Downtown loft offers a taste of Soho

SOME live-work lofts go beyond being a place to wear fuzzy bunny slippers to the office.

Some, like this one in the heart of the Mid-City arts district, exemplify loft living in the authentic sense: It’s a converted 1930 warehouse that’s been stripped down to its spare essence: polished concrete floors, exposed brick walls and old-growth bowstring trusses. Modernization includes abundant use of skylights that flood the interior space with light and all new copper plumbing and commercial-grade electrical service.

The interior space includes a flexible open plan with 30-foot ceilings over the living room, dining room and kitchen. The master-bedroom suite has exposed ductwork and a 1920s-style hexagon-tile bathroom.

The loft is currently owned by “Stigmata” writer Tom Lazarus and his wife, “Melrose Place” writer Stevie Stern Lazarus. The Lazaruses have purchased a 1923 Renaissance Revival home in Lafayette Square.

About this house: The traditional-looking ivy-covered exterior belies the hard-core loft within. Once inside, this is New York’s Soho. The kitchen has a 6-foot-wide industrial sink; another industrial sink adorns the master bathroom, which also has a free-standing porcelain tub. Furnishings, including movie memorabilia, may be purchased as well.

Asking price: $1,995,000

Size: The nearly 7,000-square-foot loft is presently configured as a three-bedroom, 1 3/4-bathroom living-work space. There is 1,600 square feet of roof terrace space.

Features: A certificate of occupancy guarantees permission to live and work there. The truck bay accommodates three cars.

Where: 4621 W. Washington Blvd., Los Angeles.

Listing agent: Brian Linder, Keller Williams Realty, Beverly Hills; (310) 432-6525; www.thevalueofarchitecture.net.

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To submit a candidate for Home of the Week, send high-resolution color photos with caption and credit information on a CD and a detailed description of the house to Ruth Ryon, Real Estate Section, Los Angeles Times, 202 W. 1st St., L.A., CA 90012. Questions may be sent to homeoftheweek@latimes .com.