Making Larchmont even more beautiful, unified and fragrant
THREE PLANTERS together add an eye-catching appeal to the smaller medians. Photo by Romi Cortier
LBA BEAUTIFICATION CHAIR Romi Cortier stands by a possible bench color proposed for Larchmont Boulevard.
Romi Cortier has been tending to flowers and eyeing park benches near and far in his quest to make Larchmont even more beautiful.
It’s a special neighborhood, and its main street deserves a little, or maybe a lot, of TLC, said the chair of the Larchmont Boulevard Association (LBA) Beautification Committee.
Cortier’s plans include sprucing up the Boulevard’s 10 concrete sidewalk planters with colorful drought-tolerant plants and replacing worn wooden benches with French blue, metal ones, starting with one in front of his salon, Romi Cortier Design, at 425 N. Larchmont Blvd..
The 23-year Larchmont business owner and artist (he also has a degree in interior design from UCLA) was inspired to tend to the neglected plants and median strips he saw on his daily rounds in the neighborhood.
Years of rain, trash and the homeless had taken a toll, he said.
The entrepreneur took time away from his style, cut and color appointments at his salon, rolled up his sleeves, and “took the bull by the horns.
“I keep water jugs in my SUV and go around at night and water, clean up the trash and trim the plants.”
His gardener, Virgo Designs and Landscaping, has taken on the project at a cut rate, charging for the cost of materials only. The project got underway on Aug. 19 by amending the cement planters’ soil and replacing poisonous spiky “fire stick” plants with Spanish lavender, asparagus fern, statice and casa blue dianella.
NEW MEDIAN LANDSCAPE, looking north on Larchmont Boulevard.
Medians
The cornflower blue, lavender and white color scheme will continue throughout the Boulevard’s four median strips south of Beverly Boulevard, one large and one small at each crosswalk. (Medians north of Beverly to Melrose Avenue are maintained by the Larchmont Village Neighborhood Association. The medians between First and Third streets are maintained by the Windsor Square Association.)
Tailwaggers is among the businesses that have agreed to water the planters placed near their doors. Flicka, Coldwell Banker and Skin Laundry have also answered the call.
While the larger medians have watering systems, the two smaller center dividers rely on the city’s twice-a-month watering visits. Randomly placed concrete planters have been brought in from the north end of Larchmont to decorate the smaller medians.
“We are creating an installation of three planters per median combined with succulents, gravel and a boulder,” Cortier said.
A virtual image of the proposed design was created by neighbor James Dastoli and was posted on the newly launched Larchmont Boulevard Association Instagram account, helping boost the fund drive.
Cortier has raised the $2,000 needed to pay for the median portion of the beautification project.
Joining in the effort is a host of volunteers, business owners and fellow Beautification Committee members Patricia Lombard and Todd Warner.
Previously, in June, the Larchmont Business Improvement District (BID) paid to repair the sprinkler system in the large median in front of Rite Aid, which had broken in December, possibly due to drivers rolling over the curbs.
SIGNATURE BLUE BENCH and matching trash can are being proposed for Larchmont.
Blue Larchmont
With phase one moving ahead, Cortier is focusing on the next phase. He has teamed up with the BID to install a pilot program of a “legacy bench” with matching dark muted blue (aka French blue) metal trash cans.
Ultimately eight of these Larchmont “signature” benches will be placed on both sides of the Village south of Beverly, with a few narrow, backless benches on upper Larchmont, says Cortier. The existing eight worn wooden benches will be removed.
“They’re desperately in need of being replaced,” Cortier added.
He’s sourced the new street furniture from DuMor.com, the same company that supplies a Beverly Hills park, which is where Cortier was sitting one day when he noticed the manufacturer’s name on the bench, and had a “Eureka!” moment.
Cortier has been surveying public seating near and far, including in Venice on a recent trip to Europe, in his quest to beautify Larchmont.
Larchmont’s Legacy
He’s considering a legacy program to pay for each bench, at a price of about $3,200 per bench, which will include a personalized plaque. “My hope is that several legacy families in the neighborhood will come forward to purchase these in memory of a loved one.”
The benches have a 20-year warranty on the metal and a five-year warranty on the paint. They’re double-coated with primer to resist graffiti and carving.
The new trash and recycling cans would replace the city’s once solar-powered Big Belly cans, which no longer compact the trash, as originally intended.
The pilot program will include one six-foot bench with a third arm in the middle to prevent people from sleeping on the bench, and two, 32-gallon, metal trash cans with open tops. “One for trash, one for recycling,” says Cortier.
“They’ll be placed strategically on the Boulevard for feedback from the community…
“People can see if they like what they see.”
From an unofficial poll of his salon clients, “So far, everybody loves it,” Cortier said.
Cortier, as business representative for the Greater Wilshire Neighborhood Council, is hoping to raise funds for the trash cans from City Council District 13. He and Heather Duffy of the BID hope to tap into the city’s contract to replace 6,000 city trash cans with trash cans from DuMor.
He’s also in talks with Jane Usher of the Greater Wilshire Neighborhood Council Land Use Committee, who has suggested making recommendations to builders about supporting the benches and cans for Boulevard projects.
HUMMINGBIRD image is from an original gouache painting by Romi Cortier.
Market Larchmont
Merchandise from a Market Larchmont campaign coined “the Gardens of Hancock Park” — after the project’s inspiration — is available at Cortier’s salon, Romi Cortier Design, and at the Sunday Larchmont Farmers’ Market. All proceeds are reinvested into the LBA improvement projects.
The merchandise includes hats, mugs and totes. A hummingbird logo, from an original gouache painting by Cortier, was added for the summer season. Area resident June Lockhart-Triolo has donated the graphic design of the products.
Yet to come? There’s a dirt patch by the Rotary Clock Tower where Cortier hopes to trail blooming jasmine along a wall.
“One of my favorite California experiences is the smell of blooming jasmine, day or night.
“Imagine an evening strolling Larchmont under the glow of the overhead lights, then sitting on a beautiful blue bench as the fragrance of jasmine wafts through the air, while sharing a gelato with your significant other under the lavender-colored sky. I hold this vision dear, as I imagine the future of Larchmont.”Visit www.larchmont.com.
To help support the Larchmont Beautification Project financially, reach out to romicortier@me.com.
Category: People