DOWNTOWN
PENTHOUSES 2012 EDITION: ELLEVEN PH 5
New Construction? Not In The Cards. As Downtown continues to exploid, no new construction is planned. Opportunities limited.
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PENTHOUSE FIVE
DISHING DOWNTOWN
2012 PENTHOUSES LA 2
2012 PENTHOUSES LA 3
“The argument was always the same.” By Donna Huffaker Evans Me: “This is not the suburbs!’’ Him: “Babe, we live in Burbank.’’ Me: “But there’s a liquor store at the end of our block!’’ This alone, I reasoned, catapulted my residential status into the likes of our friends who lived in lofts Downtown. I liked the way they walked everywhere, rode the Metro to hit Hollywood and always mentioned a new restaurant, or pointed out how some ghastly bar just turned gastro pub fabulous. In reality, it took me a good 40 minutes to hoof to a strip of bars or selection of non-chain eateries. I drove more than I walked, and as much as I tried to utilize
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public transit, the closest red line stop dinners at several restaurants – all within required wheels or gobs of extra time. walking distance. People smile and say hello here. They hold But what I envied most about our Down- the door for you. They apologize if their town friends was their sense of community chair bumps you. It’s like the south without – the very thing the suburbs were sup- racism. posed to provide. I met Mike and Kathryn’s Last week, on a Facebook group for the friend from the Rowan once – once – and Arts District, residents chatted wildly about weeks later as I walked down Spring Street, an adorable scraggly dog that looked this woman flailed her arms like she was to have been dumped out of a car. He signaling a plane. She was saying hi to me. appeared hungry and certainly skittish. I’d lived on the same street in Burbank for Several residents caught him long enough 10 years and the most my neighbors ever to hand-feed him, but then he dashed talked to me was when their kid kicked a away. Naturally they named him Dasher. soccer ball through my window. Back and forth the comments flew: who’d So we packed our stuff, sold our house and last seen him, where. Had he been given moved to the Arts District. We’ve been at any water? Did anyone have a friend lookMolino Street Lofts for one month and ing for a dog (it’s Downtown – someone is in that time the residents have hosted a always looking to adopt a dog). One after cookout and asked me to join the social another they strategized about how to committee. We’ve gone out to dinner a capture the little guy and nurse him back few times with folks we just met. Several to a healthy size. All for a dog no one knew. That’s a community – and a community I’m thrilled to call my home.
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DOWNTOWN DISHING
So the Residents are Welcoming -- What about the Bureaucrats?
By Donna Huffaker Evans
One of the first things you learn as a reporter is to be super nice to the court clerk. To all of the public servants actually, as they hold the keys to the kingdom. Or at least the file that you desperately need to peruse. While it’s easier to smile at someone already smiling, I rather like the challenge of penetrating a wall of grump. I braced for a gaggle of grumps in Los Angeles city government. In Burbank, the bureaucrats were smiling before I even approached the window. Odd, I thought, but maybe it was because the city government was a manageable size. In fact it was solely due to Burbank Fire Department’s rapid response time that I chose to stay in the Media City when my 93-year-old Grandma moved in with me. Grandma was awesome, unlike the thieving relatives who attempted to financially bleed her dry. Back in 2002, at the age of 31, very single and a full-time reporter for the Los Angeles Daily Journal, I found myself the caretaker for a nonagenarian in failing health. So when the police raided the relatives’ house, and arrested them, that left the placement of my ever smiling
Grandma to me. I opted for my home rather than the old folks home. But because they’d taken such poor care of her – no exercise of any kind – her leg muscles atrophied to the point that she could not climb the eight steps into my building, let alone the 22 that led to my door. There I am, explaining to Grandma that the relatives would be going to jail for what they were doing, all the while trying to figure out how to get her out of my 1994 Mustang and into the apartment. Then it hit me: The Burbank Fire Department. How many times had I heard my scanner, years earlier at the Burbank Leader, squawk, “Old woman, trouble breathing,’’ moments before the sirens roared to the victim’s rescue. In true Mayberry fashion, I asked the BFD if they could carry Grandma into my apartment. Minutes later, an engine arrived with many, many handsome men who hoisted her out of the car and into a stretcher-type chair. Surrounded by six hard-armed firefighters, Grandma blurts, “See, Donna, I can get a man. I can get six of them.’’ Every other encounter I had with a Burbank official after
that was equally pleasant. And while I’ve had drinks in the backyard of Burbank Mayor Dave Golonski’s house, I don’t expect to toast Antonio any time soon.
bureaucracy. So I called the District 14 council office. I explained the issue and furrowed my brow when the gent on the other end asked for my number so someone could get back to me. My first big city blow off. Awesome.
Customer Service Surprise However I also didn’t expect calling Los Angeles Councilman Jose Huizar’s office would be as pleasant. Sure the residents of Downtown Los Angeles have been warm and welcoming, but what about the bureaucrats?
I hadn’t finished typing the text to my husband, slamming the sloths of Los Angeles government, when the phone rang.
All of our furniture and worldly possessions had been stored in a POD for several months. Delivering the POD to unload it promised to be tricky, as my loft doesn’t have a driveway, merely a loading zone that I crossed my fingers would be available at 7 a.m. on that Saturday. The real problem, though, was the warning from the PODS people: “If we get a ticket for being parked on the street too long, you pay for it.’’
Speechless.
Well how long was too long? I could’ve researched it, but I wanted to check out the customer service of my new city’s seemingly bloated
“Hello, Mrs. Evans? This is [so-and-so] from Councilman Huizar’s office. First of all, welcome. I understand you have some concerns about your POD?’’
The official went on to explain as long as it was picked up in a day or so, there would be no problem. Then he told me to have a nice day. Day? It’s going to be a nice Downtown life.
ELLE VEN LOFTS @ 1111 S outh Grand Urban living has been officially rethought. And this is it. Thirteen vibrant stories full of life, energy and style. A residence that defines and inspires. Living spaces that beg you to step inside. A city that calls you to step outside. It's not just a new building. It's a new standard. Your home at Elleven was built smarter. It looks more sophisticated and is exceptionally livable. And its location will ensure that words like mundane, routine and ordinary will quickly excuse themselves from your vocabulary. Elleven is the first of three residential buildings planned at 11th and Grand, a block that lies in the heart of the thriving South Park neighborhood, in downtown Los Angeles. The residence is entirely new-construction, from the ground up, combining innovative architecture and green building standards. Living spaces are available in a wide range of sizes, from studios to penthouses, with prices starting in the $300s. Elleven is the first in a series of residences that will form a thriving urban neighborhod within SOuth park. This neighborhood will be known simply as South. South will be a neighborhood within a neighborhood within a neighborhood. Where people know each other a little better. Where people know each other a little better. Where there's more to do and see. Where there's energy and life. Green means it's beautiful on the inside. Elleven will be the first green residential building in downtown Los Angeles and will be certified by the U.S. Green Building Council. What does that mean, you ask. Well, the goal is to create a building that uses less energy, less natural resources, and is environmentally responsible. We do this by using sustainable materials, efficient construction techniques, and a thoughtful, eco-friendly approach.
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Sustainable materials are things that look and function as well as, or better than, conventional materials, but have less impact. Things like wood floors cut from sustainable forests. Cabinets made from renewable, non-toxic wheatboard. Natural fiber carpets. Showers, toilets and fixtures with lowflow designs that conserve water.
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Green construction techniques include everything from transporting materials to the construction site more efficiently to putting thought toward how we can integrate the building into it's neighborhood with minimal impact.
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Or using tall windows to let light flowin, which saves on lighting energy. Or using treated glass and sunshades, which save on cooling energy. All of this is price-competitive with conventional building techniques. So it doesn't cost you any more. It just requires a bit more effort and thinking on our part. Where an entire city is your backyard. On a map, Elleven is located at 11th and Grand, in the South Park neighborhood of downtown Los Angeles. But where it's really located is at the epicenter of an urban revival. In case you haven't heard, downtown L.A. is being reborn, revived, redeveloped, re-everything. With some of the world's greatest cultural centers, businesses, arts, and dining, L.A. rivals any metropolis. And Elleven's location puts you steps away from all the downtown has to offer. Work centers and offices, shopping, restaurants, museums, entertainment and cultural icons like MOCA and the Disney Concert Hall. And that's just the beginning.