Recentering El Pueblo

More Bar Removal

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Mon, 12 May 2008 14:45:00 +0000

Hunter Ochs rang, "I read the blog entry about bar removal (Gone in 20 Minutes), and it sounded fun--particularly the part about the taqueria."

"It isn't fun," I countered, "it's a freshet of hot sparks, flakes of metal, and paint--hard, dirty work....I'll call Josh, we'll be right over."

I'm asked repeatedly about the presence of security bars in West Adams. Mostly, they're a vestige of an earlier, more fearful time, beginning with the 'defensible spaces' discourse of the 1970's. Form follows fear. These bars were installed at least two owners ago, prior to 1990.

A few concerned homeowners go beyond window bars, utilizing alienated poochies, razor wire, alarm systems, even protection from a higher power. Statues of the Virgin Mary, housed in plexiglass trophy cases or in a spotlit niche.

Still, security bars are as often removed today in southern Mid-City as installed. Frequently the catalyst for bar removal is the simple need to paint. After the purge, some residents initially feel a bit exposed, even vulnerable, though usually such feelings are short-lived. Most later indicate a greater sense of engagement and connectedness with the exterior.

Many homeowners remove their security grilles an exposure at a time--an audition of sorts, beginning in the front, and ending in the rear.

The holes left by the bolts can be filled with wood dowels, chiseled, filled, and sanded flush.

Manufacturers seek to make these impregnations more decorative, like wrought iron rather than mild steel, with ridiculous curly ques, spears, finials, and twists.

Rather like trying to make a silk purse of a sow's ear.

2241 and 1/2 W. 24th ST

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sun, 11 May 2008 14:58:00 +0000

Today's open: 2 - 5 pm.

Things wrong with 2241 and 1/2 W. 24th ST:

1. There isn't a lot of work to do.
Admittedly, the major systems (electric, plumbing, roof, heating/cooling) all have been replaced, floors have been refinished, most appliances and fixtures are new.

2. It's a bad house for an exhibitionist.
Granted, the setting is very private, positioned in the rear of a deep lot, nearly hidden from the street.

3. The kitchen is too big.
Buyers looking for a narrow galley-style kitchen might be deterred by an eat-in workspace greater than 200 square feet.

4. It's under priced.
Offered at $489,000 it is the least expensive house in either Kinney or Western Heights, the two neighborhoods that straddle the 10 freeway, between Arlington and Western.

5. The lot is worthy of animals, consumed by greenery.
I concede.

Clinkers, Tifals,...Clifals!

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Mon, 05 May 2008 16:16:00 +0000

Sometimes clients inspire these entries, so when David & Gisa bought 2881 W. 15th ST (no, not 2892 W. 15th ST), they asked about their clinker brick porch, and I began to recount details of my post on Clinker Brick (see The Brick Pile 2/24/07).

"But really," I advised, "your porch combines clinker brick and stone, which is referred to as Peanut Brittle or Brickle."

"And are there many other examples of this," they asked, doubtless trying to spur a blog entry, mad picture taking, and some fossil fuel usage.

"More chimneys than porches," I responded coyly, "but there is one block--not far from here, with the greatest array of Arts & Crafts era masonry porches anywhere in the Southland."
"Here in West Adams," they asked taking the bait.
"No."
"In Pasadena," Gisa inquired, whilst David slyly abstained. My head fanned slowly back and forth.
"In Echo Park or Hollywood," she questioned, with slight irritation but growing intrigue.
"No," I answered finally, "in the Tifal Brothers Tract, the 600 block of East 52nd Place."

"The Tifal Brothers?"

Omniscient voice (is this to what 'heteroglossia' refers?): The Tifal brothers, Charles, Gustav, and William were designers and builders, immigrants from Posen of the then German Republic, who constructed over 350 bungalows in Los Angeles and another 100 in Monrovia where they were based, and where their work is most celebrated.

Charles Tifal (later partnered with Ralph Hurlburt) also had a long career (which included work in a range of styles) in San Diego where he is recognized by the Historical Resources Board as a Master Builder.

The Tifal Bros. Tract features examples of River Rock or Arroyo Stone porches, glazed bricks, Brickle, Tapestry (or multi-colored) Brick, and brick work laid in a seemingly chaotic, bond-less fashion, called Eccentric Brickwork.

The 600 block of E. 52nd Place is located between Avalon and McKinley.

********************************
Tuesday's Open: 2892 W. 15th ST 11 am - 2 pm

Saturday

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sat, 03 May 2008 14:59:00 +0000

Sunday schedule: 2892 W. 15th ST.
Open 2 - 5 pm

This might be my final Sunday open for this property, given the high interest level and anticipated offers.

The Devil's in the Thingee Part 3

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Fri, 02 May 2008 07:52:00 +0000

My parlor games failed, the bait was left to age and molder, a psychological gambit gone belly up.

Yeah, I got more pictures to share of the minutiae turned mania (even if y'all didn't come asking): criss-cross apple sauce, er bargeboards (please see earlier installments). Including our first single story participant (see above).

How about our first front gable/rear gable matched set (see opposite).

I think I've finally worked through this--whatever it is, and now I'm ready to obsess some more about the Stick style, broke down cars, serpentine bath fixtures--you know, the day in/day out stuff.

More Ads 4

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Thu, 01 May 2008 18:15:00 +0000

More Ads from 1907. (See original entry on 1/27/2007, or subequent entries in March, 2007)

See bottom classified. The 4-room Modern Cottage at 1565 E. 52ND (ST.) is gone. An unremarkable box sits in its place, tacked together in 1962.

Meanwhile, the (equally) Modern 8-room house (second ad from the top) still shines despite alterations. The shade trees can be seen in rear, though not the barn. 1140 East Adams today (below).

Tuesday, April 29th

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 16:43:00 +0000

Tuesday, April 29th.

I'm holding open 2892 W. 15st ST today from 11 am - 3 pm, and from 6 - 7:30 pm.

Gone in 20 Minutes

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 16:28:00 +0000

Josh Berman continues full throttle on his restoration rampage. First he removed the asbestos siding from his Craftsman Bungalow (see Before and Just After, 3/4/08), next he began to strip moldings and casings (of paint). Saturday, he recruited me to help remove his front (so-called) security door. I issued my terms of engagement, "I'll need a grinder, extension cord, two cut-off wheels, and a take out order from the taqueria on Jefferson."

These metal doors are generally installed with one-way screws, impossible to back out even with bit and gun. My technique is to grind the screw heads off and then using a very large carpenter pull (see image left), twist them out. Ultimately we were able to tip the entire door construct (rigid frame and all) forward and off.

The recojedores, hip to the scrap resale opportunity, loitered just beyond the work scene, buzzard-like, puzzled--though not the least bit distracted, nor made introspective--by our bourgeoisie obsession with things pretty.

Once the grinder emerges, it's hard to holster. With missionary zeal, we sought to eradicate other blight. Neighbor Kathleen beckoned, "you can cut off my window bars, I'm tired of the penitentiary look."
"Ok," Josh commanded, "we'll need an extension cord, two cut-off wheels, and a take out order from the taqueria on Jefferson."

Timeless Craftsman

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 14:28:00 +0000

Craftsman masterwork designed by celebrated architect Frank M. Tyler in 1908. Maintained with supreme respect, boasting system upgrades, and timeless liveability. Like the best of Tyler's work, the house enjoys an unimpeded, light-optimizing layout, loaded with bay and bow windows, and a plethora of sought-after details including numerous storage-rich built-ins, beamed ceilings, and leaded glass. The living spaces, which include a bonus music room, are grounded by full, seductive woodwork, classic Arts & Crafts hues, and superb appointments. Bedrooms stress separation, comfort, and an airy radiance. The secluded backyard boasts numerous environments, delightful hardscaping, and mature trees. Advantageously nestled between midtown and downtown, in the acclaimed Harvard Heights Historic Preservation Overlay Zone, in greater West Adams. Mills Act eligible.

2892 W. 15th Street, Los Angeles CA 90006
4 bedrooms, 2 baths
2,644 sq. feet
year built: 1908
lot size 48 X 125
lot area 6,011
$759,000

Open Sunday, April 27th 2 - 5 pm
Open Tuesday, April 29th 11 am - 3 pm and 6 - 7:30 pm

The Fast and the Photographic

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 02:57:00 +0000

I was racing down Hauser when this apartment building caused the breaks on my truck to lock. Since I don't know how to do the Toyko Drift, I instead settled for a tire shredding screetch, and poorly composed photo.

I dub thee 'the Minaret Parapet', I announced to a few startled neighbors, one of whom wet her finger in order to write my plate number on a dirty car door. "Would you prefer the Deco drip," I bellowed as I sped away.

Most are suspicious of my picture taking. Some ask if I'm an appraiser. Few believe in my fandom. In East Adams, a woman yelled from her door, "Why are you taking a picture of my house?"
"It's a fantastic house, " I responded.
"Why are you taking a picture of it then?" she continued.

Many are concerned that I'm trying to capture their likeness, perhaps for deportation purposes. "I'm photographing turrets," I'll offer disarmingly (then show other images in the camera memory). Sometimes I tender my card, in a gesture people accept as legitimizing. "If you'd ever feel comfortable letting me in, I'd love to see the interior," I've asked.

One man responded, "Nobody gets in, not even mama."
"When was the last time somebody got in?" I inquired smiling.
"I lets the cable guy in," he returned, without a trace of humor, "he don't stay long."

Your Wish is My Command

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 16:45:00 +0000

Three photos, and I'll post more before Sunday.
Thanks as always for the interest.

I love that anonymous person, they write all the time!

Yes, that is an original etched glass light fixture in the living room, with beam lights to boot.

2892 W. 15th ST

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 15:58:00 +0000

Come see what it looks like 100 years later
I'll be open today 11-2:30 and Sunday 2-5

4 bedrooms, 2 baths
2,644 square feet
Year built: 1908
lot size 48 X 125
lot area 6011
Offered at $759,000

Splitting Hairs

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 15:30:00 +0000

Another image from 2314 Maple Ave, in the fabulous Garey tract (much of which was lost in the construction of the Santee Education Complex).

The doors, most of which endure, are of the lovely raised panel variety, sporting the positively rare dual-bevel (see image left).

More rarities, and more examples of one of my favorite exotic revival styles in Atwater Village.

My favorite street in Atwater is Brunswick, in particular the 3700 block, chock full of fanciful ecletics. (Please see past entries on the Egyptian Revival style: 3/15/2007, 9/10/2007.)

Never had I seen a porte cochere, or reference to, associated with the style, until I glimpsed this heavyweight (also located on Brunswick). Worth noting as well is the orientation of the front door.

I asked an architectural historian the difference between a porte cochere and a car port. "There's no difference dummy," the historian chided, "porte cochere is car port in French."
"But isn't a porte cochere," I regrouped, " a cover for a drive-through entrance, en route to a garage--or carport?"
He rolled his eyes, "you're splitting hairs blog boy."
I pounded my fist in mock theatrics, "my readers need to know!"

Sunday's Open: 2035 W. 29th Place 2 - 5 pm
Tuesday's Open: 2892 W. 15th ST 11 - 2:30 pm (Profile coming Monday)

Night at the Museum

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 16:46:00 +0000

Sometimes paint colors, the crowning touch in many restorations or remodels, endures a drawn-out coronation. Half-painted walls languish for months, swatches taped in the corners of rooms, sample after sample brushed over stark white primer.

I generally recommend to the color choice challenged (or CCC), manufacturers with historic palettes (Sherwin Williams and Benjamin Moore, amongst others); or, a little reconnaissance--at the museum! What a testing ground: lots of walls, rooms with mostly hardwood floors, different appointments, and frequently mixed (color temperature) lighting.

According to Louis Marchesano, a curator at the Getty Research Institute, the choice of color is made by either the designer or the curator, and is usually a stock color widely available. "I've even thought we should include a color attribution in our exhibition materials," says Marchesano, "though the designers keep a complete record of all the materials used."

Some of the juxtapositions are so unexpected, they're inspiring. It isn't a canvas I want to paint after visiting the Fragonard show--it's my bedroom.

2035 W. 29th Place

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 15:36:00 +0000

Detail-rich, restoration-worthy, Craftsman Bungalow on highly coveted block in Northeast Jefferson Park. Unusually spacious, with primary suite addition, and joyously complex facade. Ample lot is dotted with versatile outbuildings, play space, and landscape opportunities.

3 bedrooms, 2 baths, 1,584 square feet, 6,200 square foot lot

2035 W. 29th Place 90018

$549,900.00

Central heat & air.
Upgraded electrical panel.
Zoned R-1.
Celebrated Nosy Eye block club.
Situated in an upcoming HPOZ

Open Sunday, April 13th 2 - 5 pm.

*****************************
I'll likely write more about this listing this week, and hold it open next Sunday as well.

Chair

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 23:51:00 +0000

Open House, Sunday, April 13th 2035 W. 29th Place 2 - 5 pm.
Tomorrow I'll profile the property with pictures and vitals.

The High Road to Eagle Rock (Part 2)

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 18:51:00 +0000

So that parapet-ed thing up the hill, turned out to be a rather institutional-looking Mission Revival, built by Joseph Cather Newsom in 1907.

Remarkably plain even for this often simplified building form. Particularly given its architect, one of the kings of Queen Annes.

A Newsom house is for sale (and they aren't often), at ground zero, 3115 W. Adams Boulevard (at Arlington). The property (pictured below) has been described as Italian Gothic, and is known locally as the Elegant Manor. The Elegant Manor, a should-be iconic residence, originally the Fitzgerald House (1903), has a rather colorful recent history, is in need of intensive restoration, and is asking $1.9 million.

The larger than large clinker brick chimney, with the arched window through, is the house's most regaling feature.

Porcelain Pursuit Part One

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 22:25:00 +0000

With each passing year, it becomes harder to find the good stuff, intact pre-war plumbing, particularly toilets.

My lookout is constant, and often I'm aided by tipsters. A.J. called about a sink in a dumpster, Katie about a deco toilet on Craig's List.

Recently I gleamed a rare cast iron tank (pictured left with bowl). Cast iron tanks were cheaper and once more plentiful (than their porcelain counterpart). Many however were scrapped during WWII, or in more recent times, and are often passed over, even by vintage plumbing restorers, because of the costs associated with refinishing the tank interior.

The majority of the commodes that end up on the street, are cruddy, thin-walled, first gen no-flows. In 1994 federal law created a new toilet manufacturing standard and a 1.6 gpf (gallons per flush) decree. Correspondingly, municipalities began to incentivize, or mandate (at the time of real property sale) the replacement of older, larger tanks. Of course, nearly all pre-war toilets can be retrofitted with a smaller liner, some were already more efficient, and most were plain ol' better operating. No matter, they got tossed; however, many of the low-flos were poor performing, with flimsy flapper valves, and...voila. Last year the EPA released a voluntary 1.28 gpf specification for high efficiency toilets. Manufacturers that meet the voluntary standard can display a Water Sense logo.

Planned obsolescence has found its camouflage: conservation.

2314 Maple Avenue

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 23:57:00 +0000

1890's quadruplex with bold street presence on dynamic, mixed-use corridor. Huge rental upside, with unique floorplans, and one vacancy at close of escrow. Walking distance to Metro Blue Line, Trade Tech, and Garment District. Substantial off-street parking, including two-car garage. Sold AS-IS, a Short Sale, subject to lender approval. Shown by appointment with 24 hour notice. $350,000.00

Off the script:

The units rent for $600 a piece.
The building has severe deferred maintenance, but is excitingly intact with a full complement of mouldings. The property features only two gas & electric meters, likely was designed as a duplex, and might be returned to that layout without wholesale reconfiguration. The living area, according to public records, totals 2,088 square feet, but is clearly considerably larger. The lot size is 5,009.

This section of Maple Avenue is two lanes, with a classic 19th century neighborhood feel, shallow set-backs, and an immediate but not overbold sidewalk vibe. Because of its Short Sale status, the price is possibly flexible, though the buyer may need to allow for a lender's response time.

The High Road to Eagle Rock

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 21:26:00 +0000

Wishing to alter my route to and fro the Genevieve listing (see below), I forsook Figueroa for Avenue 64, into Pasadena, where a pair of marvelous buildings, quite nearly neighbors, rest.

Above, Church of the Angels (1889), a mouth gaping example of the Richardsonian Romanesque style, largely authored by architect Ernest Coxhead, best known for his visionary work in San Francisco. Coxhead, an Englishman, lived in Los Angeles for about three years, contributing to 25 or so projects, few of which survive.

Romantic eclectic! Were it a mansard roof, I'd call it Second Empire. Otherwise a Queen Anne-Italianate is probably the most accurate description.

Astonishingly the cornices are bare, particularly given the elaborated side brackets on the porch support columns. My guess, something's gone missing.

Stark and severe, forbidding, rivaled only by works of the Folk-Gothic or Neo-Brutal. Alienation, coolness, sangfroid, the ideological viscera dominating modernism isn't only a modernist conception beholden to the techno rapture, it's 19th century representin' on Avenue 64.

Wait, what is that on the hill? Check out the shaped parapet. Gotta go!

About the Genevieve listing, I've dropped the price to $449,000, which makes it a short sale. If one is interested, please saddle up your patience, as lenders don't always respond quickly. Still, it'd be a challenge to find a better condition house in the area for less.

Shown often by appointment, see earlier entries more more photos and description.

The Devil's in the Thingee Part 2

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 00:31:00 +0000

More criss-cross fascia boards, and you thunk it an obscure builder's folly. Not so, an obscure blog writer's folly perhaps.....

We gotcha long tips.

We gotcha teensy-weensy tips, or ends.

We gotcha walk-outs and bays, Tudor details and extra stickwork, the panoply of Craftsman expression.

Does this qualify as another example of faux joinery*? Arguably, since one piece is merely butt jointed (a technique whereby two pieces are joined simply by butting together), rather than cross-keyed, a more exacting technique exhibited in some mission furniture of the time.

*see the archive for postings on beam ends, etc.

Don't make me drop a part 3 on you fools.

E-Bay

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 05:20:00 +0000

E-bay is a great source for old house parts. Metal hardware, light fixtures, even stained glass windows are regularly listed and can sometimes be had for modest sums. Search keywords like vintage, antique, or Victorian, will regularly generate items, and many old housenicks run a battery of searches weekly. One enthusiast enters six different iterations of the keyword Handel, including misspellings.

If you bid regularly, or focus narrowly, you may develop an e-bay rivalry. One neighbor's pursuit of Carnival glass shades wrought frequent bidding wars with a username Gottahaveit43.
I routinely face a battery of rivals in my pursuit of Victorian sanitary magnificence including Plumbher, Vintageplumbing, and Sinkorswim.

Many frequent bidders use Auction Sniper, a service whereby a predetermined bid is entered seconds shy. There's a vigorish of course, typically 1% of the winning total.

Dodgy types lurk, so many buyers deal only with those sellers who've high feedback totals. In one supposed case, a bogus dealer posted photos of deluxe items taken on a house tour.

Getting outbid on one-of-a-kind articles can be a slight bummer, but nothing compared to the conferee of damaged goods. No matter the insulating properties of cardboard, stryafoam peanuts, or bubble wrap, the sickly rattle of inadequately swaddled glass, pulverized terra cotta, or severed porcelain quills, is insuperable.

Sometimes I feel a bit like a looter, raiding depressed steel towns, divesting the Piedmont South, and the architectural carcass of everyslum USA. Once, guiltily, I asked a seller in Detroit, from whence an item had come. "Palo Alto," he responded, "I had a dotcom venture in the late '90's."

Of course there's also Craig's List.......

Stick Style!

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 14:24:00 +0000

Los Angeles boasts few examples of the Stick Style (previously featured in Architectural Musings), a transitional style which links the preceding Gothic revival with the subsequent, crowd pleasing Queen Anne. That's partly a by-product of the age of L.A.'s built environment (the Stick style was largely cast aside by the 1890's), and the lukewarm popularity of the style itself, less favored than the contemporaneous Italianate and Second Empire building types.

While restoration idol Roland Souza hacks through the deferred maintenance undergrowth on his Stick re-do at 24th ST., this treasure (near Main & 23rd) warrants equal measure.

The signature touch is the siding applied in varying directions and the picket-fence pattern which forms a band at the base of the gable.

The Southland's best known Stick Style building may be the Point Fermin Lighthouse in San Pedro (1874) or the Sherman-Gilbert house (see photo left), with trademark tower in San Diego's Heritage Park.

Signs on Trees Part 2

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 11:01:00 +0000

Another installation from the writer of scripture (see Signs on Trees), banishing demons, and enlisting serpents, on a bold, red field. This posting, contrary to form, wasn't coupled with a Spanish language equivalent.

A re-sale solicitation for infant formula? Some kind of WIC/black market scheme, I'd guess.

Billings are more common along commercial corridors and are especially plentiful in the "sewing machine district" South of Washington, East of the Harbor Fwy.

I'm interested mostly in the hand-written. This creation was jacketed in Saran wrap.

Notices for plomeros, often stenciled, are frequent. Sometimes a phone number is given with the four number suffix broken in half (for example 213-733-76-58).
I asked one plumber about his marketing plan.
"Escrimas (fences), " he laughed.
"De cadena (of chain), I responded, knowing not at all how to say chain link.
"Mostly," he replied in unaccented English.

Boarding Houses

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sun, 16 Mar 2008 15:43:00 +0000

An ordinary dwelling house in Harvard Heights is being marketed as 15 bedrooms. In Pico Heights a lodging-house is shared by 35, with beds doing double-duty, sheets never sharp, as day sleepers succeed day laborers. Another property in Angelus Vista rents 22 rooms.

"Higher density is good," coo the smart growth sect. Still, is this what they had in mind? In some Los Angeles neighborhoods, hyper extended families and passels of unrelated individuals are serried into detached single family housing like passengers on the Chiyoda line.

The California Code of Regulations, which includes the 1991 Uniform Housing Code, contains residential occupancy standards. A home must have at least one room of 120 square feet. Additional rooms must be at least 70 square feet. Two people may occupy a room, and for each additional 50 square feet, so may another (occupy). The Code does not distinguish between a bedroom, living room, dining room, or kitchen. All rooms can be used for sleeping except bathrooms, hallways, closets, and stairwells.

Reads a bit loosey goosey, eh? Still some affordable housing advocates protest stricter limits, with claims of increased homelessness and market impenetrability.

Who's minding the store? I've seen sleeping arrangements in hallways, once on a staircase landing, and in closets (mostly children in large closets). Recently, I toured a property on Maple wherein four shared a bedroom with miniature doberman pinschers. Hanging from the ceiling, a heavy glass chandelier was coated with dust thick enough to resemble fur. I never discovered how many bedrooms the house contained, false walls had been built, dividing public rooms and even other bedrooms in halves and thirds. Some spaces were window less, sanctuaries for mysterious odors.

Another installation, in Harvard Heights, featured a line of damp washing in the foyer. Towels competed for hooks in perpetually humid, sweltering bathrooms. Most sport the usual kitchen living-room with an industrial range burning night and day, and its side-kick, the enormous vat of clarified pork fat to aid deep frying. Optional: the perpetual and pungent (though not always objectionable) smell of fermenting vegetables (kimchi).

END PART 1
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Today's open: 2241 1/2 W. 24th ST 2 - 5 pm