Los Angeles Downtown News 07-25-22

July 25, 2022 I VOL. 51 I #30

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Covered California CONSIDER THIS will help

OPINION

What’s that smell?

By Ellen Snortland LA Downtown News Columnist cene: a hot and muggy August day at the Jackson-Medgar Wiley Evers International Airport near Jackson, Mississippi. “These dogs are highly trained sniffers,” Sergeant Miller says to his rookie partner, Officer Randall. Miller looks down and gives Becky, his gorgeous Malinois, a treat.

“Sniffing for drugs?” Randall asks.

“Nope — sniffing out pregnant girls.

The captain says if we find any drugs, it’s gravy but to not focus on that.”

“Wait … a fetus is contraband now?”

“It sure is. Dude, you gotta read your emails. Where have you been? As of August 1, we’re hauling pregnant girls in for questioning if they have tickets to fly out of state or out of the country.” Miller says.

“We can’t let them leave to get an abortion somewhere else. We have two dogs sensitized to human embryos, so we gotta work together until they can get more dogs trained.”

Meanwhile, Randall is attempting to hide his shock. He manages to say, “Wouldn’t we be better off down at the bus terminal? It’s expensive to fly out of the country.”

“Lt. Baxter has the Beagle over at Greyhound. If there’s a preggers gal over there, Daisy will sniff her out! It’ll be like shooting fish in a barrel. Weren’t you at the briefing where we went over the new laws?”

“I was on my honeymoon,” Randall says.

“Well, pay attention. It should be pretty easy; the pregnant girl won’t put up much of a fight. Anyway, I think we’ll have the best results if we check out the Miami flights since that’s the easiest way to catch a connecting flight to Mexico or Guyana.

They wouldn’t go to Brazil, where abortions are a crime, like here. If Becky sits next to a girl, ask to see her ticket. Mexico and Guyana are places where abortions are cheap and easy — and legal.”

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That scenario is chilling and, sadly, all too believable. However, if you search on Snopes.com for “pregnancy-sniffing dogs,” you’ll discover the rumor that Mississippi lawmakers are considering using dogs to bust abortion-seeking women was actually started by a tweet from a comedian named Chip Franklin. Ha, ha — nice one, Chip! Too soon?

Frankly, I bought it because the outrage and heartbreak I’m experiencing over the Dobbs case that ultimately overturned Roe has got me losing sleep while contemplating, “What to do? What to do?

What to do?” I’ve been having a cow since the ruling, and with the current SCOTUS, getting pregnant with a cow will surely be a criminal act while the bull gets away with it.

Seriously, folks, sniffing out pregnant women and girls can’t be too far away.

People of good conscience had a hard time imagining 49-plus years of precedence and “settled law” could be overturned by a SCOTUS filled with religious zealots. And I’m old enough to remember when the considerable concern during the Nixon-Kennedy presidential contest was that, if Kennedy won, our country would be run by the Vatican with Kennedy as its puppet. Now, we’re being run by Russian hackers and crazed evangelicals determined to make the United States into a Christian theocracy.

This is antithetical to everything our country stands for, yet many people don’t understand what’s happening or, worse, are cheering it on. The United States was founded upon the separation of church and state, but now these sanctimonious morons — who believe the founding fathers wanted a Christian nation — are trying to do just that.

I’ve been writing about this topic for literally decades. I’ve been attempting to rally the “troops” to stop the right wing.

Alas, just like Cassandra of Greek lore, I had the vision, but I’ve been cursed with

Hey you! Speak up!

Downtown News wants to hear from people in the community. If you like or dislike a story, let us know, or weigh in on something you feel is important to the community.

Participation is easy. Go to downtownnews.com, scroll to the bottom of the page and click the “Letter to the Editor” link. For guest opinion proposals, please email christina@timespublications.com.

people not taking me seriously. Of course, Clarence Thomas? Oh, wait, MoveOn alI’m not the only one; my contemporar- ready thought of that; their campaign alies — my sisters and a few of my broth- ready has over a million signatures! ers — have also predicted we’d eventually Back to our country going to the dogs: see the likely persecution of Jews, LGBTQ+ if any of my readers have connections and people who use contraception. I have to dog trainers, please don’t let them talked with married, nonbinary and same- start training dogs to ferret out pregnansex friends who are extremely nervous cy. Dogs are also a woman’s best friend right now, and yes, they need to be ner- and would be appalled if they knew what vous and ready to take action in states they were being trained for. I didn’t think that can’t wait to persecute them. the pregnancy-sniffing dogs idea was too I experience intense disgust whenev- outrageous, because if these legislators er I see Clarence Thomas on the bench, can turn on women so thoroughly, they EXECUTIVE EDITOR: Christina Fuoco-Karasinski desecrating STAFF that WRITERS: very institution with his certainly will get on the “sniff them out” Andrew Checchia, Andres De Ocampo, Julia Shapero smug pronouncements.

It’s so hypocritbandwagon if given a chance.

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: Sara Edwards, Kamala Kirk ARTmention DIRECTORS:Loving Arman Olivares, Stephanie Torres ical he didn’t v. VirginSTAFF Chavez ia being next onPHOTOGRAPHER: the SCOTUS Luis chopping Ellen Snortland has written this column for CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS: Myriam Santos block. He knows his marriage to Ginni decades and also teaches creative writing. She ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES: Catherine Holloway, Michael Lamb Thomas would not be protected by the can be reached at ellen@beautybitesbeast.

FOUNDER EMERITUS: Sue Laris Constitution if interpreted by “originalist com. Her award-winning film “Beauty Bites readings” since mixed-race unions were Beast” is available for download or streaming literally not sanctioned. Can’t we impeach at vimeo.com/ondemand/beautybitesbeast

EXECUTIVE EDITOR: Christina Fuoco-Karasinski DEPUTY EDITOR: Luke Netzley

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NEWS

Lawyer guild calls for justice after protests

By Luke Netzley LA Downtown News Deputy Editor ust one month after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the 1973 decision that gave women across the country the right to an abortion, Downtown Los Angeles saw an outpouring of support for women’s rights in the form of a weekend of protests in late June.

The National Lawyers Guild of Los Angeles now demands the Los Angeles Police Department be held accountable for using violent force against members of the public who attended the demonstrations on June 24 and June 25.

“We saw hundreds, maybe thousands, of people coalescing Downtown in response to the DAS decision and marching,” said Rebecca Brown, staff attorney and mass defense coordinator for NLG-LA. “People of all ages and genders with children and dogs … there were tons of people there.”

Brown recalled at one point the group of protesters marching through Downtown gathered in the Pershing Square area, then entered onto the 101 Highway and briefly stopped traffic before exiting again.

“As the night wore on, the group did end up getting smaller, and it wasn’t really until nightfall where we started to see this more aggressive response from law enforcement, from LAPD really getting in people’s faces, manhandling people, pushing and shoving people,” Brown said. “From what I’ve heard, once things started to escalate, the environment shifted. I’ve seen a lot of footage of officers pointing lethal weapons at very close range at people, striking people, hitting people with batons.”

Brown spoke with protesters who told her they couldn’t find a safe way out of the demonstration because they were surrounded by law enforcement.

After the June 24 demonstrations, videos began to surface on Twitter that

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showed protesters, journalists and legal observers alike being physically accosted by law enforcement.

“Two or three different reporters were physically shoved onto the ground, and they were trying to document what was happening,” Brown said. “One of our own legal observers was struck with a baton. … She was hit with a foam bullet as well.

I saw them a couple days after, when we did our press conference, and they had huge bruises on their legs and hips, kind of all over their body.”

At demonstrations, legal observers typically wear bright green hats to show they are not protesters and are present to document the day’s events. Law enforcement is meant to be familiar with this symbol.

“The LAPD and then the union, the Police Protective League, put out a statement characterizing everyone as ‘using the First Amendment as a shield to attack police officers’ and calling on LA leadership to have a more severe response to protesters,” Brown said. “I think this has continued this trend that we’ve seen over the years of just a really disproportionate and kind of indiscriminate violent response from LAPD to protests.”

In its Department Manual, the LAPD’s “Policy on the Use of Force” contains a commitment to de-escalation in situations such as unlawful assemblies.

During a press conference held by NLG-LA, one of the protesters present during the June 24 demonstrations named Rosie Nolan described being thrown to the ground by an officer twice and then having her bicycle taken away from her. She said she felt both frightened and confused by the “audacity to use such force on people who were really very peaceful.”

“This is what we see happen time and again,” Brown described. “An action will go on sort of peacefully and police are minimally involved, but then once they do get involved, it’s law enforcement that really starts escalating and there’re just no at-

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NEWS

tempts at de-escalation, at isolating people.

“When they’re seeing people engaging in violence and dangerous behaviors, they’re supposed to isolate those individuals and remove them from the situation, not just indiscriminately attack anyone who’s in the crowd.”

Brown expressed that she believes the police are trying to send a message to protesters to think twice before demonstrating on the streets of Downtown or face the risk of injury or arrest.

“Even if you’re going out to exercise your First Amendment rights and speak up for what you believe in, you might get hit with a baton, you might get shot with a rubber bullet or a foam bullet,” Brown said. “I think it’s really trying to silence people and to force people to just comply with the status quo.”

There is still an ongoing class-action lawsuit being held against the LAPD following its response to protests that occurred in the summer of 2020, and a temporary restraining order in place against certain types of use of less-lethal force. Brown explained that these lawsuits can take several years before providing any result.

“It seems like every 10 years or so we have another big lawsuit saying LAPD should not be responding this violently to protests, and then it happens again right now with NLG-LA,” Brown said. “We’re taking a moment to touch base with our legal observers, especially those who are injured on the ground, and see, what are their needs? How can we support them as they’re recovering physically and mentally from this? And what would they like to see going forward? What does the community want as the response?

“I think this is something that needs to be brought to the attention of the police commission as well as city leadership. It’s absolutely unacceptable that it continues to happen.”

The LAPD was approached for comment but did not reply.

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JULY 25, 2022

ARTS & CULTURE

Lucha VaVOOM will bring its riotous blend of lucha libre, burlesque, music and comedy to the Mayan Theatre on Friday, July 29.

Ariadna de Alba/Submitted

Lucha VaVOOM takes over Mayan Theatre

By Luke Netzley LA Downtown News Deputy Editor hen Liz Fairbairn began dating a wrestler in LA, she was introduced to the underground world of the city’s lucha libre scene. Captivated by the performance and atmosphere, she decided to blend her background in talent management for heavy metal band Gwar with her fascination for the Lucha lifestyle to create the high-flying and flamboyant Lucha VaVOOM. Within 15 minutes of watching the first performance unfold, Fairbairn knew that she had something special.

“It’s like magic,” Fairbairn said. “When you have a concept and you have the freedom to riff on it, magical things happen.”

Lucha VaVOOM celebrates its 20th anniversary this August and will bring its Summer Sabotage show to DTLA’s Mayan Theatre on Friday, July 29.

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Built to be a vibrant medley of world-class Mexican masked wrestling, burlesque, comedy and music, Lucha VaVOOM has been one of the city’s longest-running and most-celebrated variety shows for the past two decades.

“It’s just pure fun,” Fairbairn described. “A lot of other people consider LA to be something like the ‘Real Housewives of Beverly Hills’ or something, and there’s so much more to it. … I’ve lived on the east side for over 20 years, and it’s a whole different reality. For me, a great one. I love it, and we represent that reality plus some of the glamor of the rest of LA.” Summer Sabotage’s confirmed wrestling lineup will include the likes of fan favorites Lil’ Cholo and Magno “The Man Mountain” Rudo; Dragon Lee; Dralistico; Los Crazy Chickens; Dr. Maldad; Chupacabra; Zyra; Johnnie Robbie; Los SEXI Mexi’s; Matt Classic and Mini Matt Classic; four-time Reina de Reins champion and former WWE superstar Taya Valkyrie; former LVV champion Dama Fina; and one of the

JULY 25, 2022

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Audrey Deluxe is a burlesque artist.

Lucha VaVOOM /Submitted

world’s smallest wrestlers and a beloved fighter in Mexico, Microman.

Led by comedian-host Blaine Capatch, the show’s lineup of burlesque dancers and aerialists will include Absinthe Las Vegas’ Raquel Reed, burlesque artist Audrey Deluxe, and daredevil aerialists Veronica Yune and Viva La Glam.

“The performers bring so much to it,” Fairbairn explained. “Everybody that performs in the room, including the wrestlers, the dancers, the comedians, everybody loves doing the show because they are able to bring their own creativity to it, and the best things that happen, happen kind of spontaneously.”

In collaboration with Sony Pictures for the upcoming action-thriller “Bullet Train,” Summer Sabotage will also feature a wrestler called The Wolf, inspired by Bad Bunny’s character in the film, as well as the film’s mascot Momomon.

“Sony and Bullet Train dovetailed so perfectly into our concept,” Fairbairn said.

By combining the wrestling traditions of lucha libre with daring aerialist stunts, burlesque performances and comedy, Fairbairn aims to provide her audience with an unforgettable experience at Summer Sabotage.

“There’s only one show, and it’s getting close to selling out,” Fairbairn said. “So, I recommend that people come and see this one, because I don’t know if I would ever be able to afford to recreate this crazy of a lineup again. It’s going to be special.”

Lucha VaVOOM’s Summer Sabotage WHERE: The Mayan Theatre, 1038 S. Hill Street, Los Angeles WHEN: Friday, July 29 COST: Tickets vary between $45 and $90 for guests 21 and older only INFO: luchavavoom.com

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JULY 25, 2022

Covered California will help FEATURE

Johnny Marr will open for The Killers at Banc of California Stadium on Saturday, Aug. 27.

Fraser Taylor/Submitted

Guitarist Johnny Marr’s career is a love letter to music

By Christina Fuoco-Karasinski LA Downtown News Executive Editor fter co-founding the Smiths and lending his guitar style to bands like The The, Modest Mouse and Electronic, legendary axman Johnny Marr shrugs off notions of having to impress anyone.

The Manchester, England, musician is looking forward to just having fun when he opens for the Killers this summer.

“I’m a bit long in the tooth to feel like I have to win people over. If I do, I do.

If I don’t? Then so what,” Marr, 58, said during a Zoom call.

“I lead a guitar group, and the combination of being an entertainer and someone who plays indie guitar, to me, is very satisfying. That’s enough for me.

“I don’t feel like I’m sinking under any great pressure or any obligation to further my career. I want to go out and give people a good listen and a good watch these days. That’s enough to get on. It’s a satisfying challenge.”

Marr’s set will blend new and old material — he’s known for playing the Smiths’

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staple “How Soon is Now?” and recently released “Fever Dreams Pts. 1-4.” Marr calls it a high-energy show.

“As you will imagine, when you’re an opening act, you have to condense all the high points into a short space of time. So, it becomes even more high energy,” he said.

“I do enjoy when it goes into a slightly darker place, when it’s slower and more dynamic, and it gets more theatrical.

When I entertain everybody for 45 minutes or an hour, I tend to play the stuff people know or the bangers. It’s a combination of up-tempo solo stuff and a couple really old songs, and sometimes play two Electronic songs.”

“Fever Dreams,” he said, is a departure for him, and that came about inadvertently.

“I deliberately wanted to give the fans who liked the previous record, ‘Call the Comet,’ another record that they would like,” he said.

“Almost by accident, it sounds a little different. You never want to make the same record twice. You want to feel like

you’re evolving. ‘Call the Comet,’ my third album, was really popular with my audience. So, with this new record, I felt a certain kind of pressure, if you like, to follow up the record.”

At the same time, he added, he wanted to evolve. However, the songs from all his solo releases fit nicely together live.

“We’ve added a new guy on keys and noises who’s freshened things up a little bit,” he said. “I didn’t want to make a radical change of direction at this point.

I may in the future. What me and the audience have going right now is quite fantastic.”

Longtime love As a child in Manchester, Marr dreamt of riding on tour buses around the United States, as music was in his blood.

“I come from a family of music obsessives,” Marr said.

“Even if I wasn’t doing it for a living, I would be the same way, in a way. My brother’s like that. My sister’s like that. My mother is particularly like that. We think

that music is magic, really.

“As you get older and you get other interests and become, hopefully, more sophisticated and more worldly, you try to evolve as a person — ‘evolution,’ there’s that word again.”

Marr evolved, but nothing compares to music.

“Nothing really replaces what music does for me, either as a listener or performer,” he said. “I have a lot of other good things in my life, but music has always just been there.”

Philosophers, architecture, design and theology interest him.

“Some of it is quite heady stuff. That’s what I like, and it’s great.

“Then you hear ‘Reach Out I’ll Be There’

by Four Tops or a Smokey Robinson or Patti Smith record, you just say, ‘This is also heady,’” he said.

“I get quite almost mystical about these things and the nature of what music can do. It could be some dumb riff or some dumb chorus. My first love was T. Rex. Famously, Marc Bolan’s lyrics are nonsensical but utterly brilliant.”

JULY 25, 2022

He can ruminate on philosophers, and “some people might say this is pretentious, but I’ll hear ‘Ask the Angels’ by Patti Smith and I’ll be zapped right back to the place at age 15 when I wanted to quit school.

“Nothing does the same thing with me.

I’ll play ‘Spirit Power and Soul’ or the chorus to ‘Night and Day,’ and I’ll think, ‘Jesus, this is the best job in the world.’

“It’s brought me a lot of comfort, and it’s entirely given me my direction in life.

I’m getting even more kind of philosophical in my old age.”

Support act Marr said he believes most of the Killers’ fans will not have heard of him or the Smiths. He finds that exciting and challenging, a challenge he knows will be successful.

“Because we’re (expletive) good,” Marr said matter-of-factly. “The Killers have

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been very gracious and generous in mentioning me and introducing their audience to me, which I appreciate. I don’t feel like I’m going out to an audience in which absolutely nobody knows what I do. It is good, though, to get out there and try and interest some people who otherwise don’t know you or they’re just a name.”

He has spent this year opening for a plethora of bands. Marr traveled the United Kingdom with Blondie, for whom he has been writing songs. Opening for Pearl Jam was a good time, and during his six-week break in between jaunts, he performed with Alicia Keys and Primal Scream.

“It’s been a really wonderful summer so far,” he said. “In all the years I’ve been doing this, Alicia Keys is probably the most impressive artist I’ve come across. I worked with her twice now, and she really is an impressive person and a good person. She’s an American great, I think.”

The Killers w/Johnny Marr WHEN: 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 27 WHERE: Banc of California Stadium, 3939 S. Figueroa Street, Los Angeles COST: Tickets start at $274 INFO: bancofcaliforniastadium.com, ticketmaster.com

Johnny Marr was the guitarist and songwriter of the Smiths from 1982 to 1987.

Andy Cotterill/Submitted

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JULY 25, 2022

DT Henderson transitions to employee ownership BUSINESS

By Christina Fuoco-Karasinski LA Downtown News Executive Editor enderson Companies has transitioned to becoming 100% employee owned after launching an employee stock ownership plan.

It is the parent company of Henderson Engineers, which has offices in DTLA, and Henderson Building Solutions.

“Henderson has always focused on providing a people-first culture where our employees could thrive and do their best work,” said Kevin Lewis, chief executive officer and president of Henderson Companies.

“Moving to an ESOP company was a natural next step in our firm’s evolution. Our employees are what sets us apart, so we want to empower them all to think and act like owners. As an ESOP, employees on all levels are more engaged and focused on client service because they have a stake in the success of Henderson.”

Henderson, which was founded in 1970 in Kansas City, Missouri, began as

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a small family business with three employees. Since then, it has evolved into a $197 million design and construction company that works for renowned brands across five market sectors.

Last year, the firm’s previous ownership group of 58 overwhelmingly voted to create an ESOP, enabling all eligible employees, regardless of rank, to own beneficial shares of Henderson Companies.

The announcement comes as Henderson simultaneously celebrates 52 years in business and reaches 1,000 employees nationwide. The move to an employee-owned company was part of a longterm leadership transition and company restructure Henderson announced earlier this year.

“It’s fitting to be sharing this exciting news right as we hit two major milestones in our history in terms of our longevity and the size of our personnel,” explained Rich Smith, Henderson’s president emeritus who advocated for Henderson’s move to an ESOP during his

tenure as CEO. “This has been something we’ve been working on for a number of years to protect the legacy and culture of Henderson for years to come. We consulted with several employee-owned firms within the AEC industry, and they all had nothing but positive things to say. We’re confident becoming an ESOP will mean continued success for Henderson employees and our clients.”

As part of the transition to an ESOP in January, Henderson Companies named a new board of directors.

The Henderson Companies board is led by Robin Broder, Henderson’s chief marketing officer, as the chairman of the board.

Other board members include new CEO Kevin Lewis along with Dave Haake, Shane Lutz, Drew Rimmer, Vince Masilionis and Andrew Bennett.

Henderson Companies’ notable work in the region includes SoFi Stadium, various restaurants at LAX, and NASA’s Dryden Research Center.

Lewis said there are several benefits to being an ESOP. “First and foremost, it took the culture we had in place and enhanced it,” he said. “Our culture was very entrepreneurial in spirit and a very family-oriented culture. It was a nice augment to it.

“One of the benefits, we believe, is it creates a legacy firm. With 1,000 employees being beneficial owners, you don’t have to transition leadership from one generation to the next.”

Each employee has a mutual say in the company, he added, and it creates accountability and buy-in.

“I always use the analogy, ‘If you rent a car, you don’t treat it as well as your car,’” he said. “With your car, you take care of preventative maintenance, take it for a car wash, and love and care for it.

“We see that with a company as well.

Everybody has a vested interest in stake in the company.”

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BUSINESS

CHMC named a top hospital

by Fortune, Merative

By Luke Netzley LA Downtown News Deputy Editor s LA continues to recover from the health crisis that swept the city during the pandemic, Downtown’s California Hospital Medical Center has been recognized as one of the top performing teaching hospitals in the country and named to the Fortune/Merative 100 Top Hospitals List.

Merative, a data, analytics and technology partner for the health industry formerly known as IBM Watson Health, identified the top hospitals via a rigorous evaluation of 2,650 short-term, acute care, nonfederal hospitals in the United States. The annual list was established to help identify best practices that may help other health care organizations achieve consistent, balanced and sustainable high performance. It recognizes excellence in clinical outcomes, operational efficiency, patient experience and financial health.

“It’s an incredible honor to be recognized

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by Fortune/Merative as one of the top 100 teaching hospitals in the nation,” CHMC President Alina Moran said. “Our commitment to providing high-quality care to our patients and the communities we serve starts with ensuring our medical and nursing professionals are equipped with the right tools and knowledge to deliver that care in the best way possible.”

The 318-bed, acute care, nonprofit hospital was founded in 1887 and, as a part of the nation’s largest health care systems Dignity Health, CHMC continues to offer a range of services such as obstetrics and pediatric services, cardiac and surgical services, a Level II trauma center and the Los Angeles Center for Women’s Health.

According to Merative, as compared to similar hospitals, the hospitals included on the Fortune/Merative 100 Top Hospitals list had better results on key clinical and operational performance indicators. These included survival rates, patient complications, health care associated infections, 30-

For the first time, the California Hospital Medical Center has been recognized as one of the top performing teaching hospitals in the country by Fortune and Merative.

CHMC/Submitted

day mortality and 30-day hospital-wide readmission rates, length of stay, throughput in emergency departments, inpatient expenses, profitability, and ratings from patients.

The Fortune/Merative 100 Top Hospitals lists also incorporates a community health measure into its ranking process. For the community health measure, hospitals were surveyed across three components: assessing hospital contributions to community health as a provider of critical services for community health and preventive care,

identifying ways hospitals contribute to community health as a community partner teaming up with local organizations to implement critical programs, and focusing on ways hospitals promote community health through their practices as anchor institutions supporting local economic and social progress.

For the first time, Downtown’s CHMC has etched its name on this prestigious list and been cemented as one of Merative’s models of excellence for the health industry.

The Fortune/Merative 100 Top Hospitals List INFO: ibm.com/products/100-top-hospitals

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JULY 25, 2022

BUSINESS

Hotel Per La opens on former NoMad Hotel site in DTLA

By Luke Netzley LA Downtown News Deputy Editor erched on a timeless corner near the city ’s historic core, DTLA’s newest lifestyle property Hotel Per La Los Angeles lies at the site of the former iconic NoMad Hotel at 649 S. Olive Street. The property’s existing ownership has partnered with asset management company HN Capital Partners to invest in the repositioning and reopening of the hotel with operations partner Sage Hospitality Group, which has overseen the hotel’s management and its

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various food and beverage concepts.

A member of Preferred Hotels & Resorts, the 12-story Hotel Per La will feature 241 signature guest rooms, 10,000 square feet of event space, the debut of a new rooftop bar and pool space overlooking the LA skyline, and a new ground-floor café and restaurant launching this September.

“Since our founding, we have had a focus on creating unique luxury and service experiences in lifestyle hotels we acquire or develop, with a keen eye on changing consumer preferences,” said

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LIEN SALE AD

NOTICE OF SALE NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the undersigned intends to sell the personal property described below to enforce a lien imposed on said property pursuant to Sections 21700-21716 of the Business & Professions Code, Section 2328 of the UCC, Section 535 of the Penal Code and provisions of the Civil Code.

The undersigned will sell on the 26th day of July 2022 at 11:00 A.M. on the premises where said property has been stored and which are located at Thriftee Storage Company LLC, 1717 N. Glendale Blvd. in the city of Los Angeles, County of Los Angeles, State of California, the following: Name of owner: Space number, Description of goods, Amount Jessica Murray L38 Personal effects $824.75 Christina Escalante E7 Personal effects $967.00 Feliberto Garcia L18 Personal effects $875.00 Philip Zuchelli B14 Personal effects $796.00 Brandon Tory D80 Personal effects $356.00 Karen Martinez H10 Personal effects $295.00 Purchases must be paid for at the time of purchase in cash only. All purchased storage units with the items contained herein are sold on an “as-is” basis and must be removed at the time of sale. Sale subject to cancellation in the event of settlement between Thriftee Storage Co. and obligated party.

Thriftee Storage Company LLC Dated at Los Angeles, CA by Felipe F. Islas / Manager July 12, 2022.

PUBLISHED: Los Angeles Downtown News 07/18/22, 7/25/22

Hotel Per La has this salon patio.

Vipin Nambiar, founder and managing partner of HN Capital Partners. “This hotel is directly within that strategy.”

Located in the Giannini Building, the former Bank of Italy home originally built in 1922, the reimagined property will retain the signature features of the previous hotel while seeking to enhance the guest experience by introducing new food and beverage concepts that highlight community-driven dining experiences and working closely with a number of local LA-based creative partners to bring a new hospitality space to the Downtown neighborhood.

“We are truly honored to welcome this iconic hotel to the Sage family, as it represents the type of luxury lifestyle property we plan to strategically add to our portfolio in the coming years,” said Walter Isenberg, president and CEO of Sage Hospitality Group. “This hotel

The Ingalls/Submitted

marks a new evolution for our organization as we work to become the undisputed lifestyle hospitality company in the nation.”

The property began accepting reservations on July 11, softly opening with rooms and the launch of the new rooftop bar concept in the following weeks.

“HNCP is excited to work with the existing ownership group and Sage to rebrand and relaunch this unique property,” Nambiar said. “This acquisition is also special in that we were able to welcome Jeremy Selman to our team as a partner to help execute this investment with me. Jeremy is a true hotelier and has had a long and successful tenure in hospitality. He also has a deep understanding of this hotel and property given his prior role at Sydell. “ We look for ward to welcoming guests to the hotel very soon.”

Hotel Per La WHERE: 649 S. Olive Street, Los Angeles INFO: hotelperla.com

JULY 25, 2022

DT

DOWNTOWN NEWS 13

DOWNTOWNNEWS.COM

DINING

Broad Street Oyster Co. opens Grand Central Market location

By Kateri Wozny LA Downtown News Contributing Writer hristopher Tompkins’ dream for the last five and a half years was to open a Broad Street Oyster Co. location at Grand Central Market in Downtown Los Angeles. His wish came true on July 2.

“I was very excited to open at Grand Central Market,” Tompkins said. “It’s an iconic location, and it just goes to show that we’re welcomed down there.”

Tompkins has been fascinated with seafood since childhood. He grew up in upstate New York and later relocated to Boston surrounded by the best New England lobster rolls. Tompkins moved to California in 2016, and by 2017 he was operating as a mobile catering seafood pop-up up and down the California coast. “( The customers) were surprised at how good the oysters and lobster rolls were from a street corner,” Tompkins said.

Being on the road also gave Tompkins the resilience to open up his first restaurant in Malibu in the summer of 2019.

He works with fishermen from Santa Barbara, Morro Bay, the Pacific Northwest and Massachusetts to bring in the freshest seafood.

“Whenever we can work directly to help support the vendors on a daily basis, that makes us feel good, and it trickles down to the culture to the team members,” Tompkins said.

Broad Street Oyster Co. has a variety of fresh seafood dishes, with the main dishes (called “the hits”) including a Maryland soft shell crab sando ($29) with coleslaw and Fresno chile aioli on a brioche bun; fried clams ($27) with cayenne, malt vinegar and cocktail sauce; the most popular dish, the lobster roll ($25), served chilled with mayonnaise or warm with butter; fried jump shrimp ($21) beer-battered with lemon pepper and served with cocktail sauce; a classic burger ($14) with Niman Ranch beef, American cheese, onion, pickle and aioli on a sesame roll; New England-style clam chowder ($7-$13) with Nueske’s bacon; fries ($6) with Old Bay aioli; coleslaw ($6) with cabbage, carrot and apple cider vinegar; and homemade Old Bay potato chips ($5).

“The lobster roll is what everyone is lining up for because it’s the simplest,” Tompkins said. “We strive to put out the

C

highest-quality and freshest version of these staple seafood dishes but with a laid-back approach.”

There’s also the oysters and raw bar, with the most popular being the seafood tower ($135) that combines a mix of oysters on the half shell, live Santa Barbara sea urchin, Regiis Ova caviar and wild caught jumbo shrimp; caviar service with different serving sizes ($40$235); Pacific Northwest fried oysters ($27) made Southern style with Fresno chile aioli; Rockefeller oysters ($26) with spinach, garlic, Parmesan and breadcrumbs; wild shrimp cocktail with sauce ($24); and sea urchin ($23).

“We tell the customer to come on down and experience the seafood tower because it’s a collection of all of the treasures from the sea,” Tompkins said.

Customers can also order a variety of on-tap West Coast beers and wine from Cellador Ales ($16), Wavy Wines ($13), Crowns and Hops ($9), Harland Brewing Co. ($9), Los Angeles Ale Works ($9), MadeWest Brewing Company ($9), The Bruery ($9), Three Weavers Brewing Company ($9) and Boomtown Brewery ($8), along with canned wines and ciders from Bardos Cider ($24), Jumbo Time Wines ($23-$25) and Las Jaras Waves ($21). A variety of soft drinks ($4$5.50) are also available.

“The fried oysters are also the perfect dish to split with a friend while drinking a beer and eating a lobster roll,” Tompkins said.

Tompkins said the philosophy at Broad Street Oyster Co. is to serve customers at a low-brow approach with a high-brow cuisine. Consumers often have a misconception that seafood should only be served on a white table cloth at an old-school steakhouse.

“We want customers to experience the greatest seafood that they’ve had in Southern California,” Tompkins said. “You may not think that I should grab from a street corner, but our approachability and fun, casual setting is what we have to offer.”

Broad Street Oyster Co. also participates in Smorgasburg Los Angeles every Sunday and at the Miami location on Saturdays.

“We felt like the luckiest people in Los Angeles, and it was a benchmark for Broad Street,” Tompkins said.

In the future, Tompkins sees more Broad Street Oyster Co. locations open-

The lobster roll is the most-popular item on the menu at Broad Street Oyster Co. Broad Street Oyster Co./Submitted

ing along the coast of California.

He also recently opened another restaurant in Santa Barbara and launched Broad Street Coffee Co., a coffee and gelato shop in Malibu. He plans to open another location by the end of

the year.

“We want to continue our way up and down the coast of California and are on a great path of doing so,” Tompkins said.

“We are slowly growing and expanding our operations.”

Broad Street Oyster Co. LOCATION: Grand Central Market, 317 S. Broadway, Los Angeles HOURS: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily INFORMATION: broadstreetoyster.com

2022

14 DOWNTOWN NEWS

TWITTER: @ DOWNTOWNNEWS

JULY 25, 2022

Publication Date: August 15, 2022

BEST OF DOWNTOWN

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