Steven Sharp WELCOME HOME

As the Expo Line marches west to Santa Monica, so do the opportunities for transit oriented developments surrounding its stations. The under-construction Palms Station already sits within one of LA’s most densely populated neighborhoods, but that hasn’t stopped the folks over at Los Angeles Transit Neighborhood Plan from drawing up a conceptual design for an adjacent mixed-use TOD. In LATNP’s vision, the strip mall located on National Boulevard just north of the 10 freeway would be demolished to make way for apartments above a pedestrian friendly retail complex.

While Pico Boulevard east of Sepulveda is an inviting, walkable street flush with retail options, it’s a different story on the opposite side of the 405. Highlights on this stretch of Pico include the loading dock of the West LA Best Buy (which greets the street like the back end of a DVD player) and the Fantasy Island strip club (a venerable Westside landmark with googie signage and a lighthouse). As luck would have it, some positive changes could be on the way.

Travelers along the 405⁄10 interchange may have noticed a wood structure sprouting up on the vacant lot next to Sepulveda Boulevard’s kitchy, mid-century IHOP. This would in fact be a mixed-use development from Century West Properties, dubbed “The 2900.“ The six-story structure features 48 residential units above roughly 1,500 square feet of ground floor office space. Upper levels consist of two-story loft units, offering private sundecks with sweeping views of the Westside (seriously, check out the picture below).

Let the stucco rise on the Westside. Earlier this year, a nondescript single family home at the corner of Centinela Avenue and Culver Drive was unceremoniously demolished. Fast forward to December, and an equally nondescript five-story structure containing twelve rental units has risen in its place. The apartments are located just a short drive from a variety of Westside activity and employment hubs, including Venice, Playa Vista, Culver City and Santa Monica.

My oh my, that is a lot of dirt. Kitty-corner to the Expo Line’s Culver City Station, construction crews are busy with excavation work for Access Culver City. The mixed-use development from Greystar Real Estate Partners is slated to open its doors in 2015, creating 115 apartments above ground floor commercial space. The five-story structure, designed by Togawa Smith Martin, will greet the intersection of Washington and National Boulevards with a 7,000 square foot public plaza.

Feast your eyes on grainy, black and white renderings of 1836 Colby, the latest residential project to draw the ire of development averse Westside residents. The four-story, 49-unit building would rise at the intersection of Colby and Missouri Avenues, with architecture from Glendale-based Uriu & Associates. As is the norm with any new development in West Los Angeles, the neighbors are not happy. A group of homeowners in adjacent 1830 Colby are up in arms over the project, citing a variety of factors including the building’s height, the deleterious effects of living next to a construction site, and the potential loss of “a row of 8 beautiful, mature Eucalyptus trees between property lines.“ Oy vey.

While Canadian developers are planning skyscrapers for Downtown Los Angeles, development schemes are a little more subdued on the low-slung Westside. Out in Culver City, the Vancouver-based Bastion Development Corporation is midway through construction on the Oliver Apartments, a mixed-use complex featuring 30 residential units and roughly 8,700 square feet of ground floor retail space. Renderings of the project portray a modern, four-story structure, accented with wood paneling and large street level windows.

While foundation work for Access Culver City moves slower than molasses, the Runyon Group is making quick work of their mixed-use development across the street. The Platform at Culver City broke ground in November 2013, and is slated to offer more than 80,000 square feet of high end retail, destination restaurants, and creative office space when complete. Designed by Abramson Teiger Architects, the project entails several new buildings, in addition to the adaptive reuse of two existing low-rise structures.

Less than one mile north of LAX, developer Decron Properties is pushing towards the finish line on a $105 million mixed-use development. Playa Del Oro West, consisting of 260 luxury apartments and 5,000 square feet of ground floor commercial space, is topped out at 7270 Manchester Avenue, replacing a formerly vacant lot one block west of Lincoln Boulevard. Designed by Van Tilburg, Banyard & Soderbergh (Picasso Brentwood, 3670 Wilshire), the seven-story structure will be clad in exterior materials including cement plaster and stone veneer.

West LA’s Sawtelle District, commonly referred to as Little Osaka, may be getting a new residential complex in the near future. Next week, the Los Angeles City Planning Commission is scheduled to review plans for the Notting Hill Apartments, a 52-unit development proposed for the southeast corner of Sawtelle Boulevard and Missouri Avenue. Designed by Newport Beach’s MJS Design Group, the 38,000 square foot building would rise five stories, featuring multiple outdoor common areas and a three level underground parking garage.