Boris Mayzels’s chiropractic clinic and wellness center is situated in the historic Haas Building on Broadway, which was built in 1915. When Boris invited into his office to talk about his business, the first thing he showed us was an old picture of Broadway hanging by the entrance. It depicted a Downtown LA from the early half of the 20th century. As he brought us onto his balcony to take in the sweeping view of the same block, it was striking to see the contrast of where the Historic Core is now, and where it is headed. Having won “Best of Downtown” several times for his clinic, Boris has literally watched the area change through his office window.
Tell us about your wellness center.
We’ve been here in this spot since 2009. In fact, myself, the Rabbi next store, and the leasing office were the first to move in here, after the building had undergone a five-year restoration process. All of this was pretty much vacant for years and years. Pigeons, that was it! But I had always envisioned this particular space as a medical space, because I am a chiropractor, and this neighborhood needed more health care services. You can’t build a neighborhood with just bars and restaurants, you need other things as well. Here I take care of the body, the Rabbi takes care of the soul, and that’s our synergistic coupling. And, after a while I saw that I couldn’t do this myself so I brought in an acupuncturist, and now I’m bringing in a medical doctor. I’ve always looked at this space as a kind of multidisciplinary healing center.
What’s it like working in the Historic Core?
It’s not without it’s challenges. Some folks from outside the area are a bit intimidated about coming downtown because they’ve never been. That has caused me to focus more on the people in the immediate area, because they know and are comfortable with the neighborhood and can even just walk here. I’ve looked at my charts and I know that most of my patients, let’s say 70-80 percent, work or live in the area. Here, because I’m kind of in the heart of Downtown, you get a lot of different things coming together. I get people from the Fashion District, I get people from the Jewelry District, and I get people from Bunker Hill. I get artists, writers, some of the Hispanic population that shops around here. It’s definitely a sampling of everything. And I like the diverse mix, it makes my clinic a lot more unique than if I had set up shop in some of the other more bland and homogenous areas of the city.
The funny thing is, a lot of times I’m one of the first people new residents meet, because they are moving boxes, then they throw out their back, and now they are looking for a chiropractor! Really I see myself as an amenity for the building, but also for the community.
