Morning Briefing: Echo Park’s Taix Could Soon Look Very Different

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Plans for the development of the space formerly occupied by Echo Park’s Taix restaurant have been revealed. The proposal features a six-story mixed-use space with 13,000 square feet for retail, 170 apartments and a 220-car basement garage.

It’s outsized, it’s grey, and as Elina Shatkin writes:

It's a massive change from the current French Revival-style structure which has been home to Taix since 1962. Visually, the bland, boxy development is so aggressively charmless, it's hard to believe it was designed by an architecture firm. It was.

Sure, all things change. Tastes, culture, real estate, neighborhoods. And Los Angeles needs all the residential units it can get. But do these developments have to be so uniformly ugly?

It’s been clear for a while that the L.A. in which we currently reside will look completely different in 20 years. To an extent, that’s to be expected; the unstoppable passage of time, the inevitable growth of cities, and so forth. But watching it happen one cookie-cutter building at a time from behind our window panes induces a very particular type of existential malaise.

Still, for those who won’t give up on Taix so easily, the good news is that a version of the restaurant will still be open on the ground floor of the new development… we might just have to close our eyes when we go in.

Keep reading for more on what’s happening in L.A. today, and stay safe out there.

— Jessica P. Ogilvie

Coming Up Today, May 20

Terminal Island in San Pedro has among the highest number of COVID-19 cases of any federal prison. Emily Elena Dugdale talks to some concerned relatives of inmates.

Coronavirus cases have been found at many meat processing plants across the country. Jacob Margolis asks how things are going at Farmer John in Vernon, one of the few in California.

Unemployment recipients who've exhausted their benefits should be eligible for a 13 week extension under new federal legislation. But they haven't gotten it yet, reports David Wagner. That’s leaving some people without income for months during this pandemic.

Libby Denkmann is following today’s presentation to the L.A. City Council about the mayor's proposed budget, which will likely suggest cuts to all manner of non-essential programs due to the COVID-19 crisis.

More than 1,000 psychologists have answered the call from their professional association to provide pro-bono services to frontline workers during the pandemic, reports Robert Garrova.

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The Past 24 Hours In LA

L.A., California, The World: There are now 39,573 coronavirus cases and 1,913 deaths in L.A. County, plus at least 81,827 cases and 3,287 deaths in California. Worldwide, there are more than 4.8 million cases and over 322,000 deaths.

Reopening L.A.: L.A. County's rate of positive COVID-19 tests is still too high to move further into stage 2 of reopening, but officials say July 4 is a good target date. In the meantime, Mayor Eric Garcetti announced that all car washes, pet grooming and training businesses can reopen.

SoCal Schools: Bucking the trend of public universities staying online for the fall semester, Chapman, Pepperdine and Cal Lutheran say they will resume in-person classes. The LAUSD board held its first open meeting in more than two months. The biggest recipient by far of LAUSD emergency spending has largely flown under the radar: Apple.

Superintendent Under Investigation: The Covina Police Department confirmed that it is investigating allegations against their local superintendent for misconduct, involving three potential victims who are former and current students.

Food And Restaurants: It's the holy month of Ramadan and this year, everything is different, especially iftar — the meal Muslims use to break their daily fast. The new plans for Taix have us wondering: does this iteration even deserve the legendary restaurant’s name? City council will consider capping food app delivery fees at 15%.

Your Moment Of Zen

Someone took the time to bake this adorable little cake and leave it outside the TCL Chinese Theater over the weekend, when the L.A. institution celebrated its 93rd anniversary. *heart eyes emoji*

(AP Photo/Ashley Landis)

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