Condos and the arts

In the fourth issue of New Angeles, Maxwell Harwitt examines whether developers in Hollywood and downtown really give a hoot about the city's art scene - aside from indulgent sales pitches for "artists lofts" that artists couldn't possibly afford. Why, it's all so positively bohemian! He focuses on David Houk's Park Fifth hotel/condo project at 5th and Olive, where each of the 732 condo units would come with a 5-year membership to MoCA.

The $375 price tag of a five-year membership is not a huge burden to the $1 billion Park Fifth project, where units start at almost a half-million dollars. Equally obvious would be the ability of buyers in the project to afford the expense on their own. Houk and company will most likely benefit from the cultural approval granted by their association with MoCA, but the offering also means a definite contribution to the museum of several hundred-thousand dollars, and more importantly, it encourages a wealthy base nearby the museum to support its neighborhood institution. In addition, the offer seems to come from a sincere interest in the arts, as Houk has also purchased the historic Variety Arts Theatre, with plans to revive it as a performance space.