Downtown Los Angeles: Will it ever become a real vibrant entity? (San Francisco: hotel, theatre)

[CaliDude1]

I was downtown last Saturday for the Prince concert at L.A. Live. It sure seemed pretty vibrant to me. Me and the Mrs. got there early to do a little walking around. I like the changes that have taken place downtown. I remember the 90s and how bad it was down there. It has improved a lot.

It will never be NYC, but then again its not supposed to be. It's Los Angeles. It's our downtown. And I can honestly say I like what it has become. Sure it needs some more work. But it is moving in the right direction, IMO.

[slowbullet]

I grew up near downtown, just off Alvarado and Hoover, in the Pico-Union district, and have lived in, or around DTLA my entire life.

I still live here, and have a place just off skid row, a few blocks from San Julian Park.

I remember it when it was REALLY grimey (for a while my mom and I lived in a hotel off 5th and Spring, and one of the first things I remember about living there was some guy getting thrown out of the window over a drug beef. That was the first time I'd ever seen a dead body close up), early to mid-nineties era the area was a no-go. That has changed dramatically.

There is still a stigma attached to the area though. I think people are moving in, but its a fad. Most of them only stay for about a year, then move on.

[slowbullet]

Originally Posted by nickdahammer

UPDATE:

Took some shots: got to go into the Barclay and Alexandria Hotels, the old Stock Exchange, the Van Nuys Building, Banco Popular, etc.

The Alexandria is the place I was referring to in my last post. That place has CHANGED.

Besides living there when I was a kid, I remember buying acid there, when they'd throw raves there back in the 90's.

[majoun]

Originally Posted by nickdahammer

I agree. It won't be like Istanbul, or Rome, or London either. It is what it is. In fact, my parents moved here from the East precisely because it was NOT like Boston or NYC. Ironically, that is why alot of people ended up here back in the day.

This is true. In fact, that was the reason my grandparents moved to L.A, rather than S.F. - S.F. reminded them too much of back home.

[nickdahammer]

I can only speak for the two people I know who moved downtown a few years ago. One at the Eastern Columbia, the other at the Bartlett. They both bought their homes, and both are still living there with no intention of leaving. In fact, they walk everywhere on the weekends because everything they need is closeby.

I can recall waiting for the bus at 5th and Spring- now THAT was an adventure. Just took a tour of the Alexandria- I couldn't believe the Palm Court was still intact.

Originally Posted by slowbullet

I grew up near downtown, just off Alvarado and Hoover, in the Pico-Union district, and have lived in, or around DTLA my entire life.

I still live here, and have a place just off skid row, a few blocks from San Julian Park.

I remember it when it was REALLY grimey (for a while my mom and I lived in a hotel off 5th and Spring, and one of the first things I remember about living there was some guy getting thrown out of the window over a drug beef. That was the first time I'd ever seen a dead body close up), early to mid-nineties era the area was a no-go. That has changed dramatically.

There is still a stigma attached to the area though. I think people are moving in, but its a fad. Most of them only stay for about a year, then move on.

[chessgeek]

Originally Posted by Sorcerer68

It's really sad that so many Angelenos bash downtown and don't know it at all. Not all of downtown is nasty, some parts are quite antiseptic. It's not all one way.

Answering the question, I think as the years go by it will be more and more difficult to remember downtown as dead and abandoned. The Bring Back Broadway and Red Car plans will unearth a part of Downtown nobody knew existed. I personally go hang out downtown after work, sometimes I just drink coffee in the Bonaventure while reading a newspaper before I shove off. Downtown is climbing on a steep curve. I've always been a fan. As a kid I'd marvel at the gorgeous architecture of the Historic Core but most Those who will help the growth will no doubt be non-Angelenos as it seems to have a stigma with many of us (not me!).

As for the homeless, their services were centralized in an area considered undesirable for a long time. Many Angelenos are insulated against them because of their neighborhoods. Anywhere I go in San Francisco proper or much of NYC, I encounter them, even in the nicest parts of town (not much in Nob Hill or NYC's Upper East Side).

Currently, very slowly, homeless services are being decentralized i.e. away from "Skid Row". Those who know downtown know that the homeless encampment locations of 7 years ago are now deserted and they've been moved east and a little south because of development. A couple years ago, the city got in trouble for using water cannons on them to make them move...something about a human rights violation. We'll see what happens, they've already moved many programs to South Central L.A. and even the Antelope Valley. (Yes, I used to be in social service before I decided to get rich ~ ).

The real thing Downtown needs are more places to go at night. For the longest time it was vibrant during the day and rolled up at night. I don't forsee the gas situation reversing itself at this point and the writing is on the wall...people are trickling out of the burbs, back into the city core.

Downtown will become it's own smaller city with people living and working there. It's already happening. Other surrounding communities will come for business and pleasure. I'm personally looking for a commercial space for a side venture of mine I started back in '02. Clubs, restaurants, cafes and coffee houses are slowly opening. There are now little thriving areas, you have to know where they are to find them.

The Bonaventure Hotel is the one place I would stay in downtown LA. It was the setting for the movie "Nick of Time" as I remember and seemed like it was in a good area and that was 1995. Of course the film makers might have closed off some avenues to the homeless during filming for all I know. I would imagine there are good restaurants there.

[hellostarburst]

EDIT: What I meant to also add was that because of the great qualities LA has, downtown LA will only expand and become a truly vibrant entity. I think it is already pretty vibrant in a legitimate way. I think LA can only improve in this regard.

Downtown LA is only going to become more vibrant because LA itself is an epicenter of talent and there is a unique element of expansiveness that attracts amazing, vibrant people. It is so much more than a giant suburb with some movie stars and Hollywood and smog and beaches like some people pass it off to be. There is a reason authors write about LA so much. It is a magnet for anything larger than life, it is juicy and there is a lot of variety. It is also a world class city and I think that the problems it is having will get better even though California has budget problems. LA is magic, I think there is no place like it. I'm sorry if I sound like an over idealistic tourist, and it is true that I am not a native, but LA has my heart. I think that the downtown area will slowly change for the better. Hopefully it would not be too overrun with hipsters!

[jm1982]

There are already a ton of hipsters in DTLA!...a little too late.
Although it might not be bad as some places i.e Silverlake which is totally infested with them!

Bonaventure is pretty cool. I was just there a couple weeks ago at Bonaventure Brewing. The place feels so different from most hotels. It reminds me more of an airport or a cruise ship in many ways.

This is a super old thread but I would say that DTLA is now pretty much a vibrant entity at least it's come a long way since this thread was started.

[hellostarburst]

Originally Posted by jm1982

There are already a ton of hipsters in DTLA!...a little too late.
Although it might not be bad as some places i.e Silverlake which is totally infested with them!.

Yes you are correct but it is not as bad as some places, lol! Oh well, at least they are doing their thing, they make the otherwise unappealing areas a bit more accessible to others(well, at least they think they do). I wish the hipster crowd would be more about including everyone rather than just inviting their own kind into their little second childhoods they are creating! In the mean time, they help gentrify neighborhoods while they claim to about "culture" and are for the people. Lol, they go into these areas that no one wants to go in the name of culture and only end up paving the way for gentrification. I don't think there is anything wrong with gentrification so long as the area remains accessible to more than a select few, but it's just funny to me. Yeah, anyway, I don't want derail the thread but I think downtown LA will become more vibrant but hopefully not predominantly occupied by hipsters.

[theGreat1]

It's already vibrant again. LA Live, Staples, Grand Avenue, Disney, the Ritz, etc.. I remember back in the 80s and 90s when you couldn't go there without having your car windows busted and being ripped off or being mugged.