Cathedral of Saint Vibiana
The Cathedral of Saint Vibiana (Spanish: Catedral de Santa Vibiana), often called St. Vibiana's, is a Catholic former cathedral church of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. Located in Downtown Los Angeles, the building opened in 1876 as the cathedral for what was then known as the Diocese of Monterey–Los Angeles, and remained the official cathedral of the Los Angeles see for over 100 years.[2]
Saint Vibiana's Cathedral
The cathedral was heavily damaged during the 1994 Northridge earthquake and became the subject of a lengthy legal battle between the archdiocese, which wanted to demolish the building and build a new cathedral on the site, and preservationists, who wanted the building to remain standing due to its historical significance. In 1996, the parties involved reached a compromise in which the archdiocese would purchase a nearby site on which to build a new cathedral, and in turn would turn over the St. Vibiana site to the City of Los Angeles. The Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels was dedicated in 2002 as the successor to St. Vibiana's.
In the late 2000s, the former cathedral building became an event venue called Vibiana. The Little Tokyo branch of the Los Angeles Public Library is also located on the site. The 1876 cathedral structure is one of the last remaining buildings from the early period of Los Angeles history.