LOS ANGELES — Homelessness remains a problem in Little Tokyo, but the situation is a lot better now than it was two-and-a-half years ago, since L.A. city officials cleared out a large homeless encampment at Toriumi Plaza in March, according to a local business owner familiar with the city action. A city order declaring the […]
Little Tokyo homeless situation has improved, says community business owner
January 1, 2023 by Leave a Comment
Metro Rail construction project impacts life in Little Tokyo
December 22, 2022 by Leave a Comment
LOS ANGELES — The Metro Rail Regional Connector construction project that burrowed underground through downtown Los Angeles created serious disruptions to daily life in Little Tokyo and even caused several businesses to close, according to some local citizens. Construction for the Regional Connector began in 2014 and it is slated to open for service in […]
Joy in Japangeles
November 25, 2021 by Leave a Comment
Japangeles, a Los Angeles Little Tokyo streetwear clothing shop, had to close its doors for more than half of 2020, due to the coronavirus pandemic. Roy Kuroyanagi, a Sansei, established the store in 2010, its Website states. He had always been interested in clothing and streetwear and ?wanted to find a way to express my […]
Seeking happily ever after in Little Tokyo
July 22, 2021 by Leave a Comment
FROM LITTLE TOKYO WITH LOVE By Sarah Kuhn (Toronto, Ontario: Viking Books for Young Readers, 2021, 432 pp., $24.99, hard cover) A clever, funny, romp of a story that is “not a fairytale” begins: “Once upon a time, a beautiful princess lived in the magical kingdom of Los Angeles. Always alone, she belonged to no one — and no one belonged to her. She dreamed of one day finding someone who shared her passions, […]
While COVID closes many Little Tokyo businesses, some are surviving
May 27, 2021 by Leave a Comment
LOS ANGELES — Little Tokyo businesses faced many challenges the past year as COVID-19 forced a number of small establishments to close, but some shops like Mitsuru Sushi & Grill managed to survive, and a few like Bunkado even thrived. Mamoru Hanamure, owner of Mitsuru, revealed that he was stressed during the pandemic because of […]
Suehiro Café receives grant from Preservation Program
May 27, 2021 by Leave a Comment
LOS ANGELES — Suehiro Café, founded in 1972 in Little Tokyo, is one of 25 small restaurants nationwide that was awarded a special grant earlier this month as part of a collaborative effort of the National Trust for Historic Preservation and American Express through their Backing Historic Small Restaurants program to help those businesses improve, […]
LA police probe fire, vandalism at Japanese Buddhist temple
March 4, 2021 by Leave a Comment
LOS ANGELES — Authorities are investigating a vandalism and fire at a Buddhist temple in the Little Tokyo section of downtown Los Angeles. Surveillance video caught a man jumping the security fences at the Higashi Honganji Buddhist Temple on the night of Feb. 25, smashing a 12-foot-high glass window with a rock, yanking a pair […]
Little Tokyo celebrates completion of community recreation center
January 1, 2021 by Leave a Comment
LOS ANGELES — A community’s 26-year dream to build a much-needed community gym in the heart of Little Tokyo and downtown Los Angeles has become a reality, as Little Tokyo Service Center completed construction of the Terasaki Budokan. Terasaki Budokan is a two-story, 39,000 square-foot facility located at 249 S. Los Angeles St., between Second […]
Metro Project not as bad as pandemic for Little Tokyo
December 3, 2020 by Leave a Comment
LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s Regional Connector construction has been disruptive for residents, businesses and nonprofit organizations in Little Tokyo, but not as disruptive as the COVID-19 pandemic, according to three prominent Nikkei who work there. As part of the Regional Connector project, Metro has permanently closed the Gold Line […]
Q-and-A with longtime activist and mentor Alan Nishio
May 7, 2020 by Leave a Comment
Editor’s Note: This Q-and-A-format interview was originally posted on the Manzanar Committee’s blog prior to the 2020 virtual Manzanar Pilgrimage. https://manzanarcommittee.org/2020/04/25/nishio-q Alan Nishio, who is the keynote speaker for our 2020 Virtual Manzanar Pilgrimage, was awarded the Manzanar Committee’s 2017 Sue Kunitomi Embrey Award for his leadership during the Redress Movement in the 1980s, along […]
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