The above photos are at the location of The Hive on Broadway between 23rd and 24th in Uptown. The building was designed by Julia Morgan. It is currently the home of bar and restaurant Mixé. (The center photo shows 2325 next door, but is included to show the transition.)
Question: does anyone know why there was a trend to cover up facades like this? Something to do with not liking old-timey-lookin' buildings?
Partial Answer: Yep. It was unfortunately common to cover up the facades to "modernize" the buildings. More recently (don't recall particulars, but Annalee Allen or Betty Marvin would know), there was a grant available to help building owners restore the original facades. There are a number along the lower part of Telegraph that have been uncovered.
In the 1930s, the Downtown Property Owners Association had numerous buildings modernized with a new facade and other treatments. Another batch of modernizations happened in the 1950s. Some of these have been removed, restoring the original building facade.
