Back on March 7, 2006 I blogged about the impending destruction of a lovely neighborhood of old North Hollywood homes from the 1920’s on LaMaida east of Huston.
The houses had red tile roofs and decorative, carved moldings, arched and stained glass windows and mature plantings. They were boarded up, but certainly salvageable.
Today, I decided to drive around that same neighborhood. Not a single house remained from the ten or so that had stood here on March 7th.
We live in a city overflowing with ugliness. This one little section of loveliness deserved to be preserved. A graceful piece of old Los Angeles obliterated, with scarcely a dropped tear.
Here in Van Nuys 
Just a quick follow up, almost a year later these lots are still empty…they might be holding out for more to sell. Stevens Nursery on Riverside and the 3 (bird house) houses behind it will be gone soon…but it looks like another development of the 4 houses across the street fell through as they’re all occupied again.
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I live just a few blocks from this location. It’s on the corner of La Maida and Bellflower.
On the other side of Bellflower is another section of housing that’s been torn down — also now surrounded by a fence.
I’ve also receieved a notice that there’s talk of building a large residencial complex where Bellflower interects Morrison, two blocks noth of La Maida.
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Where is this location? La Maida and Houston run parallel a block apart.
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i actually live on that street! what i hate more are the families that took the offer from the townhouse builders and sold their soul and house in the same day. at least the yoga villa is still there!
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Re #3: Uh…no. Los Angeles has a horrifying housing shortage and breaking up the city would exacerbate it. Small cities would be even more susceptible to lobbying by NIMBYs to keep multifamily housing from being built.
It’s a shame that a pretty nabe got torn down, but multifamily housing within walking distance of a subway station takes precedence.
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Breaking up L.A. into little cities also ends up hurting all the smaller cities when they all have to compete for the same funds and become hostile to working with one another.
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Terrible! This is why breaking up LA in to little cities — like the City of North Hollywood — might really make a difference.
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Keep up the good work Andrew. I want to see what this looks like when they are done with it.
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We live in a city overflowing with ugliness.
Seems appropriate that the one thing still standing and visible in the first and third photos are the power lines and utility poles in the rear.
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