Griffith Park Teahouse is Moving to the Port of LA For a While

The unpermitted but beloved Griffith Park Teahouse was constructed by anonymous artists in the park last summer, but removed not long after by the city's Department of Recreation and Parks (because it was technically illegal), with the intent to keep the wonderfully crafted wooden hut around—just somewhere else. Possible follow-up locations have been very hush-hush until now. Today, the LA Times says that the teahouse is moving down to San Pedro to take up residence at Knoll Hill for much of this month.

Installation got underway today, as marked by some moving day photos of the teahouse aboard a flatbed truck, posted to the wood structure's official Twitter. *UPDATE 5:13 p.m.: The tea house is open as of today for visitors and on Saturday will have a party to celebrate its new location. And this time, its presence has the official approval of Rec and Parks, as well as the Department of Cultural Affairs.

The Griffith Park Teahouse's new home will have views of the machinery at the Port of LA and the Vincent Thomas Bridge, helping the teahouse draw attention "to parts of the city that aren't always seen by the rest of the urban community," says one artist who helped construct the teahouse at its original location.

The tea hut will have a "closing ceremony" at Knoll Hill on March 20, but it's not clear where it will go next. When the teahouse was being removed from Griffith, one of the options on the table was to take it on the road as a kind of "traveling piece of art," so maybe it will just continue to move throughout LA for a while. There are worse things!

• The Griffith Park Teahouse to reappear on Knoll Hill in San Pedro today [LAT]
• Griffith Park Now Has an Illicit Teahouse With Amazing Views [Curbed LA]
• The Illicit Griffith Park Teahouse is Going Legit [Curbed LA]