The idea must have seemed a rather odd one. In June 1923, C. L. Peckham — head of an insurance adjustment firm in Glendale, a rapidly growing middle-class residential community just northeast of Los Angeles — announced plans for developing a commercial property that broke from convention in its design, tenant structure, and siting. The project would cost $65,000, considerably more than most speculative real estate ventures sited along the metropolitan area’s web of arterial routes.
Peckham had persuaded three associates, several other businessmen, and a physician to join him in a syndicate to realize the plan. He was confident it would provide a model solution to problems experienced by many investors who sought to profit from the abundance of as yet undeveloped boulevard frontage in the region.
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