Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
Echo Park Gears Up For The Chipotle And New Starbucks It Never Asked For

The 1,300-seat new restaurant complex going up in Echo Park will not only include a Chipotle, but a reopened Starbucks.
The new development on the south side of Sunset Boulevard near Alvarado, known as Mohawk Collective, will house at least eight new restaurants, according to the Eastsider. They’ve applied to sell alcohol and/or beer and wine at at least eight of the restaurants, which presumably would include those sweet Chipolte margaritas, as the new burrito chain location is scheduled to open in the second quarter of 2017, according to Chipotle’s public relations and communications manager, Danielle Moore.
Meanwhile, Starbucks, which had already operated at the now-closed Lucy’s LaundryMart building on the same stretch, will open a location in the new complex next spring. Said a Starbucks spokesperson: “We’re always looking for great locations to better meet the needs of our customers and are happy to be returning to the community.”
Some folks on Twitter, naturally, were not too happy about the news.
Def don't need a chipotle in Echo Park, way to ruin the neighborhood
— Buddy Nielsen (@buddythechud) November 5, 2016
If you think #gentrification in #BoyleHeights is bad, A CHIPOTLE IS OPENING IN #ECHOPARK. https://t.co/ahcZbriNHT
— Militant Angeleno (@militantangleno) November 4, 2016
Echo park is getting a chipotle. 😒I like chipotle but honestly this makes me sad for the neighborhood.
— Makeup Artist (@DanaDelaneyMUA) November 4, 2016
Tenants that previously resided on the strip had to relocate in the spring as the Continental Development Group bought and announced plans to redevelop the block. Shops like Wells Tile & Antiques and Eric’s Architectural Salvage, which shared a space for 25 years, had to close shop by June 1 of this year.
Echo Park isn’t the only neighborhood dealing with disagreement over gentrification lately, as tensions in Boyle Heights recently have mounted to profanity-laden vandalism against art galleries in the neighborhood.
As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.
Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.
We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.
No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.
Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.
Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.

-
With less to prove than LA, the city is becoming a center of impressive culinary creativity.
-
Nearly 470 sections of guardrailing were stolen in the last fiscal year in L.A. and Ventura counties.
-
Monarch butterflies are on a path to extinction, but there is a way to support them — and maybe see them in your own yard — by planting milkweed.
-
With California voters facing a decision on redistricting this November, Surf City is poised to join the brewing battle over Congressional voting districts.
-
The drug dealer, the last of five defendants to plead guilty to federal charges linked to the 'Friends' actor’s death, will face a maximum sentence of 65 years in prison.
-
The weather’s been a little different lately, with humidity, isolated rain and wind gusts throughout much of Southern California. What’s causing the late-summer bout of gray?