08-03-09

LOS ANGELES

DOWNTOWN

NEWS August 3, 2009

Volume 38, Number 31

A new feature on Downtown retail.

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Old space, new restaurant.

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FIDM shows off the best TV costumes.

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JANM gets all dolled up.

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Five great entertainment options.

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15 CALENDAR LISTINGS 17 CLASSIFIEDS

Parking fees, a Downtown murder, and other happenings Around Town.

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Editorials: progress at Pershing Square, and Downtown’s growing film roles.

W W W. D O W N T O W N N E W S . C O M

Downtown Auto Plan Stuck in Neutral Figueroa Corridor Dealerships Try to Fight Through the Recession

by Ryan VaillancouRt staff wRiteR

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Go outside and get in shape.

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photo by Gary Leonard

INSIDE

Dogs Take Over

f you don’t want the scene to get heavy, don’t touch my Chevy.”

—Darryl Holter, in the song “Don’t Touch My Chevy” In 1955, Downtown Los Angeles was home to dozens of car dealerships, including as many as five Chevrolet outposts. Today, there is only one: the iconic Felix Chevrolet and Cadillac on Figueroa Street a few blocks north of USC. Not only have the other Downtown

Darryl Holter presides over the Shammas Group, which owns seven auto dealerships in Downtown.

Sales at his foreign dealerships have fallen 30% from two years ago, while domestic car sales have dropped about 50%. Still, he expects to weather the storm.

dealerships folded, but Chevy shops across the nation have closed too.

It’s not just Chevrolet, of course.

The American auto industry is wallowing in the current recession, with two of Detroit’s Big Three — General Motors and Chrysler — in bankruptcy.

Although the companies have announced plans to shutter hundreds of dealerships throughout the United States, a cluster of car-selling businesses on Figueroa Street see Cars, page 7

Housing Ruling Could So a Mayor Decides to Run for Have Statewide Governor…

Impact Decision in City West Case Could Be Used to Challenge Affordable Housing Mandates Across California

Gavin Newsom Makes a Campaign Stop in Downtown

by Jon RegaRdie executiVe editoR

by anna scott staff wRiteR

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recent court case may have resulted in a loss for the city and a win for a single developer. But in the wake of the decision, it has become clear that it could be used to challenge low-income housing mandates in apartment buildings from San Diego to Sacramento.

Now, some are asking why the city went forward with an appeal, when indications were clear months ago, if not longer, that a loss could set a potentially damaging legal precedent, and possibly deal a blow to a housing effort being pitched by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.

On July 22, state Court of Appeal Judge Steven Suzukawa decided in favor of developer Geoff Palmer, known to many for building Italianinspired apartment projects in City West. Palmer had sued the city in 2007 to avoid having to set aside units for low-income tenants in his proposed 350-unit Piero II project.

In the ruling, Suzukawa found that the Central City West Specific Plan — an 18-year-old development guide for City West that requires developers of large projects in the area to set aside residences for lowincome workers or pay the city to

build the housing elsewhere — violates a 1995 state rent control law.

The Court of Appeal decision is precedent-setting, according to attorneys on both sides of the case.

They say repercussions could be farreaching: Approximately 170 cities and jurisdictions in California have some kind of affordable housing requirement, a policy also known as inclusionary housing.

“Palmer challenged a city law using a state law, so any other city that has an inclusionary housing law that looks like the Central City West plan could be challenged in the same manner,” said Paul Rohrer, a land use attorney with the firm Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP, who has reviewed the Court of Appeal decision. The ruling, he noted, applies to rental housing, not condominium projects.

Los Angeles officials have not decided yet whether to ask the California Supreme Court to review the Palmer case, said a spokesman for City Attorney Carmen Trutanich (his predecessor, Rocky Delgadillo, filed the appeal for the city). The city has approximately a month to petition for a review. If officials do not move forward, or if the Supreme see Palmer, page 12

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os Angeles, for better or worse, does not have a mayor who is running for governor of California. So last week, San Francisco let us borrow theirs.

At about noon on Wednesday, July 29, Gavin Newsom, the guy still THE REGARDIE REPORT

known to most people in the country for performing gay marriages and leading support for Proposition 8, strode into a conference room at the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce headquarters in

City West for the second installment of the Chamber’s California Candidates Series (the first speaker was former Congressman Tom Campbell, though if you just said “Who?” you’re not alone). When he left about 90 minutes later, he may not have locked in the campaign donations of the approximately 120 members of the local business community in the crowd, but he had plenty of heads nodding along.

The 41-year-old is an interesting character. He’s probably the second coolest Gavin around, easily more impressive than Rossdale (singer see Newsom, page 3

photo by Gary Leonard

Since 1972, an independent, locally owned and edited newspaper, go figure.

A sharp-dressed man: San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom tried to woo the local business crowd at an address last week at the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce. He mostly avoided the gay marriage issue.

AROUNDTOWN Concerto Plans Fire Sale

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eveloper Sonny Astani, chairman and CEO of Astani Enterprises, announced last week that prices in the first part of his Concerto condominium project will be drastically reduced for an eight-hour sale on Aug. 29. The 77 units are all in a seven-story building that has been completed in South Park. For the sale, prices will start at $219,000 for 738-square-foot studios; one bedrooms (959 square feet) will start at $279,000; and two-bedroom units (1,363 square feet) will start at $449,000. “Most developers with big projects have costs that accrue on a daily basis, like interest, marketing, broker commissions and things like that, but when you do something in one day there’s money saved by the buyers and I save money,” said Astani, who expects to sell all 77 units during the event. “The only way we won’t sell is if the day before I get hit by a truck.” The main component of the first phase of the Concerto development, a 30-story tower at Ninth and Figueroa streets with 271 units, is slated for completion near the end of the year, Astani said.

For more information, go to concertodowntown.com.

Community Mourns Death of 17-Year-Old

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lowers, candles and notes from friends were placed on a concrete loading dock near the corner of Fifth and Alameda streets where 17-year-old Los Angeles resident Lily Burk was found murdered in her car early on July 25. Police believe Burk was abducted at about 3 p.m. near Southwestern Law School, where she was running an errand for her mother.

When Burk’s body was found, police had already arrested her alleged killer, Charlie Samuel; he was apprehended July 24 after a Mounted Unit officer stopped him for public drinking and also found drug paraphernalia. Detectives linked Samuel to Burk’s killing with fingerprints. The incident marks the third homicide in Downtown this year. The impromptu memorial for Burk on Fifth Street, just east of Alameda, has several anonymous notes. One reads, simply, “We have all suffered a tremendous loss.”

August August3,3,2009 2009

DowntownNews.com

Little Chinatown Comes to Big Chinatown

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ames Rojas, who last year made a splash with an eightfoot-long, four-foot-wide model of Downtown, complete with moveable pieces, is at it again. On Saturday, Aug. 8, he’ll debut an interactive, scaled-down model of Chinatown at the Fifth Floor Gallery at 502 Chung King Court. The model highlights the topography, streets and blocks that make up the neighborhood, and includes the Los Angeles State Historic Park and portions of the Los Angeles River. The exhibit, which will remain up through the end of the month, will also include shelves with additional small buildings that the public can place on the model to create their own vision of Chinatown.

Downtown Records Fifth ‘Jumper’ Suicide of Year

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n July 23, 73-year-old Lifang Liang jumped to her death from the 10th floor of the Cathay Manor Apartments in Chinatown, said Ed Winter, assistant chief of the Los Angeles County coroner’s office. The incident marks Downtown’s fifth “jumper” suicide this year. Though LAPD officials last week could not provide suicide statistics in Downtown from previous years, multiple officers said the area usually has about four such incidents in an entire year. “Does it seem unusual, for this many to jump to their death?” asked LAPD Homicide Detective Robert Nelson. “It does.” The coroner is still investigating the death of Liang and four others. Liang’s death came three days after Daniel Stanley, 27, fell from the 10th floor of the SB Lofts at 548 S. Spring St. Police have classified the incident as a suicide, but that is being challenged by friends and family who insist Stanley’s fall was accidental.

Fees at County Lots to Rise

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et ready to pay more if you’re parking in a county-owned parking lot. The Board of Supervisors voted last week to raise parking rates by 15% in order to make up for funds lost

in July when parking lot revenue for facilities around the Civic Center were transferred to the state. Parking lots with increased fees include those at the Music Center, Walt Disney Concert Hall, the Criminal Courts Building and the County Courthouse.

The increase is projected to generate approximately $1.4 million a year for the county. Rates at all four facilities will rise from $3 to $3.50 for every 15 minutes. The daily maximum at the Music Center and Disney Hall lots will go from $17 to $20, while the top price at the Criminal Courts Building and County Courthouse will increase from $16 to $18.

National Night Out Moves to Olvera Street

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ational Night Out, an event that is celebrated across the country and brings together community members and police officers, takes place this week, and once again, Downtown is part of the party. On Tuesday, Aug. 4, the gathering, which took place in Little Tokyo last year, will unfold at Olvera Street. The event will feature food vendors, booths and live music by the bands The Remods and Carlos Guitarlos. National Night Out goes from 6-10 p.m. at 125 Paseo de la Plaza. For more information, call Officer Marie Kardiban at (213) 972-1876.

Downtowners Rarely Give to Panhandlers

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lmost everyone in Downtown has been asked for money by someone on the street. However, in a new Los Angeles Downtown News poll, three out of four respondents say they rarely or never give spare change or dollar bills to those who ask. In a recent 10-day poll at downtownnews.com, 49% of people surveyed said they “never” give money to people who ask for it in Downtown. Another 25% said they “rarely” give.

Only 4% said they “frequently” give, while another 17% said they do so occasionally. Votes were limited to one per computer. This week’s question is, “How often do you eat lunch at Downtown restaurants?” The choices are: never; 1-2 times a month; 1-2 times a week; 3-4 times a week; 5 or more times a week. To vote, visit downtownnews.com, scroll down and look on the left side of the page.

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2 Downtown News

August 3, 2009

Newsom Continued from page 1 of the band Bush and husband to Gwen Stefani), but not yet up there with MacCleod (who played Capt. Merrill Stubing on TV’s “The Love Boat”). Though he identified himself as a fourth-generation San Franciscan, there was a curious Southern twang in his voice.

He had a theatrical bent in his address, and a manner of gesticulation — grip the microphone in the right hand and use the left to point, fist punch or do an open-handed smooth glide — that vaguely smacked of Hollywood. There was a touch of Matthew McConaughey in his swagger, as well as a physical resemblance to Phil Wenneck, the guy from The Hangover who calls the bride to say the bachelor party lost the groom.

His comments were tailored to the room. He essentially eschewed gay marriage, giving just a single brushing reference to the issue, and instead began by trotting out his business C.V. “I come from the private sector,” he pronounced, describing how he borrowed $7,500 from his father and cobbled together money from other investors to open a wine shop in San Francisco when he was 21. The debut was delayed, however, as he described regulations requiring all liquor stores to have a mop sink — that applied to his business even though it was nothing like a corner package shop and was entirely carpeted, meaning “there was nothing to mop.”

Attempts to get the requirement waived failed, he said, and Zing!, there was the crystal clarification of how the gubernatorial candidate knows the public eccentricities that business leaders deal with every day.

By the by, the shop opened and Newsom paid back his dad. He went on to open about 15 businesses, and he told the room he has created more than 1,000 jobs.

In other words, the message was, don’t write him off as just the gay marriage politician or the guy who looks like he lost the groom in The Hangover. He gets business and he feels your pain.

Gotta Slay Goliath The general consensus is that Newsom faces an uphill battle. Even with Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa sitting the race out and instead doing important things like vacationing in Iceland, G-New has to figure out how to slay the Democratic goliath, state Attorney General and former California Gov. Jerry Brown. The address in Downtown Los Angeles — part of a tour in which he had already conducted 20 town hall meetings by the middle of last week — is an element of his effort to find that slingshot.

(And if he somehow beats Brown for the Democratic nomination, then he gets the fun task of taking on whoever earns the Republican nod, which could be former eBay honcho Meg Whitman, a woman with deep business experience and more money than Kobe — a Forbes.com article from 2008 listed her net worth at $1.3 billion.)

The man who was elected mayor of San Francisco in 2004 was led into the room by State Sen. and former L.A. City Council President Alex Padilla, who as Newsom’s campaign chair is trying to help him sweep up some of the Latino votes that went up for grabs when Villaraigosa decided to skip the race because he really cares most about Los Angeles’ problems (even writing that makes me giggle). Actually, the Villaraigosa reference isn’t totally out of the blue, because as Newsom talked up his record, he was spurring comparisons with AnVil. Newsom mentioned a $575 million budget shortfall facing San Francisco that he said, ahem, he resolved. He also addressed education, and admitted that he was “tempted” to try to take over the local school system. Instead, he went another route, and he told the Chamber crowd about San Francisco’s “framework of educational reform,” which includes elements such as universal pre-school, bringing doctors and nurses into every school and adopting a “preK-16” approach that looks at education all the way through four years of college.

The theme seemed to get traction in the room, and if it was compared mentally to L.A.’s school reforms, or lack thereof, then, Zing! he’s an education guy.

Take the Single Newsom hit on a lot of points, but he also missed a few.

The best of a round of Q&A questions asked him to compare his candidacy to those of Brown and Whitman. Not realizing that, in this particular room, this was a chance to discuss experience and strategy as opposed to bashing the others, he refused to address his competitors, and instead zipped into personal proclivities, which soon morphed into the problems with prisons and Medical, both of which, he said, could bankrupt the state without reform. That’s well and good and possibly true, but still, it was like he had a chance to clobber a homerun and chose instead to get a dinky single.

Other times he fared better, particularly when discussing how people who talk about coming to Sacramento and treat-

DowntownNews.com ing government like a business are destined to fail because, well, it’s not a business, and things like bumping (when trying to lay off one public employee, union rules often dictate that person instead can “bump” off someone else with less seniority) can result in chaos. “Be cautious about people who overpromise,” he warned.

He also scored on the issue of treating homelessness, pushing for a system of permanent supportive housing as opposed to just more shelter beds. He actually got a bit excited about the subject, which he spent significant time working on in San Francisco. “You touched a nerve, a passion,” he said.

Then there was something that proved he may be fit to play in Sacramento after all. Back on the Brown/Whitman theme, he realized that he did have something to say about them, “To the extent that they offer better ideas,” he said, “I’ll either try to steal them, or I will argue for a different approach.”

Zing! He got the laugh.

Contact Jon Regardie at regardie@downtownnews.com.

Downtown News 3

photo by Gary Leonard

Newsom appeared at the Chamber event with State Sen. Alex Padilla, the former L.A. City Council president who is chair of his campaign.

4 Downtown News

August 3, 2009

DowntownNews.com

EDITORIALS Progress at Pershing Square

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t is easy to critique Pershing Square: The massive public space in the heart of the Financial District still suffers from a what-were-they-thinking? 1994 redesign by architect Ricardo Legoretta and landscapist Laurie Olin. It has too much concrete, too little green space, and the “fortress” style design makes it difficult for pedestrians on surrounding streets to peer in, thereby limiting the temptation to enter.

Fifteen years after the upgrade, Pershing Square is not the type of “park” that it should be.

Despite this, a group of city employees and other interested parties are putting significant effort into making it a place that lures Downtown workers, residents and visitors. In fact, with the cultural lineup this summer, Pershing Square is taking real strides toward the goal of becoming a gathering point for Downtown Los Angeles.

Primary credit for this goes to the Department of Recreation and Parks employees who oversee and program Pershing Square. For 11 years they have facilitated a crowd-pleasing ice rink in the winter, complete with accompanying musical performances, and a concert series in the summer. Last year they ratcheted up the summer schedule, booking some acts with national followings.

This year, they have taken it one step further, and are currently in the midst of a six-week blowout series that attempts to entertain the mid-day crowd and draw people from inside and outside the community — families included — to

Downtown in the evenings.

The Pershing Square effort this summer (it continues through Aug. 23) actually involves seven different miniseries. For example, Wednesday nights bring indie rock groups, and the Square management once again is partnering (smartly) with club promoter Spaceland Productions to set the lineup and help with the marketing. Sunday afternoon is about swing bands while Friday night delivers an inviting new element — an outdoor film series with blockbusters such as Spiderman and The Incredibles. Like everything else at Pershing Square this summer, the movies are free.

The big focus is Saturday nights, during which some fairly popular bands perform. Though most of these groups are known for hits from years ago, they still have name recognition, and it is easy to see that spreading the word about the shows could bring people to the area.

The concerts are not the only thing going on this summer.

In late June the Square hosted a group of events that comprised the Neighborhood Weekend celebration. That also marked the unveiling of a small round of infrastructure upgrades, including an area that, officials hope, will be used by people walking their dogs (instead of allowing pets to do their business in one of the park’s few small grassy sections).

Another inviting addition is the Financial District Farmers Market that takes place on Wednesdays. Though many in Downtown lamented the departure of the market from its

From Back Lot to Character

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here is an old slogan that says that when something happens twice, it’s a coincidence, and when it takes place three times, it’s a trend.

If there is anything to that, then Downtown Los Angeles is now not just a popular shooting locale for Hollywood films, but is an actual trendy “character” in the movie business.

Last week Los Angeles Downtown News reported on the new film 500 Days of Summer, which was shot in the community over 29 days during 2008. The film, which is generating plenty of buzz, treats Downtown as an important part of the script, as the lead character, an aspiring architect (played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt) ogles structures such as the Bradbury Building, the Continental Building and the Fine Arts Building. Director Marc Webb described how important

Urban Scrawl by Doug Davis

Downtown was to the plot (even if the original script placed the action in San Francisco). In the goal of setting the scene, he discussed how he focused on history and tried not to showcase any buildings constructed after 1950.

Downtown also moved beyond back lot status in a couple of other recent films: This year’s Robert Downey Jr.starring The Soloist, based on Los Angeles Times columnist Steve Lopez’s friendship with formerly homeless musician Nathanial Ayers, heavily utilized Skid Row in the story, and many area denizens were involved in the production. An independent film from last year, In Search of a Midnight Kiss, followed a couple who spend a day in Downtown.

Is this actually a case where three things are a coincidence, rather than a “trend?” Probably — no one really expects a

former location in front of the Central Library earlier this year, Pershing Square has become a good home. It is an easy walk for thousands of people who work and live in the area. The array of produce and other goods attracts serious crowds.

Where things go from here will be interesting. In addition to the onsite staff, there is a park advisory board composed of area stakeholders. It is nice to see some members of the public taking a role.

However, there are significant hurdles to future advancement. Park Fifth, a $1 billion project proposed for the block just north of the Square, was supposed to include a makeover for the park. Due to the economy and the tumult in the housing market, the project is delayed. Considering that there is also some division among partners in the development team, and that the project is officially on the market, a Park Fifthbased upgrade cannot be relied upon.

Then there is the issue referred to above — the design itself.

As long as Pershing Square looks like it does, it is questionable whether any programming changes will be more than cosmetic.

It’s an ugly fact, but Pershing Square is a physically ugly space.

Obviously, there is no city money for a major renovation.

That is also why the work undertaken so far is important, and why those who have invested their time and expertise should continue to do so. Only by drawing people to the area and making it useful will Pershing Square overcome the strikes against it. The programming lineup and other improvements to date have made the park a much more inviting place and have increased public use of the facility. We hope the work will continue. clutch of Westside-loving Hollywood folk to be romanced by Downtown.

Still, it is a nice to see a few in “The Industry” recognize what so many area stakeholders have known for so long: that the community is multifaceted and contains many points of beauty, especially if you’re willing to look beyond the most obvious structures. The charms of Downtown may not be readily apparent to everyone, but we’re pleased that others are catching on, and that Downtown is getting its close-up.

How to reach us Main office: (213) 481-1448 MAIL your Letter Letters to the Editor • L.A. Downtown News 1264 W. First Street • Los Angeles, CA 90026 Email your Letter realpeople@downtownnews.com FAX your Letter (213) 250-4617 Read Us on the Web DowntownNews.com

Editor & PublishEr: Sue Laris GENErAl MANAGEr: Dawn Eastin ExEcutivE Editor: Jon Regardie citY Editor: Richard Guzmán stAFF writErs: Anna Scott, Ryan Vaillancourt coNtributiNG Editors: David Friedman, Kathryn Maese coNtributiNG writErs: Jay Berman, Jeff Favre, Michael X. Ferraro, Kristin Friedrich, Howard Leff, Rod Riggs, Marc Porter Zasada Art dirEctor: Brian Allison AssistANt Art dirEctor: Yumi Kanegawa ProductioN ANd GrAPhics: Alexis Rawlins ProductioN AssistANt / EvENt coordiNAtor: Claudia Hernandez PhotoGrAPhEr: Gary Leonard AccouNtiNG: Ashley Vandervort AdvErtisiNG dirEctor: Steve Nakutin sAlEs AssistANt: Annette Cruz clAssiFiEd AdvErtisiNG MANAGEr: Catherine Holloway AccouNt ExEcutivEs: Robert Dutcher, Catherine Holloway, Tam Nguyen, Kelley Smith circulAtioN: Norma Rodas distributioN MANAGEr: Salvador Ingles distributioN AssistANts: Lorenzo Castillo, Gustavo Bonilla 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. It is also distributed to the extended urban communities of Glendale, Hollywood, Wilshire Center, Los Feliz, Silver Lake & Larchmont Village.

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August 3, 2009

Downtown News 5

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WHAT’S IN STORE

Polyester/Todd Browning Gallery Bookstore and Gallery Has an Array of Tomes, Photographs and Unusual Finds

by AnnA Scott StAff writer

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ill Eiseman, owner of the Historic Core bookstore Polyester and the adjacent Todd Browning Gallery, can sum up his inventory in five simple words: “Anything that fascinates or offends.�

Polyester, which celebrated its first anniversary last month, specializes in unique art and photography books, including new, imported, out-of-print and remaindered publications. The store, which Eiseman named Polyester simply because the word “sounds fun,� also carries a small selection of hard-to-find DVDs, some offbeat comics and photography prints.

The Todd Browning Gallery at the back of the store showcases vintage and contemporary photographs by artists from around the world. The gallery exhibitions change each month. As part of a new series highlighting local retail, Los Angeles Downtown News takes a look at what one can buy at Polyester and the Todd Browning Gallery.

The Featured Artist: Eiseman often looks to galleries in other cities, such as New York and London, to find emerging and established artists to feature in the Todd Browning space. There is a niche to fill in showing the works of nonL.A.-based artists here because many of the smaller galleries around town deal exclusively with local artists, Eiseman says. “There’s so many good artists that have never shown in L.A.,� he said. One who fits that category is photographer Andrew Binkley, whose work is currently on display (among others) at Todd Browning. Binkley, a Hawaiibased Buddhist monk, has never shown on the mainland before. His print “Just Standing� features multiple images

of a monk doing exactly that. The starkly beautiful piece, which goes for $1,000 for a 39-inch by 39-inch print and $900 for a 14-inch by 14-inch version, shows multiple frames of the same image, arranged in rows that gradually go from white to gray to black. Eiseman plans to install a new show on Aug. 10, featuring photographers who use dolls and toys.

The Fun Find: Selecting books for Polyester’s shelves is akin to a treasure hunt, Eiseman says. “On a good day you get a dozen customers,� he said, “so that gives me seven hours a day to search for interesting books.� The payoff is an eclectic collection of titles with lots of delightful surprises. For example, the out-of-print coffee table book Weird Rooms, which features interviews and portraits of individuals who have dedicated entire rooms to their various obsessions — like the bedroom covered with thousands of smiley-face items, or the “Elvis room.� The book is $34.95.

For Your Consideration: Before moving to L.A. a few years ago, Eiseman ran a large performing arts bookstore in Australia, specializing in film and television-related tomes. At Polyester, he caters to film buffs on a smaller scale with a tiny DVD collection that includes hard to find, out of print and cult movies. Selections include the 1974 Macon County Line, said to have influenced Quentin Tarantino; it sells for $9.95.

The plot revolves around two brothers, who are mistaken for murderers, out for a joyride.

Small Art: If the large-scale photographs on display at the Todd Browning Gallery are out of your price range, sift through the smaller prints stacked near the Polyester cash

Starting at $1,400

photo by Gary Leonard

Bill Eiseman’s bookstore Polyester and the adjacent Todd Browning Gallery celebrated its first anniversary last month.

register. The images, many of them downsized versions of works in the gallery, encompass a wide range of subjects.

Circus buffs can pick up a $70 archival pigment print picturing three members of the famous Flying Wallendas circus troupe traveling a tightrope circa 1953, while those in the market for something a bit darker might enjoy the 1910 mug shots, priced at $50 each.

Polyester is at 211 W. Fifth St., (213) 623-1176 or polyesterbooks.com.

Contact Anna Scott at anna@downtownnews.com.

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6 Downtown News

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DowntownNews.com

One Thousand Creatures on the Plaza Photos by Gary Leonard

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August 3, 2009

Downtown News 7

DowntownNews.com

Cars Continued from page 1 is weathering the storm, said Darryl Holter, CEO of the Shammas Group. The company, long run by the late Nick Shammas, owns about 25 acres of real estate along the Figueroa Corridor, including seven dealerships, as well as the Petroleum Building at Olympic Boulevard and Flower street.

Sales at Shammas’ Downtown businesses that sell foreign cars — Audi, Porsche, Volkswagen and Nissan — are down about 30% compared to 2007, Holter admits. The domestic brands in their portfolio are faring worse: Sales at the Chevrolet and Cadillac shops have fallen approximately 50% from two years ago.

The brutal financial landscape facing the automotive industry also comes as a roadblock to Holter’s long-term version of creating a thriving Downtown auto center along Figueroa Street. But Holter sees the roadblock as temporary.

“It’s not over,” he said of the area’s expansion into a dense auto sales district.

Expansion on Hold In 2005, Holter, who also founded and

owns the land on which developer Urban Partners is now building the $168 million University Gateway project, which will create about 1,600 beds for USC students.

“I concluded that the most important aspect down [near Jefferson] was USC and there was no parcel of land that was more strategic to them than that parcel,” Holter said.

Shammas built three identical two-story buildings on the southeast corner of Figueroa Street and Washington Boulevard to house Volkswagen, Audi and Porsche dealerships, adding to its existing Mercedes-Benz, Nissan and Felix Chevrolet and Cadillac.

Although Shammas is the largest player in the Downtown car-selling game, it is not alone. A Volvo dealership opened at 1945 S. Figueroa St. shortly after Shammas’ new buildings debuted. Also nearby are Honda of Downtown L.A. (1540 S. Figueroa St.) and Toyota Central (1600 S. Figueroa St.).

Representatives of other dealerships did not respond to calls for comment.

But the project that could have solidified the expansion of a Downtown auto center is now the corridor’s black eye. The shell of a two-story Chrysler dealership sits unfinished and vacant at Figueroa and 21st streets.

The company, which is now navigating bankruptcy and recently mandated that 789

‘Chrysler was building the dealership, but because of the commercial market and the economic condition of the company last year, we mothballed it. That location is very important to Chrysler and we are currently negotiating to see what we can do there, but it’s not close to a final stage yet.’

—Kathy Graham, Chrysler

now chairs the Figueroa Corridor Partnership Business Improvement District, announced an ambitious, $16.5 million plan to build three new dealerships around the corner of Figueroa Street and Washington Boulevard in hopes of transforming the area into a Downtown auto row.

“I tried to envision this as a sort of new urbanist version of the suburban auto mall,” said Holter, referring to the area bounded roughly by Figueroa Street, the Santa Monica (10) and the Harbor (110) freeways.

The now-completed plan was also catalyzed in part by Holter’s decision to move three Shammas-owned dealerships formerly situated at Figueroa Street and Jefferson Boulevard to make way for more student housing near USC, he said. Shammas still

dealerships close (only four were shuttered in L.A. County), put the project on hold after a dealer slated to run the site backed out, said Chrysler spokeswoman Kathy Graham.

“Chrysler was building the dealership, but because of the commercial market and the economic condition of the company last year, we mothballed it,” Graham said. “That location is very important to Chrysler and we are currently negotiating to see what we can do there, but it’s not close to a final stage yet.”

The company has a few options for the property, including finding a new entity to buy and run the dealership, subsidizing a new dealer or running a so-called “factory store,” in which Chrysler would retain ownership and handle operations — an option the company generally avoids, Graham said.

photo by Gary Leonard

The economy took its toll on a planned Chrysler dealership at Figueroa and 21st streets. The nearly completed project has been halted, and plans have not been determined for the unfinished building.

However, it could sit empty for a while.

The slowdown in car sales means it will likely be difficult to find any dealer to occupy the space, and the design would make it hard to adapt for another business.

Location, Location, Location Though times remain uncertain for dealerships everywhere, Holter is confident that Shammas’ businesses are safe. They have the advantage of being located at one of the region’s most traveled freeway interchanges, in an area that continues to see new residents.

“We’ve been here for a long time: 75% of our customers or more are repeat customers or referrals,” Holter said.

As in most industries, the current downturn can also create opportunity for businesses that live to see the upturn. As dealerships close, consumers have fewer places to buy a car, and those that stay open suddenly have a deeper customer pool, said Jack Kyser, chief economist for the Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation.

“I think it’s a big opportunity for them because it looks like auto sales have bottomed

out,” Kyser said.

Though Holter is at the top of a mini-dealership empire, which is owned by his mother in-law, Jeanette Shammas, he knows a thing or two about struggle. Holter is also a former professor at UCLA and a published historian who has written predominantly about labor movements in Wisconsin and France (he took over at Shammas because, when father-in-law and company founder Nick Shammas passed away in 2003, “Somebody had to run the business,” he said). He’s also a singer/songwriter, whose musical resume includes playing a few picket lines with folk icon Pete Seeger.

But those interests are secondary at this time. Right now, Holter is focused on the business, and despite the dark times, he sees opportunity down the road.

“I think I’m optimistic in some sense because we have good brands and more people are moving into the Downtown community,” Holter said. “I’m not pessimistic looking into the future, but it’s not easy.”

Contact Ryan Vaillancourt at ryan@downtownnews.com.

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DowntownNews.com

August 3, 2009

HEALTH Get Out And Shape Up Looking at the Best Downtown Outdoor Workouts

by RichaRd Guzmán city editoR

F

or those that don’t want to be cooped up in a gym and hate the thought of using equipment drenched in someone else’s sweat, Downtown can be a perfect workout option, filled with natural equipment that can help you get in shape.

“If you work out outside, there’s the scenery, it doesn’t get boring, you don’t have to wait in line for a machine or deal with the smell of the equipment or the gym,” said Danisha Hairston, a trainer with Extreme Boot Camp Downtown L.A., which puts clients through a grueling outdoor regimen at various locales in the Central City.

Paul Shaw, the Downtown instructor for Morning Crunch Boot Camp, agrees.

“There’s sunshine and fresh air,” he said. “Downtown is a wonderland of things to do. There’s hills, benches, stairs — endless numbers of stairs.”

Shaw trains people outdoors in Downtown three days a week and said it is easy to incorporate the landscape into your workout. However, he advises people to get started early before the office crowd and traffic start coming in.

“You’ll have that rush of chemicals that’ll make you feel fantastic throughout the day,” he said.

The trainers offered some of their favorite spots to work out and what to do there.

Angels Flight Stairs: Most people complain about the closure of Angels Flight, but it’s good news for those who want to sweat. In fact, even if the funicular that connects Bunker Hill and the Historic Core were operating, the exercise gurus would still probably guide people to the 150 steps next to the tracks. “You can run up and down the stairs and switch it up a bit to work different muscles,” Hairston said. She suggests skipping a stair as you run (or walk). If you want a more intense workout, try to do a squat every other stair.

Walls: If there’s one thing Downtown has in addition to stairways, it’s walls. They’re everywhere, so use them, advises Hairston. “For those that haven’t done pushups in a while or can’t do the conventional pushups, this is a great exercise,” she said. “Just lean into a wall and push up on it to get started.

If you haven’t excercised in a while this is a good and easy way to start getting motivated.”

Vista Hermosa Natural Park: One of Hairston’s favorite

FAMILY MEDICAL PRACTICE

photo by Danisha Hairston

Members of Extreme Boot Camp Downtown L.A. avoid the gyms with workouts at Vista Hermosa Natural Park and other outdoor locations in Downtown.

spots is the 10-acre park that opened last year in City West.

The hills provide a perfect place to run up and down. There are also ways to work out with a partner that can be fun and produce great results. For example, Hairston suggests trying to run up the hill with a tube or similar device around your waist, while your partner tries to hold you back by grabbing the tube. A good ol’ game of tug of war, with two people or more, can be a solid workout too, she said. “It’s a phenomenal workout. You use every single muscle in your body and every person is working. You’re using arms, abs, and you contract to get a really good pull.”

Los Angeles State Historic Park: The track around the park at the site formerly known as the Cornfield is a mile long and perfect for a scenic jog. “It’s also pretty flat so you can do bear crawls and crab crawls,” Hairston said. If you want to push it up another notch, she says, take a spin around the track, then continue to the Chinatown Metro Station and run up and down the stairs. “It breaks it up,” Hairston said. “You get a good stair workout and it’s about a two-mile long run.”

VITAL SIGNS Pathology Professor Receives Prestigious Award

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r. Alan L. Epstein, a Keck School of Medicine professor in the Department of Pathology, recently received an award of $3.5 million for a drug development project through the National Cancer Institute’s (NCI) Rapid Access to Intervention Development (RAID) program.

Epstein’s breakthrough discovery is aimed at helping patients with metastatic melanoma and renal cell carcinoma, diseases that affect more than 50,000 people in

Pershing Square: The benches and steps at Pershing Square were not designed with exercise in mind, but they can still be used for working out, Shaw said. “You can do pushups, squats, lunges and jump training,” he said. He recommends that beginners try pushups on the benches, even if you need to be on your knees while you use the bench. It’s an important start that can inspire you to do more, he said.

Stair Sprint: The stairs at the U.S. Bank Tower near the Central Library, which go from the Financial District to Bunker Hill, are another place to get the heart rate up. But be prepared to really run. “Those are great for doing sprints up the hill,” Shaw said, noting that they are shorter than the Angels Flight stairs but still rise quite a distance. Shaw also advises using exercise bands that can be wrapped around any fence, pole or bench for a resistance-based workout.

Morning Crunch is at (888) 542-5478 or morningcrunch. com. Extreme Boot Camp Downtown L.A. is at (213) 610-3233 or extremebootcamp.com Contact Richard Guzman at richard@downtownnews.com.

America every year. The reagent he developed along with co-worker Peisheng Hu is an analog of Interleukin-2 (IL2), which is an important therapeutic for cancer patients.

Current therapy with IL-2, however, is limited due to its severe toxicity and side effects. Epstein’s development was selected by NCI due to its potential to eliminate the toxicity of the drug.

“NCI picked this molecule because it is curative in many people,” he said. “If we can reduce its toxicity, we can help more patients. Only 14-15 molecules are in the RAID program, so receiving this award is quite prestigious.”

Epstein will serve as an advisor to the NCI team that will do development work, toxicology studies, and other Continued on next page

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August 3, 2009

Downtown News 9

Health

Study Uncovers How Flu Eludes Body’s Defenses Report Examines Ways That Viruses Get Around Immune System

by Meghan Lewit

U

SC researchers have identified a critical molecular mechanism that allows the influenza virus to evade the body’s immune response system.

The study was published in a recent issue of the journal Cell Host & Microbe.

“We have found a mechanism that the influenza virus uses to inhibit the body’s immune response that emphasizes the vital role of a specific protein in defending against viruses,” said Jae Jung, professor and chair of the Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology at the Keck School of Medicine and the principal investigator of the study. “Along with our previous studies (Nature 2007 and PNAS 2008), this finding could provide researchers with the information needed to create a new drug to enhance immunity and block influenza virus infection and replication.”

Several specific intracellular receptors are responsible for detecting the virus and activating the body’s defensive mechanisms. When a virus’ RNA enters the intracellular fluid, a receptor known as retinoic-acid-inducible gene I (RIG-I) de-

‘This finding could provide researchers with the information needed to create a new drug to enhance immunity and block influenza virus infection and replication.’

pandemic influenza virus, which killed over 40 million people worldwide, muted the RIG-I response and interferon activity much more efficiently than contemporary flu viruses, Jung noted.

“Despite the conceptual linking of RIG-I with flu virus NS1, however, the precise mechanism has been unclear for a long period of time,” he said.

By studying the immune responses of animal models, researchers found that the influenza A virus NS1 attacks TRIM25, inhibiting its ability to help RIG-I trigger the alarm system against the virus. Remarkably, a flu virus carrying an NS1 mutant defective for this activity loses its virulence in

animal models, Jung said.

“We now know that the influenza virus escapes recognition via the interaction of NS1 with TRIM25, which inhibits the body’s immune response,” he said. “Understanding this hostvirus interaction is an essential step in developing safe and effective drugs to target the influenza virus.”

The work was performed in collaboration with Adolfo Garcia-Sastre, at Mt. Sinai Medical School and the final doctorate experiments of Michaela Gack, who is the paper’s first author and currently a faculty member at Harvard Medical School.

Article courtesy of USC HSC Weekly.

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tects it and triggers a response that limits virus replication and calls the body’s defenses into action. RIG-I acts as the sensor and security force against attacks, Jung explained. Then, a protein known as TRIM25 helps RIG-I transmit an alarm signal, which ultimately floods the cell and surrounding tissue with antiviral interferons.

The influenza virus is highly infectious and poses a serious health risk because of its ability to mutate into new strains and spread quickly during seasonal epidemics, as seen in the recent outbreak of the H1N1 swine flu virus, Jung said.

Researchers have long been working to understand how respiratory influenza is able to slip past the body’s innate immune responses. They have found that the influenza A virus has evolved by incorporating Non-structural protein 1 (NS1) into its genome to escape the RIG-I alarm system.

This process is one reason why the virus kills an average of 36,000 people every year. In fact, the 1918 “Spanish flu”

Continued from previous page tasks needed to bring the discovery from bench to bedside. The therapy is expected to be ready for patients in two years.

Epstein worked with the USC Stevens Institute for Innovation, which managed the intellectual property portfolio for the discovery and facilitated a licensing agreement with Pivotal BioSciences, a Los Angeles-based, investor-backed biotechnology start-up company working to develop innovative low toxicity therapies for cancer. Epstein is on the company’s management team.

—USC HSC Weekly

Environmental Health Center Offers Study Grants

T

he Southern California Environmental Health Sciences Center is seeking applications for their 2010 Environmental Health Research Pilot Project Grants, one-year awards of up to $35,000.

The SCEHSC funds pilot projects to support investigators with the opportunity of collecting preliminary data to establish the feasibility of a research project and/or to validate the utility of specific procedures or techniques. For more information or to apply, contact Sutton at (323) 442-2750 or csutton@usc.edu.

—USC HSC Weekly

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August 3, 2009

DowntownNews.com

RESTAURANTS Yxta Marks the Spot

Mexican Restaurant Finds Success in a Space Where Others Have Failed

by Kathryn Maese contributing editor

T

photo by Gary Leonard

Yxta Cocina delivers quality Mexican fare with a contemporary spin. It is in a space in a strip mall east of the Financial District that most recently held the Sixth Street Bar & Grill.

elevated with the addition of sweet pineapple chunks. Even the chips are addictive, and are served with two types of salsa — pico de gallo with red onion, zingy cilantro and ripe tomatoes, and a smoky salsa roja that packs heat.

Each time I’ve dined here, the service has been impeccable. On my first visit, our knowledgeable waiter Fernando walked us through the menu. Upon his suggestion, I ordered the generous mole enchiladas filled with shredded chicken and potato, drizzled with crema fresca and served with black beans and Mexican rice. The mole is a specialty here, and it didn’t disappoint with a rich complexity that wasn’t overly sweet.

My dining companion had the Salmon Creek pork chop smothered in chili verde — the humongous cut was large enough for two to share. While the pork was fairly juicy, the accompanying green chili would have been too hot for about 80% of the population to handle. I appreciate that the

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Garnished with queso fresco, the tender frijoles de la olla were served in a bowl — use the fresh corn tortillas to sop up the tasty juice. The rice, meanwhile, was flavorful with a just a hint of garlic.

On another occasion I returned with a group to sample the chile relleno. It’s a huge pepper stuffed with seasonal ingredients, in this case a medley of vegetables and cheese. It could have used more punch, though I loved the tender cactus that came on the side; I’d order this dish by itself.

One of the specials of the day, a salmon in creamy pineapple sauce, was perhaps more creative than effective. The first bite was intensely rich and lush, but soon the meal and the sauce became overwhelming.

One of the house specials is calabasitas. Chock full of Mexican zucchini, chunks of tomato, grilled corn and crema fresca, it took me back to my childhood, when my grand-

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here was a time in the not so distant past that you had to venture outside of Downtown to find quality sitdown Mexican food. Sure, you could get your fill of quick tacos, tortas and burritos at Grand Central Market and other hole-in-the-wall places, but you’d be hard pressed to find a venue that you’d recommend to your friends.

In the past year, however, there has been a mini boom of higher end Latin and Mexican restaurants. Rivera, Casa, Provecho and Boca, the restaurant in the Conga Room, have all come online, offering things like handmade tortillas, innovative sauces and boutique tequila. It’s a brave new world for Latin cuisine, and Downtown is reaping the spicy rewards.

Another new arrival, and one off the beaten track, is Yxta Cocina Mexicana. The stylish, mid-range eatery opened earlier this year in a nondescript Industrial District strip mall on Sixth Street.

Coming in on the tail end of a recent happy hour, I sidled up to the communal table near the bar and ordered a round of the $5 house margaritas on the rocks and a plate of stuffed squash blossoms. As soon as the deliciously salty rim gave way to the house-made sour mix and zavano blanco, I knew this was my kind of cocktail — refreshing, not too sweet and bien fuerte. Paired with the antojito of delicately fried squash flowers bursting with gooey Oaxacan cheese, I forgot all about the sickly sweet margaritas and mediocre bar food served by so many others places that shall remain nameless.

Needless to say, another round was forthcoming.

Yxta (pronounced eex-ta) occupies the curved brick building vacated by the short-lived Sixth Street Bar & Grill, which showed promise but ultimately succumbed to inconsistent service and food. It would be easy to blame the gritty location alone on that restaurant’s unfortunate demise (other restaurants have also failed in the spot), but packed lunches in the early days proved there is certainly pent-up demand for a good neighborhood eatery. Since coming onto the scene, Yxta seems to be filling the niche admirably.

Owner Jesse Gomez bucked tradition and kept the industrial aesthetic of the brick-walled, high-ceilinged space, designing a sleek yet comfortable interior with dark wood, a mosaic-tiled bar, leather chairs and lots of light. It’s a departure from his El Arco Iris in Highland Park, a veritable institution founded by his grandparents who have cooked up authentic Mexican fare for more than 40 years.

Though it stays true to its roots with traditional ingredients and dishes, Yxta puts a decidedly contemporary and gourmet spin on its cuisine. The freshness shines through in just about everything on the menu. The starters are simple but flavorful, including the aforementioned squash blossoms, the tostadas with sashimi grade tuna and spicy tacos al carbon that are

by L

F r e e P a r k i n g

Featuring

sashimi, yakitori, Tempura, different kinds of sushi open 7 days a week, 11 am - 10 pm 120 Japanese Village plaza (Little Tokyo)

(213) 680-0567

Validated Parking (Enter on Central Ave.) or use DASH Route A–Bus

August 3, 2009

Downtown News 11

Restaurants

mother used to make it along with a pot of beans and fresh tortillas. Think of it as the Mexican version of ratatouille — simple, homespun and hearty.

Other specialties include the salmon in mango-basil salsa with chipotle mashed potatoes, the marinated skirt steak and the carnitas served with guacamole. There are a handful of simple salads too, if you want something lighter, but this cuisine doesn’t leave you with that heavy, greasy feeling some Mexican restaurants do.

The cocktails pair well with any of the tacos, especially during happy hour, where plates can

be had for $6 and beer is $3. The drink menu is diverse and tempting with concoctions running the gamut from watermelon agua fresca with sparkling wine to a Mexican Russian with vodka, Kahlua and horchata. This is an ideal place to watch a game, relax after work or get together with friends. There were even a couple of families with kids.

Despite its predecessors’ track records, Yxta looks like it has what it takes to become a neighborhood establishment. Even if its name is hard to pronounce.

Yxta Cocina Mexicana is at 601 S. Central Ave., (213) 622-5540 or yxta.net.

Side Dish Library Bar

games on TVs. The food is all Chinese,

Most people don’t go to bars for a good

with generous portions. Forget about hav-

meal, but Library Bar isn’t like most bars.

ing chips and dip as the game starts, and

It’s decked out in bookshelves and com-

instead try Green Bamboo’s Crispy Crab

fortable couches that make it look more

Wontons ($4.95) or Green Bamboo Spicy

like an Ivy League study than a bar. And

Wings ($5.95). The Kung Pao Chicken

the food further sets it apart from just any

($7.95) or chow mein ($6.95) just could

old watering hole. The bar recently intro-

replace pizza as a favorite sports meal. At

duced a new menu served from 5-11 p.m.

136 S. Central Ave., (213) 625-2228.

on weekdays. The menu has classic bar

Eastside Market And Deli

fare such as steak fries ($6) and surprises like the pork belly skewers ($6) and deviled marrow bones ($9), which are roasted

Most city workers, cops and firemen know

until the marrow bubbles and then slath-

Grub With Guzmán

♦♦♦

A Wakasaya on the Wild Side Plenty of Choices, and Also a Big Challenge, At This Japanese Joint

by RichaRd Guzmán

city EditoR f you’re the type of person who takes forever to figure out what to order from the menu, stop reading this, because Wakasaya in Little Tokyo is not for you.

With hundreds of choices, this restaurant will overwhelm you. It will frustrate you with possibilities and haunt you with thoughts of what could have been.

If, however, you are assured in your tastes, know what you want and can live without regrets, then read on.

Located in the Japanese Village Plaza outdoor mall, Wakasaya has an unexpectedly simple concept in light of the number of dishes they offer. The restaurant serves donburi, which is rice bowls with your choice of pretty much anything you can think of on top. The specialty is sashimi and seafood.

The menu lists about 200 or so combinations, like sea urchin with tuna and sweet shrimp ($13.10), salmon roe (fish eggs), tuna and yellowtail ($12), and tuna, salmon and squid ($8.80). It can take most of your lunch hour to look through the entire menu, so do what the waiters suggest and just pick any combination of seafood on the menu, and they’ll prepare it for you.

Whatever combination you choose, make sure to include the salmon roe, since the salty sweetness of the fish eggs adds a perfect accent to any other item on the menu.

If creating a custom dish is too much responsibility, do what I did and go with the All Star Don ($18). It’s one of the priciest dishes, but it combines some of

I

Wakasaya’s best items. My bowl included eel, salmon, salmon roe, shrimp, crab, yellowtail, squid and something I didn’t recognize but I’m sure came from the ocean.

It’s a lot of food, and the quality is generally high.

The salmon was rich and full of flavor while the shrimp was fresh. The crab legs, although not my favorite, were appetizing nonetheless, as was the rest of the seafood, including the thing I didn’t recognize.

The miso soup is not the bland or watered down concoction you find in many restaurants. The wasabi sauce is also worth noting at Wakasaya. They warn you that it’s extremely hot, and they’re not kidding.

I used my usual amount while dipping the sashimi and my ears popped from the fire gushing through my head.

One other thing sets Wakasaya apart: It’s the Bikkuri Don, which is not just a meal, but a challenge.

This massive bowl includes every seafood item on the menu served over a king size bed of rice. It costs $44 and is equal to about six or seven regular bowls of food. But if you can finish it by yourself, rice and all, within 15 minutes, it’s free.

But before you run out to eat all of the ocean life you can, be warned that, as of this writing, no one has succeeded in the challenge. Seven people have tried, and seven people have failed, and their pictures are up on the wall so that all can witness their unsuccessful attempts.

At 104 Japanese Village Plaza Mall, (213) 621-2121.

Contact Richard Guzmán at richard@downtownnews.com.

this tucked away deli just west of the 110

ered on the side of toasted bread. But the

Freeway. From pastrami and ham sand-

standouts are the Library Burger ($10) and

wiches to freshly made minestrone soup,

the pork belly sandwich ($10). The burger

Eastside has been a favorite stop for more

is juicy and served with grilled onions and

than 70 decades. Operated by the Angiuli

house-made pickles. The pork belly sand-

family, the deli’s Tuesday and Thursday

wich, with grilled sourdough, arugula and

special is legendary, both for its taste and

tomatoes, is smoky and jumps with flavor.

size. For $7.95 customers can choose

At 630 W. Sixth St., (213) 614-0053.

from either a brick-sized serving of lasa-

Green Bamboo

gna or the pasta with sausage or meatball.

If you have the craving for sports and

($7.80), a hot sandwich stuffed with a hefty

Chinese food at the same time, Green

amount of sausage, meatballs, roast beef

Locals Night

For meat lovers, there’s the DA Special

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12 Downtown News

Palmer Continued from page 1 Court decides not to take on the case, then the Court of Appeal decision becomes final.

That has some low-income housing advocates concerned.

“We’re hoping that the city will appeal it, since this has such a huge impact on mixed-income housing,” said Lisa Payne, policy director for the Southern California Association of Nonprofit Housing. “One hundred and seventy cities and counties in the state have these policies, so this is a really important tool to preserve.”

On the Radar The state law at the heart of Palmer’s legal argument is known as the Costa-Hawkins Act. It gives landlords the right to determine rents for new or vacated units in their properties.

The Central City West Specific Plan says developers of large projects in the community must replace any low-income units that were demolished on the development site after 1988. If no units were razed, developers must price 15% of the residences for lowincome workers or pay an “in lieu” fee for the city to build the housing elsewhere.

The Court of Appeal decision deemed the policy tantamount to rent control, violating Costa-Hawkins.

Costa-Hawkins has long been viewed as a potential challenge to inclusionary housing policies, affordable housing advocates say.

“It’s been on the radar screen,” said Michael Rawson, co-director of the nonprofit Public Interest Law Project. “Developers bring it up all the time, and municipal governments push back all the time. It’s been part of the debate.”

The conflict is not new to Los Angeles.

Palmer challenged the City West affordable

DowntownNews.com housing requirement using Costa-Hawkins several years ago, in a case involving his 297unit Visconti project in City West. That case was settled out of court in 2003, and Palmer did not have to build the low-income units.

Palmer’s attorney who negotiated that case, Ben Reznik of Jeffer Mangels Butler & Marmaro LLP, said that the settlement came after a Superior Court judge warned that she would rule in Palmer’s favor.

“The judge indicated that she was going to rule against the city and highly recommended that the city reach a settlement, and they did,” he said.

A City Hall source with knowledge of the Visconti case, who did not want to be named because of the ongoing legal issues, confirmed Reznik’s account and said the judge wanted to avoid undermining affordable housing creation with a decision.

Trutanich’s office, citing attorney-client confidentiality, declined to comment on why the city pursued the Piero case as far as the Court of Appeal despite the potential precedent-setting impact.

However, some affordable housing advocates say that a legal precedent on the issue was inevitable.

“There was going to be a case like this at some point,” said Rawson. “The issue had to be addressed. Would the city have been better served by settling? That’s a question that you can only answer truthfully before the case is resolved; if they win, then the answer is no.”

Local Impact The Palmer case could have a deep local impact, starting with the area around where Palmer builds.

One official with a prominent City West developer, who asked not to be named because it could impact his business dealings, called the Palmer case “groundbreaking,” and said company officials hope to see the area’s affordable housing requirement replaced

August 3, 2009

with an incentive-based program.

Developer Mark Farzan, who owns property on Witmer and Seventh streets that is entitled for a high-rise, said he plans to review the Palmer decision and “see how it would apply to us.”

On a wider scale, Villaraigosa has for nearly a year pushed for a citywide affordable hous-

‘There was going to be a case like this at some point. The issue had to be addressed.

Would the city have been better served by settling? That’s a question that you can only answer truthfully before the case is resolved; if they win, then the answer is no.’

—Michael Rawson, Public Interest Law Project

ing requirement similar to the system in place in City West. The measure, known as the Mixed Income Ordinance, is being drafted by the Planning Department.

How the Palmer case will affect the proposal remains to be seen.

Attorney Barbara Kautz of the Oaklandbased firm Goldfarb & Lipman, who is consulting with the city on the ordinance, said during a May hearing at City Hall that Palmer’s lawsuit, if successful, would prevent the city from applying the measure to rental housing. Last week, however, she backed off that statement.

“We’re still discussing with the city what its options are,” she said.

Kautz noted that a similar lawsuit against

photo by Gary Leonard

A ruling in favor of developer Geoff Palmer could be used to challenge affordable housing mandates in rental projects across California.

Santa Monica was dropped in 1998 when the city amended its affordable housing requirement. One key change, she said, was that the city created a special affordable housing “impact fee” for rental projects. Those fees, Kautz and other attorneys say, are technically different from the “in lieu” fees invalidated by the Court of Appeal decision in the Palmer case, and could be an option for Los Angeles or other municipalities.

Barry Rosenbaum, senior land use attorney for the city of Santa Monica, said that in order to charge an impact fee, city officials had to complete a study proving a relationship between market-rate housing development and the loss of affordable units.

Rohrer agreed that Los Angeles officials could still potentially charge a fee similar to Santa Monica’s without going against the Court of Appeal decision.

“If the city decided to do an ordinance with a fee… they would have to prove a reasonable relationship between the fee and the development,” said Rohrer. “We don’t know if that would work, because the court doesn’t reach that decision. But they’ll really have to do their homework to establish a nexus.”

However the Palmer decision plays out, the effects will likely span beyond city limits.

“There seems to be a lot of concerns statewide about the decision,” said Kautz.

“It affects a lot of communities besides Los Angeles. We’re all still struggling with exactly what options remain.”

Contact Anna Scott at anna@downtownnews.com.

ON THE MOVE Architecture n HNTB Architecture has announced three additions to its Los Angeles office.

They are Robert Steel, a new senior project manager who has more than 25 years of architectural experience; Myron Hoefer, a senior project manager with nearly 30 years of experience; and Peggy Hoefer, a senior project manager with more than 25 years of experience.

Business n Anissa Voyiatzes has been named the new public works/transportation team leader for the engineering and consulting firm Psomas. She has more than 15 years of experience in civil engineering design. n Tim Popoli has been promoted to vice president of CGI Technologies and Solutions. He is responsible for operations for CGI’s Southwest Public Sector organization. He has more than 20 years of IT consulting experience.

LAw n The firm Jenner & Block has opened a Downtown office in U.S. Bank Tower. It is headed by Rick Richmond and Brent Caslin. Richmond will serve as managing partner of the office.

heALth n Los Angeles Orthopaedic Hospital has named Ned Fox, Jr. chairman of the Hospital Foundation Board of Trustees. He will be responsible for providing guidance in the area of fundraising outreach and oversight of the foundation portfolio. n The USC Keck School of Medicine has appointed Dr. Vaughn Starnes chairman of the Department of Surgery.

Arts n Dale Miller and Timothy Regler have been appointed to two-year terms on the Center Theatre Group board of directors. Miller is a partner in the law firm Theodora Oringher Miller & Richman PC. Regler is the producer of the TV show “Judge Judy.” reAL estAte n Grubb & Ellis announced that Andrew Harper has joined its Downtown office as vice president of the Institutional Capital Markets Group. He previously was with Cushman & Wakefield, where he served as a director of the company’s Capital Markets Group for nine years.

August 3, 2009

DowntownNews.com

Downtown News 13

Dressing With the Stars

FIDM Television Costume Exhibition Uses Everything From Presidents to Dancing Celebrities

by AnnA Scott

Outstanding Art of Television Costume Design exhibition at the Fashion Institute of Design kinny jeans, a weathered waistcoat and and Merchandising. fishnet stockings might not sound like The exhibit, which opened last week and is typical museum attractions. But all on display through Sept. 6, showcases more three, along with hundreds of other pieces than 100 costumes from more than a dozen of clothing, are part of the fourth annual The TV shows. The outfits range from the trendy looks worn by the privileged Manhattan teenagers portrayed on “Gossip Girl,” to period costumes from the HBO miniseries “John Adams,” to flashy outfits worn by celebrities who have competed on “Dancing With the Stars.”

Exhibit curator Mary Rose, president of the Costume Designers Guild, said she aims for a mix of the fan fantastical and the realistic in choosing works to display.

During a recent walkthrough of the exhibition, Rose said an example of the former is, surprisingly, the elaborate period cos costumes from the Showtime series “The Tudors.” The seven outfits from the show in include pleated, heavily beaded dresses and jackets and a bright red robe. Although many view viewers may not realize it, they are not exactly what people wore in 16th century England.

“She knows perfectly well that’s not historically correct,” Rose said of “The Tudors” costume de designer Joan Bergin. “She’s trying to make it fun for young people.”

On the other hand, “John Adams” costume designer Donna Zakowska “is one of the design designers who’s so faithful to history,” said Rose.

Zakowska has six outfits in the exhibit, depicting the second president and first lady Abigail Adams in three stages of their lives: pre-presidency, they are dressed in simple, earth-colored farm clothes; during Adams’ time in office he wears a waistcoat, breeches and tri-cornered hat while she sports a heavy, embroidered dress; and post-presidency, they Outfits for the television competition “Dancing With the wear matching dark blue traveling Stars” (above and above right) are created in just four days. clothes, another waistcoat and StAff writer

Photo by John Sciulli © Berliner Studio/BEImages

photo courtesy of Berliner Studio/BEImages

S

Costume designer Jo Katsaras is up for an Emmy for her work on HBO’s “The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency.”

short pants for him and a taffeta dress for her.

Rose said she also seeks out television programs that capture the attention of the modern viewing public. She included “Dancing With the Stars,” she said, because it is a “people pleaser.” The costumes displayed from the show include a sequined black bra and short-shorts, worn by recent competitor Melissa Rycroft, with fishnet tights and a long, fitted black cloak with pleather and chrome hardware accents.

“They make so many costumes every week,” Rose said of the “Dancing With the Stars” designers. “The public seems to be very fond of it, and they do what they do well.”

Fast Turnaround, Bright Prints While the clothes of “Dancing With the Stars” might not appear at first as elaborate as the costumes from “John Adams,” they are just as challenging to create, say those who work behind the scenes.

Designers for the reality show have just 15 to 20 minutes to conceptualize looks for each competing couple each week, said “Dancing With the Stars” costume designer Randall S. Christensen. Then the design team has three days to shop, sew and fit the outfits. The time crunch can turn even simple costumes into an exercise in creativity.

“We only had one day to shop and couldn’t find any polka-dot fabric,” Christensen said on a recent afternoon, describing how he put together a black V-neck dress with white polka dots and pink trim, and a matching man’s jacket, worn by Edyta Sliwinska and Shawn Johnson. “We had to buy fabric to make our own polka dots.”

Meanwhile, Jo Katsaras, costume designer for the HBO series “The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency,” has a different kind of challenge in reflecting the eclectic real-life fashions of Botswana, where the show is filmed.

“South Africans especially have a unique way of putting things together,” said Katsaras.

“Like putting the polka-dot with the florals, and somehow it all looks really great.”

One eye-catching outfit by Katsaras on display at FIDM includes a bright floral dress under a form-fitting, carefully torn denim jacket, cinched with a piece of fabric that matches the dress’ print.

Rose said that Katsaras’ designs are her favorite this year.

“It’s a contemporary show, but when you look at the designs it’s like watching the old days,” said Rose. “It’s kind of a nostalgic, sweet life that we don’t see any more.”

The Outstanding Art of Television Costume Design also includes a special display of women’s wear created by FIDM graduate Leanne Marshall. Marshall, whose feminine, green

photo courtesy of Berliner Studio/BEImages

CALENDAR

and blue-hued dresses are set up runwaystyle, was the most recent winner of the reality show “Project Runway.”

The upcoming season of “Project Runway,” which begins airing on the Lifetime network Aug. 20, was filmed largely at FIDM. FIDM Museum and Galleries Acting Director Barbara Bundy said she hopes that the television costume exhibition will inspire current FIDM students.

“We look at our museum as an educational arm of the college. This is a wonderful way for people to understand costume history,” said Bundy. “And this year’s exhibit is particularly exciting in that there’s huge variety in the costumes.”

The Outstanding Art of Television Costume Design continues through Sept. 6, WednesdaysSundays, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Admission is free.

FIDM Museum and Galleries, 919 S. Grand Ave., (213) 624-1200 or fidm.edu.

Contact Anna Scott at anna@downtownnews.com.

JANM Explores the Evolution Of Traditional ‘Kokeshi’ Dolls

by Richard Guzmán city editor

ith a basic design consisting of a round head and armless body, it’s easy to see the origins of the kokeshi doll as a simple toy made by farmers in

rural Japan.

But over the years, the kokeshi doll has become much more than a child’s plaything. It is now one of the most recognizable cultural and artistic representations of the Asian nation. The art form is being celebrated, with a modern twist, in a show that opened this month at the Japanese American National Museum.

Kokeshi: From Folk Art to Art Toy, co-organized by the Los Angeles Toy, Doll and Amusements Museum, runs at the Little Tokyo museum through Oct. 4 and features more than 300 dolls displayed in three categories: traditional, contemporary American and custom.

The traditional dolls include about 200 pieces made of wood with a slim trunk and a large, round head decorated with Japanese faces. The contemporary American collection features the work of 11 artists who have been inspired by the dolls to create pieces that include paintings, blown glass, neon and even crochet forms.

For the custom collection, artists were given the freedom to design anything they wanted using the shape of the doll.

Works in that portion of the exhibit include dolls with monster and superhero faces instead of the more familiar Japanese images.

“The reason why we’re doing something like this is that we believe that culture is transferable, it can be shared,” said Chris Komai, a spokesman for the museum. “So we start out with something that is totally traditional and then move into a whole different area that anyone can contribute to. It doesn’t matter if they know anything about Japanese traditions, but they can all contribute to the growth of that particular cultural icon.”

New Materials The kokeshi doll originated in a region of Japan called Tohoku, as toys made by farmers and woodworkers for their children, said Maria Kwong, the show’s curator.

Early kokeshi makers decorated the dolls with simple lines of paint while the bodies were done in more elaborate floral patterns. The dolls were toys first, then began to appear in Japanese folklore as people believed they could warn of dangers.

In creating the show, Kwong said she noticed that many contemporary artists were using the dolls as an image that represented Japanese culture and as a person in the most basic form, with just a Traditional wooden kokeshi dolls, as well as a custom kokeshi, are among the 300 pieces on display in a show at the Japanese American National Museum. head and a body.

She said that while there are fewer and fewer traditional kokeshi artists in Japan, the the totem pole.” folk art can survive through modern pieces.

Svenson, a sculptor, works primarily in neon and glass. He “I see it as an interesting transition to at least keep the utilized his experience with the materials in his kokeshi creknowledge of this folk art alive through other means and ations. The two neon pieces are horizontal lines of tubing that through other generations,” she said. change color and outline an image of a doll.

The contemporary collection highlights the moderniza- “I’ve been passionate about neon for 20 years or so and I tion of the art form with pieces that would likely be unrec- just wanted to incorporate it into a folk tradition,” he said. ognizable to the original farmers who carved the dolls out The custom collection, meanwhile, will be familiar in of wood. form, since the head and body of the kokeshi are used, and “I was just fascinated with the variety of work,” Kwong not much else. Komai observed that the contemporary twists said. “We have a neon artist, we have a ceramic artist, we have such as monsters and women’s faces help make it easy to painters. One woman crocheted kokeshi that are four feet share the art. high. Crocheting a wooden doll is kind of the antithesis of its “That’s America,” he said. “When something comes from original structure and purpose.”

Europe or Asia and it turns into something else here, that’s Artist David Svenson and his wife, Kazumi Kobayashi what we as Americans can share.”

Svenson, teamed up to create a contemporary interpretation of Kokeshi: From Folk Art to Art Toy runs through Oct. 4 kokeshi. They are frequent visitors to Japan and collect the dolls. at the Japanese American National Museum, 369 E. First St., “I like that they are a folk art that honors someone,” said (213) 625-0414 or janm.org.

David Svenson. “I see them as sort of a Japanese version of Contact Richard Guzmán at richard@downtownnews.com.

downtown film festival Los AngeLes present

OutdOOr screening On the plaza

paul newman retrOspective Butch cassidy and the sundance kid & hud august 13, 8pm

photo courtesy of Japanese American National Museum

A Toy Story

W

August 3, 2009

DowntownNews.com

photo courtesy of David Svenson

14 Downtown News

On the plaza & 7+Fig art space

sustainaBle l.a. ‘green’ prOduct expO, guest speakers, shOrt Films & a Farmer’s market august 20, 10am–7pm

7+Fig art space

shOrts & sweets shOrt Films FOr cOmmuters

august 17–21 11:30am–1:30pm & 4:30pm–6pm

7+Fig

at ernst & yOung plaza

735 sOuth FiguerOa street www.artsBrookfieldproperties.com

August 3, 2009

Downtown News 15

DowntownNews.com

Wednesday, augusT 5 SCI-Arc Lecture Series 960 E. Third St., (213) 356-5328 or sciarc.edu. In the W. M. Keck Lecture Hall.

5 p.m.: Anthony Vidler, dean of the Irwin S. Chanin School of Architecture of The Cooper Union, delivers a speech on Rudolph Schindler and Richard Neutra. Then, as part of the ongoing L.A. in Wien/ Wien in L.A. Symposium, Vidler moderates a panel discussion at 6:30 p.m. with Hitoshi Abe (Hitoshi Abe Studio), Peter Cook (CRABstudio Architects), Thom Mayne (Morphosis Architects), Eric Owen Moss (Eric Owen Moss Architects), Peter Noever (Director of Museum of Applied Arts in Vienna) and Wolf Prix (Coop Himmelb(l)eau).

ALOUD at the Central Library 630 W. Fifth St., (213) 228-7025 or aloudla.org.

7 p.m.: Chris Mooney asks why, when many of the problems of the 21st century require scientific solutions, are Americans paying less and less attention to scientists.

Thursday, augusT 6 All About Business Loans Historic Downtown Retail Project, 315 W. Ninth St., Suite #501, (818) 552-3321 or vpinedo@vedc.org.

4-5pm: Looking to expand, purchase equipment/ inventory, or restructure your business? At this free workshop, learn about the various types of business loans available to expand or start a business. Prepare to talk with a loan officer and receive free one-to-one technical and lending assistance.

MOCA Grand Avenue 250 S. Grand Ave., (213) 621-1745 or moca.org.

7 p.m.: For their final event, resident arts collective OJO, along with special guests and audience members, create an abnormal lecture experience.

Members of OJO will take up position beside the lectern as the house band, and use audio trickery to affect the audience’s reception of live speech.

Friday, augusT 7 Farmlab Public Salons 1745 N. Spring St. #4, (323) 226-1158 or farmlab.org.

Noon: A live vintage slide show performance by pop-culture expert Charles Phoenix. He’ll explore Southern California through the 1950s and ’60s,

by AnnA Scott, StAff writer

3

On Saturday, Aug. 8, from 7 p.m.-12 a.m., the LOFT Ensemble, the resident company of the nonprofit L.A. Fringe Theatre, will host the Green and Gold Summer Barbecue in its rehearsal space. The event celebrates the upcoming Little Tokyo/Arts District Gold Line stop, and will raise money for an environmentally sound air-conditioning system at the Fringe. Expect music, poetry, stand-up comedy, art exhibitions, a raffle, food, beer and information on how to lead a greener life. You can also BYOB, just like a backyard barbecue. Tickets are $10 online, or $15 at the door.

929 E. Second St., (213) 680-0392 or loftensemble.com.

2

Why, asks the Aloud lecture forum, when many problems of the 21st century require scientific solutions, are Americans paying less and less attention to scientists? Science journalist Chris Mooney will address the question, and how the supposed trend might be reversed, on Wednesday, Aug. 5, at 7 p.m. at the Central Library. Mooney, a contributing editor to Science Progress, will talk with author and science writer Margaret Wertheim. The event is full, but Aloud often has standby tickets available if you arrive early. 630 W. Fifth St., (213) 228-7025 or lfla.org./aloud.

5

four

How often can you get tipsy for a good cause? Well, bottoms up, because on Saturday, Aug. 8, from 5-8 p.m. the South Park wine bar Corkbar will host an event partly to benefit the Downtown Women’s Center.

Tickets, which cost $35, include four 1.5-ounce wine samples from the Napa Valley and Santa Barbara County, passed hors d’oeuvres (prosciutto-wrapped melon and baby artichoke hearts with parmesan aioli are said to be among the menu items, FYI) and, of course, a donation to DWC. Attendees can also bid on silent auction items including a signed Lakers basketball and Dodger tick tickets. The 31-year-old, nonprofit DWC provides housing and a drop-in center offering food and other services for women living in poverty.

403 W. 12th St., firstgiving.com/corkbar.

I

f you prefer the kind of lecture where you can talk back, look no further than the Museum of Contemporary Art. On Thursday, Aug. 6, at 7 p.m., MOCA hosts the art collective Ojo, which will present a free, unusual lecture experience — members of Ojo will give talks on various topics, but will use “audio trickery” to affect the audience’s reception of the speech. The result, they say, should be chaotic and memo memorable. The event is part of MOCA’s Engagement Party series, which offers artist collectives three-month residences to create works to be shown at the museum on the first Thursday of each month. Ojo, the resident group from June-August, have previ previously presented an interactive musical performance and a cho choreographed game of chicken involving two small cars. 250 S. Grand Ave., (213) 621-1745 or moca.org/party.

Contact Anna Scott at anna@downtownnews.com.

Continued on page 16 photo courtesy of Ojo

photo courtesy of L.A. Fringe Theatre

ONE

On Friday, Aug. 7, you can visit famous landmarks and travel back in time to see local amusement parks like Knott’s Berry Farm, Marineland and Disneyland — all during your lunch hour, and without leaving Downtown. At noon, the think tank/performance venue/art studio Farmlab hosts a free presentation of Charles Phoenix’s Retro Slide Show. Self-styled pop culture expert Phoenix made his name by compiling family album slides scavenged from yard sales and turning them into kitschy, retro slide shows accompanied by dryly funny commentary. Expect an amusing take on icons of classic American culture such as space age suburbia, fast food stands, shopping centers and drive-ins.

1745 N. Spring St., Unit 4, (323) 226-1158 or farmlab.org.

photo by Gary Leonard

Tuesday, augusT 4 Wine Tasting Seminar Morton’s The Steakhouse, 735 S. Figueroa St., mortons.com.

6-7:30 p.m.: The steakhouse’s wine expert, Tylor Field III, leads a blind wine tasting. Learn the best way to taste different wines and try it out at home at a future dinner party. Cost is $45 per person.

ALOUD at the Central Library 630 W. Fifth St., (213) 228-7025 or aloudla.org.

7 p.m.: A night called “Why Design Matters” features Steven Ehrlich, FAIA and Leo Marmol, FAIA and explores how notions of social responsibility and sustainability, in terms of design, impact the response to the growing density of Los Angeles and beyond.

Eat, Drink, See Slides, Hear Lectures and Be Merry

photo courtesy of Aloud

SPONSORED LISTINGS Locals Night Café Pinot, 700 W. Fifth St., (213) 239-6500 or patinagroup.com/locals.

5:30-7:30 p.m., August 6: The Patina Group’s Locals Night series continues at Zucca Ristorante. The night for locals to meet and mingle will feature Tuscan wines by the glass for $4, plus vegetarian and chicken rosemary skewers for $5.

Music by KCRW DJ Jason Eldredge.

Free Concert Series MacArthur Park, (213) 384-5701 or levittla.org.

7:30 p.m., August 5: Latin jazz pianist Nachito Herrera plays old and new Cuban sounds with his quintet.

7:30 p.m., August 7: The Vagabond Opera brings its electric repertoire of cabaret, with lyrics in 11 languages.

L.A. Kings Hockey Fest ’09 L.A. Live, 800 W. Olympic Blvd., lakings.com/hockeyfest.

August 28-30: This three-day interactive festival celebrating the Los Angeles Kings and the game of hockey will feature autograph sessions and an NHL legend speaker series. With purchase of all event passes attendees can exchange their hockey fest tickets to get a free upper level ticket for an October home game

the ‘DON’T MISS’ LIST

photo by Gary Leonard

EVENTS

LISTINGS

16 Downtown News

August 3, 2009

DowntownNews.com

But Wait, There’s More!

Listings for additional concerts, exhibits and more in Downtown Los Angeles can be found on our website. Go to downtownnews.com/calendar for full information, including time and location, for all the happenings in Downtown.

Additional Event Information on the Web

DOWNTOWNNEWS.COM/CALENDAR : EVENTS | ROCK, POP & JAZZ | CLASSICAL MUSIC | THEATER, OPERA & DANCE ART SPACES | FILM | BARS & CLUBS | MUSEUMS | FARMERS MARKETS | TOURS

Listings Continued from page 15 which is to say, booming car culture, space age suburbia, fast food stands, shopping centers and drive-ins.

Japanese American Cultural & Community Center JACCC Plazaq or Aratani/Japan America Theatre, 244 S. San Pedro St., (213) 382-04886 or jaccc.org.

7:30-9:30 p.m.: The seventh Biennial North American Taiko Con-

ference, in which taiko groups from all over the continent converge on Little Tokyo.

Dance Downtown In the plaza at 135 N. Grand Ave., visit musiccenter.org.

6:30-10 p.m.: Dance Downtown is the popular and free Friday night series for people of any level of expertise. This evening features merengue and salsa.

public transportation funding at this meeting of the Southern California Transit Advocates. The event is free and open to the public. Zane is a former Santa Monica city councilmember and served as that city’s mayor in 1988; he is also the former executive director for the Coalition for Clean Air.

Saturday, August 8 Southern California Transit Advocates Angelus Plaza, 255 S. Hill St., Fourth Floor, (213) 388-2364 or socata.net.

1 p.m.: Denny Zane, executive director of Move LA, will discuss

2nd Street Jazz 366 E. Second St., (213) 680-0047, 2ndstjazz.com or myspace.com/2ndstreetlivejazz.

Tuesdays: Jazz jam session. Music usually starts at 9 or 10 p.m.

626 Reserve 626 S. Spring St., (213) 627-9800 or 626reserve.com.

Tuesdays, 6 p.m.: Live music with Goh Kurosawa.

Thursdays, 6 p.m.: More live sounds, this time with Jessie Torrez.

Blue Velvet 750 S. Garland Ave., (213) 239-0061.

Tuesdays and Thursdays, 10 p.m.: Live music and DJs. Café Metropol 923 E. Third St., (213) 613-1537 or cafemetropol.com.

Aug. 7, 8 p.m.: Vibraphonist Tyler Blanton.

Aug. 8, 8 p.m.: Pianist Motoko Honda.

Chop Suey Café 347 E. First St., (213) 617-9990 or chopsueycafe.com.

Thursdays, 7:30-9:30 p.m.: Live jazz on the patio of the restored landmark.

Cicada Cicada Restaurant, 617 S. Olive St., (213) 488-9488 or cicadarestaurant.com.

Thursdays, 8-11 p.m.: The velvet-voiced Max Vontaine recreates the sounds and styles of rat packers Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin.

His smoking jackets and tunes are vintage; his bawdy repartee is less so.

Keep a close eye on the unlit cigarette.

Sundays, 6-11 p.m.: The restaurant is transformed into a vintage, old Hollywood-style dance club every Sunday. Come out to appreciate the big band, swank costumes, dinner and cocktails. Visit cicadaclub.com.

Club Nokia Corner of Olympic Blvd. and Figueroa St., clubnokia.com.

Aug. 6, 8 p.m.: Alan Parsons Live Project and Paramount’s Laser Spectacular featuring the music of Pink Floyd. Steve Monistere (producer of the Pink Floyd Laser Spectacular) has teamed up with Alan Parsons (engineer for Pink Floyd and producer/musician/composer for The Alan Parsons Project).

Aug. 8, 11 p.m.: Honor Society.

Conga Room L.A. Live, 800 W. Olympic, (213) 749-0445 or congaroom.com.

Aug. 6: Direct from Puerto Rico, Andy Montanez.

Aug. 7: Neo soulster Bilal.

Grand Performances 350 S. Grand Ave., visit grandperformances.org.

Aug. 7, noon and 8 p.m.: The night called Haegum Plus features Korean-born musician Kang Eun-Il, a famed player of the traditional haegum, a two-stringed instrument with a rod-like neck attached to a hollow wooden box.

Aug. 8, 8 p.m.: Groundbreaking Inuk throat singer Tanya Tagaq, and Hyperpotamus — described as a solo voice with four microphones, a loop station pedal and gallons of water.

Aug. 9, 8 p.m.: Paul Robeson, the renowned singer, actor, lawyer, athlete and political activist, is stirringly chronicled in music and words in KB Solomon’s one-man show “Speak Of Me As I Am.” J Restaurant and Lounge 1119 S. Olive St., (213) 746-7746 or jloungela.com.

Tuesdays: Live acoustic performances in the lounge.

Wednesdays: Salsa in the City features complimentary salsa lessons at 8 p.m. At 9 p.m., a batch of live musicians takes over for a jam session.

ROCK, POP & JAZZ

2 Your Event Info Easy ways to submit

4 WEB: www.DowntownNews.com 4 EMAIL: Calendar@DowntownNews.com

Email: Send a brief description, street address and public phone number.

Submissions must be received 10 days prior to publication date to be considered for print.

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August 3, 2009

Downtown News 17

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Continued on next page

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CROSSWORD PUZZLE

18 Downtown News

August 3, 2009

DowntownNews.com

Continued from previous page

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Downtown News 19

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Juvenile Department in the matter of liliana pintor-vermilYea a ChilD. Case no. 08J0567 to: ruben pintor inoCenCio in the name of the state of oreGon: A petition has been filed asking the court to establish permanent guardianship for the above-named child. YOU ARE REQUIRED TO PERSONALLY APPEAR BEFORE the Marion County Juvenile Department, 3030 Center Street NE, Salem, OR 97301, on the 31st day of August, 2009 at 8:30 a.m. to admit or deny the allegations of the petition and to personally appear at any subsequent court-ordered hearing. YOU MUST APPEAR PERSONALLY IN THE COURTROOM ON THE DATE AND AT THE TIME LISTED ABOVE. AN ATTORNEY MAY NOT ATTEND THE HEARING IN YOUR PLACE. THEREFORE, YOU MUST APPEAR EVEN IF YOUR ATTORNEY ALSO APPEARS. This summons is published pursuant to the order of the circuit court judge of the above-entitled court, dated July 16, 2009. The order directs that this summons be published once each week for three consecutive weeks, making three publications in all, in a published newspaper of general circulation in Marion County, Salem, Oregon.

Date of first publication: July 27, 2009 Date of last publication: August 10, 2009 notiCe reaD these papers CarefullY IF YOU DO NOT APPEAR PERSONALLY BEFORE THE COURT OR DO NOT APPEAR AT ANY SUBSEQUENT COURT-ORDERED HEARING, the court may proceed in your

absence without further notice and ESTABLISH PERMANENT GUARDIANSHIP for the abovenamed child either ON THE DATE SPECIFIED IN THIS SUMMONS OR ON A FUTURE DATE, and may make such orders and take such action as authorized by law.

RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS (1)YOU HAVE A RIGHT TO BE REPRESENTED BY AN ATTORNEY IN THIS MATTER. If you are currently represented by an attorney, CONTACT YOUR ATTORNEY IMMEDIATELY UPON RECEIVING THIS NOTICE. Your previous attorney may not be representing you in this matter.

IF YOU CANNOT AFFORD TO HIRE AN ATTORNEY, and you meet the state’s financial guidelines, you are entitled to have an attorney appointed for you at state expense. TO REQUEST APPOINTMENT OF AN ATTORNEY TO REPRESENT YOU AT STATE EXPENSE, YOU MUST IMMEDIATELY CONTACT the Marion Juvenile Department at Marion County Juvenile Department, 3030 Center Street NE, Salem, OR 97301, phone number 503-588-5291, between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. for further information.

IF YOU WISH TO HIRE AN ATTORNEY, please retain one as soon as possible and have the attorney present at the above hearing.

If you need help finding an attorney, you may call the Oregon State Bar’s Lawyer Referral Service at (503) 684-3763 or toll free in Oregon at (800) 452-7636.

IF YOU ARE REPRESENTED

BY AN ATTORNEY, IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY TO MAINTAIN CONTACT WITH YOUR ATTORNEY AND TO KEEP YOUR ATTORNEY ADVISED OF YOUR WHEREABOUTS. (2) If you contest the petition,

the court will schedule a hearing on the allegations of the petition and order you to appear personally and may schedule other hearings related to the petition and order you to appear personally. IF YOU ARE ORDERED TO APPEAR, YOU MUST APPEAR PERSONALLY IN THE COURTROOM, UNLESS THE COURT HAS GRANTED YOU AN EXCEPTION IN ADVANCE UNDER ORS 419B.918 TO APPEAR BY OTHER MEANS INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, TELEPHONIC OR OTHER ELECTRONIC MEANS. AN ATTORNEY MAY NOT ATTEND THE HEARING(S) IN YOUR PLACE. PETITIONER’S ATTORNEY Kristen Palladino Farnworth Assistant Attorney General Department of Justice 162 Court Street NE Salem, OR 97301-4096 Phone: (503) 934-4400 ISSUED this 20th day of July, 2009.

Issued by:Kristen Palladino Farnworth #00344 Assistant Attorney General PUB. 7/27, 8/3, 8/10/09

Police Permit notiCe of appliCation for poliCe permit Notice is hereby given that application has been made to the Board of Police Commissioners for a permit to conduct a MASSAGE BUSINESS NAME OF APPLICANT: WI SPA, LLC DOING BUSINESS AS: WI SPA LOCATED AT: 2700 WILSHIRE BLVD LOS ANGELES, CA 90057 Any person desiring to protest the issuance of this permit shall make a written protest before August 27, 2009 to the: LOS ANGELES POLICE COMMISSION 150 North Los Angeles Street Los Angeles, CA 90012 Upon receipt of written protests, protesting persons will be notified of date, time and place for hearing.

BOARD OF POLICE COMMISSIONERS Pub. 7/27, 8/3/09.

Free Rent!

ELEGANT WORLD CLASS RESORT BRAND NEW APARTMENT HOMES

Orsini

IMMEDIATE OCCUPANCY! studios from $1,685* • 1 bedroom from $1,818* • 2 bedroom from $2,212* *Availability and prices are subject to change at any time.

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• Brunswick Four Lane Virtual Bowling • Full Swing Virtual Golf • 3100 Square Foot Cybex Fitness Facility • Massage Room, Sauna and Steam Room • Rooftop Pools with Dressing Room • Free Abundant Gated and Garage Parking • Business Center, Conference Room • Directors Screening Room

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noW leAsing

Luxury Rooms in Downtown Monthly Rents Start at $780 1 & 2 Rooms Available • Fully Furnished • 100% Utilities Paid • • Refrigerator, Microwave & TV In Each Room • • Wireless Access Throughout Bldg. • Gym • • Close to USC & Loyola Law School • • Presidential Suite with Kitchen • Parking Available Onsite

STUDeNT RaTe! CANSpecialYOU $690 1 person

HELP?

50 Channels Direct TV

Mayfair Hotel

From $1,300’s/mo. Free Parking ROOFTOP GARDEN RETREAT WITH BBQ AND LOUNGE • GRAND LOBBY FITNESS CENTER • SPA • MODERN KITCHEN WITH CAESAR COUNTERTOPS HIGH SPEED INTERNET • DESIGNER LIVING SPACES • PET FRIENDLY DRAMATIC VIEWS • WALKING DISTANCE TO RALPHS SUPERMARKET STAINLESS APPLIANCES INCLUDING REFRIGERATOR GATEWAY TO FASHION DISTRICT GROUND FLOOR DRY CLEANERS • KELLY’S COFFEE

756 S. Broadway • Downtown Los Angeles 213-892-9100 • chapmanf lats.com

rent /lease

CAN YOU HELP?

photo by j. mcnicol

Help Wanted

textile Supplies, DesiGnerFood & Distributing Medical Design Textiles 9am to 6pm ClothingREQS. to Children & Arts Families.

Bachelor of Fine Degree

If interested, contact Samuel Shams at Major Textile Imports, Inc. Items In Need:

1401 E.&15th Street, Angeles, CA 90021 • (213) 746-8500 3 Clothing Shoes for Los girls, boys, men & women 3 Personal Hygiene items: shampoo, conditioner, soap, facial cleanser, tooth paste, tooth brushes etc.

3 Medicine/Vitamins 3 School Supplies, Computers, Notebooks, Pens/Pencils

Van For Sale

All products must be in there original packaging and clothing with price tags due to customs.

Items will be collected Only 6,573 miles • like-new at: fOr $22,000

A three phase program, Daughters of Vision seeks to aide the poverty-stricken children of Cambodia.

An existing structure bequeathed to Global Travel Outreach will be transformed into a school and community hall.

Phase II We will open the Daughters of Vision Girls home, a place dedicated towards ending the extreme poverty & destitution affecting Cambodia’s children, as well as a refuge and sanctuary for young girls from the reach of child traffickers.

Phase III Create a medical clinic to service the community.

Global Travel Outreach

626-791-7900 or Toll Free: 877-797-2770 www.GlobalTravelOutreach.com

www.GlobalTravelOutreach.com

HELP?

3 School Supplies

Drop-Off Location:

payable to:

Global Travel Outreach

Global Travel Outreach

1105 Wesley Ave. Pasadena, CA 91104

Toll Free: 877-797-2770

GlobalTravel08@gmail.com

1105 Wesley Ave. Pasadena, CA 91104

Toll Free: 877-797-2770

❏ Prom. West-2 Bed. 2 Bath. 5th Floor. Move In Now. $2,200 Month. ❏ 1 Bed. 1 Bath. Lafayette Park Place. Move In Now. $1200 Month. ❏ Prom. West-2 Bed. 2 Bath PenthouseFor renT: Sophisticated, Spectacular One Of A Kind ❏ Bunker Hill Tower-1 Bed. 1 Bath. 28th Floor.

Condo. Top Of The Line Upgrades & Décor.

Move in now $1600 Gorgeous Furnishings Adorn This Pride Of ❏ Prom. West-1 Bed. 1 Bath Penthouse. Overlooks Ownership Home. Corporate Lease Welcome.

Pool & Gardens. Greenhouse Windows And Furnished $3500 Per Month. Un-Furnished Balcony. Stunning! $1995 Month. $3200 Per Month.

Promenade West Condo

2 Story Townhouse. West Facing With Downtown City View. Upgrades. Large Patio. Very Elegant.

Asking $579,900 Call us for other condos for sale or lease Dwntwn & surrounding areas!!

Mirza alli

Broker/Realtor leasing-salesloans-refinance

(213) 680-1720

e-mail us: info@bunkerhillrealestate.com

www.Bunkerhillrealestate.com

Top floor of 11 story (18,000 SF) historic building available now!

Perfect for corporate hqtrs. Features separate executive suite(s).

Stunning views of LA two blocks away from Staples Center and across the street from the new LA Live complex. The building also has approx 4,000 sq ft of beautiful contiguous space and some small offices available. These spaces can be viewed by appointment.

Information available to qualified prospective tenants.

Email request to mdavis@shammasgroup.com or call (213) 746-6300

For more info visit our web site or call toll free. Donations in the form of checks, cashiers checks or money orders can be made payable to:

626-791-7900 or Toll Free: 877-797-2770

Distributing Medical Supplies, Food & Clothing to Children & Families.

EstablishEd 1984

For sale: bunker Hill Tower ❏ 1 Bedroom, 1 Bath. Elegant. Ready To Move In. South City Lights View. Recently Refurbished.

Offered At $315,000.

Available Immediately

Phase I

1105 Wesley Ave. Pasadena, CA 91104

Chevrolet 2008 express 3500 extd wb passenger van6,573 miles. 15-Passenger, excellent condition, all power this is Global Travel Outreach a like-new Chevrolet Express Passenger Van with 15-passenof Vision” ger seating capacity! Still under“Daughters warranty, 5 year /100,000 mile powertrain limited warranty withA24 hour roadside assistance. three phase program, 4-Door, loaded with power steering, power windows, Daughters of Vision seekspower locks, tinted windows, security tilt poverty-stricken wheel, air conditionto alarm, aide the ing. ABS brakes, deluxe console, remote keyless entry, van is children of Cambodia.

Items In Need: loaded with an 6.0 Liter vortec v8 engine that delivers plenty of 3 Clothing Shoes power. & Transmission automatic 4 speed. Passkey III theft deterFor more info visit our web site rent, child seat latch stereo CD player w/mp3 3 Personal Hygiene Itemssystem,oram/fm call toll free. Donations in the format. Exterior color- white /interior color- gray. $22,000. (323) formof checks, cashiers checks 3 Medicine/Vitamins 721-3947 Virginia or (323) 314-4360 Fernando. or money orders can be made

Bunker Hill real estate Co, inC.

Global Travel Outreach aides Daughters of Vision

1105 Wesley Ave. Pasadena, CA 91104

exCellent ConDition Still under warranty!

Warehouse/ Office Space 13,000 sqft.

25 Parking Space Loading Docks Downtown Area 3,500/mo.

(323) 231-4150 (818) 257-3771

Global Travel Outreach

Mission CAN YOU to Cambodia

877-267-5911

WWW.THEORSINI.COM

Pricing subject to change without notice.

1256 West 7th street

Simin (213) 484-9789 Ext. 555 or (213) 632-1111 Mission to Cambodia

Orsini

550 NORTH FIGUEROA ST. LOS ANGELES, CA 90012 OPEN DAILY

GlobalTravel08@gmail.com

Furnished single unit with kitchenette, bathroom.

Excellent location.

Downtown LA. Weekly rate $275 inc.

Fully furnished with TV, telephone, microwave, refrigerator.

Full bathroom.

Excellent location.

Downtown LA. Weekly maid service.

Monthly from $595 utilities paid.

(213) 612-0348 Monthly from $695 utilities paid.

(213) 627-1151

Children’s Performing Group

madison hotel Clean furnished single rooms. 24-hour desk clerk service.

•Daily, $25.00 •Weekly, $99.00 •Monthly, $295.00 (213) 622-1508 423 East 7th St.

(2 blocks west of San Pedro St.)

Downtownnews.com

Sunshine Generation Singing, dancing, performing and fun!

For boys & girls ages 3 and up!

SunshineGenerationLA.com 909-861-4433

the Alexandria at 501 S. Spring St.

is Now Leasing!

On-site laundry, free utilities, indiv. bathrooms, 24 hr. security & pet friendly. Free Internet. Close to metro, restaurants, farmers market & supermarket. Units starting at

$775/month

August move in sPeciAl: ½ off 1st & 2nd month’s rent income & other restrictions apply.

Must move-in by Aug. 31

call 213.626.1743 or stop by for a tour

Low Move in Special Unfurnished bachelor rooms with shared bath at $550/mo. with private bath $650/mo.

Includes utilities, basic cable channels, laundry room on site. Gated building in a good area.

208 W. 14th St. at Hill St. Downtown LA

For English Call Pierre or Terri 213.744.9911 For Spanish Call Susana 213.749.0306

20 Downtown News

August 3, 2009

DowntownNews.com photo by Gary Leonard

We Got Games Dodger Dogs Versus Milwaukee Brats and Bats Los Angeles Dodgers Dodger Stadium, 1000 Elysian Park Ave., (213) 224-1400 or dodgers.mlb.com.

Aug. 3-5, 7:10 p.m.; Aug. 6-8, 7:10 p.m.; Aug. 9, 1:10 p.m.: The Dodgers are back home this week, and the first ones to visit are Prince Fielder and the Milwaukee Brewers. In Milwaukee, they have a revered tradition called the sausage race, in which man-sized bratwursts, Polish and Italian sausages and others race around their home stadium before the sixth inning. It’s hilarious, but in 2009 anyway, Dodger Stadium has two traditions that seem to give the Blue Crew an edge: winning and Dodger Dogs, which stay in the stands where they belong. After the Brew Crew, the Atlanta Braves come to town. They never get into the sausage celebration.

Los Angeles Sparks Staples Center, 1111 S. Figueroa St., (213) 929-1300 or wnba.com/sparks.

Aug. 4, noon; Aug. 6, 7:30 p.m.: The Sparks have been sparked recently by veteran Tina Thompson, who seems finally to be finding her niche in the offense: After a slow start, Thompson recently put up 30 points to help the squad snap a three-game losing streak. Fans will certainly be happy about Candace Parker, who’s back after sitting out the first few weeks of the season (she had a baby). She is regaining her touch too, after notching a doubledouble last week. However, with a record of 5-10, and coming off a month-long road trip, the team needs to turn things around immediately if they hope to make the post-season. This week they host the San Antonio Silver Stars and the Seattle Storm.

—Ryan Vaillancourt

Candace Parker will look to get the Sparks back on the winning track this week. The team returns from a month-long road trip with two home games.

Downtown, it’s not just big business anymore!

Grand Tower 255 south Grand avenue Leasing Information 213 229 9777

Promenade Towers 123 south Figueroa street Leasing Information 213 617 3777

Community Amenities: ~ 24 Hr. Manned Lobby ~ Concierge ~ Pool / Spa / Saunas ~ Fitness Center ~ Gas BBQ Grills ~ Recreation Room

Community Amenities: ~ 24 Hr. Manned Lobby ~ Pool / Saunas ~ Fitness Center ~ Covered Parking

Apartment Amenities: ~ Refrigerator, Stove, Microwave & Dishwasher (most units) ~ Central Air Conditioning & Heating ~ Balconies (most units)

On-site: ~ Dry Cleaners / Dental Office / Restaurants

Now For Call n Specials Move-I

8 7 7 - 2 65 - 714 6

museum Tower 225 south olive street Leasing Information 213 626 1500

Apartment Amenities: ~ Refrigerator, Stove & Dishwasher ~ Central Air & Heating ~ Solariums and/or Balconies

On Site: ~ Convenience Store / Coffee House / Yogurt Shop / Beauty Salon

Community Amenities: ~ 24 Hr. Manned Lobby ~ Concierge ~ Pool / Spa / Saunas ~ Fitness Center ~ Gas BBQ Grills ~ Recreation Room

Apartment Amenities: ~ Refrigerator, Stove, Microwave & Dish washer (most units) ~ Central Air & Heating ~ Balconies (most units)

It’s our business to make you comfortable... at home, downtown. Corporate and long term residency is accommodated in high style at the Towers Apartments. Contemporary singles, studio, one bedroom and two bedroom apartment homes provide fortunate residents with a courteous full service lobby attendant, heated pool, spa, complete fitness center, sauna and recreation room with kitchen. Beautiful views extend from the Towers’ lofty homes in the sky. Mountain vistas and slender skyscrapers provide an incredible back drop to complement your decor. Far below are a host of businesses ready to support your pampered downtown lifestyle. Even the most demanding tastes are satisfied the cultural events that make headlines. Downtown, it’s not just big business anymore. Visit the Towers Apartments today.

TOWERS T H E

A PA RT M E N T S

www.TowersApartmentsLA.com

MAID SERVICE • FURNITURE • HOUSEWARES • CABLE • UTILITIES • PARKING RESIDENCES: SINGLES • STUDIO • ONE BEDROOM • TWO BEDROOM