Someone is cleaning out the Giraffe Building.....

Does this mean that it's going to be used? By whom? Is it rented? Has it sold? Will it be a 99 cent store, or can we hope for something better here? After all, the wine bar 1642 is hopping, so whoever puts a business in Giraffe is going to be seen by monied hipsters. Just a hopeful thought.

Belmont and Temple: Giraffe Building Languishes!

Save the Giraffes! OK, I mean save the 'Giraffe Building' of my Welcome Hill Neighborhood. I love this mixed-use building of the 1915 or so...it has Richardsonian Romanesque touches in its decoration and the perfect scale for our neighborhood, a scary local history story, and a long giraffe-neck sign circa 1950, which is uber cool. If only its owner would do something with the structure. I know the neighbors would support a Victorian/craftsman vintage shop here with apartments above, and as soon as the upscale wine bar goes in on the very next block, upscale foot traffic will return to this corner... For more on the historic, vintage, and architecturally significant real estate of Echo Park, visit www.maggiewineland.com.

My other Blog

For my opinions and essays, see my other blog, http://bringbackthewarmhandshake.blogspot.com/

SUPER VINTAGE COMMERCIAL BUILDING JUST WEST OF ALVARADO AND NORTH OF TEMPLE

Are you the owner of this Silverlake/Echo Park building or the person who uses it now? Got any info or history? I am so into brick commercial architecture in our town. This one has been seismically re-fitted (of course) but also nicely updated and tastefully landscaped. It warms my heart. It gives me hope.

1746 Hollyvista Ave., Los Angeles, CA | Powered by Postlets

COME SEE ME TODAY
at this space-age Mid-Century modern house in Los Feliz. It's been tastefully redone including maintaining the ranchy railings for the wraparound balcony, and Jetson-ish lighting fixtures, and blonde wood details. I will be celebrating this open house with an authentic 50's dress.

1746 Hollyvista Ave., Los Angeles, CA Powered by Postlets

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More Details Laveta House

Scrolley, Frilly, Awesome old Cottage on Laveta Terrace

SAVE THIS ECHO PARK CLASSIC!!

Do you know the owners of this house? Can you help me speak to them of my deep abiding love for their silly and deteriorating treasure? It is a derelict eyesore, it's true. But it's also a lovable save-able treasure the likes of which I haven't seen elsewhere in Echo Park. Please support my efforts to reach the owners and make sure it's treated properly. My dream is to fix it up in place as a home, but moving it or making it a cafe would also be fantastic. A girl can dream so make my dreams come true. Go buy this house and fix it up right now. My nightmare: Stucco and vinyl windows.
And now for more pictures of Laveta House:

Behold its dazzling variety of decorations. Was the builder on the 1885 version of acid? Or just suffering from a great obsession for frilly wooden things? And its peeling layers of paint couldn't be quainter! A Disneyland-like picture-perfect weathered, stoic relic of Victorian Echo Park. But let's stop waxing nostalgic. This building is in serious danger because of its lack of protection from the elements.

Let me know if anyone tries to knock this house down because I will run over and handcuff myself to its shapely porch post.

What NOT to do with a 1910 Cottage. Stucco and Slider'ed

http://www.postlets.com/res/2306032

Oh, Well. A girl has got to make a living. And if I sell this house to a family or investor who likes its current, traditional shape, it won't be knocked down for another apartment monstrosity on our block. The hoped-for new and tasteful owner can always take out the tile floor (original subfloor wood is under there, I checked)and un-stucco the house, and then go to Silverlake Architectural Salvage, get some original windows....Come and visit my open house if you can Tuesday night, and say hi.

No, it's not Angelino Heights...it's Welcome Hill in SoFa!

You didn't know there was anything so pristine and gorgeous in the South of the Freeway district of Echo Park, did you? This Queen Anne and its later neighbor are the crown jewels of our Welcome Hill. They share a view of the of downtown skyline from their front windows. The Queen Anne (the yellow one) is renovated inside as well to the Victorian period. Note the sign denotes it as the corner of Welcome St. and Council. From here, one can walk down the old steps on Council St. and catch a Glendale Boulevard bus downtown as residents of our street have done for about 125 years.
For a tour of the area and to share my research of Welcome Street's history, contact me.

Welcome Hill Area of Echo Park

From our Welcome Hill you can look over the tops of charming Victorian cottages to the big-city skyline! Pretty neat, right? You should see it at night.

This is taken from the corner of Welcome and Council Streets, looking south.

Nice Paint Job for Kyoto Grand Hotel Formerly the New Otani

Have you seen the brown wall? This is not strictly about Echo Park Architecture, but you can ride your bike there...I have got to get some digital pics to you of a very nice solution to a bland, dated, boring hotel in Little Tokyo that I see several times a week as I go about my business at Second and Los Angeles Streets. They recently painted just the front marquis area of the hotel motor entrance chocolate brown, and with the pinkish-reddish sign on top it looks really great. Very updated, chic look for a relatively cheap price, and no demolition, rebuilding, and filling up the landfill was necessary! Kudos.

Turtle and Other Fishing in Echo Park Lake

I saw people catching fish in the lake, and one couple had hooked A TURTLE! Poor turtle!!
Is this legal?! I do not know if the fishermen in Echo Park lake are eating the fish/turtles, but if they eat from that body of water they may die. It is not exactly Arrowhead Springs. Although it's fun to paddle on.

Tell L.A.'s Planning Dept. About Your Neighborhood's Historic Buildings!

As a part of my Historic Preservation involvement, I've been volunteering for the Office of Historic Resources' "Survey L.A.", a most ambitious and exciting project for a native Angeleno with preservationist leanings (such as myself). Basically, the City Planning Department wants to know EVERY, SINGLE possibly significant "resource" (any place or object could qualify, like a lake, a sculpture, a tree, or a house) so the department can plan around things that'll need to be landmarked for their protection. I know my neighborhood of 1888 Victorian vernacular cottages is being decimated by inappropriate remodels or non-historic infill, and I can't wait to put our block on Survey L.A.'s radar.
Is there some historic building or resource in your area? Because here's our chance to make a difference before they knock it down for ugly condos or even worse: let the empty lot languish. So you can actually report directly to the Survey here:

http://www.preservation.lacity.org/survey click on Identify

At the above link, you alert the Survey L.A. team of historic preservation pros and the Office of Historic Resources to places they didn't know about, and tell them why, from your local's viewpoint, it is significant. They'll send a team of preservation professionals out there to assess it from the sidewalk, never even bothering the occupants or setting foot on the property.

You're not expert enough to identify a historic resource, you say...?

Believe me, they do need your input. Los Angeles is 880,000 parcels of land, and not one person in this city knows even half of the historically significant buildings. This project thrills me because it's a true community effort: without info from the front lines, i.e, the people who live near an irreplaceable resource, the city would never know until it's too late what is unprotected out there. So go nominate something on their website right now and don't be shy. They'd rather have too many suggestions than too few.