The rebirth of the historic Dunbar Hotel

Artists restore a Southwest-themed mural in the lobby of the Dunbar Hotel.  (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

London Carter, 59, a disabled veteran, sits in his fifth-floor apartment window overlooking the historic Dunbar Hotel’s neon sign. The hotel’s jazz club hosted such greats as Billie Holiday, Cab Calloway and Louis Armstrong.   (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Construction worker Romero Gonzalez works on the courtyard of the historic Dunbar Hotel, named for African American poet Paul Laurence Dunbar.  (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Construction worker Christian Mejia installs rebar for a new water fountain.  (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

The Dunbar, which opened in 1928, was designated as a Historic-Cultural Landmark in 1974 and placed on the National Register of Historic Places two years later.   (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

The hotel’s exterior is painted in preparation for its reopening.  (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

The renovation is a partnership involving Thomas Safran & Associates, the nonprofit Coalition for Responsible Community Development and the city’s Housing Authority and Community Redevelopment Agency.   (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

Workers paint the exterior of the historic Dunbar Hotel.  (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

The Dunbar Hotel in 2008. Each summer, the Central Avenue Jazz Festival comes to its front door.  (Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times)

In its heyday, the Dunbar was ground zero for the West Coast jazz scene.  (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)