With over 5,000 residential units under construction, Downtown Los Angeles has been a bright spot in the midst of Southern California’s debilitating housing crisis. There are few places where this is more apparent than the three block stretch of Pico Boulevard between Olive and Hope streets, where five new mixed-use developments are rising simultaneously.
At the northwest corner of Pico and Olive Street, excavation is progressing for an eye-catching residential-retail complex. The low-rise development, dubbed the Project at Pico, will include 360 condominiums, 382 underground parking spaces and approximately 6,400 square feet of street-level commercial space. Designs from architecture firm AC Martin call for a pair of seven-story structures, offering amenities such as a swimming pool, a fitness center and public green space along Pico Boulevard. The Project at Pico is the first stage of a larger $750 million development by a joint venture between Mack Urban and AECOM, which could yield as many as 1,900 residential units when completed in 2024. Previous reports have indicated that the second stage of the project - which includes a 37-story condominium tower - could break ground later this year.
West across the intersection, concrete and rebar continues to rise for the Olive & Pico complex, a mixed-use development owned by the Arizona-based Wolff Company. The seven-story project, designed by TCA Architects, will feature 293 apartments and 17,300 square feet of ground-floor commercial space when completed in 2016. Olive & Pico will offer fewer parking spaces than residential units, a rarity for new construction in Los Angeles.
The Wolff Company and TCA Architects are also collaborating on a sister development to Olive & Pico on an adjacent property at the intersection of 12th Street and Grand Avenue. The project, sometimes known as G12, will include 347 apartments and 18,500 square feet of ground-floor commercial space. Like its phase one counterpart, G12 will also offer fewer parking spaces than total residential units.
Continuing west, excavation is well underway for 1249 South Grand Avenue, a mixed-use complex from Los Angeles-based 4D Development & Investment. The project, slated for the former site of the Ponet Square Hotel, will consist of a seven-story structure featuring 112 apartments and approximately 5,000 square feet of ground-floor retail and restaurant space. Plans also call for a slew of residential amenities, including a swimming pool, a fitness center and a rooftop deck.
Site preparation recently commenced for the first phase of Onyx, a low-rise development by Fashion District landlord Jade Enterprises. The first phase of the project, a seven-story building at the southeast corner of Pico Boulevard and Hope Street, will include 162 apartments, 163 parking spaces and 13,600 square feet of ground-floor commercial space. The two-building complex, designed by TCA Architects, will offer a total of 410 apartments and 42,000 square feet of retail space when completed.