There’s nothing like driving along Wilshire just as the late afternoon light hits the pyramid in a warm glow….wait! What IS that pyramid doing on Wilshire at Highland?
We had to find out. Â It appears to be constructed of plywood. Nice edges. Could that be a small hatch door down there near the base? Hmmm.
4950 Wilshire Bl now houses the  KoJee Leaders Academy, an after-school enrichment program for K-12 students that opened in September of 2011. Housed in low-lying, interconnected 60’s era ranch buildings, the Academy has classrooms for learning, a large music room, and an open sunny courtyard in the center of the complex. Classes in math, english, music, reading and art are taught in English, and many of the primarily Korean-American students are picked up by van from nearby schools including Wilshire Park Elementary, Wilton Place Elementary, 3rd Street, and Hancock Park Elementary. The owners, husband and wife team Jung Hyun Jee and Seung H Ko are turning the place into a warm and welcoming environment.
Turns out the owners designed and built the pyramid around an old sign on the property. It will be the Academy’s new sign once it gets painted (expected next week.) So that’s the story. It is not an ancient unmarked tomb of a pharaoh suddenly unearthed on that busy corner. Nor is there a trap door to other worlds. Darn.
See Leaders Academy on the web
It’s not a ’60s building, it’s Welton Becket’s once-famous House of Tomorrow, built shortly after WWII. See http://la.curbed.com/archives/2008/10/in_foreclosure_wilshire_blvds_house_of_tomorrow.php (or Google “House of Tomorrow” and Becket…or see the LAPL photo archives) for more information. Also, that corner lies in Brookside, not Hancock Park, for neighborhood purists. 🙂
The House of Tomorrow was on an LA Conservancy Tour about five years ago. It is virtually unrecognizable from its original construction, due to the kind of “renovations” that have devalued much of LA’s once noble mid-century architecture.
Join our after school program and more! We have various of special classes 🙂 Visit us on facebook and contact us for more information (323)424-4333.
Did anyone do any homework on this pyramid (aka, sign)?! I work down the street and have to drive by it every day as well… It’s nice to see businesses opening and growing… but did the owners pull out any permits for this thing?? I highly doubt it; a quick and easy reference to the City’s Municipal code clearly shows how non-conforming this sign is…
Check out:
SEC. 14.4.8. MONUMENT SIGNS.
A. Area.
1. The sign area of monument signs shall not exceed 1.5 square feet per foot of street frontage nor a maximum of 75 square feet for the sign face visible to the same direction of traffic.
2. The combined sign area of monument signs, projecting signs, wall signs, illuminated architectural canopy signs, pole signs, roof signs and window signs shall not exceed four square feet for each foot of street frontage.
B. Height. Monument signs shall be limited to a maximum overall height of eight feet above sidewalk grade or edge of roadway grade nearest the sign.
C. Location. Monument signs shall be located at least 7.5 feet from interior lot lines and at least 15 feet from any other monument sign, projecting sign or pole sign. The location of monument signs shall not interfere or present a hazard to pedestrian or vehicular traffic.
D. Shape. Monument signs shall have a horizontal dimension equal to or greater than their vertical dimension.
E. Projection. Monument signs shall not project over the roof of a building or over the building line.
Not to mention the temporary signs/banners that have been put up that are clearly in violation of SEC. 14.4.16. TEMPORARY SIGNS of the L.A. City Municipal Code.
Congratulations on opening a new business… but I’m sorry, the pyramid is a sight for sore eyes. If someone is willing to build a non-conforming sign without any approval on the corner of such a highly traveled intersection, what else is being done there without permits, licenses, etc.???