Building Los Angeles

Planning documents presented to the Los Angeles City Council have unveiled renderings for a new hotel development in Pico Union.

The low-rise Hotel Olympia would be built a one-acre property at 1700 West Olympic Boulevard, located within a half-mile of LA Live and approximately one mile from the Los Angeles Convention Center. Plans from developer CK Hospitality call for a five-story structure containing 149 guest rooms above 8,600 square feet of street-level restaurant space. The hotel would feature a standard array of guest amenities, including a banquet room, outdoor pool deck and a 113-car underground garage.

Designs from architecture firm PKA & Associates orient the tallest portion of the building towards Olympic Boulevard, so as to maintain better harmony with adjacent residential buildings to the south. Hotel Olympia would feature a variety of exterior finishes, including tile, tinted glass and corrugated metal.

The project, which first began meandering through the City Planning process in 2013, requires multiple discretionary approvals to begin construction. Most notably, CK Hospitality has requested a General Plan Amendment from the highway-oriented commercial and medium residential land use designations to a community commercial land use designation throughout the entire site.

CPC Recommendation Report: CPC-2013-3834-GPA-ZC-HD-CU-CUB-SPR (LA City Council)
Low-Rise Hotel Planned in Westlake (Building Los Angeles)

Artist's rendering of Griffin (Image: Brandywine Homes)

Brandywine Homes has closed on a .82-acre site at 136 Las Tunas Drive in Arcadia, with plans to build 178 three-story contemporary townhomes. Groundbreaking for the community, dubbed Griffin, is scheduled to break ground in April 2015, with delivery expected by December 2015.

"The increased demand for housing in Arcadia has pushed pricing for single-family detached homes into ranges many people cannot afford," said David Barisic, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Brandywine. "These townhomes will certainly be more affordable than the majority of what is on the market now."

Brandywine plans to build 17 three-story, two-, three-and-four-bedroom townhomes ranging from 1,265 to 2,205 square feet in size. Most of the units will offer full side-by-side garages, and all will feature contemporary architecture, stainless steel appliances and solid-surface counters.

Residents of the new community, located between El Monte Avenue and South Santa Anita Avenue, will have access to the Arcadia school system. The development is located just over 3 miles away from the 210 Freeway, with proximity to major destinations such as Santa Anita Park, Westfield Santa Ana, the Santa Anita Golf Course and downtown Pasadena.

Prices for the townhomes are expected to range from the high $600,000s to the high $900,000s.

Brandywine Homes (Official Website)

Amidst the rumble of passing Expo Line trains, construction pushes ahead for the highly anticipated development known as Access Culver City.

The mixed-use complex from Greystar Real Estate Partners broke ground just over one year ago at the intersection of Washington and National Boulevards, directly across the street from Metro's Culver City Station. When completed in July, the five-story structure will offer 115 apartment units above 30,000 square feet of ground-floor commercial space and a subterranean parking garage. Proposed amenities include a swimming pool and an on-site recreation center.

The building, designed by architecture firm Togawa Smith Martin, will feature a stucco exterior accented by metal siding and steel canopies. Access, which is seeking LEED Silver certification, will also feature lush landscaping, a private courtyard and a street-fronting plaza.

Greystar's project is one of several transit oriented developments fostered by the return of rail service to Los Angeles' wealthy Westside. In Culver City, two additional projects are also taking shape within walking distance of the elevated train station. South across Washington Boulevard, construction is already underway on an office and retail complex known as the Platform. Further north, the station's sprawling park-and-ride lot is slated for a massive development from Lowe Enterprises which would consist of offices, apartments, hotel rooms, stores, restaurants and park space.

Image: Greystar Real Estate Partners

Hard at Work on Access Culver City (Building Los Angeles)
Access Culver City (Clark Builders Group)

904 La Brea Avenue (All images: Shubin + Donaldson Architects)

A recently published environmental report from the Department of City Planning has revealed new details about the 904 La Brea Project, a mixed-use development planned near the border between Los Angeles and West Hollywood.

The seven-story development, slated for a roughly one-acre site at the corner of La Brea and Willoughby Avenues, would feature 169 apartments and approximately 37,000 square feet of of ground-floor retail space. Proposed dwellings would include studio, one-and-two-bedroom units, with approximately 14 apartments set aside for very low income households. Residential amenities would include a pool, gymnasium and a communal outdoor deck.

A partially-underground garage would be included with the project, providing parking accommodations for up to 303 vehicles and more than 200 bicycles. Residents would be afforded 192 total parking spaces, situated on two above-grade levels. 111 basement parking spaces would be available for use by retail tenants and their customers.

Designs from Shubin + Donaldson Architects call for a variety of high quality exterior finishes. Elevation plans included with the environmental report indicate that materials would include glass, steel trowled plaster, and color coated perforated metal panels. Renderings of the building bear a slight resemblance to 925 La Brea Avenue, another Shubin + Donaldson project which would rise across the street.

The project, which is being developed by a subsidiary of Hollywood-based CIM Group, received media attention last year due the controversial demolition of the Art Deco Mole-Richardson Building. The one-story structure stood at the corner of La Brea and Willoughby for more than eight decades before being leveled in 2014.

Construction of the mixed-use development would occur over roughly 21 months, with project delivery expected by 2018. However, CIM Group will need to overcome several legislative obstacles prior to breaking ground. This includes a general plan amendment which would re-designate the one-acre project site from limited manufacturing to neighborhood commercial, as well as a concomitant zone change.

The proposed low-rise complex stands as yet another example of the shifting landscape along the La Brea corridor, which has added numerous residential and commercial developments in recent years. Case in point: a five-story building with apartments and a ground-level supermarket is currently under construction directly across the street from the 904 La Brea project site.

904 La Brea Project (LADCP)
904 La Brea Mixed Use (Shubin + Donaldson Architects)
Second Mixed-User Headed to La Brea/Willoughby (Building Los Angeles)

The relocated Silver Line bus station (All Images: Metro)

According to a memo from an upcoming meeting of Metro's Service Councils, construction will begin in April on a new center-median bus platform linking the El Monte Busway to Union Station's Patsaouras Transit Plaza.

The $31 million project, funded in part by a discretionary grant from the Federal Transit Administration, will improve vertical and horizontal pedestrian circulation within the historic transportation hub. Currently, passengers on Metro's Silver Line buses must disembark on Alameda Street, before crossing a freeway on-ramp and walking a quarter-mile to access trains and buses at Union Station. The relocated bus platform, situated directly above Vignes Street, will shorten transfer times by providing a dedicated passageway to Union Station's East Portal.

Besides its obvious benefits for transit passengers on the El Monte Busway, the project also includes a stunning "Wind Bridge," designed by California artist Ned Kahn. The 500-foot long structure will be adorned with perforated aluminum panels, arranged to "move with the wind, resulting in complex rippling patterns of light and shade created by sunlight penetrating in between the two layers of perforated metal."

The new bus platform, scheduled to open in October 2016, is a prelude to much larger changes in store for the 75-year-old rail terminal. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2017 on the $350 million Southern California Regional Interconnector Project (SCRIP), which will add new run-through tracks to Union Station's stub-end rail yard. The new track layout is expected to shave travel times by 15 to 20 minutes and increase the station's capacity up to 50%.

These upgrades will occur simultaneously with the enaction of the new Union Station Master Plan, which was approved by the Metro Board in October 2014. In the near term future, Metro will implement a variety of streetscape and transit stop improvements to enhance the station's connectivity to the surrounding neighborhood. Most notably, a surface parking which fronts the historic station building along Alameda Street is slated for conversion to a public plaza.

In the more distant future, the Master Plan calls for up to 3.25 million square feet of development on the Union Station property, as well as the expansion and rearrangement of many of its existing facilities. This would include the construction of a new multi-modal concourse to replace the station's utilitarian pedestrian access tunnel, as well as the relocation of the Patsaouras Transit Plaza to the western side of the property.

A conceptual rendering portraying a full build-out of the Union Station Master Plan and other upgrades

Patsaouras Plaza Bus Station - January 27, 2015 (Metro via r/LosAngeles)

Rumors began circulating late last year, but a new case filing from the Department of City Planning makes it official: phase two of Apex has been resurrected.

Documents on file with the City of Los Angeles indicate that the revived development would feature a 28-story residential tower at the southwest corner of 9th and Flower Streets. Earlier plans for the building had called for approximately 280 dwelling units and ground-floor retail space. An adjacent triangular site at the southeast corner of 9th and Figueroa Streets would give way for a two-story standalone retail structure.

The existing Apex tower was originally developed as part of a three-phase condominium complex known as Concerto. The project, which was built by Sonny Astani, experienced a litany of setbacks due to the global financial crisis of the late 2000s. Following the bankruptcy of his lender, Astani was forced to sell the nearly-finished building in 2011. Apex and its adjacent development site eventually came into the possession of ST Residential, which opened the tower as luxury apartments in 2012.

An exact timeline and design for the project is currently unclear. When initially proposed one decade ago, plans for the Concerto complex called for a twin-tower design from architecture firm HansonLA.

The original design for Concerto (Image: Astani Enterprises)

Case Information Summary Sheet: ZA-2005-1673-ZV-ZAA-SPR-PA1-M1-PA1 (LADCP)

Yesterday, the Department of City Planning published an environmental report for 5750 Hollywood Boulevard, a mixed-use development which would rise from a forlorn one-acre property located just east of the 101 Freeway.

Plans call for a seven-story structure, featuring 161 dwelling units, 5,700 square feet of ground-level retail space, and parking accommodations for 271 vehicles and 96 bicycles. The project would incorporate numerous residential amenities, including a media room, fitness center, outdoor pool and spa deck, and a rooftop terrace with panoramic views of Hollywood.

The low-rise building would provide a mixture of studio apartments, one-and-two-bedroom dwellings and live-work lofts. Developer 5750 Hollywood Boulevard, LLC also intends to set aside 14 residential units for very low income households in exchange for an SB-818 density bonus. Proposed incentives include increases to the property's allowable height and floor area ratio.

The project is being designed by architecture firm Carrier Johnson + Culture with a look that "visually reflect(s) its Hollywood setting." Plans call for alternating patterns of black and white along Hollywood Boulevard, evoking nostalgic images of film projectors, movie screens and dark theaters. Facade materials would include perforated metal panels and ceramic tile, giving the building a contemporary feel.

5750 Hollywood Boulevard is tentatively scheduled to break ground in January 2016, with project delivery expected to follow in June 2018. Construction of the proposed development will require the demolition of an empty two-story building - built in 1936 - which most recently housed a billiards hall and nightclub.

Notably, the project site does not include an adjacent automobile repair shop, despite multiple offers to buy the property. The developer has expressed interest in eventually incorporating the land into the proposed Hollywood Central Park.

The residential-retail complex is the latest evidence of increased investment in the working class East Hollywood neighborhood. Two blocks east, developer Beverly Hills-based developer Sonny Astani recently broke ground on a similar project at the intersection of Hollywood Boulevard and Western Avenue. A six-story boutique hotel is also planned in the vicinity.

5750 Hollywood Boulevard Mixed-Use Project (LADCP)

After successfully navigating an unanticipated level of neighborhood resistance, work is finally getting underway on another large mixed-use development in Downtown Los Angeles' burgeoning Arts District.

Yesterday, while walking the neighborhood with Downtown icon Brigham Yen, a small crew was spotted prepping the dirt lot at 950 East Third Street for construction. The six-acre site, which is being developed in tandem by Associated Estates Realty and Legendary Development, will eventually birth a series of five-and-six-story buildings containing 472 apartments and 21,000 square feet of retail space.

The design of the 400,000-square-foot complex, crafted by Kava Massih Architects, is intended to match the existing feel and aesthetics of the Arts District. Renderings indicate that the project would include numerous murals, as well as industrial-themed exterior finishes with metal accents.

950 East Third Street (Image: Downtown News)

However, those initial touches proved insufficient to nearby residents and property owners, many of whom descended upon a community meeting this past summer to voice their displeasure with the development's scale, dearth of live-work units and auto-oriented design. In the end, the outcry from neighborhood stakeholders yielded results, including a slight reduction in the project's parking accommodations (from 922 stalls to 774 stalls) and the addition of pedestrian-friendly green space in lieu of a new street.

A full build-out of 950 East Third street is expected to take three years, beginning with an initial phase of 248 residential units. It is the third large-scale mixed-use development to break ground in the Arts District over the past several years, following One Santa Fe and the Garey Lofts.

A Blurry Look at the Arts District's 950 Third (Building Los Angeles)
Outcry Leads to New Look for Arts District Project (Downtown News)
The 20 Most Important Projects in Downtown in 2014 (Downtown News)

In the latest example of investment dollars spilling outside the Central City freeway ring, construction has started on another mixed-use development in Westlake.

Last month, Los Angeles-based Canfield Development broke ground on a low-rise apartment building on a vacant half-acre lot at 1329-1419 West Seventh Street. The residential-retail complex, first reported in 2013, will consist of a seven-story structure featuring 87 studio, one-and-two-bedroom apartments above nearly 1,000 square feet of ground-level retail space. Plans filed with the city call for multiple communal amenities, including a 135-car garage, an on-site fitness center, and a third-level recreation deck . The project is also the beneficiary of a 25% density bonus due to its inclusion of five very-low income housing units.

Like many recent developments west of the Harbor Freeway, the Seventh Street Apartments will employ wood-frame construction and a painted plaster finish. Designs from Nadel Architects also incorporate substantial glass and metal paneling to obscure two above-grade parking levels.

A precise completion date for the project is currently unclear. The Seventh Street Apartments are the third market-rate apartment complex to break ground in Westlake since the beginning of 2014, following two larger developments located on Wilshire Boulevard and Sixth Street.

1402 W. 7th Street (All images: Canfield Development and Nadel Architects)

7th Street Apartments (Canfield Development)
7th Street Apartments (Nadel Architects)
87 Apartments Coming to Westlake (Building Los Angeles)

With the recent installation of a tower crane, construction is now going vertical at City West's massive Sixth & Bixel development.

Work kicked off for the $200 million project last year, when Vancouver-based Holland Partner Group began converting a 1920s medical office tower at the corner Sixth Street and Lucas Avenue into apartments. The eight-story edifice, designed by A.C. Martin, will consist of 42 residential units when open in mid-2015. Holland Partner Group will reserve 27 of the building's units as affordable housing, in accordance with a density bonus granted to the project.

The project also includes the construction of two colorful six-story buildings, designed by architecture firm Togawa Smith Martin. The low-rise structures will comprise an additional 606 residential units, seated above 25,000 square feet of ground-floor commercial space and a 762-car garage. Plans call for a slew of residential amenities in this phase of the project, including a fitness center, an outdoor pool, and multiple rooftop decks.

A complete build out of the 900,000-square-foot complex is expected by late 2016. By total number of residential units, Sixth & Bixel is the currently the second largest development under construction in Downtown, following Carmel Partners'monolithic G8 apartments.

Rainy Day Westlake Construction Update (Building Los Angeles)

The Broad (Image: Gary Leonard)

The Broad, the new contemporary art museum in downtown Los Angeles, announced today that it will open to the public on Sunday, September 20, 2015.

Built by philanthropists and longtime art collectors Eli and Edythe Broad, The Broad will welcome visitors from near and far with free general admission to an inaugural installation drawn from two collections of more than 2,000 works of contemporary art. Designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro (DS+R), The Broad makes its home in the city’s burgeoning Grand Avenue arts corridor, across the street from architectural icons including Walt Disney Concert Hall and the Museum of Contemporary Art.

“Edye and I are delighted to announce an opening date, and we are already looking forward to welcoming the public to our museum,” said Eli Broad. “It is our privilege to give this museum, the works in our art collections and a sizeable endowment and free admission as a gift to the people of Los Angeles.”

“When we open our doors on September 20, we will be greatly advancing Eli and Edye’s vision of sharing contemporary art with the broadest possible audience,” said Joanne Heyler, founding director of The Broad. “The combination of innovative architecture and provocative art will make visiting The Broad an experience to remember.”

The new museum’s opening installation will be a predominantly chronological selection of masterworks from the Broads’ extraordinary personal art collection as well as that of The Broad Art Foundation. The installation will begin with works by major artists who came to prominence in the 1950s, including Jasper Johns, Robert Rauschenberg and Cy Twombly. The Pop art of the 1960s—an area of great depth in the collections—will be represented through works by Roy Lichtenstein, Ed Ruscha and Andy Warhol, among others. Moving into the 1980s—the decade when The Broad Art Foundation was established—the installation will present a rich concentration of works by artists such as Jean-Michel Basquiat, Cindy Sherman, Keith Haring, Barbara Kruger and Jeff Koons. The installation will continue up through the present, with works including a monumental, immersive, eight-screen video piece, The Visitors, by Icelandic artist Ragnar Kjartansson, which was only recently acquired for the collections, among many other new acquisitions.

With construction of the building nearing completion, The Broad is offering the public an unprecedented glimpse into the unfinished museum on Sunday, Feb. 15, when two temporary art installations will activate the expansive third-floor gallery. Titled Sky-lit: Volume, Light, and Sound at The Broad the multi-hour timed ticket event will include works by BJ Nilsen and Yann Novak.

Artist BJ Nilsen’s sound installation DTLA, draws on the aural environment of Los Angeles. Just as The Broad’s porous architectural “veil” subtly interweaves natural light and glimpses of the urban streetscape of Grand Avenue into its galleries, Nilsen will bring the soundscape of downtown Los Angeles into The Broad. Stillness, the second installation featured as part of Sky-lit, will be activated after dark, and is a sound and light work by Los Angeles multidisciplinary artist Yann Novak. Stillness creates an immersive environment for reflection, inviting visitors to contemplate the effect of climate and light on their physical and emotional states.

Tickets will go on sale at 10 a.m. on Friday, Feb. 6. Tickets are $10 and will be reserved for every half hour from 3 p.m. through 10 p.m., with the last entry at 9 p.m. Nilsen’s work will be presented beginning at 3 p.m., and Novak’s work will be added at 5 p.m., with the two works running simultaneously until 10 p.m. Tickets are available at www.thebroad.org/skylit.

The Broads have been at the center of the civic and cultural development of downtown Los Angeles since they moved to the city in 1964. The couple has spent five decades assembling two of the world’s most admired collections of postwar and contemporary art, with the aim of creating a widely accessible public collection. In addition to their personal collection, they created The Broad Art Foundation in 1984 as a lending library of contemporary art for museums around the world. The foundation, which will be headquartered in the new museum, has made more than 8,000 loans to over 500 museums

The Broad Museum (Official Website)

Construction is scheduled to begin next month on a high-end residential development adjacent to L'Ermitage Beverly Hills.

Empire at Burton Way, a luxury condominium complex from Los Angeles-based Empire Property Group, will rise from a roughly quarter-acre property at 9265 Burton Way. Plans for the five-story edifice call for 23 residential units -including two reserved for very-low income households- and underground parking accommodations for up to 48 vehicles.

Empire Property Group will entice potential residents with their project's close proximity to a variety of high-end stores and restaurants. Prominent shopping districts along Rodeo Drive and Robertson Boulevard are both located within a one-mile radius of the development. Further incentives will include hotel-like amenities and a a scenic rooftop common area.

According to an official website, the low-rise structure will feature "an innovative combination of imported building materials with superior finishes." Designs from Levin-Morris Architects indicate that proposed exterior materials include cement plaster, natural stone, anodized aluminum and wood cladding. The project will also maintain a series of palm trees along Burton Way, responding to the linear rhythm of the front facade.

Completion of Empire at Burton Way is expected in slightly over two years. The project follows a similar residential complex recently completed by Empire Property Group in Bel Air.

Empire at Burton Way (Empire Property Group)
Planning Commission Report: 9265 Burton Way (City of Beverly Hills)
Architectural Commission Report: 9265 Burton Way (City of Beverly Hills)

Last October, vague plans emerged for a 12-story hotel on a half-acre property located just north of Sunset Boulevard. Now, a document from the Central Hollywood Neighborhood Council has finally revealed details about the once mysterious development.

According to the agenda for an upcoming meeting of the Council's Planning and Land Use Management Committee, the proposed mid-rise structure at 1523 Wilcox Avenue would feature 220 guest rooms and multiple food and beverage venues. Plans filed with the City of Los Angeles call for a 13,000-square-foot restaurant and bar which would be attached to the building's lobby. Other amenities would include a second-floor pool and bar, a penthouse lounge, a rooftop deck and underground parking accommodations for up to 125 vehicles.

Situated midway between Hollywood and Sunset Boulevards, 1523 Wilcox Avenue would provide guests with easy access to a variety of tourist attractions. Not unexpectedly, it is one of several hotel projects currently planned or underway on surrounding blocks. North on Selma Avenue, construction kicked off last year for the highly-anticipated Dream Hollywood. To the south, a Jack in the Box restaurant near Amoeba Music is also expected to give way for a hotel.

Another Mid-Rise Hotel Planned for Hollywood (Building Los Angeles)
Planning and Land Use Management: February 9, 2015 (CHNC)

The Vermont Apartments

Soaring high above Wilshire Bouelvard, the $200 million Vermont Apartments serve as ostentatious symbols of the recent influx of upscale housing into previously downmarket Koreatown. The densely populated community, long overlooked due to its isolation from the Southern California freeway network, has recently become a residential hotspot due in part to its relative affordability and thriving night life. Consequently, the market has responded with dozens of new and revived residential developments in all reaches of the neighborhood, including adaptive reuse projects and ground-up construction.

Now, this ongoing wave of multi-family development is pushing east towards MacArthur Park. Take a quarter-mile trip down Virgil Avenue, where a series of new mixed-use developments are replacing blighted properties on Koreatown's eastern fringe.

3033 Wilshire Boulevard: 2014

In January, Colorado-based developer UDR Incorporated broke ground on an 18-story apartment tower at 3033 Wilshire Boulevard. The $107 million development, currently the tallest building under construction in Koreatown, unexpectedly revived a long-forgotten proposal known as Circa on Wilshire. Plans for the tower call for 190 residential units, seated above 5,500 square feet of retail space and a four-level parking garage.

Designs from Steinberg Architects give the building a series of protruding decks which will gradually change in shape and size while moving up the tower's mass. The building's facade materials will consist primarily of glass.

3033 Wilshire Boulevard is scheduled for delivery in 2016.

3033 Wilshire Boulevard: 2016 (Image: Steinberg Architects)

Sixth and Virgil (Image: Century West Partners)

Almost directly across the street, Century West Partners is gearing up to begin work on a low-rise development known as Sixth and Virgil. The mixed-use complex, designed by Santa Monica-based Killefer Flammang Architects, will entail a seven-story structure with 399 apartments and 20,000 square feet of ground-floor commercial space. The project will rise from an unused 1.8-acre property which spans between Virgil and Commonwealth Avenues.

Sixth and Virgil will be Century West Partners' second major development in Koreatown, joining the nearly-finished K2LA complex located nearby on Berendo and New Hampshire Streets.

Sixth and Virgil

Continuing north, construction has progressed to the fifth and final floor of a new apartment building at the intersection of Virgil Avenue and Fifth Street. The project, which is linked to the Schaffel Development Company, will consist of 74 apartments and a two-level subterranean parking garage.

Plans for the low-rise complex have been in the works for more than one decade. Catalina Limited Partnership, owner of the property at 442 South Virgil Avenue, originally received entitlements for the development in 2004. Two mayoral administrations later, light has finally emerged at the end of the tunnel.

Shiny New Renderings for 3033 Wilshire Boulevard (Building Los Angeles)
Blighted Koreatown Lot to be Replaced with Mixed-Use Development (Building Los Angeles)
Case Information: ENV-2003-5387-MND (LADCP)

Jamison Services, one of Southern California's largest office landlords, recently filed plans with the City of Los Angeles to convert two of its numerous Wilshire Boulevard office buildings for residential use.

The first of these properties is a 13-story tower located near MacArthur Park. A case filing from the Los Angeles Department of City Planning indicates that the renovated building at 2500 Wilshire Boulevard would contain 248 residential units, in lieu of its current 230,000 square feet of office space. The developer also states that the project will utilize exemptions from "density limits, floor area, yard requirements and [a] site plan review."

The mid-rise structure, completed in 1969, would likely face competition from a second mixed-use development planned across the street. The New York-based Somerset Group, owner of the parking lot at 2525 Wilshire Boulevard, is currently pursuing construction permits for a seven-story residential-retail complex on the property.

One mile east into the heart of Koreatown, a 12-story tower at 3345 Wilshire Boulevard is also slated for residential conversion. Plans filed with the city indicate that Jamison Services has requested a zoning variance which would allow for 202 residential units within the 150,000-square-foot building. This total is significantly greater than the 150 dwellings currently permitted by code.

The two projects are representative of a change in strategy for Jamison Services, which has faced flagging occupancy rates in the wake of long term changes in the office market. Rather than fight the tide, the company has instead opted to capture Angelenos' insatiable appetite for urban housing by converting its weaker performing buildings to apartments.

Jamison Services has also begun investing in ground-up projects, including twin condominium towers near Staples Center and a 16-story development on a parking lot abutting the Wilshire Professional Building.

Case Information: ZA-2015-557-ZAD (LADCP)
Case Information: ZA-2015-548-ZV (LADCP)

Future home of the Korean American National Museum (Image: New American Media)

According to new information from the Los Angeles Department of City Planning, a proposed development which would house the Korean American National Museum (KANM) has received a design overhaul.

Revised plans for the half-acre property at 605 South Vermont Avenue call for a seven-story structure featuring 101 apartments above two floors of museum space. An earlier report from New America Media indicated that the museum would encompass 45,000 square feet of floor area, with amenities such as a community auditorium, two exhibition halls and a study room. However, the exact nature of the proposed changes to KANM are currently unclear. The original plan for the museum had called for a standalone three-story facility.

More definitively, city records indicate that KANM is planning for a three-level garage with parking accommodations for up to 146 vehicles and 83 bicycles. The proposed garage would offer slightly less parking than required by code, and will thus require a discretionary approval from the city.

Founded in 1991, KANM engages in programming tailored to support and preserve Korean American culture and history. Past events sponsored by KANM include a photographic history of Koreatown and an exhibition for Korean American contemporary art.

Despite these successes, the museum has encountered more than its fair share of obstacles during its quarter-century existence. In addition to various internal rifts and budget shortfalls, KANM has been forced to relocate nearly a half-dozen times since the year 2000. Consequently, finding a permanent home for the peripatetic museum became a priority for many community stakeholders. Their efforts finally bore fruit in 2012, when Los Angeles City Council President Herb Wesson helped secure the city-owned parking lot at Sixth Street and Vermont Avenue for a dedicated facility.

605 South Vermont Avenue

Korean American National Museum (Official Website)
Case Information Summary Sheet: ZA-2015-539-ZV-ZAA-DD-SPR (LADCP)
In Koreatown, Building a Museum of Our Own (New American Media)

The modest Beverly Hills skyline will soon be augmented by a striking five-star hotel tower.

Earlier this year, a team of investors lead by the Alagem Capital Group broke ground on the new Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills. The $200 million project, located at the high-profile intersection of Wilshire and Santa Monica Boulevards, will consist of a 12-story tower with 170 guest rooms, luxury retail establishments, and other ancillary uses.

Designs from architecture firms Gensler and Pierre-Yves Rochon call for a structure primarily clad in white stone, featuring strong horizontal lines and curving forms which are typical of the Streamline Moderne style. The building's interior will maintain a similar aesthetic, featuring a "rich palette of burnished bronze, warm white stone, [and] Lalique installations throughout."

Beverly Hills Waldorf Astoria (All images: Waldorf Astoria)

Each guest room will feature floor-to-ceiling windows and private balconies, offering unobstructed views of the cityscape in all directions. These accommodations will be complemented by generous amenities, including garden patios, a luxury spa and a spacious rooftop pool deck.

When finished in 2017, the Beverly Hills location will be the Waldorf Astoria's first new build on the West Coast of the United States. The project is a prime component of an approximately $2 billion development wave currently underway along the Beverly Hills-Century City border.

Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills (Official Website)
Big Century City/Beverly Hills Developments Get Moving (Building Los Angeles)

Earlier this month, developer Hudson Pacific Properties commenced excavation for Icon, a 14-story office tower on the Sunset Bronson Studios campus (SBS).

The 200-foot tall edifice, designed by architecture firm Gensler, will rise from the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Van Ness Avenue, creating a total of 315,000 square feet of creative office space. Artistic renderings portray a mid-rise structure, described by the Architect's Newspaper as consisting of "five rectangular, stacked volumes, offset horizontally to create exterior terraces."

Icon is part of a $150 million expansion of Sunset Bronson Studios which will completely remodel the eastern half of the approximately 10-acre campus. Plans call for the construction of a 90,000-square-foot production facility and a 1,600-car parking garage along Van Ness Avenue, both of which broke ground last September. The project also includes the refurbishment of the SBS Executive Office Building, a 1920s structure which once housed the headquarters of Warner Brothers.

The Los Angeles Times previously reported that completion of the SBS expansion is expected by late 2016.

Icon at SBS (Images: Gensler via the Architect's Newspaper)

Image: Hudson Pacific Properties

Big Sunset Bronson Studios Expansion to Break Ground Next Week (Building Los Angeles)
Office Tower to rise next to Historic Hollywood Studio (Los Angeles Times)

Construction underway on Altitude at Howard Hughes Center

Nearly three decades after work first began on Westchester's Howard Hughes Center, construction is slated to begin soon on a low-rise residential development which would complete the build-out of the mixed-use campus.

Earlier this month, Dallas-based Mill Creek Residential Trust announced plans to build the Village at Howard Hughes Center, a 375-unit apartment complex. The project will rise from an approximately three-acres of land at 5901 and 6055 Center Drive, creating three six-story buildings with ground-level parking garages. When completed in 2018, the low-rise development will feature spacious outdoor courtyards and multiple rooftop entertainment decks.

Altitude at Howard Hughes Center (Image: TCA Architects)

Construction of the Village is scheduled to overlap with a similar project from Equity Residential known as Altitude at Howard Hughes Center. Altitude, which broke ground nearly one year ago, will consist of two six-story buildings with a cumulative 545 residential units. The project is scheduled for delivery in the third quarter of 2016.

The Village and Altitude are both motivated in part by the increased need for additional housing in close proximity to the tech jobs of the Westside. In recent months, name-brand companies such as Google and Yahoo have announced plans to relocate their Southern California operations to the Playa Vista community, which is located less than a mile from the Howard Hughes Center.

Altitude at Howard Hughes Center (Green) and the Village at Howard Hughes Center (Red)

Mill Creek Residential Secures Joint Venture Equity for West Los Angeles Res Development (RENTV)
Introducing Altitude at Howard Hughes Center (Building Los Angeles)

1715 N. Bronson Avenue (Image: Tate Snyder Kimsey Architects)

According to an environmental report published by the Los Angeles Department of City Planning, yet another low-rise residential development is headed for Hollywood.

Last September, developer Pristine Properties, LLC filed plans with the city for a seven-story apartment complex on an approximately one-acre property near the Hollywood Freeway. The project, located at 1715 North Bronson Avenue, would feature 89 dwelling units and subterranean parking accommodations for up to 146 vehicles and 117 bicycles.

The design of the proposed development comes from Tate Snyder Kimsey Architects, a national firm whose recent work includes the Historic Core's Topaz apartment complex. Renderings for 1715 North Bronson portray a distinctly modern structure, clad with corrugated metal, mesh screen and plaster.

Plans for 1715 North Bronson call for a standard array of communal amenities, including a ground-floor fitness center and an outdoor swimming pool. Additionally, the building's seventh floor would feature a residential club room and an outdoor sky deck with views of the Hollywood Hills.

The project would rise next-door to the Lombardi House, a restored Victorian farmhouse which is now used as an event venue and vacation home. The charming two-story edifice, built in 1904, stands as a reminder of Hollywood's rural past, having survived both the neighborhood's near-complete redevelopment and the construction of the bustling 101 Freeway. Previous owners of the house include former United States Senator Cornelius Cole and the namesake Lombardi family.

Groundbreaking for 1715 North Bronson is anticipated this coming July, with delivery expected to follow in early 2018. Construction of the residential complex would likely overlap with that of 5750 Hollywood Boulevard, a mixed-use development planned for the nearby site of a shuttered billiards club.

ENV-2014-3610-MND (LADCP)
DIR-2014-3609-SPR (LADCP)
1717 Bronson (Tate Snyder Kimsey Architects)

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