Steven Sharp WELCOME HOME

Marina Del Rey’s so-called Arts/Loft District may not have much in the way of art, but the neighborhood will be adding yet another low-rise residential building to the mix. Plans were submitted to the city in early February for a 67-unit condo development at 4091 Redwood Avenue featuring 7,500 square feet of commercial space. The new residential building would rise five stories, replacing one of the last remaining warehouse structures from prior to the neighborhood’s mid-2000 development boom.

In Spring 2013, the West LA-based California Landmark Group broke ground on the LC, an 84-unit mixed-use development at the northern end of Larchmont Boulevard. Fast forward to Winter 2014, and the $40 million development now rises four stories above Melrose Avenue, eradicating what was formerly a vacant lot. With just under 3,500 square feet of ground floor commercial space, the LC adds more feet on the ground in an already-walkable section of the Hollywood neighborhood.

Most of the news coming out of Hollywood’s development front in recent months has been bad, but there are glimmers of hope to be found. Three nondescript buildings just west of Sunset Boulevard and La Brea Avenue are slated for demolition were recently demolished, making way for a new mixed-use development. Located at 7124 Sunset, the 44-unit building would rise to a maximum height of 65 feet, containing 3,000 square feet of ground level restaurant space.

Amongst the first developers to cash in on Downtown LA’s 21st century residential boom, Geoff Palmer has lined the Central City’s freeway ring with his Italian Renaissance themed apartment buildings. True to form, his newest projects both overlook the 110, albeit in very different parts of the neighborhood. The Lorenzo, which stands seven stories tall, occupies the majority of a city block bounded by Flower Street, Adams Boulevard, Grand Avenue and 23rd Street.

Resurgent Koreatown continues on its upward trajectory, with a new residential development planned one block south of Wilshire Boulevard. A surface parking lot at 2867 Sunset Place, just a short walk from Lafayette Park, is set to make way for a new 60-unit apartment building. Located three blocks east of Wilshire/Vermont Station, the development would include parking accommodations for 77 vehicles. This section of the neighborhood is currently in the midst of mini-development boom, with the signs of adaptive re-use projects and ground up construction apparent throughout the neighborhood.

The controversial Village at Westfield Topanga, scourge of neighbors and Southern California taxpayer advocates alike, is shrinking. According to an economic feasibility study commissioned by the LA City Council, the Australian mall developer has dropped its plans for a hotel as part of the first phase of their Warner Center mega-project. The hotel, which Westfield may still pursue at a later date, would have risen 16-stories from the intersection of Topanga Canyon Boulevard and Erwin Street.

We’re one month into construction on the $2 billion Crenshaw/LAX Line, and the view from Exposition Boulevard has already changed significantly. With Earlez Grille safely relocated two blocks south, the low-rise commercial structures which previously stood next to Expo/Crenshaw Station are no more. By 2020, this now vacant lot will sit above the northern terminus of Metro’s newest light rail line. Set to add 8.5 miles of track and seven new stations to the Metro Rail network, long term plans call for extensions of the Crenshaw Line to Wilshire Boulevard and even as far north as Hollywood.

UPDATE: Information supplied by Curbed LA indicates that the above rendering no longer represents the current vision for the project. Plans now call for 200 apartments and 4,700 square feet of retail space. Sunset Boulevard, already in the midst of a pronounced building boom, is adding yet another large scale project to the pipeline. According to a recent case filing with the Department of City Planning, the parking lot adjacent to the historic Earl Carroll Theatre will be replaced with a new mixed-use complex.

The Hollywood skyline was starting to get a little sparse, with construction cranes having recently disappeared at both Emerson College and Blvd 6200. Then, along came the $380 million Columbia Square development to save the day. While little more than a giant dirt pit at this point in time, developer Kilroy Realty will eventually turn the parcel at 6121 Sunset Boulevard into over 300,000 square feet of new Class-A office space and a 20-story residential high-rise.

Back in January, news of a supportive housing project adjacent to the Gold Line’s Indiana Station was met with hostility from Boyle Heights residents. Hopefully a proposed transit oriented development next to Soto Station will get a warmer response. According to a recent case filing with LADCP, plans are in the works for a 64,000 square foot mixed-use structure near the intersection of 1st and Soto Streets. Rising six stories, the project would consist of 50 residential units, 3,400 square feet of street level commercial space, and 8,500 square feet of office space on its top floor.