Dedicated to the principle to “love your neighbor as yourself”, the Pico Union Project is a multi-faith center that strives to invigorate the community of Los Angeles by bringing diverse cultures together through song, story, art and activism. Whether through the distribution of free fresh produce, planting gardens and trees, mentoring High School students or assisting our homeless neighbors, the Project is deeply committed to be a source of light for all.
What We Do
Prayer
The Pico Union Project is a house of worship open to groups and individuals of all faiths where people can meet and pray in a safe, encouraging and inspiring space. We are currently a regular home for five worship communities, and we have space available for special religious services and events. We provide a supportive environment for interfaith activities and a beautiful space for lifecycle events.
Performing Arts
In our 375 seat sanctuary/theater, we host music, theater, poetry, art and dance performances, workshops and festivals. We are available to artists and nonprofit organizations in need of performance and/or meeting space, and to film and TV production crews, but we are more than a venue; we are a home for collaborative community.
Our Location
Built in 1909 as the original location of Sinai Temple, the Pico Union Project is the oldest synagogue building in Los Angeles. When the Sinai community moved to Beverly Hills, the building became home to a Welsh Presbyterian congregation. By 2012, after lovingly maintaining the building for 88 years, the shrinking congregation approached the Jewish Historical Society of Southern California to return the building to the Jewish community. The Jewish Historical Society turned to Craig ‘N Co., a production company owned by prominent Jewish musician Craig Taubman, who purchased the building as a home for the Pico Union Project.
The Pico Union neighborhood is within the original boundary of El Pueblo de Los Angeles, founded in 1781. Originally a fashionable suburb known as the Westlake District, the area has been home to multiple immigrant communities throughout its history. Pico Union is now home to people hailing mainly from Central America, Mexico, Cuba, and Korea. In 2004, the Pico Union neighborhood became Los Angeles’ nineteenth Historic Preservation Overlay Zone. The Pico Union Project is honored to be a partner in preserving and advancing this notable and important community in our city.
Who We Are
Craig Taubman, Founder & Artistic Director
Craig Taubman has left an indelible imprint on the Jewish American experience through his original compositions, recorded music and live performances. His musical style is inspiring, eclectic and accessible, and his songs bridge traditional Jewish themes and ancient teachings with passages and experiences from contemporary Jewish life. He speaks a language that is both comfortable and acceptable to children and adults. His Jewish recordings are an integral part of the community, weaving song and spirit into the fabric of Jewish life, and his compositions are used extensively in formal and informal Jewish settings across America.
Having traveled for years and met people from communities large and small, urban, suburban and rural, Jewish and not, Craig – a natural “connector” – became passionate about using his talents to bring diverse people together in new ways. He branched out to plan and oversee the production of community building events, some for a variety of Jews, including Friday Night Live and The Big Jewish Tent, and some for an interfaith audience, including Unity in Concert and A Sacred Noise, among others.
Inspired by the history, location and spiritual energy of the Pico Union Project building, Craig is using his gift for creating community connections through music, worship and the arts to build a new kind of community center – where all who enter learn to love themselves a little bit better, and in doing so, they become able to open their hearts to their neighbors, in all their diversity, in friendship, cooperation, and even love.
Craig attributes his great success to good hair products and his dog, children and wife of 25 years who keep him in line.
Jorge Alvarez, Caretaker
My name is Jorge Alvarez, and I am the caretaker here at the Pico Union Project. I like drawing, trees, my family, the community here, and most of all I love God. I’m here to plant trees and take care of the building; making sure everything is working in order, and that everything’s in place. I follow the rule to “love your neighbor as you wish to be loved” and do whatever is necessary to keep the PUP in beautiful and in shape.
Roberto Rodriguez, Groundskeeper
My name is Roberto Rodriguez, and I have been working here since 2017. I try to be a person of my country, and I wanted to become an electrical engineer or a pilot! I’m from El Salvador, and moved to Los Angeles when I was twenty because of the war. Here, I work beside Jorge and take care of the plants and trees we’re in charge of. We try to keep the neighborhood looking clean and nice.
