The Alvarado Hotel, Northeast corner of Sixth and Alvarado Streets, c. 1910-2010

c. 1910-2010

The Alvarado Hotel (c. 1905) located by the northeast corner of Westlake Park, was among the first of many large hotels that eventually lined the park’s perimeter. In an all-too-familiar fashion, the Westlake area’s drastic postwar decline led to the building’s rather tragic fate. After being converted to apartments and having languished for many years at the hands of a slumlord owner, the Alvarado was nearly destroyed by fire in the early 1980s and closed by the Fire Department. The site was later replaced by the five-story mixed-use building that stands today.

Sources:
1. “Hotel on Sixth in realty deal.” Los Angeles Times. 29 Mar. 1925. F3.
2. Welkos, Robert. “Board of Education member linked to L.A. slumlord’s ‘sham’ company.” Los Angeles Times. 10 Dec. 1982. A12
Original photo: “chs-m15438 – Alvarado Hotel, Sixth Street and Alvarado Street, Los Angeles, [s.d.]” Title Insurance and Trust/C.C. Pierce Photography Collection. USC Digital Library. USC Libraries Special Collections. http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/search/controller/view/chs-m15438.html?x=1285046730174.