Boadway building on the move
Union Street to be closed Tuesday as structure is trucked from Playhouse District lot
By Nathan Solis 08/20/2008
A year after being moved out of Fuller Seminary's campus only to remain on blocks in a Playhouse District Parking Lot, the historic Evelyn Boadway apartments are on their way to a new location.
Union Street will be closed at 11 p.m. Monday to accommodate moving the building to 121 Mar Vista Ave. - slowly, so as not to damage trees lining the street, according to city officials - and will be reopened sometime Tuesday evening.
Last August, developer Antreas Hindoyan purchased the structure from Fuller, which had slated it for demolition as part of its campus expansion project, for $10 in hopes of converting it into an affordable housing project.
The 81-year-old Boadway building was then cut in half and moved to the parking lot at El Molino Avenue and Union Street, where it took up a quarter of the lot but was expected to sit for little more than a month.
Delays upset Playhouse District Association Executive Director Erlinda Romo, who argued that a lack of parking has been hurting area businesses.
"It was a substantial change, when four to six weeks turned into almost over a year. I'm glad it's getting out," said Romo, who expects to be on site to celebrate the move by popping the cork on a bottle of sparkling cider.
Hindoyan said part of the delay was waiting for project funding to come through. When all is done, he hopes to open 22 units with rents ranging from $600 to $900 per month.
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