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Foyers, Guns and Honeys: Factory Place Arts Complex Opening Commandos the Arts District
Last week, Factory Place Arts Complex celebrated its grand opening with an "Alcohol Tobacco & Firearms Party." The party was the brainchild of Josh Gray-Emmer and Stephanie Estes of AP Consulting, and is part of an ongoing series of projects to build a community and draw a creative, urban crowd to this neighborhood of Downtown LA.
Gray-Emmer has an ambitious plan over the next few months to continue pioneering the Arts District. Loft Seven already has a strong community with a full slate of comedy nights, sample sales and rooftop movies for its residents. Working in connection with the Central City Association, Gray-Emmer is working on putting together a night shuttle program, which plans to provide a privately-funded free shuttle service from the Historic Core to the Arts District, with stops at restaurants and nightspots along Industrial Street, near the Biscuit Company Lofts.
The Factory Place opening's "ATF" theme was a nod to the neighboring LA Gun Club. Guests were invited to fire a few rounds from rifles and then adjourn to the event space at 1330 Factory Place featuring a speakeasy theme with a live jazz band and an hosted bar of bourbon and vodka. Guests played casino games for a charity raffle benefiting Downtown's Inner City Arts, a program that uses art to empower inner city youth. LAist's favorite part of the party was the Polite in Public photo booth (founded by resident of Loft Seven), which invited guest to pose with mock firearms, and the three sets of twins working the door and giving away raffle prizes. The twins were 3 of 40 twins that Gray-Emmer works with in his events.
Also in the works in the coming two to three months are a series of pop-up fashion stores and a blogger lounge featuring coffee and WiFi. The hope is to draw bloggers to document the Arts District neighborhood's creative development.
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