LOS ANGELES | Downtown Project Rundown 6.0

[citywatch]

Originally Posted by dax_gray

Forgot about this one right beside Weller Court. Pleasantly surprised with how it turned out.

I waited a long time for that proj to be finally started...uc....& now post covid, finally completed. I like the way the apt bldg's part of dtla, in the shadow of LA city hall, has become more & more filled in. I recall when the huge block of land south of it, between San Pedro & LA Sts, north of 3rd St, was nothing but parking lots & the site a block to the west of that...& the eto apt proj...was another gap instead of today's terasaki gymnasium.


• Video Link

this type of facility, on LA St south of 2nd, brings more ppl back to dtla...

https://youtu.be/VV42BYDyXpM

[craigs]

Originally Posted by dax_gray

Bonus:
Weingart Center looks like its really coming along. Didn't expect to see it this tall!

Wow, you're not kidding--Weingart Center really has sprung up relatively fast. I wonder if that is related in any way to it being a nonprofit?

[zonedgreg]

Originally Posted by Zapatan

Sort of tacky but I dig the Spanish theme.



Is Mitsui's near 600 footer still supposed to start this year?

If that building, times mirror, 1045 and Angel's landing can all be built by the Olympics I'll be impressed.

Throw the Century City projects in there too.



I'm afraid the city corruption scandal may have delayed or killed Angel's Landing though... someone correct me if I'm wrong.

Mitsui's 8th, Grand and Hope tower still requires city planning commission and city council approval.. I'm pretty sure that should happen in the first half of the year if they have their ducks in a row - and it seems Mitsui Fudosan does. Then they'll need to get their GC + subs in line and get a construction loan before going vertical. They're targeting 2024 ground breaking.

Projects I'm watching that I feel like should break ground in 2023 (IF they can get the financing and lord knows the banks are hurting and interest rates are rising) and if they can keep construction costs manageable, are:

Times Mirror Square - has the approvals, needs financing

Tribune Tower - has the approvals, will sit on top of the 2nd/Broadway Metro station so they need to wait until Metro is finally operating Regional Connector, needs financing

Olympia - has the approvals, needs financing, needs TOT rebates for its hotel in order for that to pencil (likely won't receive any time soon - city hasn't handed those out for years so maybe they reprogram the hotel component into something else)

1111 Sunset - has the approvals but owner is looking to sell the entitlements so maybe a buyer comes by and purchases, secures financing and breaks ground

Crossroads Hollywood (not downtown but exciting and huge) - has approvals, secured construction financing in late 2022

1045 S Olive and Olympic Tower - both have approvals, but I get the feeling their building use programming may be a little too pricey on the construction costs side and they maybe have tough time penciling the project - not to mention they still need financing

[LA21st]

To add off the top of my head outside of downtown-

Century City's new office tower this year-
Santa Monica's Ocean Ave this year probably-
Robertson Lane in West Hollywood-this year probably-

Beverly Hilton huge redevelopment looks like 2025 start but likely happening.

Other big things to watch in the valley areNorth Hollywood metro redevelopment, Universal City new hotels, Warner Center towers-

[zonedgreg]

I just went to a development speaker panel yesterday. Heard from an executive of the group developing Crossroads of the World.. They're going to break ground in September/October of this year. Very exciting!

[LAsam]

Originally Posted by zonedgreg

I just went to a development speaker panel yesterday. Heard from an executive of the group developing Crossroads of the World.. They're going to break ground in September/October of this year. Very exciting!

Exciting is an understatement! Transformative project for Hollywood. Thanks for sharing!

[LosAngelesSportsFan]

Originally Posted by zonedgreg

I just went to a development speaker panel yesterday. Heard from an executive of the group developing Crossroads of the World.. They're going to break ground in September/October of this year. Very exciting!

Oh fantastic! Ive been waiting on that forever and its a massive game changer for Hollywood

[LA21st]

Originally Posted by zonedgreg

I just went to a development speaker panel yesterday. Heard from an executive of the group developing Crossroads of the World.. They're going to break ground in September/October of this year. Very exciting!

Wow, that is a major deal!

I agree, game changer for Hollywood. It should spur more development around Sunset there too.

[craigs]

City Council rejects appeal of high-rise at 1123 S. Main Street

The 30-story development from Jade Enterprises would feature 363 apartments

Steven Sharp
Urbanize Los Angeles
March 23, 2023

In the latest step in a battle last seen at the City Planning Commission in October 2022, the City Council moved yesterday to reject a pair of appeals which have sought to block the construction of a high-rise apartment building in Downtown.

Jade Enterprises, which owns a stretch of commercial buildings at 1123-1161 S. Main Street, has sought for several years to raze the existing structures to make way for a new 30-story tower that would feature 363 one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments above a four-story podium featuring 12,500 square feet of retail and a 363-car garage.

MVE + Partners is designing the project at 12th and Main, which would rise 340 feet in height and have an exterior of glass. Plans show the trunk of the tower at the center of the property, with setbacks used to create podium-top amenity decks to either side. Other proposed amenities include a roof deck featuring with a swimming pool, as well as indoor lounge rooms.

The placement of the tower also aligns with another mixed-use project planned by Jade Enterprises on the opposite side of Main Street. Both projects would include street-level plazas, linked together by a mid-block crossing.

According to an environmental study circulated in 2021 by the Planning Department, construction of the tower is expected to occur over a roughly 30-month period, concluding as early as 2026.

As in the earlier Planning Commission hearing, the project was faced with two opponents.

The Supporters Alliance for Environmental Responsibility (SAFER), a union-affiliated organization which appeals developments requiring discretionary entitlements. As in the prior appeal, SAFER argued that the project may have unanticipated environmental impacts, and should be subject to further study.

The second appellant, an affiliate of Blue Arch Investments, owns a neighboring site along Broadway, which has been entitled for the construction of a Hyatt Centric. As in the original appeal, Blue Arch has argued that the design of the proposed tower would negatively impact the use of still unbuilt hotel, and have requested a reduction in scale and a relocation of the massing of the building.

The two companies have sparred before. Jade previously appealed the Hyatt Centric project, which forced Blue Arch to redesign the development to account for a four-foot widening of the alley which divides the two sites.

The vote by the City Council rejects both appeals, allowing project approvals to stand.

[craigs]

And the images:

[scania]

It's amazing how this area is growing...and it's relatively very clean. I've thought about moving to that area of DTLA. I know a few people who love it over there.

[craigs]

Downtown between storms, from LA Reddit:

[citywatch]

theknockturnal.com

Los Angeles has always been a travel destination for people in the U.S. and abroad. And one of our favorite spots to recommend is the Moxy & AC Hotels in Downtown Los Angeles. And recently, they have tapped hospitality duo Mark and Jonnie Houston of famed Houston Hospitality to create a new immersive hospitality experience, called Level 8. Level 8 is inspired by decades of the twin brothers’ travels, offering a culmination of their experiences wrapped into one sprawling destination and told through the eyes of the venue’s fictional founder, Mr. Wanderlust. From Buenos Aires to Tokyo, guests will find themselves on a journey through an adult playground of eight distinct concepts encompassing elevated restaurants, casual dining venues, cocktail bars, a pool deck, and a nightclub.

A destination that must be seen to be believed, guests can expect the unexpected with venues ranging from a French Teppan steakhouse to a poolside rotating carousel bar with skyscraper views of the Los Angeles skyline.

And spread across 30,000 sq.ft., Level 8 will separate itself from anything that Houston Hospitality has created before. The concept will occupy the entire eighth floor of new hotels, Moxy & AC Hotels in Downtown Los Angeles, also launching in Q2 2023.


theknockturnal.com

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[citywatch]

ladowntownnews.com, CBID/submitted

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority is nearing completion on a 1.9-mile underground light rail extension that will knit together the city’s metro system, allowing riders to travel across LA County in one seat.

“In this moment of challenge and change for Downtown Los Angeles coming out of the pandemic, entering into a new reality of hybrid and remote work, uncertainty around the office sector and other changes, the metro system is more important than ever because it is what enables people to get to jobs in Downtown (and) enables people who live Downtown to get to jobs in other places,” Griffin explained.

“It’s also what enables Downtown to be a social, economic and cultural center. … It’s about access to arts and culture, entertainment, restaurants, hospitals … all that Downtown has to offer. So now more than ever, as Downtown evolves and changes and deals with shifts in its identity and its purpose, the metro system is critical.”

Griffin also said the project reinforces the centrality of Downtown LA, both geographically and culturally, as nearly all of the major freeways and metro lines touch the neighborhood. The new regional connector will extend from the L Line (Gold) in Little Tokyo and the Arts District communities to Line A (Blue) and Line E (Expo) at Seventh Street/Metro Center Station. Riders will be able to travel between distant cities like Azusa to Long Beach and from East LA to Santa Monica.

“There were two transit measures taxes passed in the last 10 years or so (Measure M and Measure R), and those constitute the largest, by far, investments in mass transit in the country. … It’s a commitment that’s backed up by a funding stream in perpetuity, and that’s what makes it a much more significant and tangible investment in public transit.”

Riders have expressed concerns over public safety on the transit lines. Though Metro has stated its commitment to reducing violence, crime on Metro trains and buses has reportedly increased since 2021.

“The safety and conditions on Metro has to be a top priority because we cannot let this investment go to waste,” Griffin said. “We cannot give away our future growth by letting the Metro system fail, because that’s what our growth is based on. … It is absolutely critical for the Olympics, and the Olympics is a marker for our growth as a world-class city. We absolutely must have a world-class transit system for those Olympics.”

The project, which began construction in 2014, is set for completion within the coming months. Metro has reported that tunneling work and construction on the regional connector’s three stations is 90% complete.

10% still left to go? But better late than never.
.

[colemonkee]

Wonder when they will start testing trains in the Regional Connector. When that opens - and Metro can reliably clean up crime in the system - this will be a game changer.

[HusBy]

Originally Posted by colemonkee

Wonder when they will start testing trains in the Regional Connector. When that opens - and Metro can reliably clean up crime in the system - this will be a game changer.

According to this Twitter account it appears to have started! Very exciting, as this will be a game changer for me personally as well.

https://twitter.com/calwatch/status/...852619265?s=20

[ChelseaFC]

Not sure what happened to my post about the new pedestrian promenade in SD's Gaslamp Quarter (next time mods please reach out to me personally :-) ), but I think it's worth facilitating a discussion of us doing something similar along Broadway in DTLA.

Here's some photos of what SD is doing there that seems very doable in LA.

[citywatch]

beaudrydtla.com

After more than six years, Brookfield Properties is almost ready to open Beaudry, a 64-story residential and retail tower in downtown Los Angeles.
Connecting to the plaza at Brookfield’s FIGat7th shopping center, the 1.3-acre Beaudry is the final parcel to be completed on the master-planned block, which includes 2.3 million square feet of existing office and retail space.

Spanning 792,000 square feet at 960 W. Seventh St., Beaudry is handing over the keys for more than 780 units of housing in downtown L.A., plus 6,700 square feet of retail and a full-service restaurant at its base on the west side of the FIGat7th plaza. According to Brookfield, pre-leasing for the apartments has begun, with the first residents expected to move in mid-April.

Beaudry is handing over the keys for more than 780 units of housing in DTLA, plus 6,700 square feet of retail and a full-service restaurant.

As for amenities, Beaudry is checking the boxes for luxury provisions, with a resort-like pool and spa with cabanas, an athletic club, co-working spaces, indoor and outdoor entertainment spaces, barbecue grills, a bocce ball court, a pet spa and dog run, and a golf simulator. On the rooftop lounge sits a grand piano and a catering kitchen, as well as an outdoor terrace more than 600 feet above Seventh Street.

A spokesperson for Brookfield said downtown L.A.'s walkability and access to entertainment and dining are part of the appeal driving continued growth in the city’s residential sector, bringing thousands of new residents to downtown in recent years as projects like Beaudry are adding “much-needed housing supply to Los Angeles and further maturing DTLA as a residential neighborhood.”

'pre-leasing' probably means the unavailable units on the proj's website are still being worked on, not that they've been booked. However, if they were already rented out, that would mean the apt tower was booming....

https://www.beaudrydtla.com/availability/

The rate of leasing of beaudry...other projs in dtla too, such as the faux tuscan ferrante....will affect how a new proj may or may not go forward or its time table. Obviously the faster an existing proj is booked up, the more likely a devlpr will feel confident about going forward with his own devlpt.

Mitsui's 2nd apt tower, not the one at the NE corner of 8th St & fig, will be influenced by what happens with both beaudry & mitsui's own still incomplete first apt proj in dt.

la.urbanize.com

Construction of the project is contingent on approvals by both the Los Angeles City Planning Commission and the Los Angeles City Council - two events which could occur in early 2023. Should the project stick to that schedule, construction of the tower could commence as early as 2024, with completion to follow in 2027.

[LAsam]

^Brookfield certainly could use a win given the beating they've taken on office in DTLA.

[scania]

Originally Posted by LAsam

^Brookfield certainly could use a win given the beating they've taken on office in DTLA.

I’ve an appointment next week to tour…but IMO, their prices are absurd! I’m not sure what market analysis they’ve done…but I see they are quite of few people who’ve already pre-leased without seeing the units/amenities/property.