N C E 19 7 2 growing, and in 2016 Downtown has emerged as a CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: Tom Fassbender, Jeff Favre, Greg Los Angeles Downtown News destination not just for big museums, but for small, Fischer, Emily Manthei 1264 W. First Street, Los Angeles, CA 90026 specialty institutions, too. It is doubtful that any othphone: 213-481-1448 • fax: 213-250-4617 ART DIRECTOR: Brian Allison er community in Southern California counts as many web: DowntownNews.com ASSISTANT ART DIRECTOR: Yumi Kanegawa email: realpeople@downtownnews.com small museums as Downtown does.

PHOTOGRAPHER: Gary Leonard This recognition is sparked by the arrival of the facebook: ACCOUNTING: Ashley Schmidt L.A. Downtown News newest attraction. Last week, Los Angeles Downtown CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING MANAGER: Catherine Holloway News wrote about the opening of the Animal Musetwitter: ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES: Catherine Holloway, Brenda Stevens, S Ithe N C E 19 7 2 um. It has 6,000 square feet of exhibition space on DowntownNews Michael Lamb ground floor of a building on Colyton Street in the Arts Los Angeles Downtown News ©2016 Civic Center News, Inc. Los Angeles Downtown News SALES ASSISTANT: Claudia Hernandez trademark of Civic Center News Inc. All rights reserved.

1264 W.ItFirst Street, Losto Angeles, CAon 90026 District. is dedicated exhibits animal rights and cause of MacAdams and hisis acompatriots.

The Los Angeles Downtown News is the must-read newsphone: 213-481-1448 • fax: CIRCULATION: Danielle Salmon protecting animals. Items on213-250-4617 display include a horse Just consider the 11-mile paper stretch that runs from Downtown the for Downtown Los Angeles and is distributedto every web: DowntownNews.com • email: realpeople@downtownnews.com Monday throughout the offices and residences of Downtown DISTRIBUTION MANAGER: Salvador Ingles ambulance from the first half of the 20th century.

San Fernando Valley. After intense lobbying, the city, the federal govLos Angeles.

DISTRIBUTION ASSISTANTS: Lorenzo Castillo, Gustavo Bonilla One per person.have agreed to partner on facebook: twitter: ernment and the Army Corps ofcopy Engineers The Animal Museum is on the same block as the L.A. Downtown News DowntownNews a $1.4 billion project that, over the course of decades, would restore A+D Architecture and Design Museum. Both facilihen Lewis MacAdams co-founded the Friends of the Los and activate the stretch, with wetlands, public uses and more. ties were in other neighborhoods in the past — the Angeles River in 1986, the waterway was a source of civEDITOR & PUBLISHER: Sue Laris EDITOR & PUBLISHER: Sue Laris It is far from assured — the city will have to pay 75% of the cost, A+D was on Museum Row near LACMA, while the ic embarrassment. Though it still receives plenty of critiGENERAL MANAGER: Dawn Eastin GENERAL MANAGER: Dawn Animal Museum stood on Melrose Avenue in Hollycism for debris-choked stretches and a prevalence of concrete, theEastin and no one knows where the money will come from. Still, this EXECUTIVE EDITOR: Jon Regardie wood.

When it came time for new homes, the operarhetoric has shifted significantly, and today the 51-mile river has would have been impossible without FoLAR redefining the comEXECUTIVE EDITOR: Jon Regardie SENIOR WRITER: Eddie Kim tors of both were drawn Downtown by all the activalso become a path of possibility. munity conversation around the river.

SENIOR WRITER: Eddie Kim STAFF WRITER: Nicholas Slayton ityCONTRIBUTING happening EDITOR: here. Kathryn Maese Much of the credit for this change goesSTAFF to MacAdams.

MacAdams and FoLAR did not change the situation on their WRITER: Nicholas Slayton CONTRIBUTING More optionsWRITERS: are on the The former that he will step They were fortunate to be at the front end of an active enviTomway.

Fassbender, Jeff Santa Favre, Greg Fischer, On Dec. 1, MacAdams officially announced CONTRIBUTING EDITOR: Kathryn own.

Maese ronmental Jeff movement, Monica Museum of Art is coming to Seventh Street, down after 30 years as the president of the stalwart environmenEmily Manthei S IofNsustainability C E 19 7 2 and civCONTRIBUTING WRITERS: Tom Fassbender, Favre, as the concepts ic responsibility for public assets have been spreading across the also in the Arts District.

It will be renamed the Institute tal group.

A longtime poet, he has a unique style of leadership and Greg Fischer, Emily Manthei ART DIRECTOR: Brian Allison Los Angeles Downtown News country.

Efforts like FoLAR’s river cleanup that takes place ofASSISTANT Contemporary Art Los Angeles and will fill a nearly a similarly personal definition of success.

For example, in a recent 1264 W. First Street, Los Angeles, CAeach 90026 ART DIRECTOR: Yumi Kanegawa ART DIRECTOR: Brian April also gave the group an anchor and a way•for the public to be 13,000-square-foot building when it debuts next fall. interview with Los Angeles Downtown News, he said that oneAllison of phone: 213-481-1448 fax: 213-250-4617 PHOTOGRAPHER: Gary Leonard web: DowntownNews.com ASSISTANT ART DIRECTOR: Kanegawa and take ownership. the achievements of which he is most proud involves changing theYumiinvolved There are other attractions as well. In August email: realpeople@downtownnews.com ACCOUNTING: Ashley Schmidt PHOTOGRAPHER: Gary Leonard terminology of how people refer to the waterway.

He expressed his Christiansen has her work the Italian American Museum opened near Olvera cut out for her. MacAdams was disCLASSIFIED ADVERTISING MANAGER:American Catherine Holloway pleasure that, these days, it is rarely labeled a “flood channel.” InStreet.

It is close to the Chinese Museum pleased when Mayor Eric Garcetti and facebook: a city-affiliated group ACCOUNTING: Ashley Schmidt ACCOUNT Catherine Holloway, Brenda stead, Angelenos call it a “river.” and the LAEXECUTIVES: Plaza Cultura y Artes, which seeksStevens, to tell Michael Lamb dubbed River L.A. began working on aL.A. revitalization plan that inDowntown News SALES ASSISTANT: Claudia Hernandez the story of Mexican Americans in Los Angeles. If volved architect Frank Gehry, without roping It is a small statement that says a lot about how much has beenMANAGER: CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING Catherine Holloway twitter: in FoLAR. FortunateCIRCULATION: Danielle you want to push theSalmon boundaries, there’s Velveteria, Christiansen recognizes the benefitsDowntownNews of getting everyone on the achieved over the past three decades, andACCOUNT how MacAdams himself EXECUTIVES: Catherinely, Holloway, Ingles Brenda a DISTRIBUTION quirky velvetMANAGER: paintingSalvador museum in Chinatown. spearheaded the vision. It is astounding to thinkStevens, not just Michael of lan- Lamb same page — in a recent interview she discussed working with ASSISTANTS: Lorenzo Castillo, Gustavo Bonilla ASSISTANT: Claudia Civic Center News, Inc.will Los Angeles Downtownif other entities. Cooperation©2016 is always good, and be essential guage alterations, but the way the river isSALES viewed by people acrossHernandez DISTRIBUTION None of these museums will be confused with The News is a trademark of Civic Center News Inc. All ©2016 Civic Center News, Inc. Los Angeles Downtown News is aand trademark of Civic Center federal funds for California rights projects begin to dry up under Presithe city and even the country.

Broad — and that’s a good thing.

The variety reserved.

News Inc. All rights reserved. sheer number of unique make Downtown Early next year, current FoLAR Senior Policy Director Danielle Marissa Salmon dent-Elect Donald Trump. The Los Angeles Downtown News is the must-read The Los Angeles Downtown News options is the must-read newspaper for Downtown Los Angeles CIRCULATION: newspaper for Downtown Los Angeles and is disis distributed every Monday throughout the offices different and residences Los a and place for those looking for something asof DowntownChristiansen will become the head of the DISTRIBUTION nonprofit. There remains As Los Angeles looks to the future the river, we see opportutributed everyof Monday throughout the offices and MANAGER: Salvador Ingles Angeles. residences of Downtown Los Angeles. well as something traditional. an immense amount of work to do, with myriad challenges and Lorenzo nity. Castillo, This would not have been possible without MacAdams. We all DISTRIBUTION ASSISTANTS: One copy per person. copy per person.

Gustavofuture Bonillatoday benot enough money. Still, the river has a brighter benefit from his vision and One decades of work.

A River Visionary

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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: Tom Fassbender, Jeff Favre, Greg Fischer, Emily Manthei ACCOUNTING: Ashley Schmidt

ART DIRECTOR: Brian Allison ASSISTANT ART DIRECTOR: Yumi Kanegawa PHOTOGRAPHER: Gary Leonard 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.

December 12, 2016

Downtown News 5

DOWNTOWNNEWS.COM

Brown, Becerra and Beyond With One Simple Announcement, A Whole Political Line Explodes

The

Petroleum Building .com

Third Floor

publican president and a Republican-controlled House and Senate. Becerra has all the ingredients for Frustration Soup (note, not actually a soup).

As AG, however, Becerra gets to be a bigwig in a blue state that, for now at least, seems itching to butt heads with Deport ’em Donald on issues such as immigration and climate change. Becerra still counts plenty of allies in Washington, and he won’t shrink from a fight. At the risk of sounding like a political cliché, being attorney general gives him the chance to change lives.

If he succeeds, he sets himself up to run for governor, senator, or even something bigger.

*The title of this section is plucked from the obscure 1980s Washington, D.C. post-punk band 9353. They had an album called Make Your Last Days Loud Days. It was weird. I liked it a lot.

Let’s Get Ready to Rrrrrrrrrrrumble: Becerra has spent 24 years in Congress. Before Brown’s call he was reportedly seeking to become the ranking Democratic on the powerful House Ways and Means Committee. He’s got more juice than a Tropicana factory.

That said, his job has required him to travel cross-country repeatedly for decades, and even if you’re flying Delta or JetBlue and have good movies on your mini-TV, that’s wearing. Plus, neither Becerra nor any other Democrat can be looking forward to suffering through this Re-

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Make Your Last Days Loud*: It’s still more than two years until Brown is termed out of office, but he has to be looking both toward his endgame and toward the happenings in Washington, D.C. The governor gets to appoint whomever he darn well pleases as AG, and many people expected him to name a caretaker, probably someone who would not run for the job in 2018.

Brown knows that the moment Becerra takes the oath of office, he becomes the odds-on favorite to win the seat again in 2018 (unless Becerra turns his eye to a potentially open U.S. Senate seat, if Dianne Feinstein chooses not to run again). Brown is also tapping one of the most powerful Latino leaders in the country, and someone with the potential to stand up to Donald Trump.

Boil it down and this could both wind up as a serious legacy move for Brown, and portend a willingness to take on D.C. in his remaining time in office.

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it coming, apparently not even Becerra until Brown called him to discuss the job. But in retrospect, no one should have been surprised by the governor’s decision to pull a congressman out of his hat.

Brown’s second stint as Cali CEO has been defined by a brassy willingness to occasionally chuck political norms and instead try to actually help people, which is often the second most important task for elected officials after raising money. Remember, one of Brown’s first major moves came in 2011, when he announced that he would shut down community redevelopment agencies across the state in the effort to shore up wobbly finances. The reaction was sort of a communal take on Munch’s “The Scream,” but Brown plowed forward.

He may have been nicknamed Gov. Moonbeam when he first held the office 40 years ago, but after cleaning up Arnold Schwarzenegger’s mess and straightening out state spending, he’s more like Gov. Sledgehammer.

Brown’s elevation of Becerra, whose 34th District includes Downtown Los Angeles, had

AL A VE

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the effect of setting off explosive dominos up and down the state, and I know that’s a mixed metaphor, but darnit, it feels right. That’s because, in a single move, Brown ignited the bestlaid plans of a line of politicians from Los Angeles to Sacramento, and opened up paths from purgatory for others.

Here are some of the reverberations from the Brown-Becerra bombshell.

S CE

By Jon Regardie olitical observers across California were stunned Dec. 1 when Gov. Jerry Brown announced that he had tapped Congressman Xavier Becerra to replace Kamala Harris as state Attorney General. No one saw

The elevation of Congressman Xavier Becerra to California Attorney General will have political reverberations up and down the state. His 34th District includes Downtown.

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TWITTER: @ DOWNTOWNNEWS

6 Downtown News

December 12, 2016

Streetcar Backers Angle for Measure M Money The City Council recently approved the environmental impact report for the 3.8-mile Los Angeles Streetcar.

It would run from the Civic Center to South Park.

Project Proponents Not the Only Ones Seeking Funds After County Sales Tax Passes

By Eddie Kim n paper, the passage of Measure M in the Nov. 8 election was a victory for the Los Angeles Streetcar.

The half-cent countywide sales tax is estimated to raise $860 million annually over the next four decades, funding a long list of major transit and transportation projects including new light rail lines and a multi-use transit hub at LAX. The $266 million Downtown streetcar also made it on the list, with up to $200 million allocated.

There’s a problem: The Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the agency that will collect and distribute the tax dollars, has placed the streetcar in the third of three tiers of funding priority. Its money would come in 2053, implying the project would open in 2057.

Fourteenth District City Councilman José Huizar, who created the streetcar plan in 2008, and the nonprofit Los Angeles Streetcar, Inc., are taking a glass-half-full approach. Measure M allows for certain “shovel-ready” projects to be expedited. Huizar is bullish about the streetcar jumping forward a few decades.

“Yes, the Metro board of directors would have to vote and approve us moving forward.

But there is language in Measure M to get us ahead, because we’re fully funded and ready to go,” Huizar said in a phone call. “I would say

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that we have a very good shot of working within that language. Metro is working with billions of dollars, and moving $200 million is a smaller amount.”

The streetcar can’t skip ahead in the funding line simply based on merit. It could only get early funding if Measure M’s revenues outperform initial estimates, opening up fresh dollars for distribution, according to Metro.

“If sales tax revenues ended up being better than our projections were, it would be the Metro board’s purview to allocate those additional funds,” said Pauletta Tonilas, chief communications officer for Metro. “Acceleration can only happen if it does not negatively impact or delay other projects.”

In other words, if Metro’s estimates turn out to be too exuberant, and revenue is less than expected, the streetcar could not get accelerated funding.

The City Council passed the streetcar’s final environmental impact report on Nov. 29, confirming a 3.8-mile route that runs along Broadway, down into South Park, and up north to First Street. The plan that was approved excludes a spur to the Walt Disney Concert Hall and The Broad.

Killing the Grand Avenue leg brings the price tag down from $282 million to $266 million. The streetcar has secured $65 million for

rendering courtesy L.A. Streetcar Inc.

construction via a tax that would be levied on property owners along the route. Measure M’s $200 million would essentially close out the gap.

If there is extra M money, other projects will also angle for it. A number of communities have already shown interest in project acceleration, Tonilas said, with potential candidates including the Green Line extension into Torrance and the West Santa Ana light rail line — higherpriority plans that are already slated for funding in the next 10 years. A formal framework for assessing acceleration candidates will be completed by the summer, according to Metro.

Huizar remains optimistic, and doubled down on 2020 as the opening year for the Downtown Los Angeles project.

“I’m not concerned with the timeline. We’re

just moving ahead, charging forward as we have been,” he said. “You have to remember, we first started this process with very little city support, hardly anything from Metro. Now we’re in a very different place.”

LASI and Huizar are still investigating publicprivate partnership opportunities, where a private company would secure financing for the streetcar upfront and later collect its revenues.

Backers also continue to seek a $100 million “Small Starts” grant from the Federal Transit Administration.

With the EIR complete, the LASI team is focusing on completing preliminary engineering.

That will create a design cost estimate, allowing the staff to begin the final engineering and vehicle procurement process. eddie@downtownnews.com

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December 12, 2016

Downtown News 7

DOWNTOWNNEWS.COM

Details Revealed for High-Speed Rail Path Into Downtown Project Officials Discuss Connection With Burbank at Little Tokyo Meeting

By Nicholas Slayton hen high-speed rail finally comes to Union Station, it will follow the course of the Los Angeles River in and out of Downtown. Local stakeholders last week got a glimpse of the intended path and discussed local details of the proposed $68 billion project.

On Monday, Dec. 5, the California High-Speed Rail Authority hosted a public meeting on the 12-mile, Burbank-to-Downtown portion of the project. Approximately three dozen people attended the presentation at the Nishi Hongwanji Buddhist Temple in Little Tokyo.

The project will ultimately stretch 800 miles, with the first phase connecting San Francisco to Anaheim (a later phase would add spurs to Sacramento and San Diego). The Authority is hosting a series of community meetings so stakeholders can understand the impacts on specific neighborhoods. At the Little Tokyo session, the Authority staff explained elements of the project including altering grading and planned stations.

Plans call for the high-speed rail line to follow the existing rail corridor used by Amtrak, Metrolink and freight trains, according to Michelle Boehm, the Authority’s Southern California regional director.

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‘WE LOOK AT THIS AS AN URBAN CORRIDOR RENEWAL PROGRAM’

DTL A FOR THE

HOLIDAYS

— MICHELLE BOEHM, CALIFORNIA HIGH-SPEED RAIL AUTHORITY The current projection is for the system to be fully operational in 2029.

“We look at this as an urban corridor renewal program,” Boehm said. “By bringing features that high-speed rail requires to this corridor we have the opportunity to actually make this corridor a better neighbor to the communities it travels through.”

Much of the Little Tokyo meeting concentrated on the options for the rail line near Burbank. Once the trains approach Downtown, they will cross the 5 and 110 freeways southeast of where the two meet, then cross over Main Street before curving west and then south to Union Station. Authority representatives said there will have to be a grade adjustment, with Main Street elevated so that the train tracks run underneath, so as not to interrupt street traffic.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which owns Union Station, is looking at factoring the high-speed rail line into its planned upgrades for the station. Vincent Chio, a senior engineer with Metro, said new electrical elements would have to be added to Union Station to accommodate the high-speed rail trains. However, no major extensions or new construction would be done solely for the project, Chio said.

Some attendees of the session asked why the project no longer goes underground in the Central City, as previously discussed.

“It was proposed to go underground into Union Station,” said Melissa De La Peña, the project manager for the section. “But we wouldn’t be able to separate any of the at-grade crossings.

We wouldn’t be able to incorporate signalization improvements or work with the L.A. River. So for those elements, the at-grade alignment has been proposed.”

The Authority plans to release its draft environmental impact report of the rail line next summer, according to Jaime Guzman, the environmental task manager for the section. That will be followed by another set of public hearings, which will help shape the final environmental documents.

Those unable to attend the sessions can see a presentation on the Authority’s website at cahighspeedrail.ca.gov. nicholas@downtownnews.com

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Developer Plans 1,100 Housing Units at Times Mirror Square

December 12, 2016

AROUND TOWN, 2 The Homeless Count Returns

L Times Mirror Square consists of five structures that were built between the 1930s and 1970s.

Canadian developer Onni Group bought the complex last year.

photo by Gary Leonard

By Nicholas Slayton ancouver-based development firm Onni Group purchased the five-building Times Mirror Square complex from Tribune Media in September, reportedly for more than $100 million. That sparked intense speculation from Downtown real estate players about what the company would do with the huge complex in the heart of the Civic Center.

On Thursday, Dec. 8, the developer filed initial plans with the Department of City Planning to redevelop the site at 100 S. Broadway.

Expect major changes.

According to the documents, two buildings would be demolished, clearing the way for a pair of high-rise towers. Although the number of stories has not been revealed, the structures would hold a total of 1,127 residential units. There would also be 34,572

V

square feet of commercial space.

The remaining three buildings, including the Art Deco Los Angeles Times headquarters that fronts First Street, would be preserved and renovated. It remains unclear if the Times would continue to be headquartered in the structure.

The five buildings were built between the 1930s and 1970s. The timeline and budget for the project have not been revealed.

It is not the only major proposal for the area. Tribune Media Co. has announced plans for a 30-story tower just south of Times Mirror Square at 222 W. Second St., with a stacked box-like design that would rise above the under-construction Regional Connector station at Second Street and Broadway. nicholas@downtownnews.com

os Angeles County has the greatest number of unsheltered homeless people in the country, and a tally last January showed nearly 47,000 people are sleeping on the streets or in shelters. Now, the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority is getting ready for its next count, and is looking for volunteers to help. The 2017 Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count is a three-day affair that will take place Jan. 24-26.

Volunteers receive training before mobilizing in groups to walk the streets counting homeless people, and learn how to make accurate tallies without disturbing individuals living in tents or other shelters. Some volunteers also conduct demographic surveys, including for people sleeping in missions and other group facilities.

The “Metro/Central Los Angeles” count, which includes Downtown Los Angeles, takes place on Jan. 26. Registration and more information are at theywillcountyou.org.

A New Top Cop for Downtown

C

aptain Howard Leslie became the commanding officer at the Los Angeles Police Department’s Central Division, which covers nearly all of Downtown, in March. After only nine months, he’s been reassigned. Leslie won’t be moving far: A promotion to commander means Leslie will be upstairs from his old office, leading bigger-picture operations for Central Bureau (which includes Central Division and other stations). Leslie’s short run heading Central Divi-

sion ends on Dec. 25. Leslie’s successor is Captain Marc Reina, currently assigned to the 77th Street Division in South L.A. Previously, Reina worked with the SWAT team and the Hollywood Division.

While Leslie acknowledged that his run at Central Division was shorter than expected, he said key changes to patrols and strategy have helped make Downtown safer over the course of 2016.

“I’m very happy with the improvements we saw,” he said in a phone interview. “We were the No. 1 division for violent crime rate reduction, and overall, we’re primed to keep improving.”

Twitchell’s ‘Ed Ruscha’ Mural To Return in Early 2017

I

t’s been more than a decade since artist Kent Twitchell’s “Ed Ruscha Monument” was whitewashed off a Main Street building without his permission. Though Twitchell in June 2015 announced that a new version of the work would rise on the side of the American Hotel in the Arts District, and that it would be finished by the end of the year, it has repeatedly been delayed. Now, Twitchell said installation of the work is imminent — he told Los Angeles Downtown News that he expects to have the mural up on the building at 303 S. Hewitt St. by early next year. The delay, Twitchell said, stemmed from moving his studio from Downtown to Long Beach. He said he is 95% done with the work, which uses an updated image of the prominent California artist, and is now focusing on the detailing on Ruscha’s shirt. “I want people with binoculars to enjoy it,” Twitchell said. The original whitewashing sparked a legal claim, and Twitchell ultimately received a $1.1 million settlement from a number of groups.

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Downtown News 9

DOWNTOWNNEWS.COM

DT

CALENDAR

photos courtesy The Neg

ro Problem

Mark Stewart, bette r known as Stew, an d collaborator Heidi Los Angeles. Their RE Rodewald are back in DCAT show Notes of their native a Native Song is inspir ed by James Baldwin.

Writing a ‘Native Song’ With The Negro Problem New Musical From L.A. Bred Rockers Digs Into the Life of Activist-Writer James Baldwin

By Eddie Kim ark Stewart was 12 when he first picked up the writings of James Baldwin. At the time it fit his burgeoning curiosity of what it meant to live in America as a black man.

Stewart couldn’t understand the depths of the novelist and civil rights activist’s lessons, not yet, but the prose pulled him in anyway.

He consumed Baldwin’s writing with a hunger through his high school years. It trickled into his worldview, even if Stewart wasn’t aware of it.

Decades later, Baldwin was helping his daughter with a book report on a familiar text: Baldwin’s Go Tell It On the Mountain, which follows a precocious black teenager’s life, family and culture in 1930s Harlem. The prose came flooding back, and he sat for a minute, thinking about the ways the writer had left fingerprints on Stewart’s pioneering Silver Lake indie rock band The Negro Problem.

“I got goose pimples. Baldwin was always in my system,” the man better known today as Stew said in a phone call. “My irreverent attitude toward blackness, the refusal to carry anyone else’s sign, my understanding of blackness being too broad to categorize, all of that comes from him.”

Baldwin’s life and lessons get the rock-and-

M

roll treatment this week as Stew joins his longtime collaborator Heidi Rodewald for a new production at REDCAT. Dubbed Notes of a Native Song, a riff off the 1955 essay “Notes of a Native Son”, the show had its world premiere last year in Harlem and has recently been touring. It runs for four performances on Wednesday-Sunday, Dec. 14-17.

While a musical production about Baldwin might have seemed like a natural fit for Stew, the concept never seriously crossed his mind until about two years ago, when he was sketching out a play for Harlem Stage. The theater organization’s leaders surprised him by asking if would he consider scrapping his current project and penning a musical production inspired by Baldwin’s life, instead.

“It turned into James Baldwin through the filter of Stew — how he influenced me and other black artists,” he said. “We didn’t want to put him so explicitly in the music, but reflect his broad tastes, and share some of his writing.”

Stew began working on the production alone, but soon reached out to Rodewald, his frequent co-composer, longtime bandmate and ex-girlfriend. They met in the mid-1990s and won praise for The Negro Problem’s blend of musical wit and lyrical complexity. They grew closer both professionally and personally

through the 2000s.

Rodewald and Stew broke up in 2006, which also happened to be the year the production they penned, Passing Strange, opened. It went to Broadway and won a Tony Award for Best Book in 2008.

Despite the split, they have continued to collaborate on and off.

“Stew and I, you know, had a stormy thing going there for a while,” Rodewald said. “But I heard from him about this Baldwin piece, and I came onboard. He’s a brilliant lyricist, with so much to say.”

She pauses, then laughs.

“Besides, I’m 57. I don’t want to be in a band just singing love songs.”

The self-described “white girl from Orange County,” who didn’t know a thing about Baldwin, was by Stew’s measure the crux of bringing the spirit of the author to musical life. Notes of a Native Song lacks a linear story and shies away from getting too literal or biographical about Baldwin. The songs, performed live by Stew, Rodewald and three others (Marty Beller, Art Terry and Mike McGinnis), meander between bluesy rock and indie pop, embellished with flirtations from jazz and gospel influences.

The 90-minute production opens with “Boy

Preacher,” about Baldwin’s struggles with his father and a devout Christian faith. Later songs reflect the highs and lows of Baldwin’s life, with references to works such as his play The Amen Corner and “Notes of a Native Son.” It’s been about a decade since Stew and Rodewald departed their native Los Angeles to tour the country and work out of New York City.

Notes of a Native Song at REDCAT will mark their first theatrical performance in the city, lending a celebratory feel for two people who still consider themselves L.A. artists with an appetite for, as Stew calls it, “California’s casual ambition.”

The duo expects to produce more theater pieces in similar style — not quite plays or musicals, but with heavy doses of both. Stew has developed a taste for seeing, in real time, how an audience of mixed races responds to something like Baldwin and Native Song.

“It happens in our shows, where the black crowd laughs at something but the white crowd doesn’t, and vice versa. That kicks off a whole debate in their heads of, ‘Why did he laugh? Should I?’” Stew said. “That’s America.

I’ve learned the beauty of the theater.”

Notes of a Native Song runs Dec. 14-17 at REDCAT, 631 W. Second Ave., (213) 237-2800 or redcat.org. eddie@downtownnews.com

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December 12, 2016

What Does Downtown Need, Josef Centeno?

Words of Wisdom From the Resident Who Runs Five Top Restaurants

photos by Gary Leonard

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Chef/restaurateur Josef Centeno first gained attention in 2008 when he helmed the kitchen of Lazy Ox Canteen.

He moved to Downtown in 2010 and today runs five Old Bank District restaurants: Bäco Mercat, Bar Amá, Ledlow, PYT, and his fine-dining spot Orsa & Winston.

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By Eddie Kim lot of big-name restaurateurs are staking a claim in Downtown Los Angeles. Few, however, can touch the experience, track record and breadth of Josef Centeno, the kitchen king of the Old Bank District.

Centeno, 42, made his name at Lazy Ox Canteen, the Little Tokyo restaurant he helped open in 2008. Nearly a decade later, he’s in charge of five Historic Core spots, ranging from his flagship fine-dining space Orsa & Winston to Bäco Mercat, which serves his signature “baco” sandwiches, to his newest arrival, PYT, which offers all things vegetable-related.

Centeno, who lives in the Historic Core, has had a front-row seat to Downtown’s evolution.

Texas Kid: Centeno grew up in San Antonio and moved to Los Angeles in 2005. The then-Echo Park resident soon developed a fascination with Little Tokyo. Daikokuya was a favorite stop for a bowl of pork ramen, after which he would wander the neighborhood.

“I loved the energy and edginess of Downtown compared to other parts of L.A. In 2007, it was different — you had to watch your back, be a little more careful,” he says. “I found the Lazy Ox space myself. I didn’t have any money, but I knew I had a location.”

Through friends of friends, he met restaurateur Michael Cardenas. The two butted heads on “practically everything,” Centeno recalled, but for four years they ran one of the city’s most eclectic eateries, and one that felt perfectly of the moment, if not ahead of the curve — think intensely flavored dishes with top-shelf ingredients, served as shared plates, with no tablecloths and an unpretentious vibe.

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December 12, 2016

Downtown News 11

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Three Favorites: Terroni: “Everything is delicious, the hospitality is great, the space is great. We always get the grilled calamari, plus a pasta or pizza.”

Pacific Dining Car: “Everyone’s been working there for like, over 30 years. It’s just a rad place to go. The martinis are delicious, and I order the ribeye. Super simple.”

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So what does Downtown need, Josef Centeno?

“It still needs to shake itself out. It got a lot of attention, really fast, and it was a gold rush of sorts. Everyone coming Downtown brought a lot of good things, but also not-so-good things.

I want to see what’s left standing before it continues to grow again. Downtown is an infant once more. But it’s growing in a positive direction, and I feel fortunate to be really in the thick of it, living it, working it. I wouldn’t be anywhere else.” eddie@downtownnews.com

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What’s Changing: Centeno sees demographic shifts in the neighborhood as they unfold. The sheer population growth is an obvious observation, as is the influx of younger residents in the Historic Core (“Probably a lot of USC kids,” Centeno suggests).

“The artists really put a stake in Downtown, and usually once the artists come, the restaurants and cool spots come, then everyone comes. Sadly, those artists are moving out of Downtown,” he says. “That’s due to landlords raising prices. Everyone’s seeing opportunity.”

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Meeting Tom: Centeno’s career crossroads came when he met Old Bank District developer Tom Gilmore, who happened to frequent Lazy Ox. “Most landlords aren’t going to take a chance on someone with no previous ownership experience and zero in their bank account,” Centeno says. “He pretty much gave me my break when he offered me the space that Bäco Mercat now fills.”

Centeno raised funds through a bevy of investors, mostly friends and fans of Lazy Ox. Bäco Mercat was a hit, and nine months later Gilmore approached him again with a more ambitious plan to take over two spaces on Fourth Street and transform them into higher-end restaurants. Those would become Bar Amá and Orsa & Winston.

Life in the Historic Core: Centeno moved Downtown in 2010 and lives in the Historic Core with fiancée Betty Hallock (a former food editor at the L.A. Times) and their two dogs, Orsa and Winston. With five restaurants around a single intersection, he has no need for a car.

“One thing I knew, having had to commute to kitchens, was that I wanted to live above the restaurant,” he says. “And I knew that because of the amount of care and time and maintenance and attention a restaurant needs, it’s like an infant. Moving to Downtown was a perfect situation.”

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SPONSORED LISTINGS

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Saturday Night Jazz Bar Fedora in Au Lac Plant-Based Restaurant, 710 W. First St. or saturdaynightjazzdtla.com Saturday, Dec. 17, 7:30-11 p.m.: Saturday Night Jazz (some Fridays + Blues Thursdays!) presents pianist Yuko Mabuchi giving an amazing performance in one of the best jazz venues in L.A. Great healthy food and drink. Right behind Disney Hall.

Overtakes

theVenues

OF DOWNTOWN

photo courtesy Microsoft Theater

The seasonal decorations at the California Plaza Watercourt are a far cry from the iconic and shabby “Peanuts” Christmas Tree. Just the same, it’ll be A Charlie Brown Christmas on Friday, Dec. 16, at noon, and again on Sunday at 2 p.m., with a special wintertime installment of summer’s Grand Performances series. In honor of the holidays, the Joey Altruda Trio will duplicate the famed Vince Guaraldi soundtrack. The lunchtime performance on Friday will be the perfect accompaniment to noontime grub, while the Sunday gig is preceded by a complimentary 1 p.m. sugar cookie decorating session for kids. Those weary of family time are invited over to Blue Cow where the psychiatrist (bartender) will be on duty. At 350 S. Grand Ave., (213) 687-2190 or grandperformances.org.

THREE

TWO

Given the current pharmacological paradigm in Downtown, we should clarify that this week’s Disney on Ice show at Staples Center is a wholesome ice skating production entitled Worlds of Enchantment. From Thursday-Sunday, Dec. 1518, your favorite characters from The Little Mermaid, Toy Story, Cars, Frozen and other films will strap blades to their feet and scoot across frozen water in a family-friendly display of the proverbial Disney magic.

Worlds of Enchantment runs at 7:30 p.m. Thursday-Friday with performances at 11 a.m., 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Saturday-Sunday. At 1111 S. Figueroa St., (213) 742-7100 or staplescenter.com.

ROCK, POP & JAZZ

Ace Hotel 929 S. Broadway, (213) 623-3233 or acehotel.com.

Dec. 16, 9 p.m.: Seu Jorge’s “Life Aquatic” show/David Bowie Tribute returns.

Au Lac/Café Fedora 710 W. First St., (213) 617-2533 or aulac.com.

Dec. 17, 7:30 p.m.: Yuko Mabuchi.

Belasco 1050 S. Hill St., (213) 746-5670 or belascous.com.

Dec. 13-14: Say what you will about The Sounds, they’re the band that invented contemporary un-searchable band names.

Dec. 15: By photo alone, the Brothers Osborne are either a neo-Americana band or a Silver Lake hair-cutting tandem.

Blue Whale 123 Astronaut E. S. Onizuka St., (213) 620-0908 or bluewhalemusic.com.

Dec. 12-15: Steve Coleman and Five Elements.

Dec. 16-17: Peter Erskine is DR.UM. Dec. 18: Matt Otto Quintet.

Bootleg Bar 2220 Beverly Blvd., (213) 389-3856 or bootlegtheater.org.

Dec. 12: When we say Death Hymn Number 9 is supporting Exsage’s residency, we mean that in both the literal and psychoemotional metaphorical way.

Dec. 13: Fell Runner’s Homecoming Show begs the question: Where have they been? We’ll peruse their waste and report back with answers next week.

Dec. 14: Vinyl Williams, along with a significant quality of other hipster luxury goods, toured with Toro y Moi. Dec. 15: It’s Sextile and their “dark primitive post-punk from outerspace.” Yeah, right.

Dec. 16: Tonight’s RKCB show is your last chance to see the post-pop duo before the anticipated show at Phoenix’s Rebel Theater.

Dec. 17: Risk! LA is a play on the word “risqué.” Cause the Continued on next page

LIST

Seasonal Music

photo courtesy Feld Entertainment

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 14 What’s So Bad About GMOs? MOCA, 250 S. Grand Ave. or zocalopublicsquare.org.

7:30 p.m.: Before you breathlessly shout “cancer” in response to the query, why not politely listen to what Seed Institute Director Bob Goldberg, food writer Russ Parsons and UCLA Emmett Institute honcho Edward Parson have to say?

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 15 Dave Jones at Town Hall-LA City Club, 555 S. Flower, (213) 628-8141 or townhall-la.org.

11:30 a.m.: The Commissioner of the California Department of Insurance preaches the gospel of keeping a policy on your health and home. Lunch will be served.

Megan Luke at Hauser Wirth & Schimmel 901 E. Third St., (213) 943-1620 or hauserwirthschimmel.com.

7 p.m.: The art historian leads a walking tour illuminating work in the “Schwitters Miro Arp” show.

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 17 The Thrilling Adventure Hour Holiday Funaround 929 S. Broadway, (213) 623-3233 or acehotel.com.

8 p.m.: It’s a radio play with comedy, music and magic. Supporting cast includes Paul F. Tompkins, Paget Brewster, Busy Phillips, Craig Cackowski and many more.

ONE

photo by Gary Leonard

‘DON’T MISS’ THE

+

EVENTS

December 12, 2016

FOUR

Riding the coattails of their new single “Thrill,” Sweden’s favorite early 2000s indie band The Sounds make their presence known at the Belasco Theatre. In a two-night run on Monday-Tuesday, Dec. 12-13, the quintet doles out heavy doses of their Strokes-adjacent svelterock to willing participants. There will be ample noodly keyboard lines behind pop-enthusiasm-laced drum parts, chic guitar and the high-cheekboned howl of Maja Ivarsson. The doors are at 7 p.m. The parking lots close at 2 a.m. You do the math. At 1050 S. Hill St., (213) 746-5670 or thebelasco.com.

FIVE

There is no bigger fan of Christmas than Brian Setzer’s accountant. The onetime Stray Cat became an icon of the late ’90s/ early 2000s swing revival. You will remember Brian and his orchestra from that infectious (and Grammy-winning) “Jump Jive an’ Wail” single that tore through American eardrums in 1998. Now the Brian Setzer Orchestra is slated to recapture some of that magic,when their 13th annual Christmas Rocks Tour barnstorms Microsoft Theater at L.A. Live on Saturday, Dec. 17, at 8 p.m. The event is standing room only, which is perfect for two things: circle pits and impromptu swing dancing. We’re betting on the latter. At 777 Chick Hearn Court, (213) 763-6030 or microsofttheater.com.

photo courtesy Live Nation

DT

CALENDAR LISTINGS

TWITTER: @ DOWNTOWNNEWS

photo by Jamie Pham

12 Downtown News

Enthusiastic vocal exultations exude as Downtown hosts a trio of holiday sing-alongs this week. On Friday, Dec. 16, from 6-7:30 p.m., the Music Center Plaza is the site of a complimentary outdoor Christmas hootenanny, with sheet music and live accompaniment, for those with the foresight to assemble for the ticket handout at 5:30 p.m. Melissa Peterman hosts the L.A. Philharmonic’s official sing-along at 11:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 17, at Walt Disney Concert Hall. Conductor John Sutton and the Angeles Chorale join her. The coup de grace comes on Sunday, Dec. 18, at 7:30 p.m., when the Los Angeles Master Chorale deploys to Disney Hall for the 36th annual sing-along of Handel’s Messiah. At the Music Center Plaza, 135 N. Grand Ave., and Disney Hall, 111 S. Grand Ave., (213) 972-0777 or musiccenter.org, or lamc.org.

Send information and possible Don’t Miss List submissions to calendar@downtownnews.com.

December 12, 2016 podcast urges people to tell lurid stories, see?

Dec. 18: Similar Fashion helms jazz night.

Exchange LA 618 S. Spring St., (213) 627-8070 or exchangela.com.

Dec. 16: Tommy Trash.

Dec. 17: Crookers.

Grammy Museum 800 W. Olympic Blvd., (213) 765-6800 or grammymuseum.org.

Dec. 12, 7:15 p.m.: Americana legend David Bromberg.

Dec. 14, 7:15 p.m.: Us the Duo are the first band to sign to a major label off the merits of their Vine account. If you need me, I’ll be dead in my closet!

Grand Performances California Plaza, 350 S. Grand Ave., (213) 687-2190 or grandperformances.org.

Dec. 16, 12 p.m. and Dec. 18, 2 p.m.: The Joey Altruda Trio does “A Charlie Brown Christmas.” But where’s Woodstock?

Ham & Eggs Tavern 433 W. Eighth St., (213) 891-6939 or hamandeggstavern.com.

Dec. 15: James V, Rebecca Schiffman and The Stones.

Dec. 17: Pineapple Rain.

Mayan 1038 S. Hill St., (213) 746-4287 or clubmayan.com.

Dec. 15: D.C.-originated technical metal from Animals As Leaders.

Microsoft Theatre 777 Chick Hearn Court, (213) 763-6030 or microsofttheeatre.com.

Dec. 16, 7:30 p.m.: The REAL BIG HOLIDAY SHOW (their caps, not ours) features Trey Songz, Fetty Wap and YFN Lucci.

CROSSWORD

Downtown News 13

DOWNTOWNNEWS.COM Dec. 17, 8 p.m.: Initiate your swinging Christmas season with the Brian Setzer Orchestra.

Redwood Bar and Grill 316 W. Second St., (213) 652-4444 or theredwoodbar.com.

Dec. 12: Blair Santa.

Dec. 13: Jack Rabbit Jade.

Dec. 14: Comedy Night.

Dec. 16: House of Affection, The Do-Its and Moth Drops.

Dec. 17: Xmas with Johnny Madcap.

Dec. 18: Shinebright.

The Novo 800 W. Olympic Blvd., (213) 765-7000 or thenovodtla.com.

Dec. 14, 8 p.m.: Goldenvoice presents the 10th Annual How The Grouch Stole Christmas Living Legends (All Original Members).

Dec. 15: The Daedelus/Teebs show apparently benefits InnerCity Arts.

Dec. 17: Sharon Needles is but one of the many artists represented in Christmas Queens.

The Regent 448 S. Main St. or theregenttheater.com.

Dec. 14: Lucky for Fat Nick, The Regent is home to the tasty oven-fired pizzas at Prufrock.

Dec. 16: Earth, Wind & Power is an Earth Wind and Fire tribute band.

Dec. 17-18: A slew of excellent post-metal bands chime in for the two-day Power of the Riff mini-festival.

Resident 428 S. Hewitt St. or (323) 316-5311 or residentdtla.com.

Dec. 12: Horse Thief, Paige Calico and Future Feats.

Dec. 13: Whispertown & Friends Holiday Party.

Dec. 14: Mako: Hourglass Live.

Dec. 15: Oslo.

Seven Grand 515 W. Seventh St., (213) 614-0737 or sevengrand.la.

Dec. 13: The Makers have unwittingly provided the trigger music for countless Financial District Manchurian candidates over the years.

The Smell 247 S. Main St. in the alley between Spring and Main or thesmell.org.

Dec. 14: Peter Pants, HIPS and Batwings Catwings.

Dec. 16: Blessed, Mikey & His Shame and Hex Horizontal.

Dec. 18: Peach Kelli Pop, French Vanilla, Post-Life, Janelane and Mo Dotti.

Teragram Ballroom 1234 W. Seventh St. or teragramballroom.com.

Dec. 13: All-star night as the Eagles of Death Metal, Josh Homme, The Gutter Twins and Duff McKagan take the stage.

Dec. 14: Further all-star nonsense as the Afghan Whigs, Mark Lanegan, Moby and Carina Round congeal into an unusual if lofty lineup.

Dec. 15: The Mowgli’s have a holiday show all lined up for you.

Dec. 16: For legal reasons, we hope you keep your pants on for Nudist Priest.

Dec. 17: Kim and the Created look to Sadgirl, The Paranoyds and Espresso to lift the mood in this feel-good holiday show of a lifetime.

FILM

Grammy Museum 800 W. Olympic Blvd., (213) 765-6800 or grammymuseum.org.

Dec. 15, 7 p.m.: Rattle the Hocks chronicles Alyssa and Doug Graham’s infatuation with Americana and rail travel.

MORE LISTINGS@

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December 12, 2016

December 12, 2016

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CLASSIFIEDS REAL ESTATE RESIDENTIAL

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FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE NO. 2016291269 The following individual(s) is (are) doing business as: (1) LUXUS WALL SYSTEMS, INC, 315 W 9th St., Suite 410, Los Angeles, CA 90015, are hereby registered by the following registrants: LUXUS WALL SYSTEMS, INC, 526 Marin Dr, Burlingame, CA 94010. This business is conducted by a corporation. Registrant(s) began to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on 02/2015.

This statement was filed with DEAN C. LOGAN, Los Angeles County Clerk, and by Miguel Macias, Deputy, on December 01, 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 the rights of another under federal, state, or common law (see Section 14411 et. seq. Business and Professions Code).

Pub. 12/12/16, 12/19/16, 12/26/16, and 01/02/2017..

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT FILE NO. 2016278738 The following individual(s) is (are) doing business as: (1) Downtown News, 1264 W. First Street, Los Angeles, CA 90026, and (2) Downtown News Group, 1264 W. First Street, Los Angeles, CA 90026, are hereby registered by the following registrants: Civic Center News Group, INC., 1264 W. First Street, Los Angeles, CA 90026.

This business is conducted by a corporation. Registrant(s) began to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above on 09/1972.

This statement was filed with DEAN C. LOGAN, Los Angeles County Clerk on November 16, 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 the rights of another under federal, state, or common law (see Section 14411 et. seq. Business and Professions Code).

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To place a classified ad in the Downtown News please call 213-481-1448, or go to DowntownNews.com Deadline classified display and line ads are Thursday at 12pm.

FORfor RENT All submissions are subject to federal and California fair housing laws, which make it illegal to indicate in any advertisement any preference, limitation, or discrimination because of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, national origin, ancestry, familial status, source of income or physical or mental disability. We will not knowingly accept any advertising for real estate which is in violation of the law. All persons are hereby informed that all dwellings advertised are available on an equal opportunity basis.

Pub. 11/21, 11/28, 12/05, and 12/12/2016.

CIVIC SUMMONS Riverside County Superior Court Case No. HED1500951 Petitioner’s Name is: DARIUS L. DOLLEY Notice to Respondent: TAMI L. BRIGGS NOTICE! You have been sued.

Read the following information.

You have 30 calendar days after

this Summons and Petition are served on you to file a Response (form FL-120 or FL-123) at the court and have a copy served on the petitioner. A letter, phone call, or court appearance will not protect you. If you do not file your Response on time, the court may make orders affecting your marriage or domestic partnership, you property, and custody of your children. You may be ordered to pay support and attorney fees and costs. For legal advice, contact a lawyer

the LOFT expert!

immediately. Get help finding a lawyer at the California Courts Online Self-Help Center (www. courts.ca.gov/selfhelp). At the California Legal Services website (www.lawhelpca.org), or by contacting your local county bar association. NOTICE: The restraining orders on page 2 are effective against both spouses or domestic partners unit the petition is dismissed, a judgment is entered, or the court makes further order. The orders are enforceable anywhere in

TheLoftExpertGroup.com DRE # 01309009

The name and address of the court is: Superior Court of California County of Riverside 880 N. State St. Hemet, CA 92543

Case Number: HED1500951 Deputy: M. Cruz The name, address, telephone number, and fax number of the petitioner’s attorney or petitioner without an attorney are: Darrius Dolley 2400 Tahoe Circle, Apartment A Hemet, CA 92545 951-292-3719 Pub. 12/05, 12/12, 12/19, and 12/26/2016.

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Bill Cooper 213.598.7555

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PUBLIC NOTICE Notice is hereby given that: Cathay Bank, headquartered at 777 North Broadway, Los Angeles CA 90012 has filed with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the California Department of Business Oversight (DBO) an application to close its Plano Branch located at 4100 Legacy Drive, Suite 403, Plano Texas 75024.

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Call (626)319-7343

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Adolescent support group now forming Ages 13-17 Low fee

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This notice is published pursuant to 12 CFR §303.7.

PUBLIC NOTICE Notice is hereby given that: Cathay Bank, headquartered at 777 North Broadway, Los Angeles CA 90012 has filed with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the California Department of Business Oversight (DBO), an application to establish a new office: Cathay Bank Plano Branch To be located at: 2001 Coit Road, Suite 160 Plano, Texas 75075 Any person wishing to comment on this application may file his or her comments in writing with the Regional Director of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, 25 Jessie Street at Ecker Square, Suite 2300, San Francisco, California 94105 and/or the Commissioner of the California Department of Business Oversight, 45 Fremont Street, Suite 1700, San Francisco, California 94105, not later than 15 days after the date of this newspaper publication.

The non-confidential portions of the application are on file at the appropriate FDIC office and are available for public inspection during regular business hours. Photocopies of the non-confidential portion of the application file will be made available upon request.

This notice is published pursuant to 12 CFR §303.7.

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Any person wishing to comment on this application may file his or her comments in writing with the Regional Director of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, 25 Jessie Street at Ecker Square, Suite 2300, San Francisco, California 94105 and/or the Commissioner of the California Department of Business Oversight, 45 Fremont Street, Suite 1700, San Francisco, California 94105, not later than 15 days after the date of this newspaper publication. The non-confidential portions of the application are on file at the appropriate FDIC office and are available for public inspection during regular business hours. Photocopies of the non-confidential portion of the application file will be made available upon request.

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December 12, 2016

BECERRA AND BEYOND, 5

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123 South Figueroa Street Leasing Information 213 617 3777 www.THEPROMENADETOWERS.com Community Amenities: ~ 24 Hr. Manned Lobby ~ Pool / Spa / BBQ Grills ~ Fitness Center ~ Covered Parking

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Kirk duels with the villain played by Ricardo Montalbán. In a pivotal scene, Khan tells Kirk, “I shall leave you alone as you left me, as you left her, marooned for all eternity in the center of a dead planet, buried alive.” Dramatic pause. “Buried alive.” A furious Kirk famously yells, “Khaaaaaaaaan!”

I mention this because that is what California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones must have been like after he heard the news of Becerra’s selection. Did anyone else hear that “Brooooooooown!”?

Jones announced his intention to run for AG more than a year ago, and has been steadily raising money and lining up supporters. It was a smart move, with everyone expecting Harris to win a U.S. Senate seat and then vacate her post. Jones was no shooin, but he was putting himself in a strong position to contend.

Becerra the incumbent would be very difficult to topple. It’s not impossible, and Trump v. Clinton reminds us that upsets can happen in any election, but you can’t blame Jones if he feels like he’s been buried alive in the dead planet of the Insurance Commissioner’s office.

“Brooooooooown!”

Oh Wells: Speaking of contenders, you have to wonder what Mike Feuer makes of all this. Local political watchers have long thought the Los Angeles City Attorney has his eye on the Attorney General job. Feuer has scored public victory after public victory, and he got a national bounce in his settlement with Wells Fargo for $185 million for the bank’s nasty habit of opening accounts in the name of unsuspecting customers. That led all the way to blistering hearings for Wells execs on Capitol Hill in D.C. To be fair, nobody has ever heard Feuer utter a public peep about wanting the AG gig. Still, it seemed a natural move with Harris’ likely win, and the Wells victory would have been campaign gold — detailing how you knocked a symbol of corporate greed to its knees would resonate with voters.

Feuer could challenge Becerra in 2018, though I’d wager all my milk money that he’s too smart to try that. Instead, expect him to see what opens up closer to home.

Feuer and Jones have to hope Becerra is instead drawn to the Senate.

José Takes a Pass: News of Becerra’s bounce had people wondering if any City Council members would run for the soon-tobe-empty seat. Talk quickly settled on 14th District rep José Huizar and First District Councilman Gil Cedillo.

Though Cedillo ran and lost a nasty Congressional race to Judy Chu in 2009, the announcement that he is staying put isn’t surprising — he’s got a City Council election in March, and the special election for Becerra’s seat will likely take place in the first half of 2017. Cedillo would have to run two races at once, which is a great way to lose two races. Last Tuesday he said he’s staying local.

Huizar made the same decision, and this one’s more curious.

The dude who represents Downtown coasted to re-election in 2015 over a tough opponent in Gloria Molina. He’s never lost a race and is a prodigious fundraiser. This is his last term on the council, and he had a free run — even if he lost a Congressional race, he could fall back on the council job.

Huizar said all the right things in announcing he’d stay where he is. Maybe there’s something we don’t know about his decision. Or maybe he just wants to remain at home and be closer to family than he is to Trump.

Pérez vs. Gomez: All that brings us to the two big names who have announced their candidacy, and golly gee willikers, this one’s gonna be fun.

Former Assembly Speaker John Pérez pulled a body’s-stillwarm move by announcing he’d run an hour after Becerra’s announcement. A few days later Assemblyman Jimmy Gomez threw his hat in the ring. Both are already assembling campaign teams, even though Becerra has yet to be confirmed by the state Senate and Assembly.

Community activist Wendy Carrillo has entered the race, and former Huizar deputy Sara Hernandez is said to be considering running.

Pérez, a cousin of Antonio Villaraigosa, is the biggest name, but Gomez is seen as affable and capable. Both are connected to the political machine. Both should be able to raise some cash.

In the coming months, expect the mud to fly. regardie@downtownnews.com