SANTA MONICA FREEWAY: Whatever happened to those ramp meter controls and lights on the Santa Monica Freeway between the 110 and Crenshaw Blvd? Reader Bzcat seems to know his freeways. "It was activated sometime in 2001. It lasted about 3 weeks and it was a complete disaster. Instead of improving flow of traffic as those signals are designed to do, it created a new bottleneck from cars coming over from 110 freeway. The cars waiting to clear the carpool light from the 110 to I-10 was crossed with the traffic exiting I-10 to Normandy and Western, which backed up traffic on main section of I-10. The spill over backup from the 110 went all the way back past the I-5. Like I said, it was a complete disaster."
STUDIO CITY: In regards to the "Reach" and "Be Brilliant" ads on the side of the Universal Sheraton building: Dai Vondarn, concierge at the Sheraton tells us, "It's some sort of promotional ad campaign and [Sheraton executives] aren't allowed to say anything else about it." That sounds shady, thanks. We could be wrong, but we're going to guess this is some sort of placeholder that'll allow the supergraphics--and real ads--to be grandfathered in.
ECHO PARK: More gossip about the Ramona theater and Reader MarkSem seems to have the dirt. "Basically it has been sitting vacant for the last decade because of a dispute with the concrete contractor. If you had ever been in the theater, it used to be sloped down and into the ground. The contractor filled the hole so that the ground floor is now all at ground level. There were complaints about the quality of the work and a lawsuit ensued. Fast forward 10 years. The building has finally received its permits and CofO. Now, it is looking for someone to lease the space. There are parking issues associated with the site and you would need to get further entitlements depending on the use, but it is an AWESOME venue. Contact me if you have questions: MarkSem@metrola.org." Indeed, we took a photo this morning and there is a For Lease sign on the building.
If you have questions for next week's edition of Rumblings and Bumblings, say hello.
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