blogdowntown
Not currently logged in. [Login or Create an Account]

Stay Connected



 

Daylight Shooting Has Possible Gang Ties

By Eric Richardson
Published: Monday, September 13, 2010, at 01:59PM
Alley Eric Richardson []

Saturday's shooting took place in this alley between Broadway and Spring Street. Residents say they see frequent loitering and drug use behind the arcade at 724 S. Broadway.

DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES — A shooting that took place in broad daylight on Saturday afternoon in the Historic Core may have been connected to a territory fight between members of rival gangs, LAPD says.

The incident took place around 4:15pm in the alley that runs from 7th to 8th, mid-block between Broadway and Spring. A 14-year-old involved in the fighting was struck by a bullet, transported to the hospital and later released to his mother.

The shooting was particularly scary to residents of the Chapman Flats, which sits at the 8th Street end of the alley. Residents use the alley to access the building's parking garage, which is two doors down from the building itself.

According to police, the altercation appeared to be between rival gang members. A group of hispanics believed to be part of the 18th street gang went over to the Huntington Hotel shortly before the shooting, according to Lt. Paul Vernon, head of detectives for Central Division. They were then followed back to the alley, where the incident may have started as a fistfight.

"We suspect the motives behind all this is narcotics," said Lt. Vernon. "We believe that the root cause of this is related to the narcotics dealing that goes on [at the Huntington]." The first group may have "gone over there trying to intimidate or bully or assert themselves."

Police "talked to a number of very credible witnesses" afterward, and are pursuing leads to find the shooter and others involved.

The alley, particularly behind the arcade at 724 S. Broadway, is a frequent source of problems, according to Chapman Flats resident Rob Johnson. "There's always, almost every single day, a group of guys that will hang out in that alley," he said. "You can just smell them smoking really cheap pot."

Johnson said that the shooting has made him realize the need to be vigilant in reporting illicit behavior. "We see things that we think aren't that big of a deal, but they are," he said. "We let those guys sit there on the corner smoking weed."

Vernon encouraged residents to report gang activity such as tagging. "We don't want gang members to be of the opinion or idea that anyone has given any territory to them," he said.

Residents in the neighborhood can report graffiti to the Historic Downtown Center BID at , the Fashion District BID at , or by calling Officer Adrian Lopez by calling or emailing him a photo at .

SHARE:

||


Conversation

Guest 1

Guest on September 13, 2010, at 02:36PM – #1

Time to blow up The Hunnington. That cell block shithole is the root cause for a lot of this drama in DT. So glad I moved out of DT when I did.


Guest 2

Guest on September 13, 2010, at 03:06PM – #2

When are they going to learn, shut the Huntington down already!


User_32

on September 13, 2010, at 03:12PM – #3

Could we start an online petition to shut the Huntington down?


Guest 3

Guest on September 13, 2010, at 04:40PM – #4

Places like the Huntington are not going to be shutdown. As long as there are activists who fight on behalf of the drug dealer gang members , these places will continue to exist.


Guest 4

Guest on September 13, 2010, at 05:26PM – #5

We can do it, we really can, if DTLA residents begin taking action and getting our voices heard, we can make anything we want happen in Downtown.


Guest 5

Guest on September 13, 2010, at 05:47PM – #6

@#4 activists who fight on behalf of the drug dealer gang members are to blame? are you completely paranoid or just insane?


Guest 6

Guest on September 13, 2010, at 06:39PM – #7

That is the third shooting related to the Huntington Hotel in the past couple of months. I agree with the above that we all need to be more vigilant and report crimes as we see them. I too have been guilty of non-reporting when I have seen drug dealing on my walks to and from home. Until we all become less tolerant of such activity, the dealers and bangers will continue to roam parts of the historic core with impunity.


User_32

derblut on September 13, 2010, at 06:41PM – #8

Cameras in the alleys people.

The Huntington doesn't need to be destroyed, it needs to not be a resident hotel. Sell it at market rate and it could be a place where people with moderate income could live.


Guest 7

Guest on September 13, 2010, at 09:47PM – #9

Just be vigilant and have the courage to place some heat on these guys; don't let them scare you back to the OC.


Guest 8

Guest on September 13, 2010, at 09:58PM – #10

There are ALWAYS drug deals in that alley. To make matters worse- there's no security during the day time at the Chapman during the weekdays. What if this would have happened on a Tuesday afternoon? This building has gone to SHIT.


Guest 3

Guest on September 13, 2010, at 10:08PM – #11

Yes ,, these drug dealer activists wear orange shirts and intimidate the cops and the law abiding citizens with their cameras. You have seen them . They want to keep downtown the place where the drug dealers make their money. They don't care about the poor. They only care about keeping downtown the way it was before . Wake up.!


Dennis Romero on September 13, 2010, at 11:18PM – #12

Eric:

I enjoy your work, and you kick ass when it comes to covering downtown.

One peeve here: I'm not sure why it's necessary to identify suspects here as a group of "Hispanics." Latinos comprise about one of every two people in Los Angeles, so it's never surprising, unusual or telling if the guys (or girls) who are bad (or good) are Latino. Also keep an eye out for stories that identify white suspects as white. They're rare (particularly on television). Why? I don't know. It's a question we should all ask ourselves.

I think the context of 18th Street gives us a good idea of who we're dealing with here. But any ethnic description really serves more to call out an ethnic group than to add any meaningful information to a story. Unless you can tell us exactly what they look like, how tall they were, what they were wearing, "group of Hispanics" just sounds like a stereotype. After all, Latinos can be black, white and everything in between, physically and racially speaking.

Take care, Dennis Romero


User_32

derblut on September 14, 2010, at 04:34AM – #13

@ Dennis Romero

I'm not aware of the particulars of LA gang ethnicities and I think it's common to report the race of those involved in a crime, I wouldn't read too much into it. He's reporting facts, not stereotypes.


Guest 9

Guest on September 14, 2010, at 06:26AM – #14

Because 18th street is a Hispanic gang.. and the suspects were hispanic.. fact...good lord do we have to be so PC?


Guest 10

Guest on September 14, 2010, at 06:41AM – #15

I'm glad I moved!


Guest 11

Guest on September 14, 2010, at 08:08AM – #16

call it like it is - if they are hispanic/latino then call it, if they are white then call it, if they are black then call it.


Guest 12

Guest on September 14, 2010, at 08:40AM – #17

I'm latino, and I don't think it's wrong to point out the ethnicities of the people involved. Not everyone knows that 18th Street is a latino gang.


User_32

DavidAC on September 14, 2010, at 09:25AM – #18

"A 14-year-old involved in the fighting was struck by a bullet, transported to the hospital and later released to his mother".

You know.... There really are other victims here than just the fragile sensibilities of priviledged over-protected hipster twits.


User_32

on September 14, 2010, at 10:21AM – #19

The 14 year old is a gang member, the shooter was a gang member (according to the police). They are victims to their own doing. They are not welcome on this street! We are not hipster we are tax payer. Let's clean up our streets then worry about outreach programs to help or not......


User_32

DavidAC on September 14, 2010, at 10:32AM – #20

Gang member or not he is 14 years old... Think about that for a minute.


User_32

Dixon on September 14, 2010, at 10:33AM – #21

"Not everyone knows that 18th Street is a latino gang."

According to Wikipedia, "Although most (18th Street gang) members are Mexican, membership is open to other backgrounds, including Central American, Middle Eastern, Asian, African American and Caucasian."


User_32

skidrowdude on September 14, 2010, at 10:39AM – #22

@ Dennis Romero - I feel what you are saying, but I am glad for the "Hispanic" description as I am frequently in contact when walking my dog with black drug dealers at 7th and Spring and I would have assumed they were involved- never really saw Hispanic trouble makers there but that's just me.

It pisses me off when a media report will not say "White" suspect- or whatever race- that is a description, not a racist comment.


User_32

on September 14, 2010, at 11:59AM – #23

DavidAC, I do understand and agree with you, but I have to put my family and friends first on this one. A 14 year old can kill you as quick as a 18 year old. I'm sure someone has records on underage violence in LA. It's sad.....but also reality. I'm over feeling sorry for these kids, also I'm NOT running back to BH will my tail between my legs. This is coming from someone who spent time lockup underage. No one changed me, I changed myself.


User_32

Sommer Lawal on September 14, 2010, at 12:05PM – #24

Gangs are so 1982. How do we help evolve our culture out of hate crime? There are so many factors we can attribute this to that it's overwhelming. Is this the start of trending backwards in time?


User_32

Sommer Lawal on September 14, 2010, at 12:08PM – #25

Additionally, let's not go there re: race. It's been done before as well. At the end of the day, identifying things as "latino gang member" vs. "black dude" is irrelevant. It is what it is. Don't pin stupidity and deeply rooted anger on a race. If it's fact, let it be just that - a fact and a descriptor. If the race were left out, everyone would be left wondering, (as we all know whether you admit to it or not) as it is the first thing that we question.


User_32

DavidAC on September 14, 2010, at 12:58PM – #26

Yes - a 14 year old can kill you just as dead as an 18 year old, or as a 9 year old or a 5 year old can for that matter. But a 14 year old is not responsible for his/her own actions because they are just a child. That's why you can't have sex with them, or give them cigarettes or alcohol and its why they can't vote. (I can't believe that I need to explain this stuff in Los Angeles in 2010..)

Yes - someone does indeed has records on violent crimes in LA. They're called the LAPD and their compstat database says that downtown is the safest of the LAPD's 21 districts. Sorry to burst your them-vs-us bubble, but it doesn't have much basis in real fear. Just in phony fear..

Little sniveling 'silent killer' there makes me sick. What a cheap punk. I think I saw him scurrying into a sewer one night on Broadway, with his hairless tail dragging in the dirt.

I absolutely agree with Sommer. We really seem to be slipping backwards here - not in terms of crime, but in terms of ignorance-fueled hysteria..

Genuine love and compassion folks. Its simple, and its old fashioned and maybe even a cliche, but it really works..


Guest 13

Guest on September 14, 2010, at 01:28PM – #27

DavidAC, your post is misguided and sick. The fact that you would rationalize your position on the basis that you cannot have sex with a 14 year old or sell a 14 year old alcohol or cigarettes is royally screwed.

Moreover, your attempt to make light of legitimate concerns collapses before it ever leaves the gate. 14 year olds are perfectly capable of making rational decisions. In fact, 14 year olds are often tried as adults. Furthermore, the majority of countries around the world have an age of criminal responsibility well below 14. Most are between 6 and 12 years old.

Teenagers need to take complete responsibility for their conduct, just like their parents. Simply, there needs to be an immediate shift in this paradigm that responsibility should be, and can be, placed on someone else or on something else. As you said, this is Los Angeles 2010. We each need to take ownership for our own actions rather than languish on past inequities or injustices, whether real or perceived, in an effort to avoid responsibility.


Guest 14

Guest on September 14, 2010, at 01:29PM – #28

To be fair I guess Eric Richardson should have mentioned the ethnicity of the folks that followed the Hispanics. Or the Ethnicity of Chapman Flats resident Rob Johnson and Lt. Paul Vernon of the LAPD. Maybe Eric Richardson should add a hyphen to his name, "Eric Richardson - ______ Male"


Guest 14

Guest on September 14, 2010, at 01:35PM – #29

Imagine taking a political correctness pass at how police dispatch sends out calls to officers on the field. What descriptors could be used?


Guest 15

Guest on September 14, 2010, at 02:17PM – #30

Romero wasn't saying that the report should have included a racial description at all, he was just saying that the description should be more descriptive. He was saying that it should include height, weight, what the suspects were wearing, etc. I think that sounds pretty logical as "a group of hispanics" is pretty vague and does seem to lend itself to further marginalizing an ethnic group. Is that all they are to us? Are they just a bunch of hispanics? Do they all look alike and act alike? If it's a white guy they usually have more of a description attached as our society thinks of white people as having more of a unique identity than hispanics, blacks or asians.

I also wanted to add: PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD BLOW UP THE F&*ING HUNTINGTON ALREADY!!!!


User_32

on September 14, 2010, at 02:26PM – #31

Does anyone out there (u too Lt. Paul Vernon) know how we can shut down H Hotel, this seems to be something most of us agree on... If I walk over there now 9 times out of 10 they are selling drugs out front.


Guest 16

Guest on September 14, 2010, at 03:39PM – #32

I'd like to add that I WAS a DTLA resident for 4 years, when Blossom was the only decent restaurant and there was no Ralph's. I worked in the Historic Core and rode my bike with the occasional harassment from homeless during this time, being that I was a female. But WITHOUT FAIL, I would ride by the Hunington Hotel and be harassed incessantly by the loiterers and slum dwellers, so much so that I bought and carried a knife just in case. There was never any police or purple shirts monitoring the area.

Funny enough, I was riding my bike by the Hunington on my way home from work, and I was PULLED OVER by two Hispanic policemen who issued me a MOVING VIOLATION for not having pegs and a proper reflector on the back of my bike. This was the very moment that I decided that something was seriously wrong with DTLA's idea of law enforcement.

I'm a tax payer, I lived and work in DTLA for 4 years, commuted using a bicycle to cut down on the traffic, and ended up getting punished for it. I was an easy target for the City of LA to make $390 for someone they perceived would pay.

I went to civil court and the judge laughed when I pled "No Contest" and the ticket was dropped. Shame on the local law enforcement for trying to syphon off $$$ from residents to are just trying to make DTLA a nice community. The least you could do is protect its citizens.

I'm glad I moved.


User_32

DavidAC on September 14, 2010, at 03:50PM – #33

We're glad you moved too...


Guest 16

Guest on September 14, 2010, at 04:34PM – #34

DavidAC, if you're referring to me, you must have reason to protect the Hunington, FUCK YOU very much;-) But then again, you must be proud of yourself for being urban enough to brush off abuse of female residents by transients and gang members as acceptable.


User_32

DavidAC on September 14, 2010, at 05:23PM – #35

Not sure if I was referring to you, Guest, because I don't know who you are, do I?

Look - I am not a fan of drug dealers or violence downtown, in the Huntington or anywhere else, but I am also not a fan of oblivious, deeply self-centered hipster transients who seem to want to live in a theme park. This is already the safest LAPD district in a city in which the crime rate is plumeting, despite a nasty recession - what more do they want? Where are they going to move to that's safer? How could the crime situation in DTLA realisticly be any better than it is right now? My pet theory here is that the over-reaction to crime ("blow up the Huntington") is about something else - maybe a discomfort with real diversity (its more than just skin color, folks), or maybe some other deep rooted fearfullness. Just a theory. I'm not a psychiatrist.

Also - if anyone keeps getting hassled by people outside the Huntington, then here's an idea that might just work: Try taking a different route...


Guest 5

Guest on September 14, 2010, at 06:09PM – #36

DavidAC is right on the money. The whole 'new downtown' concept is frankly bogus and just a conceit dreamed up by developers. Downtown is what it has always been. Maybe a little better, certainly more and nicer "lofts" for those looking for that sort of thing. But it's always going to have a serious drug trade, gangs, and a heavy concentration of transients and homeless. They can build all the bars and restaurants they want, but it's not going to change the facts. So if you really can't handle that sort of thing on a day to day basis, move to Brentwood or Woodland Hills or South Pasadena et al. Otherwise, stop bitching.


Jamie DeFrisco on September 14, 2010, at 06:24PM – #37

I agree with DavidAC. Although I think the Huntington should be cleaned up similar to the Alexandria(still not 100% safe, but better than it was). It should continue to provide low income housing. David's point (or my assumption of it) is that a lot of people see one crime and automatically demand drastic measures without considering or caring about the consequences.

Also, not everyone on the streets who talks to you is out to hassle you. The majority of them do, but some might just want to feel human.

14 year olds aren't always capable of making rational decisions. They don't always understand the consequences of their actions and sometimes feel they are invincible. However it doesn't mean they should get away with illegal activities or are completely innocent of their actions.


Guest 13

Guest on September 14, 2010, at 06:28PM – #38

Guest @#36, why would you ever make the following statement: "But it's always going to have a serious drug trade, gangs, and a heavy concentration of transients and homeless."? Do you believe that it is impossible to rise above those elements? Do you believe that without those elements an urban cityscape cannot properly be described as "downtown?"

The fact that you wear your ignorance on your sleeve doesn't make your opinion any more valuable. Whether you believe it or not, gangs don't need to exist. The fact that the Los Angeles area has been plagued by them for years on end does not mean that there is no other way. The same is true of drugs, transients and homelessness. There is no reason for people to be sleeping and defecating on the streets anywhere. We are a modern society. There is also no reason that mentally disabled people should be left untreated. Yet, in your myopic world view that's the only reality.

That you have a bone to pick with capitalism, to quote the Refused, is apparent. What I can't grasp, however, is your desire to keep people "barefoot and pregnant."


User_32

on September 14, 2010, at 06:36PM – #39

I have noticed lately that people are really bold about just walking down the street with a joint in their hand. I'm on 6th street and I see them all the time. Should we get a description and then call the police every time we see someone smoking a joint? If that's what it takes then I'll do it. And Saturday night I stopped at the Spring St. Market and there were a group of "Hispanics" dealing pot openly right in front of the market. Sitting at their tables and that had the stuff right there. I told the clerk in the store and he went out and supposedly said something but when I left they were still there. I think I'll tell the manager next time I go in. And I still love living downtown. Even with everything going on I feel safer here than I did on the Westside. The police here are incredible. They've always got our backs along with the BID.


Guest 5

Guest on September 14, 2010, at 06:45PM – #40

@38 what i can't grasp is your desire to quote the Refused.


Guest 17

Guest on September 14, 2010, at 06:59PM – #41

Lets get practical here:

Want to end most illegal drug use in DTLA?

Want to end much of the illegal drug activity in DTLA?

Want to help fix our city and state budget problems?

Want to free up LAPD resources to focus on violent crime?

Then vote yes on prop 19.

http://yeson19.com/


Guest 18

Guest on September 14, 2010, at 08:41PM – #42

Genuine love and compassion folks. Its simple, and its old fashioned and maybe even a cliche, but it really works.

I don't trust bleeding hearts. They spend so much time shedding tears for the bad guys instead of the victims, that things soon become quite distorted. So distorted that, ironically enough, a society ends up about as compassionate and loving as a gangbangers' rite of passage. Or merely a variation of all the love and compassion found in the ongoing nightmare, disgrace and disaster that is Mexico.


Guest 19

Guest on September 14, 2010, at 08:54PM – #43

East Coast Crips are black. 5th/Hill and 18t Street are latino. That's just the facts of life in the Big City.

Hipsters who don't like the violence associated with drug dealing should not buy drugs. No drug market, no violence over drug dealing.

So for those of you worried about the 14-year-old boy, unless you are growing your own, you are contributing to the problem.

Think you are above it all because you buy from a collective, think again. Just ask the guy who got shot while his co-worker was murdered in a pot shop not far from Downtown earlier this year. Violent gangs control the supply to the collectives.

Would legalization of marijuana help? Maybe. But the street dealers Downtown are slinging much more than weed.

Or does any hipster not realize that powder they snort or inject is stained with the blood of someone, somewhere before it ever got brought into this country?

Want guilt? Get high and think about who suffered so you can reach your chemical escape for a short time.


Guest 20

Guest on September 14, 2010, at 11:17PM – #44

And people wonder why the Downtown loft boom has stalled? They cleaned up the building, made they pretty and all, but forgot to clean out the bad elements of downtown. Why pay $500,000 - $1,000,000 to live with crap like this next to your building every week! C'mon City of LA, clean up this crap, people will buy lofts, the City gets more taxes, and we all will be better off.


Guest 21

Guest on September 14, 2010, at 11:59PM – #45

Posts for this article make a good argument for keeping the guest post function. Who wants retaliation from a hopped up druggie?

Signed...Latino Hipster


User_32

DawnC on September 15, 2010, at 09:00AM – #46

I just wish we could get gang members to settle their disputes with break dancing like they did back in the 80's (movies). No one would have to worry about getting hit with a stray head spin or accidental out of control worm injury. Innocent bystanders would also be entertained instead of frightened and it's a great way to recycle cardboard that would just have been thrown in a landfill.

Can we get on this LAPD???!!!!


Guest 22

Guest on September 15, 2010, at 12:28PM – #47

"Downtown LA" or any other area..anywhere...becomes a reflection of the collective consience of the people who live there.

while it may be true that the "developers" coined the phrase "downtown renassaince"....nothing happens without people getting together (or not) to coLLECTIVELY make things happen...or not.

i feel there is a concerned, active and vibrant community spirit happening in DT. people have and will continue to make things better, more livable, less unsafe, more family friendly, etc, etc.....


Guest 15

Guest on September 15, 2010, at 12:43PM – #48

Hey David AC, I'm the "blow up the huntington" guy and yea I admit it was a bit hyperbolic. So, I went a little overboard ok but I still do think the cops in LA do need to clean up that place. I don't really think we should literally blow the place up or kick out all the homeless.

Racist hippster girl, why did you feel it necessary to cite the race of the officers who gave you a moving violation before you left downtown? Do you think they gave you that moving violation because you're white and not because you were breaking the law?

Also, do you think that you shouldn't have to abide by the law in downtown since you're "tax payer"? Does that also mean that you think that hispanics are either people who are gang bangers or cops living off of your taxes? Your self righteous isn't welcome downtown anyways so I'm with DavidAC and I'm glad your hipster toosh left dtla!


Guest 19

Guest on September 15, 2010, at 09:14PM – #49

Are you all nuts? Does anyone reading this know what Downtown used to be like before the loft conversions? Hint -- it was worse and no one paid attention!


User_32

() on September 16, 2010, at 01:32AM – #50

This race stuff is grade a bull honky. Descriptive are used when reporting crimes; Downtown Blog isn't doing anything out of the ordinary.

I agree with the poster who said 'why is it racist to want to fix up somewhere, but fine to let it be run to the ground?' Those very types are the ones who let it run to the ground and stay dirty: its racist/unpolitically correct to be against homelessness or gangs or dirty stores. Somehow the bleeding hearts always find a way to put a minority into one of those categories, and shame anyone whose against it.

White/black/latino/purple I will respect you if you try to be a good citizen, don't commit crimes, don't partake in drugs (even weed), act by some reasonable morals/social codes (like not stabbing people or peeing in the streets), and want to see the best of your community. If you're white and what to run a place into the ground or join a gang or shoot people, I will find you as loathsome as I would find anyone who wanted such things.

There are very few white people Downtown, be it the historic core of South Park. This isn't racist, just a fact. These places were gorgeous urban centers until the Depression, White Flight, the death of public transport (street cars), and such took a bat to them. Some later than others (Broadway declined by the 40s, or the 60s depending how you look at it; MacArthur Park/Wilshire held out at least until the 70s.)

A certain race or races can't take the blame, but however you want to look at it we have some problems now: filth, gang activity, drug selling, a homeless population, and sometimes worse. Each problem is a problem and needs to be dealt with. And if you want to call me a racist or a hater for it then go ahead. Just because social problems have been created does not mean we should or even have to live with them. Do you think some 14 year old kid is better off shooting in some gang? Or some 40 something man with mental problems is better off shooting up on the sidewalk and peeing in alleys? It ain't good for them, and it ain't good for the community. Race has no where to enter on that problem.

We could go on and on here in a comment section on a website about who is right or wrong, or even maybe how to fix it. But who is actually gonna fix it? And why do these 'caring' types much prefer to enable it? I claim no easy fix or even drive to single handedly take on such things...but there are people who do and they seem like the types who like to prop up hell holes like the Hunington Hotel and yell 'hipster douche' when anyone complains about shootings in the alley.

Can't they do something more productive...like help Homeboys Charity stay afloat or help fund a useful homeless rehabilitation center? Nah...that would be un PC.


User_32

() on September 16, 2010, at 01:34AM – #51

LOL the more I think about it the more it reminds me of the King of the Hill episode where Bill volunteers for a halfway house for alcoholics...only to be taken advantage of while the rich 'hipster douche' who runs it sips 'fair trade' coffee and makes his maid read 'fast food nation'. The guy would rather go to benefits and look important than actually help the guys.

And that's why things like Homeboys have to close their doors due to lack of funding. And yet someone can log into an internet site and scream 'HIPSTER HATER!'


Vonn Butler on September 16, 2010, at 03:40PM – #52

Well I am black and I am tired of seeing drug dealers on the damn corners and the police just drive by. As someone said, this is the 3rd time something like this has gone down. Let me alleviate all of your white liberal guilt and say the Huntington needs to be shut down (as well as a few other places). Its not a black, white, hispanic or asian thing, its a LA is broke and if they want to build a tax base in downtown LA, the city has to decide. The city can't serve 2 masters and NO we cannot coexist long term. So bring on the gentrification and let's make DTLA the best place to live in the city.

Only in LA do they tolerate this B.S. We ALL pay too much damn rent or too high of a mortgage to walk outside our door and have to deal with Larry the crackhead, Harvey the heroin addict and the guys that take a shit and piss in our doorways every damn day because no one says anything. Otherwise, let me know and I will move to a neighborhood that wants the tax money I generate. I love DTLA, been there 3 years but, when I leave and go home (TX..no jokes please) or travel to other urban areas in transition like DTLA, these cities DO NOT PLAY and they do not let anything or anyone get in the way of rebuilding a community.

Homeless advocates.. I hear you, but you are NOT generating any revenue and the Golden rule is he who has the gold makes the rules. DTLA residents need to take ownership and start making some rules. There will always be some crime and drugs etc. It is in every neighborhood, even the Westside, but the obvious drug dealing and people who are up to no good does not seem to be dropping. Find out who your neighborhood council rep is and bring it to their attention. DISCLAIMER: I am NOT a hipster. I own hard soled shoes.


Guest 23

Guest on September 16, 2010, at 07:40PM – #53

The 900 block of Midway Place has been a battle zone for rival gangs for at least two weeks. 18th St has been battling the 42nd St LC (Little Criminals) with graffiti. The Chase Bank has a security guard in plain view. Prestige parking lets these guys hang out at night and destroy property. We need cameras in the alley, we need more foot patrols, and we need code enforcement for these parking lots. And most important...we need people to take the time to call 311 to get the graffiti removed. I've found that if I don't call for graffiti removal, it will stay on the walls forever. Why ?Because people are too busy, too lazy, or they just don't give a damn. Until you people stand up and take ownership of this "community", this crap is going to continue to happen. And by the way, with all the police driving through the alley would it really be too much to ask that an LAPD officer call in for the graffiti removal... Not in your job description, I guess!


Guest 24

Guest on September 18, 2010, at 09:27PM – #54

You can also dial 311.

Unfortunately, some properties were left out of the BID process because those laying out the districts were trying to make sure the assessment districts passed. The boundaries are supposed to make sense, but they don't always. If you were left out of the BID you can still get a graffiti cleanup by the City within 48 hours.


User_32

on September 20, 2010, at 05:05AM – #55

Having lived in downtown long before the new lofty crowd moved in so as to enjoy the looks of surprise on the faces of their less-edgy West L.A., Valley and Iowan friends, I also wrote and published extensively about the very behaviour and activity that makes the area so "edgy."

The fundamental fact that is being ignored is that there is a far larger and more lucrative market than Skid Row could ever provide. And like any market that has swelled, people will fight for the rights to harvest it. The post office on Spring at 5th remodeled its lobby to include the area all the way out to the columns, a number of new and larger restaurants opened up on Main Street and there is now more than just King Eddie's and the Bar 107 to accommodate the ground-swell of lofties over the last seven or eight years. Might I compare Ralph's and the convenience stores to 18th Street and all the small gangs? It is an analogy that few could competently challenge.

The drug trade is a market like any other trade. As Rob Johnson puts it in the above article, "You can just smell them smoking really cheap pot." How does one divine that the pot is "really cheap" without being intimately aware of the drug and other drugs as well as the means to obtain them?

Think about it.


Guest 25

Guest on September 29, 2010, at 09:22PM – #56

Trouble making mexicans.


Guest 26

Guest on September 29, 2010, at 10:25PM – #57

You people are funny. Well intentioned, some of you, but thinking a bit on the small side.

Not once (or maybe once and I missed it) was the word "poverty" used in any of the above talk. I can TIP LA until my index finger falls off but it's not going to erase poverty. Nor will it close the gap between the haves and have nots. That line above about "those with the gold make the rules" sounds like some corny line out of a rap song. But really, poverty will continue to rule downtown, no matter how many leased BMWs are in the loft garages.

The dealing you see on the streets is nothing compared to the drug dealers that slang out of these fancy lofts. Or maybe you prefer to buy your 8 ball from behind the bar at one of these faux-grunge bars. You don't bitch about it because either you don't see it or the bar dealers don't look like hoodrats and hence, don't evoke fear on your life like a cholo might. Remember the Broadway BBQ joint? Hi. Cocaine delivery spot. Call em up and they'd ski on over. Dialing the purple people now?

But it's funny to read. Graffiti removal. "Community." An obsession with race. Blowing up hotels. This is why LA is the capital of culture. We create culture where you can pretend to blow up a hotel just 'cuz and it makes us feel like we've done it. Okay, so who's gonna blow up the Huntington? And after that dump is leveled, which ones next? Will that blow up poverty?

DTLA is more than the geography outlined by ArtSchlock and a bunch of cheesy restaurants and expensive lofts. It was always and will forever be a transportation hub. It's Union Station -- not going anywhere -- that transports even the great unwashed through DTLA. It's Twin Towers, the largest jain in the world. 4,500 inmates. And Twin Towers is not going anywhere. Twin Towers = poverty. It is monolithic poverty. But you can't see it drinking a Cosmo on the patio of Pete's so it's easy to pretend that those 4,500 inmates aren't a ten minute walk from your loft (faster when on PCP). And when those fools get released, the ones who don't have a ride to pick 'em up head straight for Broadway, still wearing their wristband.

Live Work Play.



Add Your Voice

In an effort to prevent spam, blogdowntown commenting requires that Javascript be enabled. Please check your browser settings and try again.

 

Search:




On Twitter

New Comments


Recommendations



blogdowntown Photo Pool

Photos of Downtown contributed by readers like you.

Downtown Blogs


Downtown Sites


Elsewhere