Wade Killefer

Developers led by former U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Henry Cisneros have started work on a $90-million "workforce" housing project near Marina del Rey. The site on Glencoe Avenue southeast of the oft-congested intersection of Lincoln and Washington boulevards is close to two shopping centers and a Costco warehouse store.

Timm Freeman's Santa Monica apartment has 17-foot ceilings, granite countertops and collector guitars hanging on the wall. He's got a built-in microwave, dishwasher and central air conditioning. All in 350 square feet. Freeman's coffee table is also his dining table. His desk is three steps from his sitting room. And three paces from his stove. "Everything is within three steps of the next thing," said Freeman, 40, a graphic designer. Southern California, meet the Manhattan-sized mini-apartment.

Building a $100-million apartment complex on the tattered fringe of downtown Los Angeles seems like a risky bet. Demand for market-rate housing in the area has been notoriously shallow for years. But apartment builder Geoff Palmer--who is known as a cautious and methodical developer--is not the gambling type.

For years, civic leaders have talked about the comeback of downtown Los Angeles, pointing proudly to such new landmarks as Staples Center, Disney Hall and the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels. But to many, the real proof that the city's core may finally be on the rebound is a Ralphs supermarket. The grocery chain is making plans to open a store at 9th and Flower streets -- part of a massive, 7.2-acre residential and retail project under construction near Staples Center.

The team motto is: Veni, vidi, ouchi. The team colors on the uniform are black and blue. The insignia resembles a traffic sign--a slash cutting across a Band-Aid. Many diverse groups and individuals will be among the approximately 7,500 competitors in the inaugural Los Angeles Marathon a week from today, but none more original than the Pain Running Team. The expected 8 to 12 runners wearing the team uniform will participate on their own terms.

With the sun as spotlight, a cast of characters ranging from Rocky to the Golden Oldies Soccer League plays against a backdrop of dust, grass and chaparral at Will Rogers State Park. "Rocky" star Sylvester Stallone plays polo. Rock artist Rod Stewart plays croquet. And there are the fleeting stars of soccer, volleyball, paddle ball and tennis, whose recognition fades along with the polite applause of their friends. They all play at the Cowboy Philosopher's old home--a home with a range.

She has been in office barely a week--the "Good Luck" balloon still floats above the vase of roses on her desk--and Jan Laverty Jones, the city's first woman mayor, is already beset by a nasty scandal. The imbroglio, which involves a newly elected councilman, made for scintillating news throughout the campaign.

Doug Collins, an avid bicyclist who grew up in Florida near orange groves and horse pastures, always wanted to live in the city. So, after 19 years in an apartment on the Miracle Mile, Collins has moved to a surprisingly trendy urban environment: downtown Los Angeles. Last August, Collins moved into the San Fernando Building, at the corner of 4th and Main streets, one of four Old Bank District buildings in downtown's historic core being converted into upscale lofts.

You can live in Los Angeles for a long time without encountering the downtown of legend, a fashionable district that was the center of city life for half of the last century. Plush flagship department stores and glamorous movie palaces filled South Broadway with activity day and night. Ornate bank buildings and office blocks formed a beaux-arts canyon of marble and terra cotta down Spring and Main streets, south from City Hall.