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Modernism in our midst: Masterpieces and McMansions
October 13-16 is “Modernism Week October” in Palm Springs, a celebration of the desert city’s history and heritage as a laboratory for modern, mid-century and contemporary design. Really a Modernism weekend, the festivities serve as a warm-up for the fall 2023 Modernism Week from Feb. 16 to 26. The exciting schedule for the October weekend […]
Proposed changes to the Mills Act spark opposition
Recently released recommendations for proposed changes to Mills Act contracts have sparked opposition throughout the preservation community and beneficiaries of Los Angeles’ premier economic incentive program for historic preservation. A recent review of the Mills Act Program by the City of Los Angeles resulted in a series of recommendations, including the controversial proposal of non-renewal […]
As The Ebell approaches 100, a master plan gives guidance
In Hancock Park and Windsor Square and the neighboring communities, few secular institutions can rival The Ebell of Los Angeles in its longevity, community presence and commitment to its original mission. Founded in 1894, the Ebell moved into its current Sumner Hunt-designed Italianate clubhouse on Wilshire and Lucerne boulevards in 1927. For nearly a century, […]
Surviving Dog Days requires recreational water activities
One of my favorite movies, “Sahara,” stars Humphrey Bogart and is about a ragtag tank battalion astray in the vast Libyan Desert during World War II. Bogie plays Sgt. Joe Gunn, whose crew makes a last stand defending a ruined fortress that contains the only well for a hundred miles. Like a Los Angeles summer, […]
Cooperstown-bound Wilshire Warriors need our support
Wilshire Warrior baseball General Manager Stephen Matloff and Head Coach Fred Ragsdale expect their travel team to play 11 games in Cooperstown, New York, this summer. “If we make it to the championship game, we already will have played 10 games,” said Ragsdale. That doesn’t include the pick-up games, sometimes two or three in a […]
Preservation paradox: YIMBYs and Brookside reuse project
It is an annoying and unfortunate reality that the priorities and prejudices of the YIMBY (Yes In My Back Yard) movement are set in the Bay Area, and then they are brought to the statehouse by their champion State Sen. Scott Wiener of San Francisco, who recently in a tweet called for an end to […]
