SPNA (South Park Neighborhood Association) brought 250 South Park neighbors from 11 residential buildings together in Wishbone Park on Earth Day to celebrate the Earth, to learn more about what WE can do to help save the planet, and to grow a better neighborhood.

The first Earth Day was April 1970. Now 53 years later, we are still working to save our Earth.  Invest in Our Planet. What Will You Do? is the 2023 theme for Earth Day.

Despite the pandemic being in the rearview mirror, downtown stakeholders are pessimistic that downtown is moving in the right direction, according to a survey conducted in February by the Downtown Center Business Improvement District. Survey analysts suggest a key factor is a perceived lack of progress on key challenges such as homelessness and violent crime.

Meet the South Park candidates you can vote for (via mail or in-person) on May 4 as our representatives on the Downtown Los Angeles Neighborhood Council (DLANC).

Earth Day Spring Garden Party, brought to you by South Park Neighborhood Association, on Saturday, April 22 from 1-5 pm at Wishbone Park on Grand between 11th and 12th Streets. Event is free!

Recall Petition of de Leon Falls Short of Goal

There is lots happening in South Park this Spring…. Get out and Enjoy!

We are rapidly losing the battle to save our planet’s Climate from warming. We are reminded daily that the clock is running out… but the problem seems so huge. What can an individual do? The answer is: We Just Can. If we change 5 to 10 Climate destroying habits, we go a long way toward saving the Climate – and our world. Here are five simple things YOU can do starting today:

Ben and Lisa relaunched as Lagree213 in 2020 but shortly after, COVID hit, and they closed. As restrictions eased, a space at Level Hotel + Suites became available (835 S. Hill). During the pandemic, Lagree213 was 1 of only 2 fitness studios in LA that offered outdoor classes. With growing clientele, Ben and Lisa opened a 2nd location at One Santa Fe (300 S. Santa Fe), and now Lagree213 is adding another space in South Park at Hope+Flower (1201 S. Hope)!

The community support was overwhelming. More than 215 people attended the South Park Neighborhood Association (SPNA) event held on Thursday, Feb 16 at The Belasco. Residents representing 29 South Park residential buildings mingled with each other and South Park businesses. The richness of South Park was evident in both the historic Belasco and the warmth of the community. 

A review of local neighborhood safety goals reveals two of our efforts from the last few years have remained unfulfilled.  Hopefully we can put renewed energy into realizing these two important goals in 2023!

Recently I was introduced to Peter Otero’s work when he graciously donated six stunning floral arrangements for the SPNA (South Park Neighborhood Association) event at the Belasco. This South Park artist started honing his talent with flowers as a teen and now has an impressive career in event design.

Elections for the Downtown Los Angeles Neighborhood Council (DLANC) will be held on Thursday, May 4 at the Los Angeles Central Library, 630 W. 5th between Flower and Olive, from 1-7 pm or you can vote by mail. The deadline for voters to apply for a mail-in ballot is April 15.

Downtown is quickly bouncing back from the economic hardships of the COVID epidemic according to the 2022 year-end market report just issued by the Downtown Center Business Improvement District. Apartment rentals in the fourth quarter were at 93.1 percent with asking rents of $3.33 per square foot, essentially identical to the fourth quarter of 2021.

During the last 3 years of COVID restrictions, we saw countless businesses close shop across the city leaving our neighborhood a ghost town of empty spaces and boarded up windows.

Recently I met with the energetic, enthusiastic, and do-everything, entrepreneurial young woman, Rachel Adams. Rachel is the owner of 3 unique businesses at 1039 and 1041 S. Olive, north of 11th Street. After 75-minutes of listening and a short tour, WOW is what I said!!!

DTLA has no shortage of breweries, but to our delight Native Son LA is a new addition at the former Modern Times Dankness Dojo space on Olive between 8th and 9th (832 S. Olive). The original Native Son brewery is in Santa Ana.

The Chicago-based Boka Group has opened its latest restaurant, Café Basque, on the ground level of the Hoxton Hotel at 1060 S. Broadway, adding to its other popular restaurants in DTLA, The Girl and the Goat (Arts District) and Cabra (rooftop of The Hoxton).