WAHA Begins Its 25th Year of Historic Preservation, Big Sunday (on Saturday) in West Adams, and Fire Appreciation Day. >

By Laura Meyers

1). 25 YEARS OF PRESERVATION - AND A MIMOSA BRUNCH

WAHA's Annual Historic Preservation Meeting: "Landmarks Won and Landmarks Lost"
Saturday, May 31
11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. (Program at Noon)
The historic Union Square Theatre, 1122 West 24th Street (University Park, just west of Hoover)

Please join WAHA at our annual Historic Preservation brunch at the Union Square Theatre, now home to the Velaslavasay Panorama. The Union Square Theater was built as a silent picture house, one of the first in the city solely dedicated to film programs. In 1935, former screen vamp Louise Glaum opened an acting school and playhouse here, calling it Louise Glaum's Little Theater at Union Square. Then in 1939, it was re-reconfigured back into a film venue, the Union, which operated into the 1950s. It was later home to the tile layers union. The Velaslavasay Panorama and Gardens is in the process of "preserving and prolonging the magic of this historic place."

For our program, we kick off WAHA's 25th year of historic preservation activities with a visual presentation and discussion about our landmark victories over the years, and an acknowledgement of some battles lost. Whether you are a longtime member or new to West Adams, we hope you will come and celebrate the character of our community, and its evolution over the past quarter century.

To help you celebrate, we're serving a Continental brunch and champagne mimosas. Please do come, enjoy the theatre, its garden and our special presentation.

2). BIG SUNDAY AT THE LAPD STOP-IN CENTER

Saturday, May 3 (Tomorrow)
11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
LAPD Stop-in Center, 4012 West Washington (Arlington Heights, just east of Crenshaw)

May 3rd and May 4th is Big Sunday Weekend. Haven't heard about it? Don't yet have plans to join thousands of other people around the city who are volunteering to make our city a better place? You can still sign up for all manner of projects at www.bigsunday.org.

Or, you can just show up on Saturday morning to lend a helping hand at the LAPD Stop-In Center, where the Avenue Neighborhood Watch is going to have a spruce up of the facility and have information tables out front with city contact information (graffiti removal, bulky item pick up, building and safety, etc) for the community. Volunteers are needed to do some light weeding from the trees in front and in the garden area. Volunteers are also needed to help with the information tables. Myrtle Bankhead, co-chair of the Avenues Neighborhood Watch, encourages everyone to stop by: "Please come out and support your neighborhood. The more people that come out, the more inspiring to others who see there are people out there trying to make things better. Hope to see you there."

3). FIRE SERVICE RECOGITION DAY

Saturday, May 10
12 to 4 p.m.
Fire Station No. 34, 3661 South 7th Avenue (Jefferson Park, between 36th Street and Exposition)

Everyone is invited to a barbecue, fire station tour, fire engine and ambulance display, and photos of YOU on a fire engine, as part of a citywide celebration of our firefighters and paramedics. West Adams' own Johnny Green is the captain at Fire Station 34. If you would like to attend this celebration, please RSVP to 323-737-9100. (Please note that all children must be accompanied by an adult.)

This is a citywide event, and most fire stations will hold open houses on May 10, with several scheduling special demonstrations. Contact LAFD Community Relations for more information at 323-978-3820.

4). WAHA'S ANNUAL SPRING HISTORIC HOMES & ARCHITECTURE TOUR

Landmarks of West Adams
Saturday, June 7
10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
(Last ticket sold at 2 p.m.)

It's our 25th year of historic preservation! To celebrate, WAHA opens the doors to some of West Adams' best landmarks. Tour the interiors of:

* "The Pink Lady," an elegant 1885 Victorian

* A 1904 Mission Revival firehouse designed by City Hall architect John Parkinson

* A classic 1905 Craftsman designed by John C. Austin

* McCarty Memorial Church, a stunning 1931 Gothic-inspired house of worship listed on the National Register

* A 1912 Arthur Heineman-designed Arts & Crafts residence recently seen on HGTV

* A rare Train & Williams-designed Arts & Crafts mansion, a local and federal landmark

* One of the city's most extraordinary estates, Villa Maria, a 42-room Tudor Revival manor built in 1908.

Check-in/Will Call tickets at Villa Maria (St. John of God), 2468 South St. Andrews Place, between 24th Street and Adams Boulevard.

"Landmarks of West Adams" tickets are $30 general admission, $25 WAHA members, paid in advance.
Day of tour/pay at the door: all tickets $35

To register and pay in advance, print out this form and mail the filled-out form and a check (made payable to WAHA) to: WAHA Landmarks Tour
2209 Virginia Road, Los Angeles, CA 90016

NAME ______________________________

ADDRESS ___________________________

E-MAIL _____________________________

PHONE _____________________________

No. of Tickets: ________ Total: $ ________

For more information, call 323-732-4223,
write tours@westadamsheritage.org or
visit www.westadamsheritage.org.

This is a self-guided, driving tour. Tour visitors will receive tickets, brochure & map at Check-in/Will Call. We will e-mail confirmations to tour guests who register and pay in advance, and who provide us with e-mail contact information. The last ticket will be sold at 2 p.m., and tour properties will close promptly at 4 p.m. Tour at your own pace, but please do set aside several hours to enjoy the Landmarks of West Adams.

5). 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.