Church To Demolish Apartments

The City of Los Angeles has granted Angelus Temple permits to demolish two apartment buildings between Lemoyne Street and Glendale Boulevard as part of a plan to build a six-story parking garage. The permits were granted even though the properties, located halfway between Sunset Boulevard and Echo Park Lake, sit in the middle of a proposed historic district.   The city in late March imposed a moratorium on new construction and demolition in the area to study the creation of that historic district. However, Angelus Temple apparently filed initial permits before the moratorium was put in place. The church owns two other properties that have also been targeted for destruction but has not filed for permits. All these buildings are reflect architecture of the 1920s through the 1940s.

 

The EPHS has opposed the garage as currently proposed because it would result in the destruction of nearly an entire block of buildings whose size and style complement the neighborhood's historic character. The garage would also create a giant wall along Lemoyne Street that would do little promote  walking between the businesses on Sunset Blvd. and Echo Park Lake.