An iconic Hollywood sign may soon be replaced by a modern fast food chain’s logo, causing locals to be furious.
Norms coffee shop on La Cienega Boulevard has been a staple to Angelenos since 1957 with its recognizable Googies-style architecture created by Armét & Davis and its sawtooth sign out front.
But the sign may go under renovations as chicken finger chain, Raising Cane’s, plans to move in in 2027 when Norms’ lease is up, according to The Los Angeles Times.
‘The idea of transforming Norms from a sit-down restaurant, family-friendly, affordable to a place to go to get fried chicken is astonishing to me,’ Esotouric’s Secret Los Angeles writer Kim Cooper told The Times.
Cooper was the one to discover that Cane’s was planning on changing the space when she was perusing the Los Angeles Cultural Heritage Commission’s upcoming agenda.
Due to the site’s historical status, Cane’s has to get permission to change the building.
The restaurant chain told The Times it ‘plans to keep the legacy of Norm’s alive and maintain — forever — the iconic Googie-style architecture made famous by Armét & Davis when we begin improvements to restore the property.’
In a rendering of the new sign shared with The Times, Cane’s is proposing simply replacing Norms with Cane’s, using the same font, while keeping the rest of the structure identical.
But that isn’t stopping the push back from Angelenos at Cane’s occupying the space at all, even with the promise of keeping the architectural integrity.
‘It is so much more than a building,’ Cooper said.
‘This is a place that has been open 24 hours a day…
‘Norms is part of people’s lives and has been for 67 years, which in L.A. is basically a millennium.’
Television producer, Damian Sullivan, agreed, telling The Times: ‘Norms is in the same realm as the Manns Chinese Theater and Panns and the Hollywood Sign.
‘It’s so iconic to Los Angeles.’
The La Cienega Boulevard location is so memorable to locals that it was the subject of Ed Ruscha’s painting Norm’s, La Cienega, On Fire.
The first Norms opened in 1949 by Norm Roybark.
He sold the company to CapitalSpring in 2015, according to The Times.
The other two dozen locations will still be in operation after 2027.
