Fading memories might be all that remain of a 1939 Toluca Lake estate that Bob and Dolores Hope owned for six decades.
That would suit the late couple just fine, according to daughter Linda Hope.
In a familiar fight between property owners and preservationists, Linda Hope is pitched against Los Angeles City Councilman David Ryu, who in September introduced emergency legislation to declare the property a historic-cultural monument - after a buyer in escrow obtained a demolition inspection permit for the property's outlying buildings.
Ryu argues that the estate - which lies within his District 4 and is owned by the Dolores Hope Trust - harbors deep cultural import, given that the Hope name is synonymous with the area: "He was pretty much known as the unofficial mayor of Toluca Lake."