Development plans for the site where the Z-boys club shaped the evolution of skateboarding trigger a groundswell of public opinion in Santa Monica. By Martha Groves, Times Staff Writer
February 12, 2007
Vietnam and Watergate were the big stories of the day when a gaggle of latchkey kids in south Santa Monica including future legends Jay Adams, Tony Alva and Stacy Peralta reinterpreted vertical surfing moves for dry land and radically redefined skateboarding.
Now the building that housed the 1970s-era surf and skate shop where the renegade teens bonded to become the Zephyr, or Z-boys, skateboarding team is in danger of being developed out of existence.
The prospect has ignited a debate over the Santa Monica property now the site of Horizons West Surf Shop and the historical significance of the extreme skateboarding movement. The Z-boys (and one girl) are credited with being among the first to bring surfing moves to skateboarding and to glamorize the guerrilla art of riding empty swimming pools that proliferated during the 1970s drought in Southern California.
Their flashy tricks launched before the ollie, now routine, was even invented inspired the 2001 "Dogtown and Z-Boys" documentary, which Peralta directed, and the 2005 theatrical film "The Lords of Dogtown," which he wrote.
Many surfers and skateboarders contend that the building should be preserved as a historic landmark not because of its architecture, which just about everyone agrees has no merit, but because of what emanated from there three decades ago.
The owner, Lewis Herrmann, wants to erect a 14-unit mixed-use "green" project at the site, 2001-2011 Main St. between Bay and Bicknell streets. It would be built of sustainable nontoxic materials and use renewable energy. The shops and rental units would further gentrify an area that has evolved from seedy to chic in recent years.
Upscale boutiques and cafes now dot the stretch of Main Street that in the Z-boys era featured a mission and thrift shops. At 2000 Main, site of the former Pioneer Boulangerie, workers are completing a project that features housing units, ground-floor retail shops and subterranean parking.
After seeing a copy of "Dogtown and Z-Boys," developer Juli Doar, Herrmann's granddaughter, voluntarily withdrew her application for a demolition permit and organized two public meetings at which community members aired gripes and brainstormed ways to commemorate the Zephyr team's contribution to skating. Doar hopes to propose a plan that would integrate art that celebrates the team and its culture into the building's design. She emphasized that zoning rules allow her to develop twice as many units and almost double the floor area of the project. But, she said, "instead of more square footage, we chose to plant green space."
The Santa Monica Landmarks Commission is scheduled to discuss the possibility of nominating the property as a landmark at a meeting tonight.
Commissioner Nina Fresco said she was reserving judgment until she could see what ideas are presented at the meeting and "where the tide has finally turned."
One thing is certain: "The people are pretty passionate about this," Fresco said. "We've received e-mails from all over the world. There were two Japanese surfers at the meeting I went to who were very adamant about keeping this place. People seem to think it's a living organism with a soul."
In its day, the Zephyr shop was the heart of the outlaw skateboarding community. The low-slung style, surfer moves and punk attitude revolutionized a sport that had until then featured stilted maneuvers and buff young men doing handstands as they rolled on their boards.
"My surf shop became a haven for some of those kids, like a shelter," said Jeff Ho, who in the early 1970s bought the Select Surf Shop and renamed it Jeff Ho Surfboards & Zephyr Productions. "If they couldn't go home because their dad beat them when he was drunk or if the surf was really crappy and they were left at the beach all day, they could come up to the shop and do some work."
Ho and his co-owners, artist and journalist Craig Stecykand Skip Engblom, focused on manufacturing and selling surfboards but also sold skateboards. When the surfing industry hit a stall, they put together a raw but talented team.
Peralta said the shop "was a place where we could find an identity, where we belonged. These shop owners provided a place for us to excel in something that the mainstream didn't necessarily approve of."
The Z-boys eventually went their separate ways. Peralta took up filmmaking. Alva started his own skateboard manufacturing company. Adams went to jail for burglary and possession.
After the Zephyr store closed its doors, Nathan Pratt, an original Z-boy, opened the Horizons West Surf Shop in 1977; Randy Wright, a professional surfer, took over the store in 1987.
The "Dogtown" documentary and movie helped revive interest in the Z-boys but also created a rift between those who participated in the making of "The Lords of Dogtown" and those who didn't.
"Some people buy into the idea of succeeding," Engblom said. "Some people don't . [Some] people decided they needed to maintain some sense of purity."
Capitalizing on the renewed attention, Wright turned part of his space into a Z-boys boutique, where he sells Alva and Jeff Ho skateboards, Dogtown T-shirts and other paraphernalia. One wall is covered with photos of the skaters in their heyday, dressed in shorts and Vans sneakers, their long hair flowing. Graffiti "Death to Invaders" and "Locals Only," reminders of the Dogtown days decorate a display case.
Darren Taylor, visiting from England, stopped at the Z-boys shop one recent afternoon. "This was the center of skateboarding," he said. "This is a shrine."
Although Doar hopes to win permission to raze the building, she has invited Wright and his surf shop to return to the new space, and he says he would be interested. Doar also wants to memorialize the team.
"The events and people at that time contributed greatly to both local history and extreme sports," she said. "We hope that by celebrating that and including an art project we can keep that piece of cultural history at Main and Bay."
I saw the sign highlighting the "green" construction probably a month ago while skating past the place. Did not realize the plans were to take down the store though. I really hope for the incorporation of the Store/Art into the new construction.
I saw the sign highlighting the "green" construction probably a month ago while skating past the place. Did not realize the plans were to take down the store though. I really hope for the incorporation of the Store/Art into the new construction.
i have been there it is pretty cool but it is not what it looks like in the movie, but it was still pretty cool
i have been there it is pretty cool but it is not what it looks like in the movie, but it was still pretty cool
The shop in the movie was close to the original shop. The new one just sells Zephyr and Dogtown stuff,.and not cheap either. Zephyr stickers $2 for small ones, airbrushed & signed Zephyr skate decks $900. still it's cool to go check out.
__________________
"You don't stop playing when you get old.....you get old when you stop playing"
-Bernard Shaw
Faster, faster until the thrill of speed overcomes the fear of death." - Hunter S. Thompson
if the building is vacant it is probably not worth saving, if its occupied it depends on the use i guess. do the exterior or interior look the same as they did back in the day?
mixed use is the way to go, just having a 1 story building on that lot is an inefficient use of land. their best bet would be to integrate the original storefront into the new building as has been done in many new urbanist developments since the "historic revolution" 2-5 stories above shops with underground parking is the wave of the future, back from the past.
if the building is vacant it is probably not worth saving, if its occupied it depends on the use i guess. do the exterior or interior look the same as they did back in the day?
mixed use is the way to go, just having a 1 story building on that lot is an inefficient use of land. their best bet would be to integrate the original storefront into the new building as has been done in many new urbanist developments since the "historic revolution" 2-5 stories above shops with underground parking is the wave of the future, back from the past.
The building hasn't changed since the original shop was there. There is the Zephyr Shop on the corner with Horizons West surf shop next door, a small market, and two artist studios. Horizons West surf shop was started by Nathan Pratt after Jeff Ho closed Zephyr,and is now run by Randy Wright.
The plan for the property now is multi-story mixed use building with green technology. Over development on main st. there is becoming a problem. Already a three story building is under constuction across the street and there is more development close by. Traffic is becoming an issue in the area. What used be a ten minute drive across town now takes 20-45 minutes. What makes Santa Monica, is the old school feel around that neighborhood, that is being replaced and not always for the better.
__________________
"You don't stop playing when you get old.....you get old when you stop playing"
-Bernard Shaw
Faster, faster until the thrill of speed overcomes the fear of death." - Hunter S. Thompson
traffic should become less of an issue with more development. the whole point behind mixed use developments is that you dont have to drive as much or at all. the true culprit of traffic is these low density, single land uses that so-cal is famous for because everyone has to drive to do anything. most people are oblivious to the fact that the car is controlling their lives, but its very real. think about it this way. if you lived above the zephyr shop in an apartrment you could leave on your skate, skate 1-2 blocks to pick up some milk or a six pack or whatever and that would be much quicker than living in a suburban house in the middle of nowhere, having to drive to the gas station or mall to actually get anything you need cause god forbid you could actually walk anywhere.
most development policy in the united stated actually forces the developers to have minimum setback requirements and a minimum number of parking spaces, at least santa monica is trying to change for the better
hehe, looks like you took an urban planning, or sustainable community design class or two.. Nice.. I like....and yea.. Third #### promenade and main street is prime example of how a well planned mixed used development can prove to be residential and commercial success in LA
Quote:
Originally Posted by worldwide
traffic should become less of an issue with more development. the whole point behind mixed use developments is that you dont have to drive as much or at all. the true culprit of traffic is these low density, single land uses that so-cal is famous for because everyone has to drive to do anything. most people are oblivious to the fact that the car is controlling their lives, but its very real. think about it this way. if you lived above the zephyr shop in an apartrment you could leave on your skate, skate 1-2 blocks to pick up some milk or a six pack or whatever and that would be much quicker than living in a suburban house in the middle of nowhere, having to drive to the gas station or mall to actually get anything you need cause god forbid you could actually walk anywhere.
most development policy in the united stated actually forces the developers to have minimum setback requirements and a minimum number of parking spaces, at least santa monica is trying to change for the better
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Santa Monica's Shrine - the Zephyr Skateshop
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