It was no surprise to me when I saw last night on the Esotouric Tours instagram account that the Frank Gehry monstrosity that was to replace the midcentury modern Lytton bank building (which replaced the Garden of Allah hotel) was now officially kaput. Gonzo. Belly-up. Finito. The lot is now up for sale, according to a WEHO times article.
Here’s a pictorial history of this lot, beginning with the Garden of Allah hotel (1927-1959) shown above, followed by the Chase/Lytton Bank (1960-2021), designed by architect Kurt Meyer:
…followed by an overhead view I shot just before it was leveled:
After the bank was removed:
…and then the rest of the strip mall was removed, too. This is how it looked when I photographed it last month:
I surmised a few months ago that when the lot stayed bare with no construction going on that something was amiss with the Gehry-planned development.
Why did this occur? Very simple. A lot with a building that could be considered “historic” is a headache for developers. It equals bad press because of the potential loss of the historic building and it often means expensive and lengthy legal battles to overcome the demolition pushback. Townscape Partners secured legal approval to demo the bank in 2018; they revised the original Gehry plan to incorporate some historic touches to appease both bank and hotel fans. And then the pandemic hit. The way business is done changed and the need for another mixed use property with an expensive piece of poo on it decreased.
Still…the bank had to be removed, otherwise the potential for future legal battles to save it could have returned. Thus, the empty lot you see now that is up for grabs again.
Here’s a vintage shot of Robert Benchley and Charlie Butterworth that seems appropriate for this story. The accompanying publicity blurb said that they “…kept open house in the Garden of Allah and invited passing friends in for drinks all night long. Here they are posing as they might have looked by dawn’s early light.”
The silver lining? This design is DOA.
See more photos at my main website.
It's hard to believe that would have fit into that footprint. I have to flip back and forth between the 5th and 7th picture to envision it. Hopefully whatever goes in there will fit thematically with the surrounding environment. Something that could complement the roofline of the Chateau Marmont.
ReplyDeleteGood news... for the moment. Perhaps when the project begins anew, cooler heads will prevail. Thanks for sharing the updated info.
ReplyDeleteBryan - Agreed. That dirt lot looks too small to house that fabulousness that was Allah!
ReplyDeleteNanook - Let’s hope…