The Byzantine-Latino Quarter, alternately referred to as the "BLQ",[1] was originally developed as "Pico Heights" in 1886 by the Electric Railway Homestead Association.

A fashionable community of stately Craftsman homes and wealthy families, the area was annexed by the City of Los Angeles in 1896.

[2] In 1997, the area was designated the “Byzantine-Latino Quarter” by the California State Assembly and the Department of Transportation installed street markers.

[5] In 2003, the Byzantine-Latino Quarter Business Improvement District (BLQ BID), was approved and adopted by the Los Angeles City Council.

[7] The BID is responsible for maintenance of the large neon sign (which reads Byzantine Latino-Quarter) that sits on the roof of a building on Pico Boulevard and Normandie Avenue.