Thomas K Nagano on June 13, 2011, at 09:35AM – #1

As I understand it, the original propulsion system for Angels Flight was change as an “improvement.”

When I lived in San Francisco, the entire Cable Car System was rebuilt; many types of materials were tested to grab the cable. The steel cables are a continuous loop, and are clamped to move the cars. They ended up the original material, for the century old cable cars… wood blocks. - TK

Rich on June 13, 2011, at 10:36AM – #2

I just can't believe we replaced those buildings with Angelus Plaza.

Nancy Richardson () on June 13, 2011, at 10:52AM – #3

Pathetic.

Six or seven days in Welborne years is six or seven months.

William Crandell on June 13, 2011, at 12:15PM – #4

Architect George Wyman let the first contract for construction of 'The Hulbert' apartments in the middle of September 1909. There is a construction fence along the south side of the track below the apartment house. This was for construction of the Ferguson Office Building. Wyman designed this building as well. He awarded the first contract on August 16th, 1910. The three story building on the right had been constructed for Kate Stamps in 1905, was designed by Morgan and Walls and the upper floors would one day become the St. Helena Sanitarium. Architect Arthur Benton's four story YWCA had been constructed immediately to the north in the year following completion of Stamps' building. Benton had recently been involved in the design of the first phase of the Mission Inn at Riverside.

J-M on June 13, 2011, at 01:21PM – #5

Gotta say I'm bitterly disappointed with this news. It was too good to be true. I don't care about the fare hike (as long as it's in line with the Dash), but I'll have to agree with Nancy Richardson above: this could take a VERY long time. After all of the years of testing before AF re-opened, didn't this show up as a potential problem? I've enjoyed riding AF since last year and I'll miss it while it's out of action.

Bryan Faragher on June 16, 2011, at 12:26PM – #6

We gotta keep this going.

LA is a city that doesn't know its own history, and acts too much like Chicago did in the 19th Century.

Los Angeles can be the city of the future if we stop listening to the transplants and the wealthy in the hills, and start acting like people who take pride in their city.

Angel's Flight is one of the few pieces of our heritage that has been spared. While the Brown Derby was destroyed, Coconut Grove, no more, and other countless relics of our past obliterated to make way for "progress" ie: parking lots, office buildings and condos. Even the Hollywood sign, which is like our damn Eiffel Tower, was still, in this modern age, living on borrowed time until people finally came to their senses.

Not long ago, Downtown was a cold and dead place, filled with the homeless on Skid Row (another topic for another time) and as interesting on the weekends as a swap meet on Broadway and an eerily dead business district.

Today, the winds of change are sweeping the landscape and Downtown is again, alive. If Angel's Flight dies now, we will surely regret it in 5 years.

I know that Angel's Flight is on several historic landmark lists, yet look what happened to Grant's Tomb in New York. If not for the work of a smart and caring college kid, it may very well have been destroyed.

Landmarks need the attention and caring of the city denizens, or they die as well.

William Crandell on June 16, 2011, at 09:42PM – #7

Hey, Thank you for your sentiments, Bryan!!

Yes, we do inhabit these "United States of Amnesia" as Gore Vidal has written and never ever more so than on the coastal plain of southern California, sad to say. You might have better success if you were to write an opera titled Angel's Flight and make it lurid as hell and have the final scene set you know where - a descent from top to bottom starring the latest bad-girl celebrity from the entertainment west side of town who is dispatched to the netherworld as she steps out onto the Hill Street sidewalk by the town's soon to be latest bad-boy. But it has got to be high, high art and that is the only way that Eli will pay any attention, cough up bucks for the city's memory. Therewith follows the westside horde.

But in particular, consider ghosts or essences in addition to artifacts, i.e. - the antipode of artifacts (Joyce): "I hear the ruin of all space, shattered glass and toppling masonry, and time one livid final flame. What's left us then?" versus an antipode of essences (Agee's quotidian wonderment or keening for all those who) "had ever breathed, had ever dreamed, had ever been."

And then there is that immense sentiment expressed by Kerouac:“What is the feeling when you're driving away from people, and they recede on the plain till you see their specks dispersing? -it's the too huge world vaulting us, and it's long good-bye. But we lean forward to the next crazy venture beneath the skies.”

jurgen Gross on June 19, 2011, at 01:25AM – #8

Beautiful Bunker Hill... no more. LA has torn its own heart out.

William Crandell on June 19, 2011, at 11:11AM – #9

What with this picture?

Look at where the lower cable car sits. It is out of alignment with the lower track. As well, one of the overarching hoops of steel pipe is also out of alignment with the ones below and above. Only explanation that I can imagine is that the photo was taken during reconstruction of the flight from it's tram-car origins and the two wooden replacements had just been installed. Is the lower cable car sitting on the original, soon to be demolished rails upon which the tram-cars rode? And only one hoop had yet to be relocated?

??

The open-air tram-cars were constructed in a metal shop where Phillipe's is now located. They were hauled to a cabinet shop on the now long gone midblock alley south of First, between Main and Spring and there outfitted with seats of Oak before being installed beside the recently completed portal on Third Street.

J-M on June 20, 2011, at 10:01AM – #10

Check out the building on the right. Is that a vegetarian restaurant?!? In 1907? I'm floored.

William Crandell on June 20, 2011, at 05:54PM – #11

That dame standing in front of the pile of construction debris - could it be - The Black Dahlia??

No? Perhaps it was the elder daughter of architect George Wyman. And what a hoot it was when she, her sister, her son and his best friend Ray Bradbury all got together with Esther McCoy and cooked up the crazy, whacked out legend regards George having received a message from the netherworld (via Ouija Board) and deciding to take a supposed commission to design the famous building at Third and Broadway.

If Esther wasn't indeed in on it, then she must have had one too man gin and tonics when she wrote that famous article in '53.

No?

Nancy Richardson () on June 26, 2011, at 08:46PM – #12

http://tinyurl.com/3hhd3ue

From Downtown LA News. It seems that John Welborne of The Angels Flight Foundation is not being too forth coming on a some serious questions regarding the inspection record of the foundation.

And the PUC had serious problems with regard to the safety issues surrounding Angels Flight.

Well, at least he has stop cracking jokes about the problems on twitter.

William Crandell on June 26, 2011, at 09:20PM – #13

That trellised roof deck atop the Cattern Apartment Building must have been a great place to party, perhaps for members of the Elks Club. Club headquarters had recently replaced the Crocker Mansion next to the upper terminal. Hudson and Munsell, the architects of the club, were about to begin work on the County Hall of Records and voters were soon to be presented the proposition of construction of the Owens Valley Aqueduct.

BobbyD on July 08, 2011, at 06:32PM – #14

About 1960, me 13 years old and an old guy thought of making the site look good with some flowers and trees and a bit of grass. I asked the mayor, Poulson if we could do whatever we wanted to beautify the hill, the trams had not worked for at least 10 years. While the old guy and I were working there a guy in a Caddy stopped and asked if he could fix the trams. I gave him directions to the mayor's office. In two months Angels Flight was moving again.

BobbyD on July 08, 2011, at 06:49PM – #15

To Bryan Faragher: about: "LA is a city that doesn't know its own history...". Some crooked politicians have been changing history to steer projects to certain people. Example, 54 years ago I,at the request of the County board of supervisors, designed and ran the building of the civic center park that was just torn down, including the underground part, in two weeks. When the Los Angeles Times put a front page story about me doing that, I received 20 death threats from 15 individuals and/or architect firms- a few of them were recently talking about bidding on the new civic center park being built now. Naturally the County Board of Supervisors changed(lied) about about the history of the old Civic Center Park- to protect and give contracts to those firms who chased a 9 year old boy(me) away from designing anything else by threatening to kill him! Good example of changing history from the truth so that they can look good to the voters in the next election.