Harvey's Broiler Razed Illegally!!!!!!!!!!!!

Got this email a little while ago through the Blasters newsletter. the Blasters did a gig a few years back to help save Johnies and of course they're all from Downey...

A letter from Analisa Ridenour Hungerford:

As most of you know, I've worked alongside the L.A. Conservancy and
many local residents in the city of Downey to save Johnie's Broiler
for the last five years. Last night, an illegal demolition occured
on the property!!! (See a picture at BlastersNewsletter. com.) We
will be at city hall tommorow night (1/9/07) imploring our city
officals to prosecute the offenders with the greatest severity
possible. If you could take a moment to shoot off an email to the
Downey city council members expressing your outrage at this brazen
action and demand that the guilty parties be harshly punished -- we
would greatly appreciate you help.

This story has been featured on all the major networks last night and
all throughout today as "breaking news". CNN headline news will be
featuring the story sometime tommorow, and look for more coverage in
the local newspapers.

It does not matter that you are not a resident of Downey - this is a
huge cultural, architectural and communal assualt on all of us!!!!
Please take moment to help.

With my deepest appreciation,
Analisa Ridenour Hungerford

Please send emails to:
abayer@downeyca. org
rtrejo@downeyca. org
dgafin@downeyca. org
kcartozi@downeyca. org
mguerra@downeyca. org

 

I'm jamming as much of it as I can afford into my place!! Just doing my part to save this stuff.

 

Sent my email.

 

Has anybody tried to bring in some big names even if its just a letter.say pete at so-cal,Barry Meguiar(car crazy), Doubt Leno would help...........what ever you can do ...if you find that we can help from outa town with more e-mails .just say the word.GOOD LUCK to-nite!

 

R.I.P. wonderful old building. Just another reason to not take such fab. icons for granted, enoy venues like this all you can while they survive. I went there a lot when I lived in Whittier, it was such a coooool scene. I feel lucky that I was able to enjoy it some. My journey to Austin for the Roundup is going to be two lane all the way, I always scout out little cool places and have some great experiences. Excuse me I think I'm going to be sick!!!-Sololobo

 

Kevin,

Point taken and I agree with you, maybe the place could have been saved if someone like a Mark Bolin were given the chance to purchase the property and make a go of it. I was generalizing on the condition of most properties I have seen in LA that are falling apart and really should be demolished, I did not mean to imply that Harvey's was beyond repair/salvage.

As for my 32, you saw pictures of it before it was brought back to life haven't you? Those guys are my heros! We still need to get together for a beer and cheesburger sometime...we'll drag race down Pico to see who pays the check! John

 

Not trying to start drama, I normaly just lurk here... I just get a little touchy when governments or people try and tell others what they can/cant do with their property. Guess no one else has that point of view anymore. I had to move to escape that BS...

I'll go away now...

 

Well John,
If we can find a benefactor with enough jing to buy the place, Perhaps we could race from Teddy's to Harvey's in a restored state and have that beer & burger, I'll buy Just find a wealthy investor who is willing to invest in Americana instead taking it away!!!!!

Kevin

 

It doesn't have to do with trying to tell people what they can and can not do with their property.

It goes much deeper than that.

It has to do with a respect for the laws that we all have to follow and that help to give us the freedom that we enjoy and a respect for public saftey and more importantly a respect for history.

 

Sorry to hear about this. My company has a Downey office, I've driven by this place many times. Funny thing is, I never saw any interesting cars there. lol

 

Axle,
I'll be out there in a driver to voice my opinion was gonna take the roadster, still might?
I also met Rudy there in 87, Tom & I knew each other when he worked @ an Italian restaurant when he was a cook back in 1989-90.
I take it that you're gonna make the drive west to come out & show some support?
Thanx,
Kevin

 

The beauty of america is that we have the right to choose. I whole heartedly agree with you about gov't and people telling the owner of the property what to do. But as with all relationships, there is a chord of balance that must be struck.

I grew up in a victorian neighborhood, lots of neat homes, some restored, some not. Over the years they all have been restored, save 1. Now, the owner of said house has the freedom and right to keep his place looking the way it does. And everyone else has the freedom to complain that his house is: fill in the blank. But that owner does not have to do anything (save legal/ code requirements)

I hate any association or any group that tries to force the idea of group think on an individual, if you want that move to Germany: its the norm.

 

Speaking of Rudy Rodriquez...anyone know what he's working on these days? That man has talent and a nice guy to boot.

 

Axle, I'll be there, overheated or not.

On preservation: The thing that really brings how bad it is to lose icons of the past home to me is that when I tell my grandkids that southern California was full of hot dog stands that looked like hot dogs, donut places with humongous donuts on top, coffee shots that looked like coffee cups, that there were bowls, hats and railroad dining car resturants EVERYWHERE, they don't quite get it. …sorry for the run-on sentence.

CP

 

The owner knew that it was up for historical status.....they TURNED DOWN a permit to destroy the building once already.......thats part of what has everybody pissed off! its about saving whats important to everybody.mostly

 

Be a preservationist.....buy something and save it, or organize a group to buy it....or quit complaining. These are your only choices, unless you are the gov't....then you can demand it is to be untouched, or demolished for "Emminent Domain"


The building is gone....get over it.

 

Chili Phil

 

rudy is no longer doing hot rods and customs, he said he was fed up with everyone.
he enrolled into the local city college for Horticulture.

hey phil, congrats... your back, and your car are famous!

 

Talked to Brother Phil about an hour ago on the cell,& he was on his way to the meeting in the '49.(I got too much anger right now to have gone)
Should be some interesting reports tonite or early A.M.
As a side note,I found a 1st place trophy I got with my little T-Bucket while digging through my shtuff tonite.
"Best Street Rod,Johnnies Broiler 2000".
What a sad deal,,,
Troy

 

Well this is a God Damn shame but pretty typical of these times, see historic buildings torn down daily and most people seem to care less, just out for the holy dollar. I won't comment on the midle east immigrant thing except to say that if we don't wake up we will have sold our country away. Buy American but also sell American!

 

Sounds to me from the newspaper that the current owner is the same owner since it changed hands in 1966 "Johnie" and not a middle east immigrant. Perhaps the tenants who run the car lot are, but not the building's owner.

 

i was at the site yesterday night. and i was talking to a few people and the story is that the owner is of greek descent and spends most his time in greece. he did purchase the land back in the 60's and the name was changed from Harveys to Johnie in honor of his son who had passed away. how much of that is true i have no idea but people at the site say they have spoken to the owner on numerous occassions and his plans were to destroy the site and build a strip mall. Firestone Blvd is full of strip malls and honestly i think if he would have just converted the building back into a diner with the right touches and throwing car shows or a cruise night he could have been quite succesful as the area is overwhelmed with classic car enthusiests of all styles. as well as right up the street is industrial areas, hungry workers die to have a good burger and an order of fries rather then a fast food snack as well as about 3 different schools within a mile from ground zero, maybe even more??

 

Hey Phil, next time you're at Jonnie's Broiler that sled better look like this! That picture in the paper makes it look like YOU did it! - Eddie aka Bumpstick

 

comedian Eddie Izzard makes a good point about how the US likes to destroy it's history for the sake of the $$$ while the rest of the world preserves theirs. it is does suck that it resulted in the way that it did, but the owner of the land can do what they want.

 

First: Bumpstick- HA! Awesome chop.

Second: If the guy is greek, he could have made just as much money keeping it a burger joint- it seems the Greeks out here LOVE themselves a burger joint. Just look at the apeshit nights and weekends at Paul's Patio in Los Alamitos and Cypress. And Volcano Burger, and Tip Toe, and Larry's, and Pacific Star= all owned by Greeks.

Third: Any info on tonite meeting? I couldnt get out there cause my sisters kid broker her arm today.

 

i just watched it on the news and they had a GOOD turn out it looked like at the meeting. i couldn't make it. but the mayor did say he wanted to build it as it WAS!!! well thats the clip i saw at least i don't know if maybe it was taken out of context??? it was on channel 4. Ps.....in my experiance yes greeks can cook up a storm!!! now i want a burger....

 

Fuck I laughed when I read this. Like most Americans of your fathers age comic timing is spot on!........

 

Hey Bumpstick, Any chance of posting the whole article or a link where I can read it.Use to cruise there in the 60's also....Thanks

 

Just got back in from the council meeting as well as coffee with chill pill. By the way I'd like to publicly thank both Chill Pill & Axle for their support for this structure and the words that they said to the city council. Mine were a lil emotional/shaky.
I know many people who are on this board never really experiened the cruise nights that were held there back in the late 80's, but a few of us did as well as others back in the late 50's as well as the early 60's.
Yes it was a different world back then, One that I would like to have experienced. Due to the fact that I am in my early 40's I had to experience it in the 80's. That seemed to be the right time for an hot rod/custom resurgence which indeed did occur and has been growing ever since. I spent many a wednesday night there & had plenty of BS sessions.
That clip that you saw was correct! The mayor pro-tem stated that "he wanted to see it rebuilt as it was and that they would do what ever is legally possible to prosecute the owner so that this type of destruction would/could never happen again".
I have attended many city council meetings, most of them were pretty negative toward the cause that we were fighting for even to the point where several deputies were on hand in the event that those crowds would become unrully.
This one was way different, 5 news crews no cops, postive responses from all but one of the city council members which chose not to comment until after the polices investigation is completed, but even the police chief said that that was truly an illegal demo, How often does a police chief agree with a bunch of car nuts like us.
The city council stated that they would seek prosecution to the fullest extent and even cited the emails that were sent in by people from as far away as Amsterdam (Must have been a HAMBer) Thank you guys/gals and please continue to send emails to the city council so that this issue will not die and may be resolved by having this historic landmark restored.
The power of the HAMB is beyond written words!!!!!!!

Thank you,
Kevin