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Grand Avenue
Grand Avenue Downtown LA
Overview: Grand Avenue in Downtown Los Angeles is experiencing a revitalization – well, sort of. Which area? The surrouning few blocks across the Walt Disney Concert Hall from Grand Ave.
The Grand Avenue Project, as the revitalization is referred to as, proposes to develop the area into one of the hottest spots in Los Angeles. While the Music Center draws millions of folks, the Grand Avenue Project will erect residential lofts, entertainment centers, restaurants and shopping centers, giving Los Angeles a economic boast and creating jobs for thousands of locals. While the current market condition is causing a delay in the project, keep an eye out for the first phase of the development by 2012.
In the meanwhile, the Grand Ave, sitting atop Bunker HIll, in focus offers many of Los Angeles’ top cultural hot spots. Start at one of the most distinctive buildings in Los Angeles,the modernist building Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels at the southeast corner of Grand Ave and Temple St. This is the vast and elaborate base of the arch-bishop of Los Angeles and a venue for many events.
Across the street is the Music Center Annex, the home to the Center Theatre Group (CTG), the organization which operates a few of the largest performance arts theaters in Los Angeles, including the Mark Taper Forum and Ahmanson Theater in the Music Center across the street on Grand Ave. Within the Music Center Plaza is the famous Dorothy Chandler Pavilion. Across the street from the Dorothy Chandler is the Walt Disney Concert Hall, definitely L.A.’s most unique building.
A couple of blocks south of the Music Center also sits the MOCA at California Plaza (Museum of Contemporary Art) and the highly praised California Plaza. Check out the crunched airplane in the courtyard of the MOCA and the beautiful water gardens and outdoor performance and event area in the California Plaza. To the back of the California Plaza, you will find the Angel’s Flight Railway. Last but not least, around the California Plaza area (the 300 and 400 block), you’ll be surrounded by a bulk of Downtown L.A.’s skyscrapers, including the California towers, the Gas Company Building and more.
Something you don’t want to miss on Grand Avenue in downtown is the incredible view of Los Angeles from the back end of the California Plaza. This area is considered the top of Bunker Hill, the once ritzy residential neighborhood of the wealthy.
See the individual pages for the above-mentioned sights for details regarding an overview, contact information, accessibility and more.
Getting There: www.ladottransit.com, www.metro.net