Sport Chalet Downtown

Brigham Yen brings us word on Sport Chalet's downtown opening this weekend.  The west coast retailer's flagship store, located at the Figat7th Center, boasts 27,000 square feet of sporting good happiness, including an Expert Center, where shoppers can participate in free educational clinics.

Brick and Mortar for Downtown's Charter School

The Downtown News announced yesterday that Metro Charter Elementary School, Downtown's premier charter school, has signed a lease on 12,000 square feet of space at the Hope Street Family Center.  The space comes fully furnished with classrooms and a playground.  Classes will commence on September 3rd.

Open Air Art

Since March, that small wedge of land known as Bloom Square, sandwiched between Rose, Traction, and 2nd Street in the Arts District, has most recently acted as a standing out door exhibit of sorts, showcasing various 'pieces'.  According to the Downtown News, The Southern California Institute of Architecture, located only a couple doors down the street, will showcase a new piece by the name of Earthwave on the site starting this afternoon.  the piece will be on display until December.

Co-Working in Little Tokyo

Following in the footsteps of other projects such as We Work in Hollywood, and Indie Desk in the Historic Core, comes Opodz, a new co-working space located in Little Tokyo at the corner of 2nd and Central.  The space will provide shared professional work stations, high speed wireless internet access, event spaces, a conference room, and a kitchen.  Head over to Brigham Yen's DTLA Rising for more information.

Up

More great news from Case Schiller; April home prices rose nearly 20% in Los Angeles over last year.  And they show no sign of stopping.

This Week in Food - Addendum

It appears that Plan Check Kitchen + Bar is slated to open soon at the 1111 Wilshire on Bixel.  Thanks to the Downtown News for the update.

This Week in Food

Monday: Manhattan based mixologist, Phil Ward, is putting the finishing touches on his latest project, Ebano's Crossing, an upscale bar/lounge scheduled to open later this summer on the corner of 2nd and Hill.

Fairfax Avenue's Fat Dog Gastropub is looking to relocate to North Hollywood in the former Avery Schreiber Theater Space, at Magnolia, near Vineland, later on this year.

Signage for new italian eatery, The Doughroom, went up this week.  The restaurant is currently on track to open in mid july.

Tuesday: Sugarfish is expanding yet again.  It is not yet known when the newest location, at the corner of 1st and La Brea, will open its doors.

Umami, the beloved (local) burger chain, is bringing its signature style to the Arts District, at the corner of 3rd and Traction.  Doors open later this summer.

Thursday: A former dry cleaners, on the corner of Venice and Grand View in Mar Vista, is about to be transformed into an 'old school american' style diner.  The fascinating new concept eatery will reportedly serve dishes laced with honey grown on the restaurants very own roof.  An opening is planned for July 5th.

Friday: Newly constructed wine bar, Vinos Del Valle, on the corner of Eagle Rock's Colorado and Townsend, opened its doors this week.

The brains behind Santa Monica's breakfast joint, Bru's Wiffle, are bringing their menu to Century City in the form of Bru's Counter.  The new eatery will be located on the corner of Santa Monica and Overland, and will launch later this year.

Abbot Kinney's chic new open air seafood restaurant, Salt Air, opened its doors this evening to much acclaim.  Try the lobster rolls, they're delicious.

Signage for a mysterious new eatery market, bearing the name Stamp Gourmet, has appeared on the corner of Avocado and Hillhurst in Los Feliz.  Details are forthcoming.  We hope.

Airport! Update!

Nearly four months from completion, city officials unveiled many of the $4.1 billion dollars worth of renovations being made to the Los Angeles International Airport to the public yesterday afternoon.  Head over to the Dailey Breeze for more extensive coverage.

Muji

Big news from Curbed.  Muji, world renowned designer of artisanal housewares, plans to open its US flagship store at the former Knitting Factory space, on the corner of Hollywood and Sycamore, later this fall.

Spa for Studio, Leather for Kinney

According to webzine Refinery 29, Canadian based accessory designer, Roots, has opened up shop in Venice Beach, at Abbot Kinney and Palms.  Shoppers can expect to find the designer's full line of leather accessories.  In other news, PR Newswire reports that esthetician Sharona Rafaeloff has converted a 3,000 square foot space at the corner of Ventura and Valley Vista in Studio City into a full service spa, complete with a steam room.

El Pueblo Nuevo

LA's birthplace, El Pueblo, will soon receive several major upgrades.  Curbed reports that a community plan has been approved by the neighborhood board of commissioners that will include transforming the Italian House into an Italian/American museum, renovating the Merced Theater, construction of a new exhibit space displaying historical artifacts, updated public restrooms, and free WiFi.

Downtown Doggie Doctor

According to the Downtown News, the pet friendly Historic Core neighborhood will soon get a new veterinarian.  DTLAVets, which has until now operated on a strictly 'house call only basis', will open a 5,000 square foot clinic at the corner of Spring and 3rd in July.

Church and Sea

The Port of Los Angeles will soon see one of its docks transformed into a 28 acre research campus that will house the Southern California Marine Institute.  According to Curbed, the $500 Million Dollar Project, affectionately dubbed 'AltaSea, should take some 15 - 20 years to complete.  In other news, the Atwater Village Neighborhood Council heard a proposal over the weekend for the construction of a massive 85,000 square foot church at the corner of Verdant and Alger.  Head over to the Eastsider for more information.

This Week in Food

Monday: Green market and deli, Locali Conscious Convenience will soon begin serving Venice residents, on Lincoln and Vernon.  The menu will cater to the vegan inclined, and include stevia sweetened soda.

Lebanese kitchen Open Sesame is in the final phases of taking over the former Eva space at the corner of Beverly and Gower.

Tuesday: Japanese inspired fusion restaurant, Maru, is in the process of relocating from Valencia to the west side, on Wilshire and Carmelina.

Boba champion, Lolly Cup, will open a new store at the corner of Olympic and Sawtelle later this month.  Westsiders rejoice.

Health conscious Atwater Village, is now home to yet another juicer.  The latest entry, appropriately named 'The Juice', is located on Glendale and Madera.  Check it out.

Wednesday: National bakery and cafe chain, Etchea, has announced two new locations in Downtown. The first, located on Figueroa, near 23rd Street, will open in July, while the second, at 3rd and Hope, is scheduled to open in August.

Thursday: A chic looking vietnamese restaurant by the name of Phorage, is preparing to take over the old Chego space at National and Overland.

Friday: A new restaurant on the westside, by the name of Flores, opened its doors to much acclaim.  The upscale menu promises a more creative farm to table experience.

Eagle Rocke welcomed its newest dining addition, Little Beast, to the corner of Colorado and Lolita.  The restaurant serves modern american cuisine.

Parks for Recreation

Two parks, one old and one new, have opened, just in time for summer.  The Times reports that Echo Park, with its newly beautified lake and surrounding green spaces, welcomed the public for the first time in nearly two years on Saturday.  Meanwhile, the Downtown News informs us that Spring Street Park, located between 4th and 5th Street, will open its doors early tomorrow morning.

Living in the Highland

According to Curbed, a new four location residential project is in the works for Highland Park.  The development, which just received approval from the City Planning Commission, promises 80 new residential units, 20 of which will be condominiums.

Ziplining Venice

For all of those that thought Venice Beach couldn't possibly get any cooler, think again.  Curbed announced this week that the ocean village will soon install a Zipline between the World Cafe and the beach b-ball courts, that will cost a mere $20 per 'passenger'.  Move over Mickey, and make way for a new magic kingdom.

East Sunset Living

According to the Eastsider, a massive 107,100 square foot residential project is being planned for the east side of Sunset Boulevard, near Everett, in Echo Park.  The development calls for 201 units, and 221 parking spots, and will, if all goes smoothly, most likely see a ground breaking near the end of the year.

This Week In Food

Fresh off the Eater Grill:

Monday: Valencia based Maru, a farm to table sushi bar of sorts, has relocated to our very own LA, on the corner of Wilshire and Carmelina.

Just in time for summer, a new 'shaved-icery', by the name of Chilly Ribbon, has landed in the Village at Lindbrook and Westwood.

A new Fresh Brothers Pizza is coming to the Hollywood / Little Armenia border, on Bronson, near Franklin.

Tuesday: Yet another Ramen joint, Hakata Ramen Shin-Sen-Gumi, has joined the fray, and opened its doors at Santa Monica and Sawtelle.

USC will soon receive a new neighbor in the form of Nature's Brew, a small cafe and coffee bar at the corner of 24th and South Union.

Thursday: A new sushi bar, by the name of Q Sushi, is slated to open soon on the north east corner of 7th and Grand.

National candy store chain Sugar Factory will soon open store number seven at Hollywood and Highland.

Friday: Word is that Mari Vanna, a long anticipated russian restaurant, will finally open its doors later this month.

Parklets for Westwood

According to Curbed, there is a good chance that the Village at Westwood will soon reap the benefits of Downtown's micro-greenspace-because-we-can experiment, and install parklets.  The current proposal calls for multiple spaces that will be scattered throughout the neighborhood.

A Greener History

This weekend saw the grand opening of the Natural History Museum's completely renovated front entrance, which includes a fantastic new green space complete with a pond, fruit trees, walking paths, and bird watching stations.  Thanks to the Downtown News for the tip.

Grocer in Your Neighborhood, at Your Door, in Your Home

This week, NPR announced, and Curbed confirmed the expansion of Amazon's Fresh delivery service, which formerly catered exclusively to Seattle, to our very own Los Angeles.  Now, thanks to the online behemoth, you may never have to leave home again.  Seriously.

Alameda Square

Word on the street is that the enormous Alameda Square project, located on the southwest corner of 7th and Alameda, has secured its first two new tenants.  According to the Downtown News, clothing retailers Splendid, and Ella Moss have both signed 10 year leases, and will soon occupy the space adjacent to American Apparel.

Macy's Plaza Reborn

Blogger Brigham yen reported yesterday on developer Ratkovich's $241 million dollar acquisition of Macy's Plaza, at 7th and Flower.  Among other things, the developer plans to renovate the existing entrance, and add an additional floor of retail.  More news to follow.

More Housing for the Historic Core

The Downtown News announced today development of a new 159 unit apartment complex on the corner of 6th and Main, next door to the Santa Fe Lofts.  If all goes according to plan, construction on the Topaz project, the development's working name, will most likely begin sometime next year.

Town Homes for Silver Park

According to the Eastsider, developer True Mark Homes will soon begin construction on a 60 unit town home development at Clifford and Glendale, on the border of Echo Park and Silverlake.  The homes will range in size from between 1,200 to 1,500 square feet, and the project should be completed by the first quarter of next year.

Holy Trolley!

According to the Business Journal, developer Rick Caruso has proposed an extension (for lack of a better word) of the 'trolley line' that currently services the Grove Shopping center.  The new above ground metro would provide service between the Beverly Center and LACMA.  A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!

This Week in Food

Tuesday: Rocky Mountain Pizzeria, Setebello, will soon debut its second California location, at the corner of Maxella and Glencoe.  The crust is fantastic.

The owner of Tiara Cafe recently opened a sandwich shop, D'elish, right next door, on the corner of 9th and Los Angeles.

Wednesday: That tasty bakery and cafe, Lemonade, is coming to Studio City, on the corner of Venutra and Rhodes.  A July opening is planned.

Thursday: A fascinating new concept eatery by the name of Azla, has recently taken over the space previously occupied by Mochica at the corner of 37th and Grand.  The restaurant serves authentic vegan ethiopian cuisine.  Definitely worth a try.

Abbot Kinney, at 5th, received a new neighbor last week in the form of Kreation Kafe & Juicery.  As one would assume, the eatery caters towards the vegan/organic/healthy side of Venice Beach.

Little Tokyo native, ramen shop Daikokuya, has found a new home at Olympic and Sawtelle, which is slated to open at month's end.

Friday: A new sushi bar, by the name of Sushi Sasabone, has joined the westside, at Wilshire and Amacost.  The eatery promises traditional sushi fare, of which one can never have too much.

Rates a' Rising

Over the weekend, the Times reported on the (ever so slight) rise in mortgage rates, which have climbed over an average of half a percentage point since last fall.  Some economists project that rates could increase as much as another full percentage point before the end of the year.  if ever there was a time to buy, it is now.

Mo' Mohawkery in Silverlake

Racked reports that the owners of Mohawk General Store, a fashion boutique in Silverlake, just opened a second store, dedicated to men's fashion and appropriately christened 'Mohawk Man', only a couple doors away at the corner of Santa Monica and Sunset.  Check it out.