WAHA E-News 5-4-2007

Trees, treasures, and peaceful gardens - West Adams this weekend, and more!

By Laura Meyers

1). LAFAYETTE SQUARE ANNUAL USED STUFF SALE
Saturday, May 5, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Enter this gated community from St. Charles Place (turn west from Crenshaw)

It's time for Lafayette Square's annual spring cleaning! Homeowners throughout the Square will be offering their tossed-off treasures for sale. The sale will include the usual assortment of clothing, kids' toys, furniture, and vintage/periodesque furnishings and accessories galore. In past years, members have reporting acquiring all kinds of great antique "finds." Come early for the best selection. Questions? Contact co-chair Ellen Farwell, 323-737-2528.

2). FREE TREES FOR YOUR YARD (THIS ONE IS REAL)
Saturday May 5, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Council District 10 Field Office, 1819 S. Western (enter from rear, from Manhattan Place, just north of Washington Blvd.)

Apologies to all who tried to find a free tree back in March. We are assured this free trees giveaway is the real deal.

Councilmember Herb J. Wesson, Jr. and the Koreatown Youth & Community Center (KYCC) invite you to the next Million Trees LA event taking place tomorrow morning.

Some of the 5-gallon tree species being offered are (in differing quantities):

Cajeput
Jacaranda
Toyon
New Zealand Christmas tree
Bottle tree
Pink Trumpet
Fruitless Olive
Fern Pine
Crape Myrtle
Magnolia

PLEASE COME EARLY TO ENSURE YOU GET THE TREE YOU DESIRE! Contact Wendy Fraticelli at CD10 for more info: 323-733-8233.

3). SUNDAY AFTERNOONS IN PEACEFUL GARDENS
Sunday, May 6 (most Sunday afternoons) 12 to 4 p.m. Peace Labyrinth and Gardens at the Guasti Villa (Busby Berkeley Estate), 3500 West Adams Blvd.

One of West Adams' most notable landmarks is the Guasti Villa, famed for its beauty and its association for a period with film director Busby Berkeley. Today the estate is known as the Peace Labyrinth and Gardens at the Guasti Villa, and as those who have visited previously know, the gardens are as spectacular as the Beaux Arts mansion itself.

You are now invited to experience the historic mansion and gardens on Sunday afternoons, when the property - a true oasis in the city -- is open for public touring. Walk the labyrinth, spend time in the beautiful meditation garden, and take in the city views from the upper terrace gardens.

Refreshments (including organic coffee and tea, plus homemade sweets and savories) are for sale during the Sunday tour hours - and, from time to time, expect some entertainment such as harp playing, or a singer/song writer may share their music, perhaps some background piano. For more information, contact 323-737-4055 or programs@peacelabyrinth.org.

4). WONDERFUL WILSHIRE PARK
Wonderful Wilshire Park: Spring Historic Homes and Garden Tour Saturday, June 2 Houses will be open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Last ticket sold at 2:30 p.m. Check in at 4039 West 7th Street (west of Wilton Place) on the day of the tour

Please join WAHA and Wilshire Park Association on a pleasant Spring stroll through Wilshire Park, one of Los Angeles' best kept secrets.

The self-guided tour includes homes dating from circa 1910 through the 1930s, and features a wide variety of architectural styles. Some residences have been painstakingly restored by loving owners to their original period, while others have been given a new, creative life by artists and craftsmen.

Wilshire Park is bounded by Crenshaw, Wilshire, Wilton and Olympic. It is home to three L.A. landmarks, and dozens more beautiful historic homes. The enclave is located just north of the Historic West Adams District, in a community where WAHA also advocates on historic preservation and neighborhood character issues.

Cost:
Paid in advance, WAHA members and Wilshire Park residents, $25.
Non-members paid in advance, $30.
Paid on the day (walk-in), $35.

Proceeds from this event benefit WAHA's historic preservation advocacy activities. WAHA is helping the Wilshire Park Association's efforts to raise money for a historic resources survey.

To purchase advance tickets, send your request and a check made out to "WAHA" to:

WAHA June Tour
2209 Virginia Road
Los Angeles, CA 90016

For more information, call 323-732-4223, e-mail tours@westadamsheritage.com

5). HPOZ BOARD CONFERENCE AT MOUNT ST. MARY'S
Saturday, May 19
8:30 a.m. to 2:45 p.m.
Mount St. Mary's College, Doheny Campus, Jose Marti Auditorium-Lecture Hall at Building 4, 10 Chester Place (just north of Adams at St. James Park)

Please join the Department of City Planning and the Los Angeles Conservancy for this important annual gathering of Los Angeles' 22 Historic Preservation Overlay Zone Boards (HPOZs), and the Department of City Planning's HPOZ and Office of Historic Resources staff.

For the first time ever, the HPOZ Conference will go out into a neighborhood - with walking tours/fieldwork sessions of the University Park HPOZ to illustrate common challenges and "real life" examples faced by all of our HPOZ Boards.

This year's conference will also include:
* Remarks by Director of Planning Gail Goldberg
* The State of the HPOZs and the City's New Preservation Program: Ken Bernstein, Office of Historic Resources
* Addressing Cultural Diversity Challenges in HPOZs: Discussion panel, with panelists to include Councilmember Ed Reyes
* Training Session: How to Read and Interpret Plans
* Informal Lunch Discussion Tables on HPOZ Board issues

All HPOZ Board Members are expected to attend, but the guest list is open to everyone who'd be interested, so feel free to forward this as you see fit.

Cost: $20 (includes continental breakfast and lunch)
RSVP to Jay Platt at 213-430-4211, or jplatt@laconservancy.org by May 11.

Advance payment by either check or credit card is appreciated. Checks should be made out to "Los Angeles Conservancy." Be sure to include "HPOZ Conference" on the note line. Mail checks to Jay's attention at Los Angeles Conservancy, 523 W. 6th Street, Suite 826, Los Angeles, CA 90014.

6). LANI COMMUNITY FORUM: HELPING NEIGHBORHOODS THRIVE
Thursday, May 17
8:00 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.
USC Davidson Conference Center, 3415 S. Figueroa Street (corner of Jefferson)

Everyone is invited to the Los Angeles Neighborhood Initiative's (LANI) annual conference, a free event where Los Angeles area leaders, community stakeholders and residents come together to gain tools and discuss ways to revitalize their communities! City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo will deliver the welcome address, and Huell Howser, producer and host of "California's Gold with Huell Howser," will be the keynote speaker.

8:00 - 9:00 a.m. Registration & Crenshaw High School Jazz Band
9:00 - 10:15 a.m. Keynote Speaker and Full Breakfast
10:15 - 10:30 a.m. Break
10:30 - 12:00 p.m. Session I Workshops
12:00 - 12:45 p.m. Break and Light Buffet
1:00 - 2:30 p.m. Session II Workshops

* Exhibitors will be sharing information throughout the day.

SESSION I WORKSHOPS (10:30 a.m. to 12 noon): - Disaster Preparedness at the Neighborhood Level - Farmers' Markets - Keeping it Clear: Water Quality and Your Community - Small Business Development Toolbox

SESSION II WORKSHOPS (1:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.): - Accounting for Non Profits - All Aboard! An Update on Rail Projects in Los Angeles - Billboards: Art or Blight - Murals: Public Galleries of Art and Culture

FREE PARKING: In Structure Two next to the Galen Center, 3533 Flower Street.

Register at www.lani.org or call 213-627-1822 x20. On-site registration will also be available.

7). LAST BUT NOT LEAST - STILL SEEKING SOUTH SEAS HOUSE PHOTOS

Do you have a present-day photograph that depicts the rear of the renovated South Seas House? In particular, we need images that show the oversized sign that was mounted on the fence, indicating the State of California funding sources for the project. Government officials are trying to document that the sign was really mounted for several years (it was), and need photographic evidence. If you can help, please contact architect Michele McDonough, mmdarch@ca.rr.com, or the City's project manager, Richard Chang, at 213-978-1912.

8). SUBMIT YOUR NEWS

We welcome your contributions to the WAHA E-News and West Adams Heritage Association's monthly publication, "West Adams Matters." Please understand that we do have deadlines. Material for the print newsletter should be submitted no later than the 1st of the prior month (i.e.: April 1 for the May issue). If your event is scheduled for early in a month, we suggest you request coverage for the prior month (i.e.: May issue for a June 3 event), because it's entirely possible that not all of our members will have received their newsletter by then (we do try hard…). We reserve the right to edit submitted material. For the WAHA E-News, we prefer to only send it out once or twice a month. Please don't wait until two days before an event to let us know about it. It may not be sent out. EXCEPTION: If you suddenly hear of an important city hearing or other public meeting that is important to West Adams, we will endeavor to send out a special bulletin.

Submit your material to Laura Meyers, editor, lauramink@aol.com.