Spring Arts Tower

Spring Arts Tower
Building entrance in 2008
Spring Arts Tower is located in the Los Angeles metropolitan area
Spring Arts Tower
Location within the Los Angeles metropolitan area
Location453 S. Spring Street, Los Angeles, California
Coordinates34°02′52″N 118°14′58″W / 34.0479°N 118.2495°W / 34.0479; -118.2495
Built1914
ArchitectParkinson and Bergstrom
Part ofSpring Street Financial District (ID79000489)
Designated CPAugust 10, 1979

Spring Arts Tower, also known as Crocker Bank, Crocker Citizens National Bank Building, and Citizens National Bank Building, is a historic building located at 453 S. Spring Street in downtown Los Angeles, California. It is a contributing property in the Spring Street Financial District and is considered "at the heart of" Gallery Row.

History

The building that became Spring Arts Tower was designed by Parkinson and Bergstrom and built in 1914. Crocker-Citizens National Bank moved into the building the following year.

In 1979, the Spring Street Financial District was added to the National Register of Historic Places, with Crocker Bank listed as a contributing property in the district.

A lounge opened in the building's basement in 2009. Two years later, The Last Bookstore moved into the building's bottom two floors. The building's upper floors have been converted to art studios, galleries, and other art-based small businesses; the building itself is considered "at the heart of" Gallery Row.

Architecture and design

Crocker Bank Building is twelve stories and made of steel-reinforced concrete, brick, and terra cotta. The building originally had ornamental bands and cornice, but they have been removed. The building's first floor ornament remains, as does its early 1920s design.

The building's interior once featured a Doric architecture motif but it has been entirely remodeled. The lobby features white marble and the ground floor banking hall features an Art Nouveau design with floor-mosaics and 25-foot (7.6 m) pillars that connect to a vaulted ceiling. The bank area also features a Mosler vault.

Filming location

Rush Hour, Rush Hour 2, and numerous commercials have shot at Spring Arts Tower.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Spring Street Financial District". National Park Service. August 10, 1979.
  2. 1 2 Kellogg, Carolyn (March 16, 2014). "Downtown L.A.'s the Last Bookstore defies trends". Los Angeles Times.
  3. 1 2 Amter, Charlie (January 23, 2009). "A vault onto scene". Los Angeles Times.
  4. ↑ Chittal, Nisha (December 19, 2018). "Independent bookstores are growing — and Instagram helped". Vox.
  5. ↑ Birmingham, Lucy (March 21, 2019). "Spotlight: Spring Arts Collective". Downtown Art Walk.
  6. 1 2 Sitton, Tom (2008). "GC 1323 - Historic Sites Surveys" (PDF). Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County.
  7. 1 2 3 "Early Los Angeles City Views (1900 - 1925)". Water and Power Associates. p. 2.
  8. ↑ "Spring Arts Tower History". February 1984 – via Historical Marker Database.
  9. ↑ "The Best Film & TV Locations for a Rainy Day in LA". Discover Los Angeles. January 16, 2024.