B.Y.O.L. and Activated Alleyways

Eric Richardson

DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES — I ran across this sign yesterday after walking along the backside of the construction at 717 W. 9th yesterday to take a few pictures. It's an ad for the Backdoor Pub at the Ritz Milner, an establishment whose sign I've seen plenty of times but had always sort of assumed had gone the way of the hotel's front restaurant.

The sign invites passerby to bring their lunches to the Pub and eat in the air conditioning, enjoying some very reasonably priced drinks while doing so. Click the photo for a larger view.

The "B.Y.O.L." approach is an interesting one, but what I find more interesting is the small way in which the Back Door Pub activates that alleyway. Downtown has only a few cases where alleys have been brought to life (Lost Souls and the St. Vincent's Court being the two I think of first), but has a number of such passageways that have real potential. It would be great to see more cases like this, where forgotten right-of-way becomes a useful contributor to Downtown's new life.