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 is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
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.
You Might Be Able To Live In The L.A. Times Building Someday
This might be your new pad. (Photo by Ernesto A. via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr)
()
It's been a few months of peaks and valleys for The L.A Times. In March, it was revealed that the paper forgot to give Oscars tickets to the very reporters who were covering the event. Then, in May, it was reported that music critic Sasha Frere-Jones had been dropping cash in strip-clubs on the paper's dime. The paper did, however, win a Pulitzer in April for their coverage of the San Bernardino shooting.
It looks like there could be more unfavorable news on the horizon. As we noted last week, a Canadian developer named Onni Group has put in a bid to purchase the Times' headquarters on 1st and Spring streets. It was also reported that Onni's plans for the Times building included new offices and retail stores.
Now, as more details emerge, it looks like apartments will be included in the mix, reports the Los Angeles Business Journal. Sources also told the LABJ that Onni Group will pay about $120 million to Tribune Media Co., the Chicago-based company that owns the real estate.
If all goes according to plan, apartments will be added to the Broadway side of the building. The Spring Street segment of the edifice will undergo renovation, and is expected to house the new offices and retail stores. As noted by Curbed L.A., these plans could coincide with the construction of Metro's light rail connector just one block south, and a cool-looking park on 1st and Broadway.
Support for LAist comes from
Surprisingly, the building isn't listed on the Los Angeles Cultural Heritage Commission's list of historic-cultural monuments, which would have designated the structure as being worthy of preservation. According to the Office of Historic Resources in the Department of City Planning, a building may be named a historic-cultural monument if "cultural, political, economic, or social history of the nation, state, or community is reflected" and if it is "identified with historic personages or with important events in the main currents of national, state, or local history."
There's no concrete word on what will happen to the Times if the deal goes through. A Times spokesperson told the LABJ that the paper is "very interested in exploring a new arrangement that would ensure an even better, more collaborative workspace.”
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.
Chip in now to fund your local journalism
(
LAist
)
Trending on LAist
-
If approved, the more than 62-acre project would include 50 housing lots and a marina less than a mile from Jackie and Shadow's famous nest overlooking the lake. -
The U.S. Supreme Court lifted limits on immigration sweeps in Southern California, overturning a lower court ruling that prohibited agents from stopping people based on their appearance.
-
Censorship has long been controversial. But lately, the issue of who does and doesn’t have the right to restrict kids’ access to books has been heating up across the country in the so-called culture wars.
-
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.
Best of LAist