Every year the Librarian of Congress selects 25 films to include in the National Film Registry, which recognizes and preserves American films that are “culturally, historically or aesthetically” significant. One of the films selected last year is “Fake Fruit Factory,” a 20-minute-long documentary made in 1986 by former Occidental College professor Chick Strand. Strand arrived at the Eagle Rock campus in 1970 as the school’s filmmaking program got underway. Working only in 16-milimeter film, Strand distinguished herself as an avant-garde filmmaker focuses on ethnographic documentaries.
The “Fake Fruit Factory” features her artistry as she tells the story of the Mexican women who made papier-mâché fruits and vegetables. The Library of Congress, in a summary of last year’s National Film Registry selections, said of Strand’s work:
In “Fake Fruit Factory,” Strand employs a moving camera at close range to create colorfully vivid images often verging on abstraction, while her soundtrack picks up snatches of conversation to evoke, in her words, “the spirit of the people.” “I want to know,” Strand wrote, “really what it is like to be a breathing, talking, moving, emotional, relating individual in the society.”
Strand died in 2009 at age 78.
Before: Contemporary style proposed by Heyday Homes.
After: Same project redone in Spanish-style. Image from TERA newsletter
Last year, local developer Heyday Partnership sold the Eagle Rock site where it proposed building 19 homes designed in a sleek and stark contemporary style (pictured at top). Now, the new owners of the project, housing giant Pulte Homes, has reworked the design, and the result is a much more traditional, Spanish-influenced style (pictured at bottom). The new design was presented to The Eagle Rock Association. The association had given its blessing to the Heyday project- called Ellenwood – but decided to also give its stamp of approval to the Pulte design, which also included one fewer home than the previous plan. The most recent TERA newsletter explains why TERA lined up behind the Pulte:
Architectural Style: Pulte’s plan depict s a Spanish style exterior, moderately rich with architectural detail. Heydey’s plan was contempory. We concluded that the Spanish style may be a more comfortable fit for the neighborhood.
Setback: Small courtyards at dwelling entrances allow Pulte’s plan to place the building facades 10 to 15 feet away from the property line, much farther away from the property line than contemplated by Heydey. The courtyards also provide a limited amount of outside space to each home. This was not present in the Heyday plan.
Construction of the now 18-home development, which Pulte is calling Mosaic, is expected to begin later this month, according to TERA. Prices are expected to begin in the $500,000 range.
Photo by Kristina Garcia
Who knew birds of prey had a thing for Starbucks? Kristina Garcia snapped a photo Monday afternoon of what she thought was a falcon hopping around the sidewalk and bushes outside the Starbucks on York Boulevard in Eagle Rock. Said Garcia:
I‘ve never seen one on the ground in the city before so it seemed like a rare event. At first I was worried he might be injured, but he flew up onto a wire after a couple of minutes. Maybe he was hunting little birds in the brush?
Jeff Chapman, director of the Audubon Center at Debs Park, said the bird was probably looking for something to eat but it is not a falcon:
Pretty sure this is a
Cooper’s Hawk …we do see them on the ground, and they are doing really well in urban areas. They do eat other birds, so probably hunting.
Or maybe it just got tired of waiting in line for a latte.
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New surveillance cameras have been installed and additional security patrols have come and gone but crime, graffiti and illegal drug use remains a problem at the Yosemite Recreation Center in Eagle Rock. What else can be done to improve safety? Some residents have proposed tearing down an H-shaped handball court – located in the center of the recreation yard – that Eagle Rock Patch describes as a “public menace.” Other residents agree, according to the Patch story:
The court, located barely 20 feet from a children’s playground that recently received a $320,000 makeover, is a popular place to play handball. But its right-angled walls also serve as a hiding place for people to drink.
“Older men use the handball court to drink on weekends,” said Morgan Coxwell, an Eagle Rock resident who lives nearby and uses the park, along with his spouse, to take their toddler out on walks
The H-shaped court could be replaced with a single wall or with a basketball court, said the story. Other possible security measures discussed at a recent meeting included more lighting, improved security cameras and new signage to make it easier to report criminal activity.
Affordable housing developer Bob Buente said his firm is guided by an important principal: “We don’t build ugly.” That’s what he is committed to as his firm, 1010 Development Corp., seeks to build 30 affordable apartments on a nearly block-long site that is now home to the Eagle Rock Church of the Nazarene. 1010 Development is in escrow to buy the church property, which owns an L-shaped parcel that stretches along Eagle Rock Boulevard from Fair Park Avenue to Yosemite Drive. However, the landlord of a Hubert Barber Shop, a longtime business located about mid block on Eagle Rock Boulevard, has so far not agreed to sell the freestanding storefront. Buente said he is willing to offer the barber shop space in the new building but he is prepared to build around Hubert’s in case an agreement can’t be reached.
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The City Attorney has adopted yet another legal strategy against marijuana medical dispensaries by suing those stores located near schools. The L.A. Times reports that City Atty. Carmen Trutanich has filed suit against nine pot shops – including Colorado Quality Pain Relief and Organic Healing Center in Eagle Rock – for operating within 600 feet of a school, which violates state law. The shops face penalties of $5,000 a day if they do not close. An assistant city attorney told the Times there might be other dispensaries violating the law:
“These are the ones that have been brought to our attention. There could be others that are within 600 feet of schools,” said Asha Greenberg, the assistant city attorney who leads the effort to shut down illegal dispensaries. “If we do see more of them cropping up this close to schools, or we become aware of them, then we certainly are going to take action against them.”
Organic Healing Center, located at 1733 Colorado, is a block away from Renaissance Arts Academy, a charter school. Colorado Quality Pain, which operates at 1615 Colorado Blvd., is about a block north Dahlia Heights Elementary.
Photo from TheMLS/Redfin
Matt Damon and Ben Affleck can pack in movie houses but they are apparently not so good at attracting home buyers. The owners of this “Hansel-and-Gretel inspired” Eagle Rock house on Hill Drive have played up the fact that the 1923 home was “where Ben Affleck and Matt Damon wrote the script for ‘Good Will Hunting’ which won an Academy Award for best screenplay,” according to the listing on Redfin. But neither the Damon-Affleck or the Hansel-Gretel connection have been able generate a sale, leaving the owners to recently cut the asking price to $779,000 for the third time since the home was listed in May at $899,000. In 2010, during a previous attempt to find a buyer, the home was listed at $1.35 million, said Curbed L.A.
Photo courtesy Occidental College
Eric Schlosser, author of “Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal,” will explore the links between food, worker and immigrant justice issues during a Thursday night lecture at Occidental College. Schlosser followed up his best-selling 2001 book with the “Food, Inc.,” a 2008 documentary on the impact of corporate farming. “Eric Schlosser helped change the way we think about food – how it’s produced, how our tastes have been manipulated, and who gets impacted,” said Occidental professor Robert Gottlieb in a statement.
Schlosser will be presented with a honorary degree at the lecture on Thursday, Nov. 17. Click here for more details on the free event.
Photo from CaCao Mexicatessen
CaCao Mexicatessen in Eagle Rock is planning to expand its dining and deli areas and also serve beer and wine to complement its Mexican dishes. Andy Lujan said his Colorado Boulevard restaurant and store will be adding between 15 to 20 seats and is seeking permission from city and state agencies to serve beer and wine. “The expansion is intended to add a more spacious and comfortable space for our customers,” said Lujan via email. “Currently, for dine-in seating, we have been forced to cram a lot of tables together into a small space that is a bit uncomfortable for our guests.”
The restaurant would serve beer and wine that pairs well with Mexican food, including wine imported from the Valle de Guadalupe and other Mexican wine growing regions in addition to wine from Mexican-owned vineyards in Napa Valley and Sonoma, Lujan said. “Our focus will always be about our food . The beer and wine will hopefully be compliments to our menu but not the main focus.”
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Photo by Valentina Silva
By Valentina Silva
There comes a time in every life when only a wet burrito will do. Sometimes you just have to give in to the cheesy-saucy meltiness. It’s useless to resist.
My most recent wet burrito surrender happened at the hands of The Taco Spot in Eagle Rock. Their Vegetarian Burrito, mojado style, satisfied because it met my most crucial requirement: the cheese and sauce were plentiful but didn’t overwhelm, and the sauce was thick enough that it didn’t create a watery, soggy mess. Other pluses included a whole wheat tortilla, black beans and plenty of guacamole. Of course, I ordered it without rice, which I cannot tolerate in any burrito of mine.
Valentina Silva is a regular contributor writing about food and restaurants. You can also find Valentina’s reviews and stories on her new blog, Eastside Food Bites.
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