After 57 years, Olvera Street’s longtime burro business has reached its final day, but a new effort from LA City Councilman Kevin De Leon may save the popular photo stand.
Richard Hernandez, the son of the burro’s late owner, has been ordered by El Pueblo’s general manager to vacate the space by Thursday.
The notice to vacate became effective 30 days after Hernandez’s mother died in April, and despite repeated attempts by his mother prior to her death to add her son’s name to the lease agreement, Hernandez said El Pueblo’s management never followed through.
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"As indicated previously the agreement was never amended and the only tenant under the agreement is your mother, Maria Trancito Hernandez. Under Section 13.1 of the lease agreement, upon the death of the merchant, (your mother Maria Trancito Hemandez) her interest in the agreement automatically ended,” the letter stated.
However, on Thursday, Councilman De Leon told NBC4 he plans to file a motion at Friday’s city council meeting an in attempt to save the longtime family-owned shop.
"It’s part of the fabric of Los Angeles here. So my my perspective is let the burro stay and what I'm planning to do is move forward a motion that will deal with this issue here,” De Leon said. “It’s amazing, you know, that's so many folks have come out in support of the burro. I say, let's save the donkey."
El Pueblo’s general manager, Arturo Chavez, told NBC4 last week there is currently a “contract dispute” but that the business could stay past the May 16 vacate date until Richard Hernandez could plead his case to El Pueblo’s Board of Commissioners at their next hearing on May 23.
NBC4 reached out to Chavez about why Hernandez is being forced to leave after all, but has not heard back. NBC4 also reached to LA City Attorney’s office for clarification on procedures regarding the notice to vacate and is still waiting for a response.
"When I received a letter on May 1, it just became the darkest moment in my life. It really has,” Hernandez said. “Last night, I couldn't sleep. I’ve been up. I can't sleep. I'm thinking, What am I going to do? Where am I going to go? What's going to happen to my kids tuition? You know, my rent?"
Hernandez has long managed the business that his parents started in the late 1960s. The burro has long been a tradition at LA’s birthplace, a place to take pictures before stepping inside to enjoy other shops and restaurants.
What was once a live donkey is now a stuffed animal, but remains as popular as ever and has been featured in photos with mayors, celebrities and has even appeared in films.
“I bring my kids on a treasure hunt every year to all their history and tell them the history of the city, and like that life-sized donkey is part of the history of the city,” said Katherine Goldman, a school teacher who brought her students to Olvera Street for a field trip on Thursday. “It's really a sad thing. And I hope that they can work something out.”
