Franklin Avenue

A Gathering Place
Los Angeles is finally one step closer to forming a real central park, according to the Times. The paper reports that a $1.2 billion plan to bring a real downtown focal point, coupled with a new retail and entertainment complex, has gained momentum now that L.A. County officials have voted to form a joint city-county authority to oversee the proposal.

The park would stretch between City Hall on Spring Street and the Department of Water and Power on Bunker Hill, while the new apartment/shopping/entertainment complex would be built close by, where a parking lot currently stands.

The city is expected to approve the new committee as well. Next step: Figuring out just where the money will come from.

According to the paper:
The park would connect those sites to the mall that fronts the county Hall of Administration and courthouse between Hill Street and Grand Avenue, and to the Music Center Plaza between Grand Avenue and Hope Street. It would include stands of trees, ponds and open fields atop an underground parking structure.