Gentle reader,
Last September, as part of our ongoing advocacy to preserve, protect and map Los Angeles’ multi-family bungalow courts, we raised the alarm about a hearing to determine if 4061-4069 1/2 West Melrose Avenue, Virgil Village could be converted from ten charming rental units into nine small lot houses that can be sold separately.
As we wrote then:
Why we’re worried: An attempt to use this loophole in the Small Lot Subdivision Ordinance is especially concerning with architecturally distinguished, Instagrammable buildings like these bungalow courts and period revival apartment houses in desirable neighborhoods.
If apartments are converted to non-RSO units that are owned by individuals or corporations, they will certainly be used for their most profitable purpose: as nightly rentals on Airbnb and other home share apps. Entire buildings could be purchased by investors with the intent of turning them into boutique hotels. Speak out to help stop it!
And many of you did speak out against this harmful scheme, by submitting eloquent written public comments or by calling in to the Zoom hearing, joining the worried tenants in urging the decision makers not to remove these precious, affordable units from the market.
The video embedded above includes the public comments from that September 25, 2025 hearing; you can find the written comments, including the opposition letter from councilmember Hugo Soto-Martinez, here.
This is the second bungalow court in Council District 13 where such a use change has been proposed. Tenants fighting to keep their homes at 1463-1469 Scott Avenue, Echo Park spoke up for their neighbors at the September hearing.
This week, the written determination came back from City Planning Director Vince Bertoni, who was appointed by Eric Garcetti and has been kept in this role by Karen Bass. It’s a terrible ruling, which you can read below.
It’s also a bit unexpected, and hints that the unelected city planners think they know better than councilmembers and citizens, and feel comfortable making unpopular decisions with serious ramifications outside of the public eye.
When controversial land use matters are brought before Los Angeles City Council and its PLUM Committee—as we saw last week with the proposed demolition of the landmarked Barry Building, supposedly for no new project—elected officials typically defer to the wishes of the local councilmember.
This practice appears to be illegal vote trading, hashed out in illegal serial meetings after which staff prepare an illegal script for elected officials to follow—but it’s just how things are done in City Hall, and councilmembers rely on it.
But in the Melrose bungalow court conversion case that was rubber stamped in the back rooms of the City Planning Department, Hugo Soto-Martinez’ strongly worded letter of opposition was ignored.
What, if anything, will the councilmember do now? Will the tenants sue to preserve their rights as residents of rent stabilized multi-family housing who may not have the resources to buy their units when and if they’re listed for sale?
We’ll stay tuned and keep you posted.
But the other dangerous land use decision made at the end of February is not yet a done deal, and you can still have your say. On Wednesday, March 4 at 10am, the demolition of the landmarked Barry Building will go to full City Council for a final vote.
It could be put on the consent calendar, to be lumped with other matters previously been heard in committee, and approved with no discussion.
This shouldn’t be allowed to happen. We hope you’ll contact your councilmember and tell them that you want Council File 25-1518 (Agenda item 8 on 3/4/2026) “called special” and brought up for additional public comment and for debate before they vote, and that you want them to support the Angelenos for Historic Preservation appeal.
You can see the enormous council file here, and submit your own written public comment here.
The justification for the existence of powerful committees like PLUM is that their meetings are where robust debate and public comment will be heard, in a more intimate, informed setting, with more time for consideration.
Well, there was plenty of pro and con public comment—here’s what Kim had to say, and here’s native tribe representative Roy Payan—at the 2/24/2026 PLUM meeting. But there was not a damn word of debate from the three councilmembers present: Bob Blumenfield, Adrin Nazarian and Nithya Raman (who is running for Mayor, and who wandered off to get coffee while citizens were speaking). That’s not good enough.
Tearing down a designated landmark for nothing sets a dangerous precedent. The blighted Barry Building is in CD11, where Traci Park is running for reelection. It might be good for her campaign efforts to support demolition of a neighborhood nuisance—though it’s inconsistent with her having nominated the blighted Marilyn Monroe house as a landmark, against the owners’ wishes.
But this is so much bigger than one abandoned building in Brentwood.
Los Angeles is lousy with landmarks owned by speculators who would rather have the land and no inconvenient old building. If the billionaire owners of the Barry Building get their way, landmarks in every council district could be deliberately blighted to justify granting a demolition permit.
And if members of City Council think this is good public policy, they should go on the record and say so, so citizens will know who to blame when historic buildings are left open to squatters, vandals, arsonists and bad weather.
The fact is, Angelenos care about our history, and want to see old buildings used. If an owner thinks they can do something better than maintain and rent out a landmark, they have every right to propose a new project.
Old buildings can even be put on trucks and moved to new locations, and Altadenans are lining up to give unwanted Los Angeles structures new homes.
But demolition for nothing is no way to treat a structure the city has already determined has value greater than mere real estate. Here’s hoping saner heads will call the matter special, debate and grant the appeal.
Saturday’s tour is Film Noir / Real Noir, a seedy blend of iconic motion picture locations and terrifying true crimes that inspired Hollywood screenwriters to craft dark tales and complicated characters. Come find the vintage vistas that remain largely unchanged and discover the noir city so beloved by location scouts. Join us, do!
Yours for Los Angeles,
Kim & Richard
Esotouric
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Our work—leading tours and historic preservation and cultural landmark advocacy—is about building a bridge between Los Angeles’ past and its future, and not allowing the corrupt, greedy, inept and misguided players who hold present power to destroy the city’s soul and body. If you’d like to support our efforts to be the voice of places worth preserving, we have a tip jar, vintage Los Angeles webinars available to stream, in-person tours and a souvenir shop you can browse in. We’ve also got recommended reading bookshelves on Amazon and the Bookshop indie bookstore site. And did you know we offer private versions of our walking tours for groups big or small? Or just share this link with other people who care.
UPCOMING WALKING TOURS
• Film Noir / Real Noir (3/7) • Franklin Village Old Hollywood (3/14) • Bunker Hill, Dead and Alive (3/21) • Know Your Downtown L.A.: Bradbury Building, Basements of Yore & the Dutch Chocolate Shop (3/28) • Christine Sterling & Leo Politi: Angels of Los Angeles (4/4) • John Fante’s Downtown L.A. (4/11) • Early Hollywood’s Silent Comedy Legends (4/18) • Downtown Los Angeles is for Book Lovers (4/25) • Highland Park Arroyo (5/2) • Charles Bukowski’s Westlake (5/7) • The Run: Gay Downtown History (5/23) • Evergreen Cemetery, 1877 (5/30) • The Real Black Dahlia (6/6) • Angelino Heights & Carroll Avenue (6/13) • Miracle Mile Marvels & Madness (Sunday, 6/21) • Westlake Park (6/27)
CLOSELY WATCHED TRAINS
Checking in on the towering National Register Speedee mascot sign at the Downey McDonald’s, which we’ve been advocating to have properly restored after unpermitted work. Good: wind-damaged plastic panels repaired, neon mostly working. Bad: those severed legs still look horrible!
We all love seeing old Bunker Hill play a vice zone in classic film noir, but for neighborhood historian Nathan Marsak, even the half-redeveloped 1990s plateau has its charms—so he sat through Ken Russell’s Whore to find them! Don’t miss the puke stone.
Here is our much-favorited comment on this LA Times instagram video, filmed on the Hollywood block (Wilton) that is the poster child for decades of failed public policy:
Good lord, that’s no vacant lot, it’s the city owned Craftsman bungalow on Wilton Place that used to house queer foster kids until the nonprofit was forced out during the global financial crisis. Then it was held vacant for years while the city RENTED IT OUT AS A SLEAZY FILMING LOCATION! Then squatters burned it. This house was the first of several demolitions by neglect that have tormented this entire block, with the city caused blight encouraging bad buyers who planned to demolish existing housing, couldn’t get demo permits, so left the buildings open to be destroyed by squatters. Remember the news stories with councilmember Hugo Soto-Martinez being screamed at by neighbors about the constant fires? That was just steps to the south. Why was this city owned house held vacant for so long and not put on the market to be used as housing years ago? Because Mitch O’Farrell put a clause in the nearby Target upzoning legal settlement that required it to be used as as a childcare center--a use which made no sense for this house or block! Los Angeles cannot suffer any more half baked land use policies that sound progressive, implemented in the wrong places, while the neighborhoods around them are destroyed by speculation and greed. Read Sam Quinones’ and our newsletters about what happened on this block of Wilton Place, watch the videos we published of the neighbors at the Board of Building and Safety Commission begging for other historic, abandoned buildings to be demolished for their protection. UCLA cityLAB should be ashamed for greenwashing the city’s failed stewardship of this historic neighborhood. There’s a story to be told on Wilton, but this ain’t it.
