The Brief

Residents of Altadena who lost their homes have faced a huge crossroads: rebuild theirs or move into a new one.

For many, high rebuilding and housing market costs are making it harder to return to their community. But what if there was a less expensive alternative to rebuilding that also didn’t mean changing your address?

That’s where the Historic House Relocation Project comes in. The project is replacing homes by taking ones slated for demolition and putting them on fire-affected lots. The first two homes are expected to begin the move over the next few weeks.

Moving homes revives an old approach

The project is being led by Omgivning, an L.A.-based architecture and interiors firm that focuses on adaptive reuse of existing buildings.

Morgan Sykes Jaybush, creative director at the firm, got the idea in early February while looking at lists of demolition permits for buildings over 40 years old.

“They’re not designated historic, but they’re just like great, sweet houses,” Jaybush said. “It made me just really sad to see that there was nothing that could be done about it.”

Then a lightbulb moment hit. Couldn’t these homes help Altadena?

Relocating homes isn’t new, but it doesn’t happen as much as it used to. In the mid-1900s, plenty of houses were moved for various redevelopment reasons, such as razing Bunker Hill, building the 101 Freeway, or even just expanding a school.

Over the last five years, L.A. has issued just eight relocation permits, according to building and safety spokesperson Devin Myrick. Brad Chambers, a conservationist and consultant on the project, said there are a lot of benefits.

“ Preservation’s really the first, second benefit is you’re contributing to the housing supply,” Chambers said. “The third is you are actually keeping things from going into the landfill.”

Currently, a pair of two-story homes are in the process of moving to Altadena. Dozens more may be on the way.

How relocating works

Omgivning connects interested homeowners to properties that are scheduled to be razed. Jaybush is also assisting with permits and contracting. He’s found around 80 other houses to relocate with about a dozen families already lined up to buy.

“  We’ve been slowly cold calling those property owners to see if they would allow us to relocate the house in lieu of throwing it into a landfill,” he said.

If all goes well, the two parties forge a deal — ideally at a very low cost — to transfer ownership of just the materials on the lot before it’s torn down. The new owners are responsible for the moving costs and rehabilitation, if it’s needed.

The Saint George Street home in Los Feliz on July 16, 2025. This house's second story has been removed.

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Cato Hernández

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LAist

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The top of the Saint George Street house.

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Cato Hernández

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The home is dismantled once an agreement is set. If there’s a second story, it’s removed, along with things like cabinets and baseboards, and stashed on the first floor. That can take about six weeks depending on the size.

The buildings are then split into pieces, like a loaf of bread, and moved individually on flatbed trucks at night. A special route is planned out that avoids bridges, underpasses, railroad tracks, freeways and powerlines.

Once at their destinations, the homes are reassembled on box cribs while a new foundation is built. That process can take about six months. The home is then lowered onto the foundation and connected to plumbing, gas and electricity.

‘Like a house I grew up in’

Evan Chambers stands on the second floor of the Taft Avenue house on July 16, 2025. The Chambers family has been living in his glass-blowing warehouse in Pasadena in the interim.

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One of the first homes moving is a 1911 two-story Craftsman on Taft Avenue in Hollywood. A few days prior to my visit, new owner Evan Chambers said it was being used as an Airbnb. Even though this house was livable, it was up for demolition because the lot is getting redeveloped into multi-family housing.

Evan and his wife Caitlin were drawn to the home after she found it on Instagram.

“ It’s kind of like a house I grew up in that my parents bought in the late 60s,” Evan said. “ I have zero interest in rebuilding. I don’t want to live in a new house. I don’t want to pay somebody to build a new house. I don’t like new materials.”

They bought the home for only a dollar. However, in total, the Chambers expect to shell out around $550,000 for the move, which they’re funding with a mix of insurance payouts, savings and money from a GoFundMe campaign. The two plan to fix up the house as well.

“ Something really scrappy like this feels like very Altadena to me, so I like that part,” Caitlin said.

The process should take nine to 12 months. Jaybush says that’s faster than the roughly three years he’s hearing it could take to rebuild.

Light at the end of a tunnel

The other home being relocated is also a two-story Craftsman from 1910 in Los Feliz on Saint George Street. This is the second time it’s been moved. In 1948, it was driven a few miles down the road to save it from those 101 Freeway demolitions. The owner held a party inside while it happened.

New owners Jacques Laramee and Gwen Sukeena are excited for this new chapter after losing their original Altadena home only a few months after purchasing it.

“ This has been a really overwhelming experience in a very good way,” Sukeena said. “We’re at least able to see a little bit of light at the end of a very dark tunnel.”

Jacques Laramee and Gwen Sukeena at their Saint George Street house on July 16, 2025. This building is likely to move to Altadena in the beginning of August.

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LAist

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Gwen Sukeena says this home will be nearly double the size of the one that burned down.

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Cato Hernández

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LAist

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The couple decided to move forward with relocating for a few reasons, but the home’s vintage feel was a deciding factor.

“We’re standing in a 115-year-old home, so there’s lots of beautiful woodwork and character in this home,” Laramee said.

Similarly to the Taft house, it would’ve been torn down for redevelopment. The couple’s deal was more expensive — they purchased the materials for $75,000. It’ll likely be a year before they can move in due to renovations.

Sukeena isn’t sure yet what total costs may look like, but they’re expecting to pay a third less than what it would cost to buy a new home.

LAX officials are considering a proposal Tuesday to increase the fees rideshare companies are charged to access the airport.

Currently, rideshare companies like Uber and Lyft generally pass a $4 to $5 airport fee along to their customers. You might see this listed as a line item on your receipt as an “LAX Airport Surcharge.”

But the Los Angeles World Airports Board of Commissioners could vote to increase that fee by as much as $2 to $8 depending on where the rideshare picks you up or drops you off.

The idea behind the proposal is to encourage the use of the long-awaited, much-delayed and over-budget Automated People Mover once it opens and decrease congestion in the central terminal area, the area of the airport that’s also known as the horseshoe.

David Reich, a deputy executive director for the city agency that manages the airport, told LAist that if the proposal is approved, LAX doesn’t plan on increasing the fee until after the Automated People Mover opens, which could be later this year.

The proposed increases

When the Automated People Mover opens, there will be new curb space for drop-off and pick-up. Known as the “ground transport center,” this new curb space will be a 4-minute trip from the terminal area via the Automated People Mover, according to Reich.

LAX-it will shut down as a rideshare and taxi lot once the train opens, Reich said.

If the proposal is approved, getting an Uber or Lyft to and from the ground transport center will come with a $6 airport fee.

Even once the Automated People Mover opens, you will still be able to get rides directly to and from the curbs along the horseshoe, but they will come with a $12 fee.

The proposed increases would also apply to taxi and limousine services, which currently operate under a slightly different fee structure than rideshare companies.

The increased fees are expected to generate as much as $100 million in the first year the Automated People Mover is usable, according to a report to the board.

Why the different fees for the different locations?

In a report to the board, Reich said the Automated People Mover represents a "significant investment” that aims to “fundamentally reshape how vehicles move through the airport.”

The idea behind having a higher fee for direct access to the curbs along the horseshoe is to encourage “use of new, high-capacity infrastructure” and preserve central terminal access for trips “that most require it.”

Uber is trying to fight the increases

Uber is trying to mobilize the public to fight the proposed fee increases.

“Raising the LAX rideshare fee from $5 to $12 at the curb would punish travelers, working families, and seniors who depend on affordable, reliable transportation,” Danielle Lam, the head of local California policy for Uber, said in a statement.

On Monday, Uber sent an email to passengers who recently used the rideshare service, urging them to write to city officials to “stop this massive fee hike.”

Lyft has not responded to a request for comment.

Ten state lawmakers who are members of the L.A. County delegation sent a letter on Monday to the board expressing their “strong opposition” to the proposed increases.

“Many Angelenos rely on a mix of options, including rideshare services and friends or family dropping off loved ones,” the legislators wrote in the letter. “Managing congestion cannot realistically rely on steep fee increases for certain transportation options.”

Eight of the 10 legislators who signed the letter have received campaign contributions from Uber or Lyft, according to an LAist analysis of state campaign contribution data.

Other ways to access the airport

Now is probably a good time to remind folks that there are other ways to get to the airport that don’t involve rideshares, taxis or even lifts from families and friends.

The FlyAway bus offers regularly scheduled rides from the airport to Union Station in downtown L.A. and Van Nuys. You can see the schedules here. 

Last year, the countywide transportation agency unveiled the LAX/Metro Transit center, which is accessible from the C and K rail lines and several bus routes. For now, an LAX shuttle is bringing travelers from the station to the airport. It will be one of the stops on the Automated People Mover once it opens.

The Newport Beach City Council is considering demolishing part of its quirky, beloved sculpture garden in Civic Center Park to make way for a new police station.

The city has been trying to figure out how to replace its aging police headquarters for years. It bought a property in 2022 with that intent. But an ad hoc City Council committee decided, controversially, it might be better to instead build a new station on the parkland next to city hall.

What’s so great about the sculpture garden?

The sculpture garden is a “museum without walls” treasured by art and nature lovers alike. It houses the quirky and once-controversial “Bunnyhenge,” included on the popular Atlas Obscura travel guide. Opponents of putting a new police headquarters on park grounds say it would compromise the environment, and decimate the sculpture garden.

What do supporters of the new station idea say?

Supporters say the current police station, built in 1973, is long overdue for an upgrade, and that the police force needs more space for things like servers to store digital evidence. The council ad hoc committee that studied the issue says the Civic Center parkland makes the most sense for a new building because the city already owns the land, and it would consolidate the city’s main services in one place.

Is it a done deal?

Far from it. The City Council is holding a study session Tuesday to present the plan publicly and gather input. If the council decides to go forward, the next step would be to hire a consultant to design the building and get started on an environmental impact report.

Here’s how to learn more and weigh in:

A new exhibit in L.A. — Vehicles of Expression: The Craft of the Skateboard — arrives this weekend, highlighting the cultural impact, history and artistry of handmade skateboards.

It’s the latest exhibit at Craft in America Center, a museum and library that highlights handcrafted artwork.

Todd Huber, skateboard historian and founder of the Skateboarding Hall of Fame, said before 1962, it wasn’t possible to buy a skateboard in a store.

“Skateboarding started as a craft,” Huber said on AirTalk, LAst 89.3’s daily news program. “Somewhere in the 50s until 1962, if you wanted to sidewalk surf, as they called it, you had to make your own out of roller skates.”

What to expect

Emily Zaiden, the director and lead curator of the Craft in America Center based in Los Angeles, told LAist’s AirTalk the exhibit was tricky to curate.

“What we wanted to do was focus on both the history and then expand into how this has been an object that people have interpreted in so many different ways since the very beginning,” Zaiden said.

Artists who craft skateboards not only think of design, but also of the features that give riders the ability to do tricks, such as wheelies and kickflips.

“The ways that people have constructed boards, engineered boards, design boards … people are really renegade, which I think is really the spirit of skateboarding overall,” Zaiden said. “This very independent, out-of-the-box approach and making boards that allow them to do all kinds of wacky tricks and do all kinds of things that no one imagined possible physically with their body, but through the object of the board.”

Know before you go

The exhibit at Craft in America Center opens to the public on Saturday. Admission is free. The museum is open from noon to 6 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday.