“You know, in 22 years plus of doing this job as a news reporter, this is one of those cases that kinda sticks with me because we know the who, what, when, where. But the why is always the question,” Lopez told us. “And when there’s never a why to a story, especially in this case, there are so many questions left unanswered, that’s why it still resonates.”
As for the hotel, it’s attempted a rebranding in recent years, changing its name to Stay on Main, with a $100 million renovation reportedly underway. And in 2017, Los Angeles City Council voted to approve landmark status for the building, determining that it represents the early 20th Century lodging industry in the U.S.
And while the property’s gruesome history might seem like a deterrent for most investors, Matthew M. Baron, president of Simon Baron Development, feels otherwise, telling the L.A. Times in 2017, “Quite frankly, a lot of people already come there out of curiosity.”
Can you blame them?