Glendale Wants to Handle Our Hardware

ACCORDING TO A RUMOR at Curbed LA, Lowe's is considering a new location nearby: "I called Glendale Planning... They were happy to report that Lowe's would be building a store at the old Levitz site." The old Levitz site is at 5375 San Fernando Road West. The important word here is "West." This isn't regular San Fernando Road. It's a frontage road on the west side of the tracks. It's 90039, entirely within Los Angeles city limits, part of Atwater Village. So back off, Glendale Planning. It's not our fault your Home Depot might be closing. (Although I can already hear the next NIMBY rallying cry: "Four Lowe's Home Improvement Centers Between Northridge and Pico Rivera Are Too Many!")

Calling All Videographers to Glassell Park!

EVEN IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA, some neighborhoods could use a little more sunshine. Watch this six-minute video to find out how the Glassell Park Neighborhood Council tried to keep a May 15 meeting in the dark - possibly in violation of state law. Scariest quote, both grammatically and in high-falutin' un-American guilty-till-proven-innocent style, from GPNC Chair "Bradley" at the 5:00 mark: "My concern is that if you really had a concern with regard to legalities, as a respect, you would just cut it off automatically until you find out for sure what you can or can't do. But you haven't even done it. You have just continued to tape." As will everyone else, sir, June 5, 7:00pm, and June 19, 7:00pm, at the Glassell Park Community Center, 3750 Verdugo Road. Glassell Park Neighborhood Council 5/15/2007 [youtube.com] New GPNC Board Grossly Violates California State Law [friendsofatwatervillage.org] Naddering GPNC Naybobs Ignore Brown Act [mayorsam.blogspot.com] Glassell Park Neighborhood Council [gparknc.com] P.S. – Perhaps a camera or two at our own Atwater Village Neighborhood Council meetings might prevent the next Atwatergate election scandal.

Thanks, LA, for a Visitastic First Year

'We're Here at the Beautiful Goddam LA River'

RUN-AND-GUN TV HOST Huell Howser gets cleverly spoofed in this six-minute video shot along the LA River in Atwater Village or, as the puppet calls it, "downtown Los Feliz, which means of course The Feliz in Spanish." At the 5:00 mark, reporting from the historic Red Car train mural: "That's a beautiful mural depicting a possible solution to LA's horrendous traffic problem. I don't know about you, but if there's anything that would make me leave this God-forsaken hell hole, it's the traffic." Via LA Observed.

Because the Trees Weren't Enough, Apparently

ANYONE LOSING COUNT? Just this spring we've seen not one but two fires from Griffith Park across the freeway. Now this one hits closer to home: Fire Destroys Dozens of Cars and Vacant Building in Atwater Village - LAFD News & Information - May 27, 2007 - LAFD personnel responded to a Major Emergency Structure Fire near 4602 Brazil Street in Los Angeles. Warehouse Fire Destroys Nearly 60 Cars - CBS 2 Dozens Of New Cars Destroyed In Los Angeles Warehouse Fire - Jalopnik

Heroin for Toddlers

Heroin for Toddlers, originally uploaded by Atwater Village Newbie.

GOOD NEWS IN TIME for Memorial Day Weekend. The city's Griffith Park Recovery blog announces that Shane's Inspiration, a.k.a heroin for toddlers, has re-opened after surviving the recent park fire. This weekend, parents, load 'em up on BBQ and get them to LA's greatest playground. Open in Griffith Park as of May 25, 2007: Autry Museum Bette Davis Picnic Area Bicycle Rental Boy’s Camp (scheduled events only) Crystal Springs Picnic area (scheduled events only) Ferndell south of Red Oak Dr. Ferraro Field Girl's Camp (scheduled events only) Greek Theater (Friday, Saturday, Sunday nights) Griffith Observatory (by shuttle only) Harding Golf Course LA River Bike Path LA Zoo LASUD Magnet School Live Steamers Live Steamers Picnic Area Los Feliz Golf Course Merry Go Round Mineral Wells Picnic Area Park Center Picnic Area Pony Rides Pote Field (scheduled events only) Pump Seven Picnic Areas Ranger Station Riverside Recreation Center Roosevelt Golf Course Shane's Inspiration Sunset Stables (access to Mt. Hollywood Drive only) Trails Cafe Train Rides Travel Town Upper Ferndell Area/Section 9 Wilson Golf Course

Neighborhood's Next $100,000 Car Not Such a Gas Hog

IF YOU SPEND ANY TIME around the corner from our new Starbucks, you see them - the Bentley, the Escalade, the Humvee - parked along Glenfeliz Blvd. While Atwater Village must have its fair share of residents who can afford to leave six-figure vehicles on city streets, the more likely culprits are visitors to the recording studio on the block. And one of them has a new car to pay off. The New York Times automotive blog reveals that Black Eyed Peas member Will.I.Am spent "roughly $100,000 with options" for a Tesla Roadster, the all-electric sports car that zooms to 130 MPH, and zero to 60 MPH in four seconds. He's slated for the 59th Roadster from Tesla's factory, behind George Clooney (8th) and Governor Schwarzenegger (10th). Start ducking into your driveways this fall, as the first round of customers take delivery in October. All Amped Up [nytimes.com] Tesla Roadster [wikipedia.org] ABC News: No Gasoline, Plenty of Juice [freerepublic.com]

Soaking It In

FROM A VALIANT ATTEMPT to define an awkwardly worded new trend, "social spa-ing," in the May 6 LA Times: "With bare feet soaking in a sudsy pedicure tub, Lanzi, an executive with Junior Achievement, is surrounded by his employees, who seemed to be having a good time making fun of the boss's calloused feet. Lanzi, for better or worse, invited the office to Happy Hour Friday at Dtox, a new place to socialize in Atwater Village near Griffith Park. Despite the name, Dtox isn't a bar, or a rehab joint, but a day spa that once a month throws open its treatment room doors to add a social element to massages, facials and pedicures... "Dtox, the eight-month-old spa in Atwater Village, is built around a tropical-feeling central lounge, where men and women flock to the monthly happy hour, pay $39 to $99 to hang out, sip wine and get mini treatments such as pedicures and massages. Together but, thankfully, clothed." For nearly a year our neighborhood spa has been working out east-sider kinks. Let's hope Dtox also worked out some early customer service kinks. Social spa-ing is the new golf [latimes.com] Happy Hour Fridays [dtoxdayspa.com] Dtox Day Spa Reviews [yelp.com]

New in the Blog-LA-Sphere

THE CITY OF LOS ANGELES maintains a helpful Griffith Park Recovery blog, with updates every few days. Sad to see our favorite godson destination, Shane's Inspiration - a.k.a. heroin for toddlers - still closed after the fire. Does anyone know if the playground sustained any damage? Griffith Park Recovery ALSO ADDED: See a great new take on the neighborhood as a New Yorker declares Atwater Village is for Lovers.

Oh You Funny Little Flat Neighbors

THANKS TO BOOSTED capabilities in Google Book Search, we can all enjoy the heavily forward-slashed wit and wisdom of Barbara Bestor's Bohemian Modern: Living in Silver Lake without ponying up full retail. From page 193 in the book's Atwater Village section: "Atwater Village is a funny little flat neighborhood just across from Silver Lake on the other side of the LA River. In the mid-nineties, the Beastie Boys built a recording studio there where they recorded most of Check Your Head. Actually, it was more accurately a recording studio/basketball court/indoor skate park/Mulberry Street style 'private social club...'" And in another nod to our lack of topographic interestingness, page 194 describes Atwater as "a great place to build, with plenty of flat sites and great old buildings set against the concrete-lined, industrial-romantic landscape of the LA River."

All Aboard! Last Day of Red Car to Atwater

THIS BIT OF HISTORY comes from photographer Alan Weeks, snapped more than 50 years ago during the waning moments of Red Car rail service at the Subway Terminal Building (now the fancy Metro 417 apartments), 4th and Hill Streets in downtown Los Angeles. Note the sign on the right pointing to boarding lanes for Edendale (now Echo Park, Silver Lake), Atwater (now Atwater Village), Glendale, North Glendale and Burbank. Also note the sign at left announcing the final day, June 19, 1955, of the Los Angeles-Glendale-Burbank Red Car: "Service will be operated with buses. Rail service will be discontinued. Subway Terminal will be discontinued as a passenger station." And the people rejoiced. Thanks to the Metro Transportation Library and Archive Collection for sending another gem. More historic Red Car maps and photos here.