Eastside

Made up of the areas south of Fountain Avenue and north of Willoughby, between Fairfax and La Brea, the Eastside is often viewed as the ugly stepchild of the more trendy areas of the city. While the Eastside may not be flashy, residents say it still has a lot to offer.

With a large Russian population, the area has a different feel than other parts of the city. Life moves at a slower pace, and family plays a much more significant role on the Eastside.

“The Eastside of Weho is special because it has a European feel to it and because we have a wider cross-section of generations from babies to great grandparents living and interacting here,” said 10-year resident Rudolf Martin.

“The Eastside is really about diversity,” said resident Stephanie Harker, who moved to Vista Street in 1983. “You’ve got the Russians and other nationalities, gays, families all coming together and living very harmoniously. There are lots of mom-and-pop shops, Russian grocery stores-things you won’t find in other areas of the city.”

The Eastside dates back to the 1870s, when Captain Eugenio Plummer built a six-room adobe-style house on his large ranchero, which extended all the way to what is now the Hollywood Bowl.

Plummer gradually sold off parcels of his land and allowed his backyard to be used as a community park where a dance pavilion and barbeque pits once stood.

Today, Plummer Park still plays a central part in the lives of many residents, much more so than the parks in other areas of town.

“There’s an old-world feeling to Plummer Park,” said Harker, who spearheaded the effort to stop the city’s plans to make over the park. “People use the park like they do parks in Europe. They’ll spend the entire day there. They meet their friends there. The park really is an extension of their living room.”

Despite many non-descript apartment buildings, the area also has quite a few historic single-family homes tucked away on the tree-lined streets.

“There are Craftsmen bungalows mixed in with buildings that have a strong Spanish influence,” said Harker. “If you want to get a sense of what Hollywood was like its earliest days, the Eastside will give you a good feel for it.”