The smallest of the neighborhoods, West Hollywood Heights is that area of the city north of Sunset Boulevard. Made up almost entirely of apartment buildings, there are only three or four single-family homes left according to Weho Heights Neighborhood Association board chair Elyse Eisenberg. A house on Horn Avenue, which at one time belonged to actress Bette Davis, was recently torn down for a four-story, seven-unit condo building.
About 1,000 people live in the area, Eisenberg estimates. But despite being apartment dwellers, residents tend to stay, so it’s not as transient as one might expect.
“This is one of the friendliest neighborhoods in town,” said longtime resident Jerome Cleary. “If you have a dog, you really get to know all your neighbors. The Coffee Bean has become the unofficial place where everyone in the neighborhood meets.”
Traffic is a major concern for residents. With the perpetually clogged Sunset Boulevard the only major artery, neighbors are heavily focused on all things that add traffic to the Strip and bring extra cars onto the narrow streets (most of which dead end), looking for a cut through into the Hollywood Hills.
The neighborhood coalesced in 2007 to successfully fight against the proposed Centrum Sunset project set to go into the old Tower Records building. “We wanted some control over our destiny,” said Eisenberg. “We’re trapped up here. The only way out is Sunset. So we had to fight it.”
Weho Heights also boasts fantastic views of the city and beyond, something that has attracted many to live in the hills, including Eisenberg, who can see Catalina from her apartment.
Life in Weho Heights also offers the convenience of being able to walk to Sunset Boulevard with its wide mix of restaurants, clubs and shops including Book Soup, the city’s only remaining bookstore. “The Sunset Strip is the most exciting part of West Hollywood,” said Eisenberg. “I moved here to be closer to the Strip since I was spending all my time here anyway.”
