Earlier this month a group of activist pitched tents in front of the former Rampart police station in Historic Filipinotown as part of “Reclaim Rampart,” an effort to turn the empty and boarded up facility into either a community center, affordable housing – even a community garden. Anne Hars with the L.A. Right to Housing Collective said the station serves as a symbol of police violence and corruption associated with the Rampart scandal. “We think it’s time to change the symbol of that time period – the old Rampart Police Station – into something that fights crime by giving opportunities to the people of the community,” said Hars, whose group is holding a community meeting Tuesday night.
But, as far as the LAPD is concerned, the old Rampart station at Temple Street and Benton Way is not up for grabs. In fact, beginning in January, preliminary work will begin on a $17.6 million project will to convert the approximately 45-year-old station into the headquarters for the department’s SWAT Team and other elements of the Metro Division.
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Photos by Robert Goodin
Demonstrators seeking to turn the former Rampart police station in Historic Filipinotown into a community center attracted the attention of police Friday night, according to nearby residents. Georgene Smith Goodin said police squad cars blocked traffic on Temple Street and Benton Way and ordered about 30 protestors to move their tents off the sidewalk near the station, which has been closed since the LAPD opened a new and larger Rampart Division Station on Sixth Street. Smith Goodin described the scene that she and her husband encountered:
While the street was blocked, the protesters took down their tents — they had been told they couldn’t have tents on the sidewalk. When we walked home, the police had blocked off Benton at the 101, so cars could not go south, and they had two other squad cars along Benton. It really seems like a lot for such a small demonstration.
KPCC said the demonstration was organized by the Los Angeles Human Right to Housing Collective, which organized a clean up around the station on Friday in honor of International Human Rights Day.
Lt. Wes Buhrmester with the Rampart Division said he had no details about the number of officers who were deployed on Friday night but he did speak to a representative of the collective. “The group advised they have no intent of civil disobedience or such, just want to bring the homeless and bank situation to light.”
Police are investigating a Friday night stabbing in the 400 block of Coronado Terrace in Historic Filipinotown that left one gang member dead and another injured, reports Echo Park Patch. The stabbing took place at about 8 p.m. It’s still not clear what triggered the stabbing between members of the same gang, police told Patch.
Painting by Ras Terms
The lobby of a union office building in Historic Filipinotown has been turned into a gallery for a show featuring artists whose work reflects their dedication to social change. “Hands on Healing,” sponsored by the SEIU United Long Term Care Workers, “aims to shine a light on the connection between the nurturing of others and nurturing our environment through our actions and voices,” said SEIU official Sura Hart, whose union represents nursing home and in-home health care workers.
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Proposed shopping center at Temple and Bonnie Brae streets/NAI Capital.
Photo by Kyle L./Flickr
It looked the L.A. Derby Dolls, the women’s roller skating team, would have to look for a new home in late 2008 after the owners of its Historic Filipinotown headquarters and track won city approval to build four apartment towers rising as high as nine floors above Temple Street. But that residential project went no where as the economy tanked and financing came harder to come by. Now, the property owners are trying a different track: retail. The most recent proposal calls for transforming the 50,000-square-foot building now called The Doll Factory (it houses the Derby Doll’s track and offices) into a neighborhood shopping center with more than 1oo parking spaces. “What I would like to see there is a grocery store,” said leasing agent Mark Ranftle with NAI Capital.
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Submitted by Wes Gabrillo
The Small Business Development Program at Search to Involve Pilipino Americans (SIPA) is currently opening enrollment to all new and current small business owners and entrepreneurs for the upcoming Entrepreneur Training Program (ETP) in Historic Filipinotown. The classes will be held Mondays & Wednesdays @ 6:30pm beginning Monday, October 3 through Wednesday, October 26.
Go to Entrepreneur Training Program for more details.
A pair of noontime shootings in Historic Filipinotown and Boyle Heights have left one person dead and two injured. In Boyle Heights, a 23-year-old man was pronounced dead at a hospital after being shot in his car shortly after 12 p.m. in the 1900 block of Sheridan Street near State Street. The victim, who was a gang member, attempted to drive off following the shooting but his vehicle hit a 51-year-old man nearby, said LAPD spokeswoman Rosario Herrera (preliminary reports from the scene had initially said that two victims had been shot). No information was immediately available about the condition of the 51-year-old victim or the search for suspects.
Meanwhile, in Historic Filipinotown, police sealed off the area near Beverly Boulevard and Vendome Street following a shooting at 11:55 a.m. that left one man injured. “Officers arrived to find a male adult with gunshots to his legs,” said Lt. Wes Buhrmester with the Rampart Division. ” He is an admitted gang member, and had some type of conversation with a member of another gang, which culminated in that person shooting him. The victim will survive his wounds, and was transported by paramedics to an area emergency room.
The suspect was described as a male adult with a black hat, black shirt and tan shorts. He had been seen in a nearby alley following the shooting.
* This post had been updated.
Photo courtesy Marcus & Millicahp
For many property buyers, the risk of buying a brick building – even one that is reinforced – in quake prone Los Angeles (or even Washington, D.C.) is not worth the charm and character that come along with these older buildings. But, the recent sale of an Echo Park area apartment court on Alvarado Street south of the Hollywood Freeway shows that a relatively low prices can overcome concerns about brick construction. David Bramante, who was the listing agent on the 11 unit complex built in 1928, reports that the long-time Echo Park owners of the property recently sold it to some Westside buyers for $650,000 or about $59,000 a unit. He did not have specific figures but Bramante said that old brick buildings – which he calls “brickers” – often sell at a discount compared to more common wood-frame buildings.
“Most investors shy away from brick buildings or “brickers,” but there is a built-in discount for these properties and they have a very unique aesthetic that is reminiscent of much older east coast cities like New York,” Bramante said.
Photo Courtesy Alhambra P.D./Alhambra Source
Alhambra’s new police chief, Mark Yokoyama, grew up near the old Rampart police station on Temple Street in what is now called Historic Filipinotown. Yokoyama, whose department has been in the news after one of its officers was killed earlier this month, tells Alhambra Source about the dangers of his old neighborhood and how it influenced his career choice:
I grew up in a pretty rough part of LA — in the Rampart area, right near the old Rampart police department. I’d see drive-by shootings, I’d see stabbings. I had a chance to see the police a lot. Fortunately I stayed on the good side of the law. The way the police treated me, interacted with me, plus my general interest in what they were doing — it just came together. Since high school I knew that it was what I wanted to do.
Yokoyama, Alhambra’s first Asian-American police chief, joined the San Gabriel Valley police force in June after previously heading the Cypress Police Department.
By Alfred Montez
The Bootleg Theater in Historic Filipinotown tonight presents Austin, Texas native Ian Moore, who will be performing in honor of his new CD’s release. “El Sonido Nuevo” – Moore’s 9th album - is as equally impressive as the roster of musicians Moore has shared the stage with. Moore most recently played guitar for Jason Mraz on tour and has also shared the stage or studio with such musicians as ZZ Top, Bob Dylan, and The Rolling Stones.
To listen to his latest release is like listening to a musical review of his history. No longer the blues heavy albums he started with, his new material has touches of Bowie, the Beatles and ’60s pop mixed with the songwriter’s intimate knowledge of song structure and arrangement. If you’re familiar with his catalog, the progression will be obvious. It’s amazing to see how different Moore is from his early, blues-heavy releases. Also performing are The Wind, and Handshakes, music starts at 10, and the cover is $18 at the door, $15 in advance.
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