area newsletter JUNE 2019 • WESTSIDE
20 19
Community News Santa Monica considers plan to revamp Promenade
The Santa Monica Planning Commission recently heard a presentation exploring a revamp of the Third Street Promenade. The report detailed the current shortcomings in the pedestrian-friendly business district, such as concerns with seating areas and drainage systems, as well as how the space can be better utilized in the future. According to the presentation, approximately 75% of Promenade visitors are from the surrounding Los Angeles area, exhibiting a diversity not otherwise found in Santa Monica. Among the suggestions made to the commission were to increase seating and gathering areas, install new public art and entertainment features, and to utilize seasonal pavilions. The presentation also detailed several long-term options that would alter the infrastructure of the Promenade, including the construction of fitness areas and elevated walkways. In the coming months, the firms behind the project will be drafting three specific plans, which will then be presented for public review.
Federal money to expand Purple Line to West LA
LA’s Metropolitan Transit Authority was recently given notice that they will be the recipient of $1.3 billion in federal funding to help extend the Purple Line to the Westside. The notice came in the form of a letter of no prejudice from the Federal Transit Administration, which serves as a preliminary approval of Metro’s request for funding. The Feds had previously provided $2.3 billion in funding for the Purple Line extension currently being built under Wilshire Blvd. towards Century City. Once the additional funding is secured, Metro will be able to extend the subway all the way to the Veterans Affairs hospital in West Los Angeles.
Community News Affordable housing planned for historic site
An affordable housing project is being planned for the former site of Nikkei Hall, a community center in Santa Monica that was established to benefit Japanese Americans following World War II. The housing project will be developed by EAH Housing, a non-profit firm, and will consist of 42 apartments designated for use by homeless or low-income households. The City of Santa Monica will assist in the project by providing an $8.3 million loan to acquire the property. Located at 1413 Michigan Ave., Nikkei Hall was built in 1957 and was designated a landmark by the city in 2018. According to a report by city officials, Japanese immigrants thrived in Santa Monica before World War II, but after internment at Manzanar, only 161 returned to the area. The community grew to 254 by 1950, when the Nikkei Hall organization formed. It is expected that a plaque will commemorate Nikkei Hall once the new housing project is completed.
Mobile game company expands in Culver City Scopely, a tech company that specializes in creating
mobile video games, has agreed to lease 60,000 square feet of office space in the Platform complex in Culver City. The firm, which is responsible for games such as Star Trek Fleet Command and Looney Tunes World of Mayhem, effectively doubled its footprint in the area, after operating from a 28,000 square foot space in Hayden Tract since 2015. The company has seen an 80% increase in revenue lately and has secured $160 million in recent investments. Their new space at Platform is located at 8850 Washington Blvd., a block from the intersection of Washington and National Boulevards, and adjacent to the future site of Ivy Station, a 5.2- acre mixeduse project that has already signed HBO to a 15-year lease.
MOCA to offer free admission after donation A $10 million donation from its board president will make it possible for LA’s Museum of Contemporary Art to be free to the public for the foreseeable future. Carolyn Clark Powers, the president of MOCA’s board of trustees, recently made the sizable donation, eliminating the museum’s need for the $1.3 million in annual revenue generated by ticket sales. This move adds MOCA’s three locations to the list of LA art museums that do not charge admission, including The Getty Museum in Brentwood and the Hammer Museum in Westwood. The Broad Museum, located across the street from MOCA Grand, also offers free admission and welcomes more than 3 times as many visitors as MOCA.
Restaurant
Spotlight
FIG
Pizzana
Scopa Italian Roots
101 Wilshire Blvd. Santa Monica
11712 San Vicente Blvd. Brentwood
2905 W. Washington Blvd. Venice
All that is needed to say when
Candace and Charles Nelson, the couple
There are just a small handful of really
suggesting FIG for brunch is…endless
who brought you Sprinkles Cupcakes,
nice places to eat on the Westside after
draft beer or sangria. FIG’s Kegs & Eggs
opened Pizzana, a pizza restaurant in
10 p.m., and Scopa is one of them. The
Brentwood and is being called “the best
long bar area and the dark environs
pizza I’ve had in LA” by many. Expect to
make for the ideal nightcap for anyone
sit among celebrities such as Jim Belushi
looking to relax and listen to some well-
their infamous warmed pita bread. FIG
and Chris O’Donnell who is a co-owner.
curated tunes. Chef Antonia Lofaso’s
restaurant is bringing a more modern
The cupcake couple have brought their
interpretation of old-school Italian
and seasonal approach to Mediterranean
passion for the art of pizza and baking
food embraces the feelings of the New
bistro with a menu inspired by Chef
and created a masterpiece. Chef Daniele
York boroughs. Honoring true Italian
Yousef Ghalaini’s early childhood spent
Uditi, who is from Naples, makes Neo-
tradition, the food and ambiance of this
Neapolitan-style pies using 48-hour
restaurant is perfect for enjoying the
fermented dough. And for dessert,
company of friends and family.
option is the perfect beginning to a Sunday. But, don’t limit yourself to just their brunch menu because FIG also offers endless options of cheeses and
baking and cooking with his grandfather in Lebanon. With a menu like FIG’s and endless kegs, you’ll find yourself wanting to order everything on the menu!
Candace has created a Neapolitan ice cream terrine and salted caramel panna cotta. Attention to detail is so obviously shown in each perfectly baked pizza.
SIGHTS & SOUNDS in LOS ANGELES
The Broad Museum
Petersen Automotive Museum
221 South Grand Avenue Los Angeles, CA 90012
6060 Wilshire Boulevard Los Angeles, CA 90036
J. Paul Getty Museum 1200 Getty Center Drive Los Angeles, CA 90049
CURRENT EXHIBITION:
CURRENT EXHIBITION:
CURRENT EXHIBITION:
Soul of a Nation: Art in the Age of Black Power 1963-1983 March 23 - September 1, 2019
Auto-Didactic: The Juxtapoz School September 29, 2018 - June 2019
Eighteenth-Century Pastel Portraits August 28, 2018 – October 13, 2019
Juxtapoz Magazine, known for featuring “lowbrow” and pop surrealist artists that would otherwise be considered as outside of the mainstream art world, has teamed with the Petersen Auto Museum to create a group show of artists whose work is often inspired by hot rod culture. The exhibit features many car-centric paintings and sculptures, as well as a number of vehicles that converted into moving works of work. The exhibit includes work by Robert Crumb, Ed “Big Daddy” Roth and Robert Williams.
Celebrating a medium that is often overlooked in other time periods, this exhibit delves into the favored form of portraiture in late 18th century Europe. Pastels allowed the artist to create classically beautiful works without the arduous process that oil painting often requires. This flexibility coincided with the growing class of people who patronized portrait artists, creating a unique body of work that represented both an evolving craft and an evolving society.
The Broad is hosting this special exhibit of artwork by AfricanAmerican artists who were active during the civil rights and black power movements of the 1960’s and 1970’s, and into the early years of the conservative Reagan administration. LA artists Charles White, Betye Saar, and William T. Williams are among the 60 artists whose work is featured. The exhibition is organized by Tate Modern and presented locally by Art + Practice, a Leimert Park-based organization.
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