Spring Street Exchange On the Market

the exchange floor did seem particularly well-suited to housing a club. perhaps a restaurant could make good use of the space. maybe it would make a decent theatre space.

one thing i think would help is making use of the other floors of the building, which were just in a state of general disrepair, last i heard.

isn't the front of the building pretty much window-free?

time for some original reporting! get dave in there to take pictures of the interior.

This would be the perfect place for Brady's museum. Elegant, historic, expandable as budget allows, and suitable for public use. It is far too beautiful to be left to the burning man crowd.

How many upper floors are there, and what is the square footage? What possible uses could be made for the space?

It would be great to see the ground floor used as a club. Correct me if I'm wrong, but Downtown doesn't have that much in the way of club venues.

With regards to the noise problem, could the Spring Street entrance be utilized until a cut-off time, like 12am?

tim's museum suggestion is pure gold.

Jason, check out The Mayan on Hill near 11th.

How about a movie theater/cineplex?

I'd say a movie theatre, except we've got about ten of those over on Broadway that would be better put to that use...

It just dawned on me. Trader Joes could go in there.

ginny, you're brilliant! a trader joe's would be perfect there. i keep forgetting there's that parking lot behind it, on the main street side.

Can anyone tell me what has become of the Alexabdria Hotel downtown. I stayed there in 1981. I beleive it has become very run down and is not a commercial hotel now?

I really must keep a close watch on my spelling etc. The previous post should read Alexandria Hotel, and believe is spelt like this

The Alexandria Hotel is now a low income SRO hotel. Which is pretty much like a homeless shelter but the residents pay rent and there is no government oversight to stop drug use and prostitution on the site.

I think the owners had tried to convert it to a market rate condo, but city laws strictly forbid the conversion of affordable housing into condos.

And, the Alexandria is right across the street from my favorite Hot Dog place...Weenez. Liverpool...you should visit LA soon. You should stay at the Standard next time. No car rental needed!

I highly recommend staying at the Wilshire Grand Hotel or the Sheraton. They are right next to the subway station and have restaurants and shopping nearby. It's a bit pricey, about $130 a night but well worth the comfort and convenience...

Thank you all so much for the info about the Alexandria. What a shame it has fallen so far. I have nostalgic memories from my stay there In 1981. It was my first vacation out of the UK and my first to the USA. The hotel had a fabulous grand lobby with a restored vintage car from the 1930's on display. There was also a huge display of photographs of the various stages of the construction in the early 1900's, along with many of the stars, presidents overseas dignitaries and celbreties who had stayed there when it was the place to be seen. I wonder what has become of all these items. And what has become of the wonderful old furniture and fittings in the suites and public rooms??

Liverpool Kid:

From the Downtown News:

ALEXANDRIA HOTEL

San Diego-based Amerland Group is in the midst of construction on the Alexandria Hotel at 501 S. Spring St. Amerland purchased the residential hotel last year for $30 million and is turning the 463 rooms into rental units. The renovation should be complete in the first quarter of next year. The Community Redevelopment Agency gave the developer $35 million in tax-exempt bonds to maintain the hotel's affordability standards and to provide 130 units to low-income residents. Amerland is sprucing up the structure and will market the apartments to a diverse range of people working in Downtown, said Jules Arthur, an Amerland partner. The developer plans to install kitchenettes in each unit and refurbish the hallways and common areas. Crews are currently renovating the rental units. The ground floor bar, Charlie O's, is under new management; the bar is now hosting comedy several nights each week. C6