Living at Americana: Life above the Cheesecake Factory

Diversion: Worthwhile feature in today's paper by columnist Chris Erskine about what it's like to spend a night in the apartments above Rick Caruso's new Americana at Grand complex in Glendale. In other words, what it's like to live upstairs from the Cheesecake Factory.

Highlights: "This $400-million development isn't Greenwich Village, to be sure, Jackson Square or even Lincoln Park. Yet, Caruso's latest vision helps give L.A. the thing that everyone says is most missing: somewhere to share an evening."
More: "The new development is four city blocks. In addition to the shops and restaurants, four distinct rental apartment buildings -- almost like anchor stores -- offer floor plans ranging from lofts at $2,060 to town houses (topping $5,000). In all, there are 238 apartments. ... The Americana also boasts 100 condos, starting at $700,000 and reaching as high as $2 million. As of this month, 20% of the apartments had been rented. The condos just went on sale and figures aren't available, though the Americana says it is delighted with the initial response."

Drawbacks? Uh-huh. Live music floating up from the shopping mall until 10 p.m. No place to grab breakfast if you are an early riser. But, Erskine kinda liked it: "It's hard to be too critical of this wager on a more interesting and congenial L.A. lifestyle. It all seems so earnest, so well-intentioned. And certainly, such retail-housing combos are a trend we'll see more of soon, here and across the country."

Your thoughts? Comments? E-mail story tips to peter.viles@latimes.com.
Photo: Americana residents Fred and Jan Cuevas. Credit: Los Angeles Times

Comments

[William E. Jones]

Cal (the very first poster) had it absolutely right. Who wants to live above "luxury retail?" Yeah, it's handy when you need to rush out and buy a $500 doo-dad at Coach or Tiffany, but where do you go when you need a loaf of bread or 1/2 gallon of milk? Then there is the noise to consider...

While traveling in Eastern Europe a few years ago I noticed that most of their malls had grocery stores on the ground floor or in the basement. At one time the Westside Pavilion in LA had a Vons in the basement (no longer).

I live in Pasadena near the corner of Lake and Del Mar. I can walk to several grocery stores from my apartment, and rent is MUCH less than $2,000 per month.

[flaminia]

This couples the negatives of suburbia with those of urban living, i.e., boredom & blandness with noise and nuisance. And it eliminates all of the positives of either, i.e., serenity and space as well as variety and surprise.

Urban environments are created organically, the random result of the uncoordinated endeavors of a large number of different actors. They are NOT created by single individuals or teams, whether they be Rick Caruso or Le Corbusier or Lucio Costa and Oscar Niemeyer.

[Susan]

I live in Glendale. It's a nice family neighborhood, access to lots of affordable goods and services,lots of parks, centrally located, easy to travel to and from, etc... (Drawbacks, well I send my kids to a private school).

Glendale just is not glamour or luxury. The Americana may have the shops and luxury living, but just sit on Brand Blvd and people watch. It's all middle of the road MALL CULTURE. and quite possibly the ill-fitting clothing capital of Los Angeles.

[Susan]

I suspect that the Americana will pursue corporate housing accounts. I really don't see how they will fill up those condos and apartments otherwise.

Besides the cost of the renting or buying- the mall lifestyle further reduces the pool of potential renters/buyers. On the other hand, as a native Los Angelena, I have unwavering faith in our allegiance to crass consumerism and the more people to bear witness the better!

Still, I can't shake images of mall rats in ill-fitting clothing as desirable scenesters (in this case transient "neighbors").

[PeonInChief]

I guess it's okay if you want your life to revolve around shopping at the mall. Frankly I think that's a little creepy.

[Ruben]

I live near Glendale in Atwater Village and have followed the drama of getting the Americana built. Given the Galleria fought this project tooth and nail, they really have nothing to worry about. The Americana is way too overpriced with shops an residences that belong more on the Westside than the east SFV. The Americana is a manufactured pretty, befitting of LA. But given the modest income levels that people such as myself who live in the area make, I'll be shopping more at the Target across the street than at Kitson when it opens.

[OC Surfer]

For all the Americana haters out there, what's better? The Galleria? NOT...

Let's take a long-term view on the benefits of Americana. Realize over time organically, Downtown Glendale will become a more hip, vibrant, sustainable downtown as other retail and residential fill in the gaps Americana, the Galleria, are not offering yet.

Definitely a step in the right direction!

[Burbank Sam]

Who thought building a mall next to an existing mall was a good idea? Yes the demographic target are different, but there are not many people who can afford it and would chose to live in what looks like a studio backlot scene full of tourist. It says a lot when most people park for free at the Galleria when visiting Americana, instead of using the pay to park structure of Americana.

[Jonah LaFollette]

Hey E,

I'd like to expand one of your comments.

Only suckers buy condos for the same price as a house.

[Mimi]

This complex needs a good grocery store that delivers, a deli, bakery, dry cleaner, shoe repair shop, drug store, a place to get your hair cut, bank, branch post office, 24-hr. coffee bar, independent restaurant that serves breakfast -- but can those necessities of life be supported by occupants of only 200+ apartments? It works on the Upper East Side, NYC -- but with far greater population density. It takes lots and lots of people to support the kinds of businesses that make a walkable neighborhood work, including people who are walking through on their way to someplace else. Why be willing to live above the store unless it's a store you visit regularly -- and chain restaurants are not places I visit regularly. This is an artificial "neighborhood" with Disneyesque qualities; it may or may not evolve into a real neighborhood over time, as leases expire and shops change. As constituted now, it is still heavily auto-dependent, as well.

[Joe]

I can't imagine myself living here, even though I can afford it. There is very little privacy and it's too crowded especially during weekend nights.

[Gabriel R]

I love it.

All these developers that want to make lofts and such are no different in Glendale, other parts of LA, or Orange County.

They all think everyone makes 100k + a year and want to live in such an environment.

I for one hope this development and others like it fail. Not because I get delight in such things. But for the fact that they only thinking of profit and not giving what the people need... a real community with decent affordable new housing!

Enough of this charade.

[E]

Jonah @ 10:24...

No doubt....the developers certainly didn't pass their economies of scale along to the consumer.

Call me evil...but I would LOVE to see the developers of all these condos go bankrupt and have to rent in one of their crappy buildings.

[dornoch]

Typical big RE development planned and financed in a boom and opened in a bust.

The condo prices would not have appeared out of line in 2005 and they might have sold quickly then. Now they will be lucky to get 80% of asking price.

Timing is everything and Rick Caruso is out of sync here.

[Uncle Billy Moks The Mall]

Mimi: well said. Contrived live-shop "experiences", endless empty tracts of newly constructed and half constructed houses -- ech.

I still want to know where all the money came from to build this monstrosity. Fishing village in Norway again?

[dudeman1961]

what should be occurring is that living spaces should be for the people employed in the shops below, now that is 'live-work'; otherwise, it is nothing more than sprawl inducing urbanism.

[E]

Mimi @ 10:40.

You hit the nail on the head. Necessities such as those you mentioned are needed more than a bunch of fluff shops. You are also correct in questioning whether or not there are enough people to support these "necessities".

My mixed use complex recieved the ULI award...and has many of those "necessities". 2 places have already shut down. 2 other owners tell me they are struggling. Starbucks isn't as full now as it was 1 year ago...not even close. I NEVER have to wait in line at Whole Foods and can actually pick from more than one empty checkstand.
The Pharmacy doesn't get much traffic and BofA is usually fairly devoid of customers.

It has been interesting trying out the lifestyle (as a renter) but I certainly wouldn't buy into it as a resident or a commercial tenant.

[the problemwithcaring]

Isn't Glendale still trying to lease office and retail space vacated years ago by the Warner Bros. and Disney Stores, and not to mention all of those mortgage sector companies now going defunct? Completely bad timing for Glendale to be developing real estate even more expensive than equally freeway-accessible cities to their immediate east…