, ,

Echo Country Outpost taking up new diggs

Echo Country Outpost has been host to many types of events – ho-downs, BBQs, and musical acts reminiscent of the ol’ Echo Curio days (don’t tell the city of LA). Opened in November 2009 by Erica Forneret, Chris Hajek, and Brendan Missett, the small space on Echo Park Avenue has been a great neighborhood and family-friendly establishment for music and shopping (they carry the kinds of antiques and hand made items that make the store feel like home).

But now it seems that they may have outgrown the store, which occupied the same building as the former Echo Park Cycles (now frame store Hotel de Ville) – “for rent” signs decorate the commercial space hoping for new occupants. The Echo Country Outpost website says only: “The Outpost is real busy traveling the country and cooking up big plans for the future of Outposts in Los Angeles and around the world.”

Call it perfect timing, but production company 2HeadedHorse recently vacated their production space at 1770 Glendale Boulevard, just south of the 2 Freeway entrance, and it seems our friends at the Outpost have settled on some new diggs. Posting a sketch on their Facebook page, the Outpost looks to be expanding beyond what we thought the Glendale Boulevard storefront even had – there’s an inner court/patio, an atrium and gift shop, studios, lofts, a kitchen, even a bar!

We’ve reached out to the guys and gals at Echo Country Outpost for further details, but expect a lot of great Echo Parkian thinks to do up on the Glendale corridor.

/2 Comments/by
,

LAFD Motorcyclists head east, 9/11 memorial service Sunday

On August 25, the LAFD Fire Hogs departed from the Los Angeles World Trade Center Memorial in Elysian Park, joining other LA Firefighters on the road to the World Trade Center in New York to commemorate the 10-year anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks.

The LAFD Fire Hogs are a group of “retired and active-duty firefighters.” They’ll be traveling by motorcycle the whole way.

Here in Los Angeles, the nearby Los Angeles World Trade Center Memorial will be the site of a memorial service “commemorating our collective loss and affirming our personal resolve.” September is also National Preparedness Month.

“This year will mark the 10-year anniversary of 9/11,” Erik Scott of the LAFD told Our Weekly, “and the Los Angeles Fire Department asks you to take time to remember those lost as well as time to make sure you are prepared for future emergencies.”

The memorial shown in the picture to the left is a 23 ton, 22 foot tall steel column that originally was part of the World Trade Center lobby, and believed to be the largest remnant on the West coast.

The free and public event is on Sunday, September 11, 2011 from 9:00 am – 10:00 am, with a reception immediately following.

The Frank Hotchkin Memorial Training Center is located at 1700 Stadium Way.

/646 Comments/by
, ,

Weird weather watch in Echo Park

Today was a another gorgeous, breezy, cool day in Echo Park – a great break from the recent heat that keeps the kitchen activity at a minimum and the window AC on high. Tonight we got another rainbow (and even sightings of a double rainbow), and now as we are enjoying the after dinner glass of wine there is plenty of lightning and thunder flashing through the windows. Although this is my favorite kind of weather, it’s a little eerie that it’s not 85 degrees and clear skies – but the weather girls keep saying we are getting “monsoonal moisture” in the foothills, creating those big thunderheads we’ve been seeing a lot lately and now the lightning bolts.

It was about a year ago that it was literally 90 degrees outside at 9:00 pm (unusual for Los Angeles, not the central valley!), and we had an incredible storm producing some amazing shots all around Echo Park. Although we’ve been living here for more than a few years now, it’s always a pleasant surprise.

Makes for a beautiful sunset!

/by
, , ,

Echo Park projects seek GOOD LA funding – with your vote

GOOD magazine and EPIP LA (Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy) are holding a competition of sorts for $2,500 to go to a deserving community project. Any project or organization that is “good for our city” and needed funding submitted their ideas to the website, and the winner determined by the number of public votes received. Applications were accepted up until August 24, and there are only seven days left to vote!

Lucky for you, there are two well-deserving Echo Park projects on the ballot for the funding – Peace in the Garden, submitted by the Echo Park Time Bank, and Echo Park Public Displays of Art, a local art walk/community event/neighborhood cleanup.

Peace in the Garden is sponsored by the Echo Park Time Bank and the Micheltorena School Community Garden, a partnership aimed at “peacemaking program for elementary school kids to learn non-violent communication and conflict resolution.” They’ll accomplish this by hiring a conflict resolution instructor for the school. Additionally, the funds will purchase a “buddy bench,” sashes for Peacemaker participants, and copies of the book Jadyn and the Magic Bubble: I Met Gandhi. Click here to vote!

The Echo Park WedPDA project will fund the one-day event where Echo Park becomes a “fun, playful and engaging artistic landscape to connect and celebrate COMMUNITY!” The funds would support artists and participating attendees for supplies, sidewalk chalk, etc., the costs of permits/insurance, design and printing costs for all the advertising/marketing, volunteer costs (water, t-shirts, snacks) and the neighborhood clean up. Click here to vote!

Now there are a total of 47 great ideas, but you have until Wednesday, September 7 by midnight to vote! You can only vote once, so make it count!

/by

Fire hydrant busts on Glendale Blvd in Echo Park

Photo by Malcolm Miller

A fire hydrant seems to have been displaced this late afternoon/early evening, apparently thanks to a semi-truck. Traffic on Glendale Boulevard in the north direction is usually a pain in the rear (all those downtown workers heading home), and this is really making things worse. Traffic is red, red, red from 1st street near downtown all the way up to the problem area at Allesandro and Glendale Boulevard.

Makes you want to take your car through just for the free wash? How about a little bathing suit action (it’s 89 degrees in our house!)?

/1,431 Comments/by
,

Echo Park may absorb some canceled Sunset Junction gigs

You’ve probably heard the news already, but it looks like the 2011 Sunset Junction may just actually be canceled due to permit issues (yep, just three days before!). However, there hasn’t been a final confirmation from the event organizers – the website is down, The Eastsider LA says they’re still waiting, and even though both LAist and LA Weekly seem to have given up, the LA Times just posted a statement from the organizers without a clear green light/red light confirmation.

Should it get canceled… (we mean officially of course) Origami Vinyl, which has had a role in this year’s Sunset Junction, got us thinking about how Echo Park can help absorb some of the gigs meant for the now-canceled Sunset Junction this weekend. The vinyl records shop tweeted today:

We think @theechola + Stories Books/Cafe + Echo Park Independent Co-Op + Us should book these SJ bands and get a lil block party goin…

Echo Park Independent Coop is down to host a block party as well.

I say, do it! Would be great for the businesses and the artists involved.

UPDATE:

If Sunset Junction does end up not happening, locals have already started organizing an alternative: The First Annual No Function Junction (and they have a Facebook page!).

What can you expect? Performances by The Ukelele Orchestra of the Western Hemisphere, former Sunset Junction bands at the 4100 Bar and the Living Room, and magic by Christopher Wonder. Also, “Don’t forget to pick up your complimentary compliment at the ‘Complimentary Compliments’ booth with Sirocco Research Labs. Stop by ReForm School at Sunset and Hyperion to find out more details….Spread the word.”

h/t The Eastsider LA

MORE UPDATES:

The Echo announced that The Butthole Surfers and 400 Blows will be playing there on Saturday.

Origami Vinyl will host Barrio Tiger on Saturday and Manhattan Murder Mystery on Sunday.

Stories Books and Cafe have the Damselles and the TC4 on Saturday.

E.P.I.C. will have the Black Apples on Sunday.

/7 Comments/by
,

DUI Checkpoint in Echo Park Saturday

If you plan on going out and having too much of a fun time this weekend, make sure you have a designated driver. Not just because there are TONS of DUI checkpoints planned for the Los Angeles area in the next couple of weeks, but because it’s a responsible thing to do. Either way, officers will be located at Sunset Boulevard and Sutherland in Echo Park on Saturday, August 20 from 8:00 pm to 2:00 am to keep intoxicated drivers off the road.

The crackdown is dubbed the “Avoid the 100” – meaning, avoid the 100 local police agencies involved in the checkpoints. They’ll be deploying DUI Driver’s License Checkpoints, Multi Agency DUI Task Force operations and local Roving DUI patrols during the 18 day Summer/Labor Day campaign. They won’t just be in Echo Park on Saturday, and many other checkpoints are planned throughout Los Angeles tonight through September 4.

But what do you care – you live in Echo Park and just walk to the nearest bar instead of driving… right?

While they’ll be checking for driver’s licenses, in March this year the LAPD changed the rules regarding impounding cars of unlicensed drivers – a rule that immigrants rights advocates have said unlawfully targeted undocumented immigrants. According to an article in the LA Times:

LAPD Chief Charlie Beck said that police would be required to try to contact the registered owner of a vehicle stopped at a checkpoint. If the owner is licensed and can arrive in a reasonable amount of time, the car will not be impounded. If the owner is unlicensed, but a licensed driver is in the car, that person may be permitted to take it.

The article continues: The Investigative Reporting Program at UC Berkeley found that of all the cars impounded during a three month period in 2009, 55% were impounded for unlicensed drivers, versus 14% impounded for an actual DUI and criminal warrants.

Be safe!

h/t LA Now

/284 Comments/by
,

New Echo Park gallery to open with ’80s gaming inspired art

A new art studio space is opening in Echo Park, actually just around the corner from the new Mohawk Bend, is starting things off with a bang – tomorrow night, the new iam8bit Productions is hosting an art opening for fans of 1980s video game artwork. The group show is hosting over 100 artists “re-imagining” their 1980s era gaming fantasies via painting, sculpture, plush, and some interactive displays.

The super grand opening party starts at 7 pm and ends at 11 pm, music by DJ R-Rated along with Leeni and A_Rival. The show runs through September 10, 2011.

iam8bit took over the space a while back in November of 2010, spending their time renovating the 4,500 square foot space since then. In an email, owner Jon Gibson told us about the renovation: “We’ve been working rather stealthily, dramatically transforming what was a pretty dumpy space.”

And they are excited not just for the opening but also for the neighborhood: “We’re rather intent on bringing the local businesses in the neighborhood together, as one of the things we specialize in (and the reason we initially got the space) was for our marketing boutique and production company, in which we’ve become known for our community programs (i.e. engaging fans of brands).”

iam8bit is located at 2147 W. Sunset Boulevard

Looking forward to the show – see you all there!

/298 Comments/by

Angelino Heights police activity this afternoon

A post on the Angelino Heights Yahoo! forum today caught our attention, and you may have noticed the helicopter and police activity. Here’s why:

At the request of Ed of Select Patrol, I’m just sending out a quick set of details of the police activity that occurred on the 1300 block of Carroll Avenue starting around 3:10pm today. All of this information is relayed from Ed and one or two other neighbours who were around.

Around 3:10 this afternoon, a young woman was dropped off near the intersection of Bellevue and West Kensington. She approached another woman that was walking down the sidewalk and ripped a gold chain from this woman’s neck before either walking or running west in the direction of Edgeware. Ed witnessed the incident and followed the robber up Bellevue to Edgeware and onto Carroll with the victim of the attack in pursuit on foot.

When the suspected thief reached the corner of East Edgeware and Carroll, it seems she returned the necklace to the victim in an attempt to claim she had committed no crime. Ed was in touch with LAPD dispatch at this point and was relaying details of the incident and the location of the alleged thief. After some remarkably loud and histrionic behaviour (claims that the took the necklace because she was pregnant and needed the money for neonatal care, etc.) that seems to have been an attempt to get the victim and Ed to leave her alone, the suspect then approached 1320 Carroll while wailing aloud.

At this point in time, roughly 3:20pm, the police patrol cars were inbound and there was an LAPD helicopter circling. Within a few minutes, the patrol cars had arrived, the suspect was in handcuffs being questioned and the victim was returning to Carroll now that there was a police presence.

And that was pretty much the end of the drama.

One neighbour did claim that he saw a suspect vehicle parked near the intersection of Douglas and Carroll with only the driver in it and it may have been the vehicle that dropped off the alleged thief and was waiting to pick her up. Ed and at least one LAPD officer think this may be the pattern of a group of robbers. As always, you should keep a healthy eye out for cars that seem to be traveling too slowly for traffic or that seem to be passing pedestrians repeatedly. It is likely that the victim in this case was spotted from the car and may have been watched for a short time before she was mugged.

Just sending this out as a favor to Ed. I have related the events as they were conveyed to me as accurately as I can but I only witnessed the last few minutes of the incident. As a result, there are sure to be errors. My apologies in advance.

Stay safe out there!

/124 Comments/by
,

New BBQ restaurant coming to Echo Park – with your help

The Park’s Finest has been in Echo Park for some time now, but as a mobile catering company. Owner Johneric Concordio grew up here, BBQing his way through the more turbulent times of Echo Park in the ’80s and ’90s. Now, the BBQ (with a Filipino twist) company is looking to establish itself in a physical location in what was formerly “The Far East” Japanese restaurant at 1267 West Temple Street.

Johneric has already started to demo (that space SOOO needs some love), but they’ve got a long way to go before opening hopefully in November. And they are looking toward the community to help them with the project – through a website called Indie GoGo, they are hoping to raise money for the kitchen remodel and equipment, furniture, city fees, signage and more. And to encourage you to donate, they offer a few perks from t-shirts to BBQ sauce and more for every extra bit you donate.

He’s hoping it will be more than a restaurant. According to the Pleasure Palate blog, “Johneric wants this restaurant to be a center for community, culture, art and of course, for fabulous food. By the way, when it comes to the food, it may be more than just BBQ, Johneric has talked about introducing more rustic Filipino dishes that aren’t normally found in stateside Filipino restaurants and believe me, that has definitely piqued my interest.”

Why should you donate? Their Indie GoGo page explains:

…The Park’s Finest, a mobile catering company based in Echo Park, has brought a distinct flavor to the LA food scene with our Filipino take on traditional American cuts of BBQ. We have blessed backyard boogies and community events all over the Southland, and have steadily gained popularity. To meet the rise in demand, as a community-oriented company, we aim to reinvigorate the blighted district of Historic Filipinotown in Echo Park. Our community fundraising campaign will build capital for a restaurant that offers a fulfilling dining experience, for families and friends to enjoy savory BBQ in an atmosphere where musicians and artists can showcase works that reflect and celebrate the intersections of the dynamic cultures and histories bridged by this vibrant area of LA.

We certainly wouldn’t mind some tasty BBQ action in the neighborhood, so we wish The Park’s Finest the best of luck!

Click here to donate to The Parks Finest, and check out the video below:




Related links:

  • Please Support Parks Finest BBQ – PS-they make the best Filipino inspired BBQ in town! Pleasure Palate, July 31, 2011.
  • Storefront Report: Filipino BBQ to replace Japanese diner in Echo Park. The Eastsider LA, August 4, 2011
/663 Comments/by
,

Tonight: Neighborhood Potluck with the EPIA

Tonight is a very delicious meeting hosted by the Echo Park Improvement Association (which I am a member of) – it’s the annual potluck!

Bring your favorite dish and join us at Barlow Hospital in Williams Hall, 2000 Stadium Way at 7:00 pm tonight!

/by
, ,

Tuesday: Echo Park’s 6th annual National Night Out

Tomorrow (Tuesday, August 2, 2011) is the 6th annual Echo Park National Night Out. The theme: “Our Community, Our Future, The Power of Choices.” The purpose: To provide a safe community event with the goal of preventing drugs and crime in our neighborhood. From the EP National Night Out website:

The National Night Out is a program promoting neighborhood spirit and police-community partnership in our goal for a safer nation. The annual National Night Out (NNO) event, is unique crime/drug prevention event sponsored by the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF TOWN WATCH (NATW). The purpose is to promote and strengthen community involvement, partnership with police and community, it is a positive tool used to enchance the quality of life, for a crime and drug free town.

Stop by and say hello from 5:00 – 8:00 pm in the Walgreens parking lot located at 1625 W. Sunset Blvd.

Free entrance, hot dogs, crafts and activities for kids and adults, and free give-aways. There will also be free eye examinations, chart reading and checkup for Glaucoma, along with check-ups for blood pressure, diabetes check-up and oxygen.

Master of Ceremony is Leonel Ledezma, which special appearances and speakers by:

Captain Williams Murphy from Northeast Police Division, Senior Lead Officer Bobby Hill from Northeast Police Station, the office of City Council President and Member Eric Garcetti of District 13, Alana Yanez (deputy for the office of Senator Kevin de Leon), District 1 City Council Member Ed Reyes, and Mitchell Frank (Echo Park Chamber of Commerce President and Owner of the Echo/Echoplex Club, El Prado, and Malo).

Visit the Echo Park National Night Out website for details on participating booths, sponsors, and how to get involved.

/1 Comment/by
, ,

Mohawk Bend opening tonight – for realsies

A Facebook announcement by the people behind Echo Park’s (and Los Angeles’) most anticipated restaurant opening has the words we’ve all been waiting for – “We are opening this evening – for real!”

There was a bit of confusion out there on the ‘nets about when Mohawk Bend would open – dates went from end of June to early July, to July 27, which was last week and was obviously not happening. As we’ve mentioned before, if you’ve ever worked or opened a restaurant, there’s a lot of kinks to work out (especially with the city permit office).

While we are confirming the exact time doors will open, expect to have dinner out tonight with an incredible selection of vegan (and non-vegan) dishes, cocktails, and of course over 70 beers on tap.

Be sure to read up on our past stories about Mohawk Bend:

UPDATE:

We just received the official press release for the grand opening, which gives us the restaurant/bar hours as:

Open daily from 5:00 pm. to 11:30 pm Sunday through Thursday, and 5:00 pm to 1:30 am Friday and Saturday. Dinner will be served first upon opening — lunch and brunch will follow in the coming weeks.

In the press release, owner Tony Yanow says, “We’re so excited to open in Echo Park and be a part of the Eastside community. With Mohawk Bend, we are really hoping to create a neighborhood restaurant and bar and one that shows our commitment to California with all of the California-based products we use, from our 100-percent California beer, wine and cocktail program to the local, organic ingredients in the kitchen.”

Looking forward to checking it out again!

/1 Comment/by
,

Rumor mill: More talk of Fresh & Easy in Echo Park

Yelp photo by Ed A.

The sudden closure of the Save-A-Lot store at the end of last March has prompted a ton of speculation of what should replace the grocery store. Trader Joe’s vs. Fresh & Easy vs. Petco vs. my favorite, a locally-owned farm-to-table type of place.The debate has even given birth to a Facebook page called “Bring Trader Joe’s to Echo Park.”

While we haven’t had any official confirmation of what store is going into the space, located next to the Walgreens at Sunset Blvd. and Logan, the pro-Trader Joe’s Facebook page admin was told by a Walgreens employee that Fresh & Easy is, in fact moving in:

I have gone in and spoken to different employees there [Walgreens] for several months and gotten updates. I just called and they said that Fresh and Easy did in fact get the space and they are going to try to open sometime in December. So it’s cool that there is going to be a market we can all shop at in Echo Park but it would be a little sweeter if there wasn’t some controversy around how they treat their employees.

We’ve contacted Fresh & Easy to confirm this possibility, for now we’re filing this as rumor until we know for sure!

UPDATE:

We asked the Fresh & Easy Facebook page about coming to Echo Park, and here’s what hey had to say: “We add ‘coming soon’ Clapples on our “where we are” map on our website when locations are officially planned and announced. We then announce grand opening dates a few weeks before that event when we’re finally ready to open the doors on a location. As for a location in Echo Park, I don’t show anything on any official lists of ‘coming soon’ locations. But we do love the area and, as with lots of locations, hope to be there someday!”

/20 Comments/by
, , , ,

Lotus Festival schedule for today, Saturday

No lotus flowers in the lake this year, but they are for sale to take home!

We headed down to Echo Park Lake early to get ahold of the Lotus Festival schedule, which is available to anyone at the information booth in the middle of the festival booths. After the jump: Saturday’s schedule and parking tips. You can read about the history of the Lotus Festival by clicking here.

Opening ceremony started at noon, but here’s the rest of the schedule (Sunday’s schedule will be available tomorrow):

2:00 pm: The Muay Thai School
Thai Boxing Demo

2:30 pm: Na Kapa Ku Hual Halau Kula Nui ‘O Kaleponi
Hawaiian and Polynesian music and dance

3:00 pm: Pacific Asian Club
Chinese, Japanese, Hawaiian and Filipino Dances

3:30 pm: Wat Thai Temple of Los Angeles
Thai Rabam Dravat dance Mon style Read more

/5,358 Comments/by