Tower Records' Last Sunset Strip Stand

(Flickr pic by Zona Girl.)

Our friend Lizzy recently returned to Los Angeles after several years abroad. We filled her in on some of the goings on with us, as well as Los Angeles. She was most surprised, though, to learn that Tower Records was history. "Wait, all of it? The entire chain?" Yup.

For what was once a mighty chain, Tower disappeared rather quickly. Signs still adorn empty stores in some location, serving as a reminder... but it's still bizarre to think that Tower is completely gone. (Well, the website lives on, but owned by a different entity. That's like saying Montgomery Ward survives, as someone bought that name and runs a website as well.)

Now, as the Los Angeles Times reports, the building that housed the most famous Tower of all -- the Sunset Strip location -- might not survive much longer.

Writes the paper:

Preservationists complain that city leaders blocked their application to have a former Tower Records building declared a historic resource because color photographs of the brightly painted building were attached to the paperwork instead of black-and-white pictures that officials said were required.

As activists hunted for black-and-whites to add to the paperwork, a Chicago developer planning a multimillion-dollar office and retail complex at the record store site filed his building request at City Hall.

Now the iconic music industry landmark at 8801 W. Sunset Blvd. famous for its hundreds of impromptu rock 'n' roll performances and album signings awaits demolition.

Its iconic yellow facade has been repainted somber blue. Some preservationists are beginning to feel the same way.

Granted, the 1971 building isn't an architectural treasure; preservationists value it for its place in Sunset Strip and music lore. They'd like to turn it into a West Hollywood rock 'n roll museum. The developer has his own idea for how to honor that legacy:

Brian Lewis, a spokesman for Barket, said the proposed building's nod to the site's iconic past might include something like rock 'n' roll-themed decorations in the gym.

"We don't want to forget that Tower Records played a role here," Lewis said.

That's a joke, right?