Building Criticized

On Jan. 22, I was shocked to see a photo in your Real Estate Section of one of the most loathsome architectural creations in recent Los Angeles history. But I was delighted to finally learn that it has a name, a price and people claiming responsibility: Andrex Point/Los Angeles; $75 million, Johnson Fain & Pereira Associates. Now I can point my finger at someone with derision.

Andrex Point simply does not make sense above the first level of windows and the tasteful landscaping. It hints at slick, but doesn’t use mirrored windows--it uses a most uncomfortable flat, lifeless gray-green paneling and bands of dark glass. It departs from the square and the block with what I can only describe as vintage Winnebago.

And then the final insult to someone’s serious efforts, which became a joke: From the southbound 405 Freeway at about Normandie Avenue, the west facade turns into a grid of squiggles. It looks like a child’s drawing, or a draftsman’s who forgot to bring his straightedge to work.

RICHARD G. LAUX

Carson