Hey there, long time no see!
It’s been a while. Though I’ve barely posted here the last few years — owing to laziness, shifting priorities, and living overseas part time — I still log in every few weeks to see recent posts. This thread is an amazing resource, and I’m glad it’s still around. ER, thanks for keeping it going!
It’s too bad the Photobucket images (and some others) have fallen by the wayside, but I think that most of my old contributions will have survived. Some of my hot-linked photos have probably vanished, but my original photos should still be here. (If anyone has noticed otherwise, please let me know and I’ll look into it.)
Besides offering a long overdue hello, I thought I’d post about a little-known place in downtown L.A. that I learned of a while back, and am interested in touring — the Federal Reserve Bank at 950 South Grand. Though I read about this building years ago I never saw it up close until last week, or knew anything about its function. In the last week I’ve tried to educate myself a little:
After a series of financial crises in the early 1900’s, Congress created the “Fed". It regulates money and credit conditions, supervises banks, and provides financial services to government and financial institutions. It also distributes currency to commercial banks, lends to banks, and verifies the authenticity of bank notes received from commercial banks. When the Fed detects a counterfeit note, it's sent to the U.S. Secret Service for investigation.
The Federal Reserve Bank has 12 main district offices, many of which have subsidiaries. The San Francisco district has four, one of which is the L.A. branch on South Grand. A few years ago I learned that it offers public tours to qualified groups. It sounded interesting, and I've long wondered if I could join one of those groups, or organize one by myself. I’m trying to make that happen now for myself and some friends. Out of curiosity, I drove down there last weekend for a look.
The building, on the east side of Grand between 9th and Olympic, is huge. I’m amazed that despite passing that block many times over the years, I never noticed it before. It looks a little like the Twin Towers Correction Facility, and probably has about as much security. Here are two views of the front:
The imposing entrance reminded me of that great Steve Martin line from L.A. Story:
"You know, you're really nobody in L.A. unless you live in a house with a really big door!”
Since I was there on a Sunday the building was sealed and dark inside, but by peeking through the tinted windows I got some interesting views, and a few decent photos. Here’s the foyer beyond the front door (with One Wilshire peeking through from three blocks north).
The stark, futuristic lobby looks like something out of a Kubrick film. Here we see the formidable security system, one of the massive black columns, and a whimsical green sculpture.
This un-subtle, more imposing work dominates the lobby. Why it was chosen and what it suggests about power and the U.S. economy, I leave to the reader.
I’d love to get a closer look at the place. While tours must be very limited in scope, the brief description on their
site sounds intriguing:
"The Fed Gallery: Your Central Bank in Focus is a permanent installation at our Los Angeles Branch that uses interactive technology and vivid graphics to highlight the Federal Reserve’s role in the United States economy. Various displays focus on cash and check operations, bank supervision, and monetary policy. The gallery includes a monetary policy game, a money wheel that asks visitors to identify counterfeit notes, and a currency display featuring historic and rare notes. Visitors will also have a chance to walk through the cash operations area.”
(That cash operations area sounds like the best part!)
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