The Highland Park gallery Monte Vista is letting patrons check out a tree this season. You can call it a Christmas tree rental service, but they don't and the name they've chosen — the Portable Forest Tree Library — sounds way cooler. more ›

A Los Angeles Fire Department fire captain was busted last week for buying heroin during a sting operation conducted by Los Angeles Police Department Narcotics officers. Captain Matthew Phillpsen, 52, was arrested at around noon on Wednesday, November 9 in the Highland Park area. more ›

Crews of gold-snatching criminals are roving neighborhoods in northeast and yanking the gold chains right off their victims, according to The Eastsider. So far nine robberies have been reported in Eagle Rock, East Hollywood, Highland Park and Cypress Park. Police believe that there are three separate crews of criminals that are targeting victims wearing gold chains. more ›

What better day than Park[ing] Day L.A. for Los Angeles City Council members Jan Perry and Jose Huizar to introduce a motion calling for a set of mini public green spaces called "parklets" in Downtown and Northeast Los Angeles? more ›

Today's video lunch is a time-lapse wonder from this month's celebration of independence around the intersection of Avenue 52 and Irvington Place. "No one told the people of Highland Park that fireworks are illegal," notes the person who posted this treat to YouTube under the alias ChurchOfBK. The photos were taken between 7 p.m. and midnight on July 4, 2011, says ChurchOfBK, who goes on to explain how the images were shot. more ›

The driver arrested recently for a May confrontation with a bicyclist in Mount Washington has a history of violent encounters while behind the wheel. Highland Park-Mount Washington Patch points out a 1999 Los Angeles Times article about Louis Mraz, who was sentenced to probation and Caltrans road duty for punching a 72-year-old man "during a road-rage dust-up." more ›

Ah, Los Angeles, home of the abundant drive-through window. From Starbucks lattes, super-sized burger combos, we can eat plenty--if not well--without leaving the comfort of our cars. This week, QuarryGirl tipped readers off to something pretty exciting for the meat-free eaters: An all-vegan drive-through restaurant is opening in Highland Park. more ›

The Milagro Allegro community garden at Avenue 56 and Figueroa hosted a garden giveaway this weekend. Advertised to start at noon, by 12:30 some 500 people had made a line that stretched down the block and around the corner. By 12:45 the trees were gone. That left 50,000 vegetable seedlings to make sure everyone ended up with something to plant at their school garden, in their neighborhood or yes, their backyard. more ›

City officials, bicycling enthusiasts, and members of the community turned out today to welcome the city's first public bike corral, newly installed nearly a year after it was approved outside Highland Park's Café de Leche. The idea to bring the bike corral to York Boulevard and outside his popular cafe came from Café de Leche co-owner Matt Schodorf, who took the proposal to City Councilmember José Huizar, back in 2009. The motion was brought to City Council in April of last year, and approved shortly after. more ›

Approved by the City Council in April 2010, L.A.'s first official public bicycle corral will finally be installed in Highland Park. "A tentative date of February 18th at 9:00 AM has been set for the corral’s grand opening," says the LADOT Bike Blog. more ›

A six-person artist collective in Highland Park called THIS Los Angeles is asking for the public's help in tracking down a piece of art that was reportedly stolen last night from the opening of a new exhibit called These Friends. According to the THIS Los Angeles website, as the opening night crowds were leaving and cleanup was underway an unidentified person grabbed a piece of art from the wall -- a personal piece not for sale -- and ran out the front door of the gallery space. more ›

The highly anticipated restoration of the "History of Highland Park" mural began on Saturday as over 100 volunteers devoted their time to start the clean up process on the much-loved but recently much-maligned neighborhood artwork. Using biodegradable soap, elbow grease and a healthy dose of neighborhood pride, community members helped kick-off the vision of years of work by the Highland Park Heritage Trust, the Historic Highland Park Neighborhood Council and Councilmember José Huizar. more ›

A community may not be able to change its history, but as residents of Highland Park are about to discover, it is possible to clean it up. On Saturday, volunteers will work to restore one of the neighborhood’s most cherished murals, “History of Highland Park,” located on the AT&T building on Avenue 56. more ›

Following the last wave of crime alerts, and set against a low, 1967-era murder rate for Los Angeles, the Crime L.A. database has posted alerts for six neighborhoods based on data from Dec. 22-Dec. 28, the most recent seven-day-span of available information. more ›

One of the two Metro Gold Line tracks connecting Los Angeles and Pasadena has been knocked out by a power surge cutting down service to the just the slow-boat running every 30 minutes in both directions. more ›

Tuesday afternoons from 3 p.m. until dusk Avenue 58 at Marmion Way--right where the Metro Gold Line's Highland Park stop is--fills up with the sights, sounds, and smells of a festive, family-oriented farmers' market. Called the "Old L.A. Certified Farmers' Market" this weekly gathering is small, but draws one of the most diverse clientele of the many markets that set up all over town. Teenaged couples pausing to cuddle, families with children of all ages, senior citizens, skateboarders, homeboys, hipsters, re-usable bag-toters--people of all shapes, sizes, ages, and colors mingle among the modest stalls of farm-fresh produce, baked goods, and other edibles. more ›

This Saturday night the Northeast LA Gallery Night returns to showcase some of the most innovative and eclectic art in the area. Twenty-two galleries will open their doors late on a not quite walkable path centered near Highland Park and Eagle Rock (download the updated map here). Started some five years ago as more galleries moved to the area, it has grown into a neighborhood institution. According to founder and director Brian Mallman, "There's just something that draws artists here, maybe because it's one of the last affordable places to find studio space in LA." more ›

A group of young people in Highland Park are digging in deep and working towards some healthy results thanks to a new urban garden project they've recently launched. The Wave profiles this admirable "green-thumb project" run via a "a joint effort of students serving on Hathaway-Sycamores’ Youth Leadership Council along with adolescents participating in Hathaway-Sycamores’ Gang Reduction and Youth Development Program." more ›

As plans and fundraising move forward to cap the 101 Freeway in Hollywood, a similar idea in downtown will take a step next month when Park 101 District organizers host a community meeting and open house. The event, which dovetails with the Downtown Art Walk is on May 13th from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Caltrans District 7 building. more ›

[Update: The corral pilot program was approved on Tuesday, April 27. Read about it here] more ›

Reports started coming in around 8 last night regarding a disturbing noise heard in the Highland Park area, according to cbs2. Described by some as "an explosion" or a "loud boom" coming from approximately North Ave 52 and Monte Vista Street, authorities went out into the neighborhood to try to determine what produced a sound that was heard by those at a fire station to residents a half-mile away. "20 firefighters have combed the area looking for anything out of the ordinary, but have come up empty." Guesses as to what made the noise range from a loud backfire to a meteorite. The unusually loud noise, however, remains a mystery. more ›

When LAist stumbled upon the gorgeous 20s bungalow that houses the Society of the Spectacle eyewear boutique in Highland Park/Eagle Rock, we fell in love. LAist recently caught up with co-owner Katie O'Connell to learn about the history of the shop, tips everyone should keep in mind when selecting new eyewear, and why Highland Park is such a fantastic and "mysteriously convenient" neighborhood. more ›

From the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr comes this bizarre chance encounter in Highland Park. Says photog janeray1940 of the episode:

I ran into this guy while walking down York Boulevard. He was a bit borracho and was dancing with his dog. I asked if I could take his picture, and he proceeded to make his dog "spread'em" against the wall as if he were arresting him. All the more ironic since we had just passed a street closure with a major police investigation going on...I still can't decide if the trick was amusing, or if it bordered on cruelty, but the dog seemed to enjoy showing off.

High-class imbibers were out in force for Whisky Live at the Santa Monica Civic Center last Monday. Whisky Live is an international tasting and sampling event, taking place "from London to Tokyo, Paris to Glasgow". Billed as “Southern California’s Finest Whisky Experience,” attendees had the opportunity to sample the wares of twenty-seven companies, some familiar (Glenlivet, Dewar's, Macallan), some (such as Japanese manufactureres Hibiki and Yamazaki) not even available on American shelves yet. more ›

A large 3 a.m. inter-agency operation descended upon a Northeast L.A. neighborhood this morning, picking up dozens of Avenues gang members for crimes from graffiti to murder. As of 5 a.m., about 43 of the 88 members sought had been arrested, mostly in Glassall Park, according to the LA Times. more ›

Last month, local art-rockers Fol Chen dropped by KCRW in Santa Monica for an in-studio performance and interview on hosted by Jason Bentley. more ›

Certainly everyone has their favorite gastropub, maybe because it's their neighborhood hang or because they like the burger a lot, let's say from Father's Office. But let's face it, sometimes these gastropubs are out of control busy, packed and with a line out the door. That's why we love York on York (Blvd.) in Highland Park. How can you beat a chillax environment with $5 Craftsman beers and some of the best skin-on fries in the city on a weekday night? Not to mention the popular cheddar/harissa burgers (or the grilled tofu sandwich for veggies). more ›

A man stabbed to death on a Hollywood sidewalk, a woman kills her son before killing herself in Highland Park, two shot dead in South LA in separate cases all made for a busy weekend for LAPD officers and detectives. Hollywood, Saturday, 10:50 p.m.: A passerby on Santa Monica Blvd. notice a man lying on the sidewalk and call police. Police arrive to find a victim, still alive and described as a male White, transient, approximately 50-years-old. He's rushed off to the hospital where he died. While police do not know the motive behind the murder, they do believe it is not gang related. more ›

As a group of cyclists were riding through Highland Park last night, they encountered a group of alleged gangster's who approached the cyclists and started throwing glass bottles and vases, some following the riders with shovels. more ›