Recycle, Reuse, Re-create

People in L.A. aren't the only ones getting make-overs. Buildings are too. A church, power substation, firehouse dormitory, water tower, train car, movie theater and neighborhood market are all enjoying second lives as private homes. It's part of a trend known in preservation parlance as adaptive reuse. Born again, these buildings give rise to unique dwellings with a lot of soul. They also make sound conservation sense, preserving resources and helping to put the brakes on regional sprawl. Evocative of other eras, these reincarnations are poised for 21st century sights, sounds and experiences. As one resident explained his passion for such buildings: "I like putting my mark on an old space and becoming part of its history."

HOME DESIGN ISSUE

Soulful Digs

Santa Monica architect and educator Anne Troutman had just about given up on finding a home with character when her prayers were answered--an 1875 Carpenter Gothic church had appeared on a multiple listing service. "It had so much heart and soul you could feel it immediately," says Troutman, who bought it less than a week later.

Power Point

At a former power station with a deep history, modern life is humming along as the 1906 building acts as a location for film screenings, art shows, weddings and photo shoots. The Huron Substation in Cypress Park, the second-oldest surviving substation in Los Angeles and No. 404 on the city's list of cultural-historic monuments, once housed equipment to power the L.A. Railway's Yellow Cars.

Market Share

Makeup artist Sonia Lee fell in love with the neighborhood first--Echo Park Lake and its giant pink lotus flowers--before setting foot in the old store that has been her home for three years.

Reel Living

"Master of the Flying Guillotine" was the last film Willard Ford saw at the Kim Sing Theatre. That was 25 years ago. Today, Ford is the proud owner and occupant of the vaudeville theater-turned-movie house, which hugs the edge of Chinatown at the corner of Alpine and North Figueroa.

HOME DESIGN ISSUE

Hot Spot

Every day Jim Morphesis drove past Engine Co. 17. Every day he had the same thought: "I wish I had a space in that firehouse." Five years of wishful thinking had passed and he was about to be forced out of his loft-ready-to-turn-condo when he spied a "For Rent" sign flapping against the brick façade. "I'm an artist; you have just got to rent me this space," he told the owner.

HOME DESIGN ISSUE

High-Rise

"I felt like I had won the golden ticket to get into the Willy Wonka chocolate factory," says psychiatrist Robert Bright Jr., explaining his reaction when he purchased a 1,100-square-foot water tower in Pasadena three years ago. The 1891 wood-shingle structure once contained a 50,000-gallon steel water tank that served nearby Grace mansion. (The Victorian mansion, built for William Stanton, a cousin of Abraham Lincoln's secretary of war, was designed by Frederick L. Roehrig, architect of the historic Green Hotel and its Castle Green annex.) Today, the 45-foot-tall tower has four stories connected by a narrow, winding staircase.