KCET
D.J. Waldie is a writer and commentator on Los Angeles, and a historian emeritus, for the City of Lakewood, California. An essayist, poet and historian of Los Angeles County, Waldie is the author of several books including Holy Land: A Suburban Memoir, Where We Are: Notes from Los Angeles and California Romantica: Spanish Colonial and Mission-Style Houses. He is a former blogs for public television station KCET.
Lessons for affordable housing from the modern dome tent Since its founding LA has been selling lifestyle and better living.
"5 over 2": Rethinking the box In the boom years of the last century, Los Angeles developed homes that were specific to the region, the culture and the economy. These include revival-style homes, bungalow courts, garden apartments and dingbats.
Lakewood, a "Paradise of the Ordinary" DnA is currently exploring the theme of “This is Home in LA: From the Tent to the Gigamansion (and everything in between).”
Farewell LA freeways, but what takes their place? San Gabriel communities have fought for years over a long-planned 6.3 mile extension to the 710 Freeway, connecting it to the 210. Last week the Metro Board killed it off for good and Mayor Eric Garcetti called it a sign of times, noting that “Los Angeles has moved on from freeways.”
Which Way, LA? The Question that Won't Go Away 23 years ago, the fires of the Rodney King riots were burning and the sirens wailing when KCRW first asked, WWLA? We've been through fires, floods, earthquakes and massive social, cultural and economic change. While this is the last program titled WWLA? the question still needs to be asked. We talk with a group of important and thoughtful people about what LA has become and about the challenges to be faced in the future…as we continue.
The “Crisis” of the Big Blue Bus Stops Santa Monica’s new Big Blue Bus stops are intended to provide comforts for riders and an iconic look for the transit agency. But the new stops have ignited complaints from many of its riders about minimal shade and uncomfortable seating. Were they designed too “defensively”? Are critics overlooking their benefits?
Iconic Wilshire Boulevard: D.J. Waldie 0 0 1 32 184 UCLA 1 1 215 14.0 Normal 0 false false false EN-US JA X-NONE …
Wilshire Boulevard PSTP has sponsored another exploration of a defining Los Angeles boulevard, but it's one you'll be able to take in outside of the museum space, and not at the speed or kind of mobility it was built for.
Los Angeles: Eastside versus Westside Remember " Carmaggedon ?" That's when the 405 Freeway was shut down completely for entire weekends for replacement of the Mulholland Drive bridge. There were predictions that the entire Westside would be unavailable to the rest of the city.
Less School for LAUSD; Student-based Teacher Evaluations The Los Angeles Unified School District and the teachers' union, UTLA , have agreed to shorten the next school year by five days, for a total of 18 days in the past four years. Another three weeks could be lost if Governor Brown's tax package doesn't pass in November.
Are the NFL and MLB Putting the Squeeze on LA City Hall? Mayor Villaraigosa and members of the Los Angeles City Council have been jumping through hoops to get the National Football League to field a team in downtown Los Angeles.
Northrop Says Goodbye to Southern California Northrop Grumman is the last of the big-name aerospace companies headquartered in Southern California, and now it's going, too. Like others before it, Northrop will move its top executives closer to the action in Washington, DC. In this case, to Falls Church, Virginia. D.J. Waldie is a historian, poet and author of many books on many subjects.
Split Board Considers Changes to Supervisorial Districts A new, independent citizens committee is re-drawing boundaries for California's legislative and congressional districts to accommodate the 2010 census. LA County Supervisors still reapportion their own. In 1990, reapportionment created the majority Latino district won the next year by Gloria Molina .
Are Hotels in Downtown LA Getting Taxpayer Money for Free? The LA Times reports that two building inspectors have been arrested and a federal grand jury has issued subpoenas seeking personnel records of at least 11 current and former employees. David Zahniser co-wrote the story. He also wrote a Times' story about tax breaks for massive hotels in booming downtown Los Angeles. J.W.
Do it for the kids, Gavin Gavin Newsom’s early policy proposals offer a glimmer of hope for California’s youngest residents.
The march toward a teachers strike sounds familiar Higher salaries, larger class sizes, more counselors, librarians and nurses. Those are just some of the demands that members of United Teachers, Los Angeles - the union that represents teachers' at LAUSD - are asking for.