From the South Bay bubble scrapbook

I just recently got a new camera and we've been playing with it. I've been wanting to post more bubble photos here and now I've finally got a decent camera for the job.

My significant other has even managed to stitch together two movies (OK, movie is stretching it a bit) of the Centex Fusion at South Bay construction site. They're actually made from very long JPG files but you can view them as panoramas in QuickTime, if you just move your computer mouse to the left or right.

If you want to view these movies, I recommend you right click on the links below and save them, then open them up with your QuickTime. If you try viewing it in the browser, it takes longer to download and you don't get as big a picture.

The first movie (right click for .mov file) starts with a view of Bruce's bike, but beyond it, looking north on Aviation Blvd, you can see the big Fusion sign. Start scrolling to the right and you can see some flags and a little of the construction. Keep scrolling and you'll be looking east at the Federal Building, then you'll be sort of looking east along Marine toward the north end of the Northrop Grumman facility, which is just across the street from the end of the Metro Green Line. Continue scrolling and you are looking south along Aviation Blvd toward the interection at Marine Ave. Continue scrolling, and you're now looking west, towards the gas station, ball field, and another Northrop Grumman facility. Then it wraps around looking north again.

The second movie (right click for .mov file) starts a bit closer to the Fusion construction site, sort of looking northwest. The site is immediately south of the MTA Green Line car barn. Due north, you can see a Marriott hotel. Keep scrolling and you'll pan across the construction site. Oh boy, lots of sardine can housing!

OK, on to some photos.

The Westwood sign twirlers are busy, as you can see. I think they are out there every Friday. My supervisor did in fact confirm for me that UCLA is trying to sell these former student housing condos quickly, before some other big condo project nearby hits the local market.

And now for Playa Vista. Blog readers know that up to now the Playa Vista market has been on steroids and still doing very well relative to the rest of the westside and south bay. I took these pictures off the express 3 Santa Monica bus last Friday evening, coming home from work. The area is starting to look like one loooong stretch of condos interspersed with business parks - nothing but construction as far as the eye can see....

On to Torrance. Every Saturday we religiously haul our Red Ryder wagon to the Torrance Farmer's Market at Crenshaw and Jefferson, at the north end of Charles Wilson Park. Standard Pacific Homes is building an enormous project on Oak Street just north of the park. As best as I can tell, this megaproject consists of: the Village on Oak - Laurel, the Village on Oak - Acacia, and the Village on Oak - Bayberry. I just can't wait for all that to be built so I can fight my way in to the Farmer's Market every Saturday morning.

These shots are from driving south on Oak Street toward the park. The construction site is on the east side of the street.

These photos are from Jefferson Street, which runs east-west along the north side of the park. In the second picture we're actually standing in the Farmer's Market parking at the north end of the park.

That's all for the moment. I really need to quit now since I get up at 4 AM.