The area between 1st and 3rd street on La Brea was already very cool in my eyes, as on the east side of the street it housed many great LA shopping haunts. These include famed clothing stores like American Rag, Stussy, and cool sneaker spot Undefeated. There is also high end furniture store Vioski, which houses the very cool Palms Chair and Ottoman (you can see it shot after the break through the glass, which produces a cool effect). Lastly, but certainly not least, is the French style cafe of Cafe Midi, one of my personal favorite spots to have lunch.

Now it seems the people at Madison Marquette are renovating the west side of the street. By looking at the renderings and the history of the buildings on their website, this side is sure to impress. The architecture of the building's houses a great shell for the build out of new and cool retail stores, and further restaurants to add to the area's appeal. The site of an Edsel Automobile dealership in the 1950’s, the building was later headquarters to one of LA’s premier printing shops, Continental Graphics Corporation. Now the architects at Studio One Eleven are highlighting each building’s unique characteristics including wood truss ceilings, exposed brick and steel beams to great fantastic retail spaces. A couple spaces have already been leased, and are looking great. I look forward to following the progress and visiting the great spaces once the renovation is complete.

Pictures by Eric Smilay for Smilay Properties