Dreams of Bourgeois Bohemia Fading

Posted by Carol Coletta on February 26, 2009 |

What happens to bourgeois bohemia when the bourgeois part drops out? For long-time residents in LA's Eagle Rock neighborhood, the return to pre-boom rents may be a blessing.  But for those with visions of new hipness, its identity is seriously threatened.

From today's NYT:  "Over the last five to six years, Eagle Rock became the glamour girl of Northeast Los Angeles, a crescent where the asphalt jungle meets the foothills. The neighborhood of 35,000 or so has attracted screenwriters and composers, Web designers and animators, who labor on their laptops in cafes, discuss film projects at Friday night wine tastings, and let their children play with the handmade wooden toys in a Scandinavian-style coffee shop, Swork.

"It is easy to sniff at such urban affectations. But the downturn endangers more than precious shops; residents worry that as stores close, the fabric of a bohemian utopia — with its Jane Jacobs mix of commerce and public spiritedness — will also unravel."

As one of the newer residents said, "Please, not another martial arts studio."  Whole Foods was more what she imagined for her lifestyle.

Eagle Rock is emblematic of…

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