LOS ANGELES | Downtown Project Rundown 6.0

[CaliNative]

Originally Posted by craigs

I spent a few minutes googling this, and nothing about downsizing came up. If the city had coerced the developer into downsizing one of the towers, I feel like it would have been reported and shown up in the search. Plus, there are taller towers nearby so it wouldn't have been something forced by the FAA.

I think DTLA is mostly outside of FAA height restrictions, isn't it? Most of the flight paths for LAX are several miles south for arriving planes (around Slauson?) and maybe some paths well to the north for some others. So height restrictions are city decisions. Correct me if I'm wrong.

Here in San Diego, downtown buildings are limited to 500' by FAA rules because Lindbergh Field is so close, making for a "tabletop" skyline. Would be nice to have a few 600-700 footers here. Probably won't happen unless the airport moved.

[colemonkee]

^ The incoming flight paths feel like they are close to downtown, but are likely a few miles south, though I'm not sure if they are as far south as Slauson. That being said, the Moxie hotel downsizing was not at the request of the city or the FAA, it was the developer downsizing the height of the taller tower.

[CaliNative]

Originally Posted by colemonkee

^ The incoming flight paths feel like they are close to downtown, but are likely a few miles south, though I'm not sure if they are as far south as Slauson. That being said, the Moxie hotel downsizing was not at the request of the city or the FAA, it was the developer downsizing the height of the taller tower.

The reason I say Slauson is because my grandparents once had a house a mile or two south of Slauson (not too far from Manchester) near the Harbor Freeway in the 1950s and early 1960s, and the planes coming in to land at LAX (including 1st generation 707 jets after 1959) seemed to be almost overhead. I was a kid, and remember watching the 707s come in. Passenger jets were still new and exciting back then. Most of the planes were still props. When I watched those planes this was before the modernization of LAX in 1961, so perhaps the runways were moved a bit north in 1961. Still far enough from downtown not to be an issue for height restrictions I would think.

[craigs]

Modular apartment building in DTLA receives Planning Commission approval

The 15-story building would replace a parking lot at 3rd and Spring

Steven Sharp
Urbanize Los Angeles
January 14, 2022



At its meeting yesterday, the Los Angeles City Planning Commission voted to approve plans from Relevant Group to redevelop a surface parking lot at 3rd and Spring Streets in Downtown with a modular apartment tower.



The project, which happens to be the surprise winner of our "Best New Project of 2021," poll, calls for the construction of a 15-story building that would feature 331 one- and two-bedroom dwellings, ranging from 422 to 870 square feet in size, above 6,350 square feet of ground-floor retail space and 37 parking stalls in a single basement level.

Entitlements approved by the Planning Commission include density bonus incentives permitting increased height and floor area relative to zoning restrictions on the project site, as well as a reduction in required automobile parking. In exchange for permission to build a larger structure than otherwise allowed, Relevant is required to aside 37 of the apartments as deed-restricted affordable housing at the very low-income level.

Designed by Gensler, the building is to be composed of prefabricated modular units constructed off-site and assembled on the property. Architectural plans show a U-shaped footprint above the podium level, wrapping a landscaped central courtyard which opens to the sky, with a rust-colored exterior of metal screens. Proposed resident amenities include a fitness room and a rooftop deck standing 195 feet above street level.



Relevant Group's project would rise a block south of the intersection of 2nd and Spring Streets, where Metro is now in the midst of construction on the new Historic Broadway subway station, which is expected to open as part of the Regional Connector. Similar residential towers are planned for several nearby properties, including Onni Group's two-building development at the Times Mirror Square complex and a 56-story high-rise from Tribune Real Estate which would rise directly above the station.

Relevant Group, which has made its mark with a series of hotel developments along Selma and Wilcox Avenues in Hollywood, is also behind plans for an expansion of the historic Morrison Hotel in South Park and a second modular apartment building at 845 S. Olive Street.

[CaliNative]

Originally Posted by craigs

Modular apartment building in DTLA receives Planning Commission approval

The 15-story building would replace a parking lot at 3rd and Spring

Steven Sharp
Urbanize Los Angeles
January 14, 2022

Modular apartment buildings with microunits built offsite in factories is the future of housing. The best way to achieve affordability. I wonder if a modular micro unit tower could rise to skyscraper height? I don't see why not, as long as the units are securely bolted together on site with strong vertical and horizontal joiners, or attached to a strong central structural core (which would also include the elevators).

[homebucket]

The open air central courtyard is very cool.

[craigs]

Brookfield is now an unmistakable presence on our skyline (scroll--->):


source

[CaliNative]

^ Imagine almost another 30 floors and 300 feet to go. Brookfield will be awesome addition. Nice sunrise on the eastern horizon photo. Rarely see sunrise photos of DTLA.

[hughfb3]

That's an awesome Sunrise shot of downtown Craigs.

On a rainy Saturday, AC Hotel/Moxy shown on the right and looming in the background over The Crypt(o) is Brookfield tower.



Brookfield from ground level entrances





Below is the progression of renderings of the AC Hotel/Moxy. The renderings don’t depict a tower much taller than what it is in real life… the height and scale are quite similar. Also of note; as the design was refined, AC's podium was raised from the earlier renderings and now matches the district's street wall height that carries through into Circa, Oceanwide, LA Live and Staples... agh, The Crypt








I have been traveling for work to Miami and lately the company I work with has put us up in AC Hotels in South Florida... they are my new favorite business travel brand that I tend to extend my stays at and leisurely use post my work duties. Excited to have this brand in DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES. Since Marriott owns almost the entire hotel industry, I think they could take over and brand the shuttered Standard Hotel on Sunset as a Moxy Hotel and Edition Hotels could take the place of the downtown LA location... although, something unique, special, and designed/owned locally as a boutique would always be better

[craigs]

Thanks for the photo updates, hughfb3! It still amazes me how far downtown has extended toward the south in the last couple of decades.

[Niftybox]

Finally California is realizing we have a major urban sprawl problem, hopefully this leads to some serious change in our downtown cities. Expect more lenient zoning laws. Hopefully fire code is changed to allow more slender towers as well.

Nice updates hughfb3

[Blesha13]

Originally Posted by Niftybox

Finally California is realizing we have a major urban sprawl problem, hopefully this leads to some serious change in our downtown cities. Expect more lenient zoning laws. Hopefully fire code is changed to allow more slender towers as well.

Nice updates hughfb3

I expect more slender towers between Hill and Spring. That area is ripe for tall skyscrapers considering how small the parking lots are.

[colemonkee]

Moderator note: if you are responding to a photo post, no need to quote all of the images in your reply, especially if you are the next post in the thread. Doing so unnecessarily makes the page load longer and the scroll length longer. I've edited a couple of posts to keep your points, but reduce the page load time so of the thread. Be kind on the environment, people.

[LAisthePlace]

An exciting (and overdue) update found in Kevin DeLeon's welcome to 2022 newsletter:
"We will be holding a groundbreaking for the 7th Street StreetScape in DTLA in a few short months. The project will deliver incredible new features to 7th Street and make it the walkable corridor it deserves to be."

More details from the great Urbanize.LA article from last year here - https://urbanize.city/la/post/dtlas-...ncrete-medians

[Easy]

Thanks for the update on the 7th street streetscape scape. It really feels like LA is trying to change to being more pedestrian friendly and having safer roads for all. We have a long way to go but changes are being made in chunks. Hopefully we keep up the momentum.

Two easy changes that we need to see that cost almost no money are in traffic signaling. The first is to desynchronize the traffic lights so that people aren't flying down roads to catch a series of green lights. Traffic was calmer before traffic lights were synchronized decades ago. The second change is to have traffic lights stay green for cars a few seconds after the signal changes to "don't walk" for pedestrians. Like they do in NYC and most of the USA.

[homebucket]

Nice improvements there. Hopefully they do the same all over DTLA. After recently watching a driving video tour of DTLA it’s pretty apparent that the streets are at least one and sometimes two lanes too wide.

[craigs]

Street/sidewalk redesigns like that proposed for 7th Street make a hugely positive impact on how people experience the improved blocks. I know this from experience living in SF--these kinds of redesigns change the whole feel of the area for the better, and we need more of this downtown. I'm psyched!

[DJM19]

I wonder if Broadway will ever get its permanent sidewalk improvements.

[colemonkee]

Easy, GREAT call on the traffic signal timing. Allowing green lights to run even 5 seconds after the walk signal goes red would do wonders. 2-3 cars could get through that, easily.

[LosAngelesSportsFan]

Thank you for the update on 7th street. I have been waiting to hear anything as it was supposed to break ground last May or June. Its so huge for downtown and hopefully will be the start of massive street improvements all over as its sorely needed. Broadway, Spring, Main and Hill should be next. Olympic needs to add medians and increase the sidewalk widths along with landscaping to make it more pedestrian freindly.