Inglewood WELCOME HOME

Yesterday, a cadre of local officials and former athletes joined NFL Commissioner and Rams owner Stan Kroenke to break ground on the Rams’ highly anticipated Inglewood stadium. The $2.66-billion project, located at the former Hollywood Park racetrack, will seat over 70,000 spectators for NFL games starting in 2019. The Los Angeles Times reports that the facility could also play host to events such as the NCAA Final Four, the College Football Playoffs and events for the LA 2024 Olympic bid.

The removal of two of Hollywood Park’s landmark freeway signs signals that the planned redevelopment of the former racetrack has is on the cusp of begining material construction. The sprawling project site - bounded by Century Boulevard, Prairie Avenue and Pincay Drive - will be converted by real estate firms Wilson Meany and Stockbridge Capital Group over the next decade into a mixed-use neighborhood featuring some 3,000 residential units, 620,000 square feet of stores and restaurants, a 300-key hotel and 25 acres of public parks.

High above the traffic congestion of the 405 Freeway, an elevated viaduct for the $2-billion Crenshaw/LAX light rail line is beginning to take form. According to a notice posted to Metro’s website, crews from Walsh/Shea Corridor Constructors (WSCC) are currently implementing cast-in-drilled-hole construction in preparation for the I-405 bridge’s false work. WSCC recently assembled the rebar cage for a support pillar on the upcoming bridge, which will allow Crenshaw Line trains to safely bypass both a freeway offramp and the busy intersection of Florence Avenue and La Cienega Boulevard.

Prospective season ticket holders for the Los Angeles Rams have stumbled across a sleek new rendering of the team’s future Inglewood home. The image, which is displayed on the Rams’ season ticket deposit website, offers a new perspective of the currently unnamed venue. Highlights include a detailed look at the stadium’s swooping roof canopy, which was designed by HKS Architects. Plans call for a 175-foot tall structure which will be composed of metal borders and ETFE, a clear, lightweight fabric which offers similar transparency to a car windshield.

With design work now complete, construction is ready to begin for a new senior center in Downtown Inglewood. The project, which was designed by gkkworks and based on design concepts from Gwynne Pugh Urban Studio (GP-US), will consist of a two-story building located at the corner of Locust and Queen Streets. Plans call for a lunch program, exercise facilities, communal gathering spaces and social services for residents of Inglewood and the neighboring communities of Hawthorne and Lennox.