To save vacant historic buildings, be the squeaky wheel
I recently drove by 304 S. Plymouth Blvd., a house whose fate I have closely followed and have written two articles about in this paper. For years the house sat forlorn and vacant, a target for vandals and transients, until work began to greatly expand and restore the house according to plans approved in 2021. The house is still under construction, and work has seemed to slow of late, but what was alarming was that the front door was wide open and the property only secured with a tired and sagging chain-link fence. History and experience have shown that while a historic structure under restoration is extremely vulnerable, a historic structure that is vacant is an active target.
I have been following the issue of vacancy regarding historic structures for some time, but it has become particularly urgent for me following the destruction by fire of the Hollywood Center Motel earlier this year, a site that I had nominated for Historic Cultural Monument designation. That property was also left vacant and unsecured making it a magnet for squatters who were ultimately responsible for burning it down. This was not the only fire to claim a historic structure under similar circumstances this year.
In April the former Philips Hotel on Beverly Boulevard and Vermont Avenue burned and has now been demolished. Historic houses have burned from Hollywood to Westlake to our own community such as the houses at
WORK HAS FINALLY BEGUN at this historic home on Plymouth Boulevard, which for years was an active target of vandalism.
509 and 513 St. Andrews Pl., which burned in March of this year.
Sadly, this reflects the state of our city, which, unable to fund itself and perform its services in an inefficient manner, and unwilling to enforce its own laws, is seeing the destruction of its architectural heritage. The city is not without options. It is illegal for property owners to leave vacant buildings unsecured.
Through the Chronic Nuisance Ordinance, Los Angeles Municpal Code §41.58.1, the city can fine negligent property owners and even demolish properties that are considered nuisances (which is not the solution for historic buildings, as is sometimes the aim of the owner). It can also secure the property itself and put a lien on the property for costs or force the owner to commit to a security plan under threat of further fines and even criminal penalties. Unfortunately, such actions are rare, and the city prefers to try to compel compliance which often takes a long time and makes fires more likely.
What does work however is the squeaky wheel. L.A. residents are armed with such tools as MyLA 311, which allows anyone to file a complaint about an unsecured vacant building. The Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety (LADBS) also allows you to report building violations online, as does the L.A. Housing Department, and the police department can respond to illegal activity at a property. Your most powerful arm of government, your local council office, also can take reports and complaints, which adds weight when requests are passed through their office to the relevant departments. The more complaints coming from multiple residents, multiple offices, agencies, and departments helps keep the focus on a problem property and increases the likelihood of action.
As with many other issues of concern in our great city, when we act as citizens and organize our neighbors and others concerned about an issue, we can make things happen. We don’t have to let our architectural heritage burn. So be the solution—be the squeaky wheel.
Category: Real Estate
