Local News in Brief : Press Club Sells Building

The Greater Los Angeles Press Club, a city landmark on Vermont Avenue since 1960, has sold its home for $1.34 million to a group that plans to convert the old Spanish-style structure into a Korean restaurant and cultural center.

Among several new homes being considered by the press club, the “most likely” is at the Los Angeles Equestrian Center in Burbank, said club member Jim Foy. Although the equestrian center locale is only about one-fifth the size of the 10,000-square-foot facility in Los Angeles, Foy said it looks to be “by far the best location.”

Only 15 minutes from downtown, the equestrian center would be “reasonably central” and even more accessible to some broadcast crews because it can be reached from the Golden State and Ventura freeways, Foy said.

Other sites under consideration include the private Los Angeles Club and the Ambassador Hotel, both on Wilshire Boulevard. The hotel housed the club from 1948--one year after its founding--until its move to 600 N. Vermont Ave.

The club’s board of directors plans to announce the new location next month, Foy said. Meanwhile, the club will lease office space from the building’s new owners, Susie Lee & Associates, until June 10. Foy said the press club decided to sell its old home after determining that it was in need of too many repairs.