Central
Avenue
Central Avenue was part of the early national musical circuit for musicians from 1900-1950. Other cities on the Jazz circuit included Harlem, Chicago, New Orleans, Memphis’ Beale Street, Cincinnati, Kansas City, and Oakland.
Central Avenue gave birth to rhythm & blues station KGFJ radio, which played in the window of the Dolphin’s of Hollywood Record Store at Vernon and Central Avenue. The Avenue boasted the Dunbar Hotel, the only first-class hotel available for Blacks to stay in Los Angeles. Duke Ellington maintained a suite in the Dunbar Hotel. In addition, numerous Jazz clubs lit up Central Avenue with their neon signs including the Club Alabam, the Last Word, the DownBeat, the Memo Club, Ivie’s Chicken Shack, the Lincoln Theater, and many more.
Central Avenue remains home to a plethora of Black churches, including Second Baptist Church, the oldest Black Baptist Church in Los Angeles. These sanctuaries melded together a new gospel music sound from the various states of the South from which Blacks migrated to Los Angeles including, Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, Texas, Georgia, and South Carolina. It is no wonder that the recorded gospel sound has its roots in Los Angeles thanks to Reverend James Cleveland.
Dunbar
Economic Development Corporation (EDC)
The
Dunbar EDC, under the guidance of President and CEO Reginald Chapple, is a
leader in real estate development and historic preservation in the Central
Avenue corridor. Incorporated in 1988,
the non-profit 501(c)(3) corporation’s mission is to advance the cultural
heritage and economic well being of the Vernon-Central corridor through
stewardship of the built environment.
It is accomplished through the implementation of objective strategies in
affordable housing, business creation, economic development, technology
training, family support, youth development, arts, and cultural enhancement.
Among Dunbar EDC’s many projects and programs are: 130 units of affordable housing including the Dunbar Hotel & Somerville Apartments Family Development; Dunbar Child Development Center; Florence Mills Theater restoration; Financial Literacy & Homebuyer Education, Jazz Legends of Los Angeles Awards (LOLA); and the Annual Central Avenue Jazz Festival in July.