NEW LIFE IN LOFTS

Walk up to 835 Locust Ave. in Long Beach, and it’s easy to imagine the building in its heyday in the mid-1920s, when it was a Masonic Temple that housed multiple ballrooms, secret passageways and a dramatic theater stage.

Step inside the front door, however, and in addition to a carefully preserved entry with original light fixtures, tile and a historically accurate color palette, you’ll find a divergent community of loft-loving denizens. The buzz words around here are “adaptive reuse,” a term that represents a truce of sorts between developers and history buffs. Both sides have found common ground in the conversion of the building for residential use, said John Thomas, president of Long Beach Heritage.

Developers kept the facade and other historically significant elements, such as its interior brick walls. In return, historians lent their restoration services and support -- no small thing in a city such as Long Beach, where the heritage group and similar bodies have their share of clout.

Here’s a peek inside a few of the Temple Lofts. What’s immediately apparent is how wildly the decor differs unit to unit -- but how united residents are by a desire to take advantage of every square foot of space and every soaring ceiling.

--

For more photos inside the building, look for our extended photo gallery at latimes.com/home.