blogdowntown

Big Turnout for First Night of Shuttle Between USC and L.A. Live

Eric Richardson — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 15:26:51 -0800

USC's Song girls perform in front of a double-decker bus brought in for the kickoff of the new shuttle service. Photo by Eric Richardson.

Maybe it was the free pizza, the promise of free movies or the chance to see Pete Carroll, but nearly 1,000 USC students made their way to Figueroa street on Thursday night for the kickoff of shuttle service between the campus and L.A. Live.

USC football coach Pete Carroll, men's basketball coach Kevin O'Neill and women's coach Michael Cooper joined the Laker girls, Song girls and the USC band for the festivities.

Perhaps no one was more excited about the new offering than O'Neill, who lives just across the street from L.A. Live. He said he may just use the new route, which picks up right next door to his offices in the Galen Center, to get back and forth between home and the office.

London-style double-decker buses were brought in for the kickoff, but future nights will be run using USC Transportation's bus fleet.

The service will pick up at The Lab (3500 Figueroa) and 901 Bar (Figueroa and 28th) at USC and next to the Regal Cinemas at L.A. Live. Buses run every half hour between 6pm and 2am on Friday, 2pm to 2am on Saturdays and 4pm to 10pm on Sundays.

By Eric Richardson.

Regional Connector Meetings Kick Off Saturday

Eric Richardson — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:08:46 -0800

A rendering showing how a Regional Connector station might look under 2nd street. Photo by Metro.

Another round of outreach meetings kicks off tomorrow for Metro's Regional Connector, a project proposed to link the Blue Line and Expo Line to the Gold Line and Eastside Extension. Four meetings in the next week offer weekend, daytime and evening time slots.

While the round really kicked off with a Thursday night session in Pasadena, the Downtown meetings get started on Saturday, November 7. The project team will be at the Wurlitzer Building (818 S. Broadway) from 10am to noon.

On Tuesday, November 10, they will be at the Central Library Board Room from noon to 1:30pm, and on Thursday, November 12, the team will be at the Japanese American National Museum from 2 - 3:30pm and 6:30 - 8pm.

The Metro board voted in September to submit the Regional Connector and the Westside subway extension to the Federal government for funding. There is intense debate over how the project will interact with Little Tokyo, however. The community last week asked Metro to reopen study of a fully-underground routing.

By Eric Richardson.

False Alarm: Suspicious Package at 5th and Grand

Eric Richardson with Ed Fuentes — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 12:30:41 -0800

LAPD cruisers block off 5th street at Grand. Photo by Ed Fuentes.

A suspicious shopping cart near U.S. Bank tower led to street closures just before noon, but turned out to be a false alarm.

Rosie Carrillo, a Coffee Bean barista, says it was frightening to be evacuated along with other lunch retail shops on 5th street. She saw the suspicious package, made of a shopping cart with a photo of Obama, a soldier and a cross. "It was neatly stacked next to the bus stop," she said.

blogdowntown followed the incident on twitter, pulling together our own information and reports from readers.

11:03am: Text from Danyul: Report from the field. 5th and grand blocked off by police

11:15am: We send out a tweet: Tip that LAPD has the intersection of 5th and Grand closed off. Anyone know what's up?

11:25am: RT @jfrog: @blogdowntown a suspicious package outside us bank tower (where I work)

11:25am: RT @lainegrace:Suspicious pkg w/ Obama pic / Bible attached, liquids.

11:28am: We update with info from LAPD Central Division Captain Blake Chow: LAPD says the package is a shopping cart, and that bomb squad is enroute.

11:38am: RT @lainegrace: False alarm! It's apparently over, everything reopened. To quote a coworker, "The homeless guy came to pick up his stuff?"

11:40am: We update from the scene: 5th street is the last to clear up. Closed at Hill. Most everything else is reopened.

To stay on top of incidents like this as they happen, follow blogdowntown on twitter.

By Eric Richardson with Ed Fuentes.

Overcrowded Jails Lead to Quick Releases for Illegal Animal Vendors

Ed Fuentes — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 23:46:05 -0800

Robert Ferber, Head of the City Attorney's Animal Protection Unit. Photo by Ed Fuentes.

|VIDEO| A September raid on illegal animal sales in the Fashion District led to ten felony arrests, but overcrowding in Los Angeles' jail system means that those charged have avoided time behind bars and may not ever show up for prosecution.

One month after the raid, blogdowntown caught up with Robert Ferber, Head of the City Attorney's Animal Protection Unit, to get an update on how the cases were progressing.

Ferber said that prosecutors were convinced that bringing felony charges would make a difference in getting the high bail amounts necessary to see the charges through to trial.

Turns out, it didn't work. Bail was set at $20,000, and in Los Angeles those with bails under $25,000 are now released on their own recognizance because of overcrowded jails. Those releases occur without the person charged having to make bail, and often without any legitimate ID being shown.

Ferber said that makes it hard for a justice system to get anything done.

By Ed Fuentes.

Lengthy Closures for Saturday Police Gala

Eric Richardson — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 17:25:46 -0800

Open space at the new Police Administration Building has been closed since October 28 for Saturday's True Blue gala, put on by the Los Angeles Police Foundation. Photo by Eric Richardson.

Saturday evening's True Blue gala at the new Police Administration Building is expected to draw 800 guests, each of whom has contributed at least $500 to the non-profit Los Angeles Police Foundation. Tonight Show host Conan O'Brien will emcee.

It's likely that some Downtowners feel they've given their own mandatory contribution to the festivities. The new public park constructed as part of the headquarters facility has been closed since October 28, as has the linear landscaping along Spring street and sidewalks along both Spring and 2nd.

1st street and Main street will both be closed during the event, as will sidewalks between 1st and Temple. A sign posted on 1st says that the closure will run from 6pm on Friday through noon on Sunday.

During the building's recent opening, City officials touted the new facility's openness to the community.

While few would question the worth of the Police Foundation cause, the duration of the closures raises questions about how the new park space will be handled in the future.

According to the City's Public Way reservation system, the park space is scheduled to reopen on Tuesday, November 10.

By Eric Richardson.

Filming Nodes Proposed for DWP HQ, City Hall and 650 S. Spring

Eric Richardson — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 14:31:24 -0800

A June 2008 shoot for "Criminal Minds" takes place at the intersection of 6th and Spring, near one of the proposed utility nodes. Photo by Eric Richardson.

A three-site pilot of "infrastructure nodes" to provide power for filming sites and base camps could be in operation by February of 2010, four years after the idea was first introduced at City Council. In the process, the estimated cost per site has ballooned.

The concept of the nodes is to provide points where film crews can plug in to get utility power, reducing their dependency on generators. That makes shoots greener, and the reduction in diesel exhaust is intended to make them better neighbors in an increasingly residential Downtown.

The nodes were first proposed by Plasmatic Concepts in a 2005 report on the future of Downtown filming, and Councilwoman Jan Perry introduced a motion asking the Department of Water and Power to study the concept in early 2006.

On Tuesday, Wayne Hinkson of DWP told the Council's Jobs and Business committee that the three sites have been selected, and that implementation talks are underway. Nodes would be placed at DWP's Bunker Hill headquarters, City Hall and in a parking lot next to 650 S. Spring.

The block bounded by 6th, 7th, Spring and Main is one of the most heavily used sites for filming operations. FilmL.A. reports that ten production companies have shot 15 days on the 600 block of Spring since July 1.

The lobby of the former Bank of America building at 650 S. Spring is frequently used for shoots, and a surface parking lot on the corner of 6th and Main is one of the few lots in the area large enough to hold base camps.

Hinkson told the committee that each node would cost $70,000 to $80,000, up from an estimate of $2,500 to $20,000 the department gave in 2006. DWP is trying to get community redevelopment funds or money from the Air Quality Management District to pay for the installations.

As the concept has been refined, the size of the nodes has also become an issue. Geoffry Smith of FilmL.A. characterized them as "executive desk" sized units, and said that the bulk means the nodes won't be going in on every corner.

Concerns have been raised that the installation of the nodes would lead to a rise in filming frequency on the surrounding blocks. Smith doesn't see that happening. "You're not going to go to a location because it's got a power node," he said.

By Eric Richardson.

Red You R Dead Opens Fixed Gear Showroom in the Fashion District

Eric Richardson — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 18:41:28 -0800

Blake Coburn and Patrick Winget of Red You R Dead. The fixed gear bike brand opened a showroom at 9th and Main this week. Photo by Eric Richardson.

A new showroom at the corner of 9th and Main may be trendy, but it isn't selling fashion. Fixed gear track bike brand Red You R Dead has had an office in the building at 112 W. 9th for more than a year, but this weekend moved into a corner piece of ground floor retail space to show off their custom-designed bikes.

The company was started by Blake Coburn and Patrick Winget a little over two years ago. They started out by taking old bikes and doing one-off fixed gear conversions, but soon got the itch to produce their own designs.

After trips to Asia to meet with manufacturers and tour plants, the pair settled on a company in Taiwan to produce the Masher, their first custom model.

Most distinctive is the color scheme chosen for the steel frame bike: white with red trim. Don't worry if that's not to your taste, custom powder coating is only a $26 extra.

Noteworthy is the setup's 650cc front wheel, which is paired with a larger 700cc on the back. The smaller front is popular with those who are into tricks.

Bikes start at $600 and can run up to $1200 with options. Some accessories are available, but don't expect to see a repair stand.

Red You R Dead / 112 W. 9th / 213-622-4122

Photo Gallery

By Eric Richardson.

What Makes a Film Location Unfriendly?

Eric Richardson — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 15:29:07 -0800

A 2005 shoot at the Farmer's and Merchants Bank, one of the ten locations identified in the "hardest to film" list. Photo by jim Winstead.

Two days after the City released a report listing Los Angeles' ten "hardest to film" locations -- six of which are located Downtown -- it is clear that the document has raised more questions than answers.

One thing that did become obvious at a Tuesday afternoon meeting of the Jobs and Business committee is that much of the issue revolves around money.

Representatives for several of the properties on the list appeared before the committee to express their surprise and confusion at being included.

Beverly Kenworthy, Public Policy Manager for the L.A. Area Chamber of Commerce, noted that one of the organization's priorities is keeping filming in Los Angeles and that its headquarters -- which has hosted multiple shoots in 2009 -- showed up on the top ten list. "We sort of question the whole methodology of this," said Kenworthy.

The Chamber is one of five properties on the list represented by Hollywood Locations. Peter Brosnan, a Senior V.P. at the company, told the committee that his company was formed in the 1980s because of the difficulty filming Downtown. The company also helped develop L.A. Center Studios, a filming and office facility located just west of the 110 freeway.

"We'd like to think that we were at least partially responsible for making the city and the Downtown area much more film friendly," said Brosnan.

So why then did so many of the company's locations end up on the list?

Brosnan thinks it comes down to the location fees charged. He said that he's willing to look at any specific complaints, but that his business is to look out for his clients.

"When I am employed by a property owner, I have the fiduciary obligation to negotiate on their behalf," he told the committee. "I can't come in and say 'Will you take as little as possible?'"

"'Expensive' does not automatically mean a property is 'difficult,'" Brosnan told blogdowntown via email after the meeting. "I think those words conjure up two very different perceptions and a distinction needs to be made in that area before a bulk list like this is put out to the public."

To location managers, those two words may be more synonymous. "The cost of filming Downtown for a lot of these companies has risen from $30,000 a day to $80,000 a day," said Ed Duffy of Teamsters Local 399. "Different shows have left town because they can't shoot Downtown because it's too expensive."

The committee asked FilmL.A. to produce a report on the fees charged by various locations, but it is unclear how feasible such a document really is. Buildings often guard the specifics of their contracts with shoots, and neither they nor the film industry is too eager to see those numbers published.

During a discussion of the report, Duffy jumped up to caution Councilmembers Richard Alarcon and Bernard Parks that a list of rates might have the opposite effect of what is intended. "Some of the buildings are quite expensive," he said. "If other buildings decide to charge the same amount ... we have to be a little careful, that's all."

FilmL.A. was also asked to report quarterly on the top ten list and efforts being made to make the facilities easier for filming. "We're going to need some more direction on that one," said Todd Lindgren, V.P. of Communications for the non-profit, which coordinates permitting for the City.

While FilmL.A. works closely with City departments on filming issues, there is little it can do when it comes to private property. "We're not in a position to compel a private property owner to reduce his rates," said Lindgren.

By Eric Richardson.