Come on, downtown today is a much better place than in the 1980s.
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It’s definitely more developed. I moved downtown before Horton Plaza was finished… the only nightlife was Patricks and Croce’s. The California was still open and putting on shows. Groceries were limited – Irvine Ranch had a spot in Horton Plaza once the mall opened… this was pre-Ralphs. So I went into Hillcrest to do grocery shopping.
but it was fun back then… the start of artwalk – when the artists really lived in live/work spaces that were cheap. Sushi gallery putting on performance art stuff in their old space. The first street scenes with bands like X, Blasters, Los Lobos. Now downtown is gentrified, yuppified, and corporatized. That’s ok… but it’s not for me. I liked the old grittiness. Even if I did have to deal with the occasional whino on my doorstep.
As far as the article… I have no problems with the guy holding onto his building. That was his choice. Just like the Vera Coking, who’s home thwarted Donald Trump in AC.
