Untold LA on KickStarter

The amazing homes and stories of the West Adams District

This Los Angeles Life,

Untold LA is a project seeking funding on KickStarter. Jett Loe is proposing to create a Photo iBook and website showcasing the amazing homes and stories of the West Adams District of Los Angeles.

As Loe said on KickStarter:
“Many people think they know LA, but there is one extraordinary district that seems forgotten to all but a few: West Adams.

Home to the greatest architectural treasure West of the Mississippi of Victorian, Queen Anne, Beaux Arts, Egyptian Revival, Mission and Craftsman homes, the stories of West Adams are just as wild as the houses.

Which is why I need to do Untold LA.”

Click over to KickStarter to see the beautiful homes, all located in West Adams, featured in Loe’s video.

After the recent tragedy and negative stories in the news about South LA, I am happy to see someone focusing on the positive aspects of our neighborhood.

Comments { 0 } May 2, 2012

Was-alow? It was a Bungalow…

Now it is something else

Bungalows,


Business in front, bungalow in the back.

Our neighborhood has many buildings that began their lives as bungalows but have been converted, sometimes almost unrecognizably, into buildings now used for commerce. This is what happens when a predominantly residential area is rezoned for a commercial corridor.


Local Dentist

Bungalows have been converted into little shops, markets, dental offices and even churches.


Church


Realty Office

Comments { 6 } June 25, 2007

Tales From The Hood

This Los Angeles Life, ,

On a warm summer afternoon David and I were doing the typically mundane task of unloading groceries from our car. A little black hatchback car erratically pulled up to the stop sign at the intersection catty corner to our house. I didn’t really pay much attention at first but soon heard a commotion coming from inside the vehicle. Suddenly, a fairly average looking man jumped out of the car and roughly pulled a woman out behind him. This instantly caught my attention. I was halted dead in my tracks by the words the man was yelling.

“I’m the pimp! You’re the ho! Give me my money bitch or I’m going to hurt you.”

The fight continued along these lines for several more minutes. Then there was something that I didn’t quite understand about being from East Los Angeles verses West Los Angeles. This man, the pimp, was apparently from West Los Angeles and because of this fact the woman was lucky. If he had been from East LA she would be dead, but, because he is from West LA, he is more compassionate. The woman did not appear to be intimidated by this information. On the contrary, she seemed angry and defiant. She mentioned seeking employment opportunities with a pimp who “hadn’t lost his mother (insert the mother of all expletives here)-ing mind.”

A neighbor’s sprinkler was watering his lawn, I could hear the sound of children’s voices playing in a yard up the street and in the distance I faintly heard an ice cream truck rattling it’s bell and playing “Pop Goes The Weasel.” In the middle of our tranquil summer setting was this absurd exchange straight out of a really bad made-for-tv movie. I stood in the yard, transfixed, mouth agape.

The pimp saw me standing in the middle of my yard staring at them. He pushed the woman back into the car, drove around the corner, parked and pulled the woman back out of the car to yell at her again. By this time David walked up to me and asked what was going on. After I told him he ran inside and dialed 911.

David waited on hold for 10 minutes before he reached an operator. The 911 operator said they couldn’t do anything since we didn’t have the car’s license plate number. She instructed us to get a license plate number the next time this occurred. David requested that a squad car be sent to our location anyway. By the time David hung up the phone with the police the pimp and ho had resolved their dispute and driven away. They were long gone by the time the police drove through our area 45 minutes later.

Comments { 9 } December 17, 2005

Realtors

Find out more about realtors working in the West Adams area of Los Angeles

Resources, ,

I’m sure there are other realtors working in West Adams but here are the two we know personally. They also both live in West Adams. I think it is an advantage to work with a realtor who personally knows the area you wish to buy in.

Jim Weber (The realtor who we used to purchase our home)
Jim Weber is a great guy. He has lived in West Adams for many years in a beautiful old home which he and his family have restored. He is very knowledgeable and excited about older homes.

He gave David and I a tour of the area before we were sure this was an area we wanted to live in. We worked with him for over a year before finding our house. Did I mention that he is also a patient man? I’m sure I drove him crazy on many occasions but he was always very kind to us while we searched for just the right home. He did send us a Christmas card so maybe (hopefully) that means we are forgiven?

Because he has restored his own home and is involved in the restoration community, Jim has a lot of resources that he has shared with us from who to call for redoing your floors to title changes, and everything in between. That is the benefit of working with a realtor who lives and works in your area.

Jim Weber Realty Group
P.O. Box 15971
Los angeles, CA 90015
phone: 323.735.0700
email: [email protected]
website: http://www.craftsmanhomes.com

Adam Janeiro
Adam Janeiro lives in the West Adams area in a bungalow that he and his wife have spent the past several years restoring. Adam has firsthand knowledge of the joys and challenges inherent in restoring an older home. When we first moved into the area they referred us to contractors, salvage yards and introduced us to some of our neighbors.

Adam works for City Living Realty (a brokerage with over twenty years experience in the neighborhood) and writes a blog about architecture, neighborhoods, urban issues, and real estate market conditions. The url is www.recenteringelpueblo.com. That’s right: Recentering El Pueblo.

Adam Janeiro
City Living Realty
323-401-3952
[email protected]
www.recenteringelpueblo.com

Comments { 0 } August 13, 2003