Southwest Museum Reopens for Limited Hours Saturday

The museum will provide a sneak peek into the work that is being done to restore the massive collection.

Southwest Museum Working Group Vote Delayed Until May 1

Brown Act questions delayed the vote.

An effort to bring together representatives from the Autry National Center and local community members who have criticized the Autry's stewardship of Mount Washington's Southwest Museum remains in a holding pattern. A motion first proposed by Councilman José Huizar in June--which would create a working group comprising representatives from the city, the Autry and local communities with the goal of reopening the museum--was tabled due to concerns regarding open meeting law. Two other motions related to the Southwest Musuem--one of which would require its owner, the Autry National Center, to be more aggressive in seeking funds for the Mount Washington facility--were also tabled until the committee's May 1 meeting. Councilman Richard Alarcon…

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Southwest Museum Back on City Council's Radar

The Arts, Parks, Health and Aging Committee meets Tuesday at 8:30 a.m., with three Southwest Museum related items on the agenda.

Nearly a year after a summer filled with contentious meetings and lawsuit filings, the Los Angeles City Council is once again returning its focus to the to future of the Southwest Museum of the American Indian in Mount Washington. Tuesday's meeting of the City Council's Arts, Parks, Health and Aging Committee contains three agenda items that directly address the Southwest Museum, one of which would create a working group tasked with creating a plan to reopen the museum. The Arts, Parks, Health and Aging Committee meets at 8:30 a.m. in room 1060 of the Los Angeles City Hall, located at 200 N. Spring St. The Southwest Museum merged with the Autry National Center in 2002, in an agreement that community members hoped would lead to a revival of…

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Southwest Museum Coalition to Meet Next Week

Coalition will discuss next step in battle with Autry National Center.

After suffering a pair of losses at the hands of the Los Angeles City Council this week, the Friends of the Southwest Museum Coalition plan to meet on Wednesday, June 29 to discuss the next step in their battle with the Autry National Center over future of the historical Mount Washington museum. The coalition plans to meet on Wednesday, June 29 at 7 p.m. inside the Highland Park Ebell Club on 131 S. Ave. 57. The Autry National Center merged with the Southwest Museum in 2002 and took possession of its historical 300,000 item collection.  Autry leadership has argued it is financially unfeasible to reopen the nearly 100 year old Mount Washington museum, which has been closed for public exhibitions since 2009. In turn, the Friends of the …

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Southwest Museum Report: Recapping the Last Month

The city council on Tuesday afternoon upheld the recreation and parks commission's May 20 approval of the Autry National Center's $6.6 million expansion plan. Find out how they got to that point.

The Los Angeles City Council on Tuesday afternoon upheld the Recreation and Parks Commission's May 20 approval of the Autry National Center's proposed $6.6 million expansion of their Griffith Park campus, closing the chapter on a month's worth of public meetings devoted to the issue. For some perspective on the controversial issue, below are links to Patch's ongoing coverage of the Autry National Center's proposal, as well as several other pieces that provide background information.  Autry, Oxy Partnership in the Works? Decision Making Time for Friends of Southwest Museum Southwest Owner Autry Gets Permission to Expand Griffith Park Location City Council Claims Jurisdiction Over Autry Expansion Southwest Museum Report: The Autry Makes …

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What They Said: The 'Friends' Of The Southwest Museum Weigh In

The arts, parks, health and aging committee took nearly two hours worth of public comments this afternoon. Here is a sample of what the opponents of the Autry renovation had to say. Check back soon for comments from those who support the renovation plan.

The Arts, Parks, Health and Aging commission took nearly two hours worth of public comments this afternoon in regards to the Autry's proposed $6.6 million expansion of their Griffith Park campus. For a roundup of the meeting, click here. Here is a sample of what the opponents of the Autry expansion had to say. Check back soon for comments from those who support the expansion plan. A museum is not a building, a museum is the collection: the researchers, the exhibitors, the people who make it alive. The Southwest Museum is dead right now, the Griffith Park campus is alive, because there are people in it to make it a museum. Regarding this particular item--item 3--i've done over 300 Environmental Impact Reviews for international and national …

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Lummis Day Celebrates Northeast L.A.'s Rich Cultural Heritage Today

The sixth annual Lummis Day celebration will take place this Sunday, June 5.

Northeast Los Angeles residents and neighbors on Sunday have the opportunity to enjoy a festival as diverse as the population and culture of their neighborhoods. The sixth annual Lummis Day celebration will take place on Sunday, June 5 at two locations, Charles Lummis’ homestead El Alisal and Heritage Square Museum, and will run from 10:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. “This is a very exciting celebration of arts in our neighborhood and the community is well-represented in all aspects,” said Lummis Day planning board member Eliot Sekuler. “This year we really ventured out and did things we haven’t done before.” Some of those firsts include spoken word poetry accompanied by background music, performed by, among others, celebrated Los Angeles poet Wanda…

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Bi-Monthly Walking Tour Showcases Highland Park's Historic Architecture

An abundance of designated Los Angeles Cultural Historical Monuments are located right here in Highland Park.

Every two months you’ll find an assembly of people gathered at the Sousa-Hiner Bandshell in Sycamore Grove Park, ready to embark on a half-mile walking tour of the Sycamore Grove area in historic Highland Park. The Highland Park Heritage Trust, in conjunction with the Los Angeles Conservancy, has put together an informative tour that explores numerous homes and works of architecture that were crafted in the late 1800s and early 1900s. “People can get a real feel for this area 100 years ago and the kind of wonderful, graceful living that took place here. It was and still is a mecca for artists,” said tour leader Marilyn Robertson. After brief introductions and a history lesson on Sycamore Grove Park, the walking tour heads over to the …

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David Fonseca

9:09 pm on Monday, February 28, 2011

Hi DC, Here's a link to the walking tour's event listing, which details the date and time of all upcoming walks. Enjoy. http://highlandpark-ca.patch.com/events/highland-park-heritage-trust-walking-tour   more ›

The View From Jack Smith's Street

My Road to Mount Washington

A long time resident recounts the roads that led her to Mount Washington and legendary L.A. Times columnist Jack Smith's street.

The very first time I came to Mount Washington, it was not love at first sight. I was visiting my sister who had bought a starter house on Terrace 49.  I drove from my job at Norman Lear's film company in Century City, and after the multiple freeways, I was frazzled and incredulous. Northeast Los Angeles seemed like a million miles from anywhere.  What was my sister thinking? Many would have been puzzled by my incredulity.  At the time, my husband, Marty, and I lived at the Amor Arms Apartments behind Grauman's Chinese: a far cry from my childhood on a Central Valley farm.  Gentrification of Hollywood had failed.  Twice. We'd found out, courtesy of a front-page Los Angeles Times story, that our block was hotly contested turf for three …

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Petey

10:12 pm on Monday, June 13, 2011

Yup. That was me! I thought it might be you guys which is why I included my apartment #. We never officially met but I remember running into you and your husband in the hall on occasion. I loved the place too ( as an 18 year old kid away from home for the first time) I am very fascinated with the history of Hollywood and especially Amor Arms. I'm actually thinking about starting a Facebook page …   more ›