Hello everyone,

My wife and I are moving to L.A. as I will be starting grad school at CalArts. We are thinking of moving into the Pacific Electric Lofts downtown. We are just looking for some basic advice. Downtown seems like a cool area and we like that its close to the metro hub so I could utilize the train sometimes to get out to school. A loft would be cool for us because as a sound designer I wouldn't have to worry about making noise and having our 2 Bassett hounds isn't a big deal either. Here are our questions.

1. the PE lofts charge aprox. $2 a sq/ft per month. Is this a decent price considering they have a gym, pool, dog run etc.and it includes a parking space?
Is there another building you would recommend over PE?

2. I'm going to be going to CalArts which is quite a drive. How bad is the traffic getting out of downtown and up to the valley on a given weekday.

3.How safe is it living downtown relative to other moderately priced areas of LA or the valley.

4. What kind of food and everyday sort of stores are there downtown, eg..groceries, drugstores, moderately priced food, cafes etc.

5. Considering I have to drive to the northern part of the valley, would we be better off living in North Hollywood, another area that seems interesting.

6. What is the best and worst thing about living downtown.

Thanks so much,
Nathan