Bitter Battle Over Larchmont

Karma is already working its magic on the Mizrahi group... You can get away with doing evil in the short-term, but not in the long-run.

I like the Larchmont Bungalow just fine.  Everybody should back off and let it be.  The Q conditions are city laws at their worst... and should be repealed.  Hooray for the Bungalow for finding loop holes and dragging court cases on for years to stay open.  I'm a Hancock Park resident and I just can't understand why people are trying to run a successful business off the Boulevard.  Do residents really want another Hamburger Hamlet Express or an empty Blockbuster?  I don't.  The community is not being served if the Larchmont Bungalow is closed by the city.

Mizrahi is a complete slimeball, not to be trusted for a second. One must always assume the worst motivations are moving this guy. Drive him and his disgusting family out of town!

Meanwhile, the City's Planning Dept. is encouraging restaurants to open elsewhere in the city, such as Atwater Village,  by waiving or severely reducing parking requirements. Go figure.

Longtime are resident, here, very grateful to you for this piece (not least of which reasons being that dots-finally-connected feeling for why Library, Hardwear, and Larchmont Bungalow always felt so very "off" in so much the same way). I'm agreed with the bulldozers that we need to accommodate change—I love having a Rite Aid and a Peets as much as the next guy, and I didn't spend enough at the old hardware store to keep it in business. But I spend less overall on the Boulevard now, mostly because (a), it's no fun, overrun with super-high-end ridiculousness and (b) it's crazy-crowded. I suppose the real lesson here is that rather than griping privately, I ought to get involved. It ain't a community without the participation of the community.

Thanks for writing the article. My opinion in following the story since it opened: the Bungalow owners flagrantly and intentionally violated the local zoning ordinance hoping to circumvent the law.  They have used legal stall tactics to stay open. I wish they never purchased real estate on Larchmont and would be so happy if they sold and left our neighborhood alone.  To you outsiders making rude comments here: please mind the business of your own neighborhood and have respect for the opinions of the residents that live near Larchmont Blvd.

Screw 'em.  I've got no sympathy for yuppie cum hipster douche bags whining about zoning on their precious "Larchmont" fake Mayberry.

The rest of the city is decaying around us like a relic from the Titanic exposed to the open air and these whiners are worried that the restaurant didn't have enough parking?  Fuck 'em.

Thank you! @christykrumm Great piece, @loislane79! I had no idea all this was going on: Bitter Battle Over Larchmont http://t.co/3hoAhJpK

I for one am very grateful for citizens like Patty Lombard who have the courage to stand up to Mizrahi.  These developers are known for silencing local bloggers and critics with payoffs and legal intimidation. Glad to see the spine in this community.

It doesnt help matters that the Larchmont LA tweeter/blogger turned things physical. Hopefully someone is monitoring that escalating situation. If you pick up on the vitriol in his tweets and posts that was sadly inevitable, as it borders on obsession. This contingent of the neighborhood really needs to get over itself and need to control the area. The sad part is that that hardware store was bound to go out of business because people would rather go to Home Depot. Things change and the strip should change with it. And this piece leaves out the fact that theres' a HUGE empty former blockbuster building just sitting there on Larchmont...what part of the strip's so--called character did that contribute? That said, why doesnt Mizrahi just rent out a parking lot and offer valet to shut these people up? I wouldn't bother with valet as a neighborhood resident and occasional diner at Bungalow who can ALWAYS find parking, but at least that could put these arbitrary legal woes to rest. Again, the issue is one of control, not truly that "zoning compliance" is ruining the neighborhood. Bungalow has great food and character and should be considered a draw, not a problem.

Oops, looks like according to Architectural Digest,  Soleimani now wants Melrose to look like Mayfair in London.   Has he ever ventured off Melrose to look at all those sweet little houses in  the neighborhood?  Could he have plans to banish them for a total Mayfair scheme.  Back to Larchmont, apparently Mizrahi  doesn't get a  clear reading of the neighborhoods  adjacent and what they prefer, after all they only live there.    

One could almost think that Mizrahi is the "M" in CIM.

Without knowing anything about this issue up to this point, I'd say Mizrahi sounds like a world-class jerk. But it's the age-old battle - money-centric developers vs. communities that want to retain their small, folksy feel. And guess who always wins? 

Mizrahi must have not ever have  traveled to infinite locations outside of LA where street context is a priority.  I could easily curate a trip for him.  Mizrahi's same trick is being played out in a more heavy handed way on Melrose between La Cienega and Doheny (primarily between La C and San Vicente) where property owner Ben Soleimani envisions Portobello Road or venues  in Paris.  Hmmm he must have been wearing funny glasses on those trips.  His grand scheme is to unveil a Restoration Hardware corporate showroom.  Destroying the charm of any area with insensitive development is simply blight with a steep price tag.  Just ask the upset  residents of WEHO West. Perhaps it's something in the "hardware" moniker.  Nevertheless, dining at Bungalow was not an experience I would be itching to repeat...they have simply ripped off Joan's on Third which remains a fave.

Why write "allegedly" illegal? If the reporter had done her homework, she would know that the court had already decided in December 2011 after a two-year battle that Bungalow has in fact been illegal since 2009. It's no longer an allegation. It's a fact. The case number is BS125092.

This all sounds so familiar for people accustomed to LaBonge and his favorite piece of advice.  "Do not ask for permission. Just do it, and if you get caught say you're sorry."

And Rene Weitzer for the defense!?!  Ha! I'd pay to see that!