The rebirth of downtown LA's old historic buildings
The Adaptive Reuse Ordinance has become one of the most significant incentives related to historic preservation in Los Angeles, facilitating the conversion of dozens of historic and under-utilized structures into new housing units. The Ordinance was originally approved in 1999 for downtown Los Angeles and was extended into other neighborhoods of the city in 2003. It provides for an expedited approval process and ensures that older and historic buildings are not subjected to the same zoning and code requirements that apply to new construction. The result has been the creation of several thousand new housing units, with thousands more in the development pipeline, demonstrating that historic preservation can serve as a powerful engine for economic revitalization and the creation of new housing supply. Here are some beautiful examples of the Ordinance working in DTLA. Many of these buildings shown sat abandoned for decades. United Artist Theater and Ace Hotel
The Tower Theater under meticulous renovations to become a Flagship Apple store. Next door, apartments above, Vans flagship store on ground level which opens next month. To the right of Vans, the once abandoned Rialto Theater was renovated into an Urban Outfitters store.
Commercial and Exchange Bldg left abandoned for decades is now the Freehand Hotel with rooftop bar and pool. In fact this entire block was left for dead for so long.
This was one of the worst eyesores in DTLA. The former Bank Of Italy Giannini Place bldg sat empty and abandoned for nearly 2 decades. This eyesore sat in the heart of DTLA at 7th and Olive Streets. Now it is the beautiful NoMad Hotel and is probably my favorite restored downtown building.
and more beauties
The Guarantee and Trust Company Bldg opened in 1930 as an office bldg.
Today it's lofts.
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"The destructive effects of automobiles are much less a cause than a symptom of our incompetence at city building" - Jane Jacobs 1961ish
Great photos of some amazing buildings. You guys are lucky to have a fully renovated United Artists Building. Ours is being turned into apartments, but the auditorium, which is very similar to the Los Angeles UA, is being demolished.
Cool photos. Ever look at the LA Noir photopages? Old Downtown before this old Downtown didnt have many of the same buildings. Many were demolished for unwant or neglect or earthquake damage. Some were really handsome looking buildings. It would have been great to have kept some of the best ones but sadly they are not longer with LA.
I started exploring DTLA as a teenager in 1990 when the Red Line was under construction and at that time basically anything east of Hill Street was kind of a no-go zone. I actually got punched in the back of the head at about 5th and Broadway for apparently crossing the path of a really friendly homeless guy. Also stumbled across the aftermath of a drive-by at a gas station in South Park around the same time. All of these things obviously still happen today, but what you see now walking around are families. That's hugely important in terms of the redevelopment of the city. Bunker Hill still feels largely the same (though with a bit more pedestrian traffic), and South Park is basically another planet in comparison to then.
The changes in the past 30 years (hell, in the last 15) have been nothing short of staggering.
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For the language we use
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