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Illithid Dude
May 29, 2015, 9:08 PM
Got a quick glance towards 9900, its clearly marked as Wanda, but there appeared to be no activity, no equipment on site yet, but I did only get a cursory glace at it

Yeah, I drove by it today too and it looked like one big empty pit. Hopefully something will happen with it soon. Either way, I added it to the front page.

losangelesnative
May 29, 2015, 9:14 PM
According to curbed LA there's a huge new project in the works at the crossroads of the world in Hollywood
30 story hotel
31 and 32 story apartment towers
Rehab of the crossroads building

blackcat23
May 29, 2015, 9:22 PM
According to curbed LA there's a huge new project in the works at the crossroads of the world in Hollywood
30 story hotel
31 and 32 story apartment towers
Rehab of the crossroads building

http://la.curbed.com/archives/2015/05/crossroads_of_the_world_redevelopment.php

308 hotel rooms, 950 residential units (70 affordable), 95,000 sq. ft. office space and 1850,000 sq ft. of commercial space. 2,596 parking spaces, all underground.

http://cdn.cstatic.net/gridnailer/500x/http://cdn.cstatic.net/images/gridfs/55687147f92ea10e1300cc0b/Crossroads%20Curbed%202.jpg

http://cdn.cstatic.net/gridnailer/660x/http://cdn.cstatic.net/images/gridfs/55687257f92ea12f340201e2/Crossroads%20Curbed%201one.jpg

http://cdn.cstatic.net/gridnailer/660x/http://cdn.cstatic.net/images/gridfs/556880e9f92ea10600001be9/Crossroads%20Curbed%203.jpg

http://cdn.cstatic.net/gridnailer/660x/http://cdn.cstatic.net/images/gridfs/5568897df92ea143a400128e/Crossroads%20Curbed%204.jpg

DistrictDirt
May 29, 2015, 9:53 PM
"Certainly large developments like this ... do get people paying attention to them," Gritzner says, but adds that unofficial, early outreach to "people in the community" has given him the sense that people might be more open to this development than they have been to others because it will reinvigorate a historic property.

A historic property you say, eh? Kind of like the Capitol Records building.

Illithid Dude
May 29, 2015, 10:16 PM
This is huge. I love how three dimensional this project is, focusing on the entire neighborhood instead of just one insular area. It getting built, though, is another story. I'm sure the La Mirada neighborhood association is already in talks with Silverstein about this...

colemonkee
May 29, 2015, 10:36 PM
Silverstein took one look at this project and already started shopping for his next vacation home.

Munchitup
May 29, 2015, 10:42 PM
While I like the idea of reinvigorating the Crossroads of the World, I wish there wasn't so much tearing-down involved.

If I'm looking at the renderings right, these are really classic Hollywood apartments that would be razed for a mixed-user:

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Hollywood,+Los+Angeles,+CA/@34.098955,-118.336314,3a,75y,251.46h,87.55t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1svNsjKD8tWb0jMmlviqD8tA!2e0!4m2!3m1!1s0x80c2bf07045279bf:0xf67a9a6797bdfae4!6m1!1e1

Seems like it faces a huge uphill battle. There are also two churches that would essentially be consumed by the project (they are visible in the renderings). I would imagine that those congregations might not be totally excited about round-the-clock construction for a year.

I like it, don't love it, and don't expect to see it happen anytime soon. Too pie-in-the-sky.

EDIT: I do think the architecture looks great! Also my friends work/own Javista and that would go too. :(

112597jorge
May 30, 2015, 5:51 AM
I hope they build this project, a real game-changer.

A tremendous improvement for this area. This has to be built.

Quixote
May 30, 2015, 8:48 AM
^ "Game-changer" is quite an understatement. That area is presently a dump; the Selma/Highland project hasn't even broken ground yet. All the investment is in the area surrounding Vine.

Kingofthehill
May 31, 2015, 10:45 AM
^ "Game-changer" is quite an understatement. That area is presently a dump; the Selma/Highland project hasn't even broken ground yet. All the investment is in the area surrounding Vine.

Fully agreed. I am embarassed to show guests the surrounding vicinities of Hollywood (much less my old hood of East Hollywood. lol!) because of how fast it drops off. Quite a shocking drop-off, to be frank. This project - which hopefully gets built - will give that area a big shot in the arm.

brudy
May 31, 2015, 3:41 PM
This is pretty great if it happens, particularly the restoration of the old Crossroads section. I love that property and it's one of the last vestiges of old LA.

StethJeff
Jun 1, 2015, 1:56 AM
Fully agreed. I am embarassed to show guests the surrounding vicinities of Hollywood (much less my old hood of East Hollywood. lol!) because of how fast it drops off. Quite a shocking drop-off, to be frank. This project - which hopefully gets built - will give that area a big shot in the arm.

Agree completely. That honestly applies to all of Southern California. And the problem with all of LA's far-flung sites is that you have to drive people through a lot of shit along the way. Part of the reason why LA can never really put its best foot forward. A typical tourist in NYC, SF, Chicago, Seattle only sees the good without ever having to be exposed to the bad. Whether that's ultimately a good thing or a bad thing is obviously another discussion.

Quixote
Jun 1, 2015, 3:26 AM
Agree completely. That honestly applies to all of Southern California. And the problem with all of LA's far-flung sites is that you have to drive people through a lot of shit along the way. Part of the reason why LA can never really put its best foot forward. A typical tourist in NYC, SF, Chicago, Seattle only sees the good without ever having to be exposed to the bad. Whether that's ultimately a good thing or a bad thing is obviously another discussion.

LA's just a city that likes to rest on its laurels, hence the "laid-back" reputation. It's the reason why our airport, convention center, streets, sidewalks, etc. fell into such a state of disrepair in the first place. Now LA's finally starting to see/treat itself as a big city with the urban revitalization campaign of the last 10 years. I don't know if anyone else senses it, but I've also noticed a palpable uptick in civic identity/pride, and I don't think it's just a coincidence.

Bikemike
Jun 1, 2015, 9:29 AM
Fully agreed. I am embarassed to show guests the surrounding vicinities of Hollywood (much less my old hood of East Hollywood. lol!) because of how fast it drops off. Quite a shocking drop-off, to be frank. This project - which hopefully gets built - will give that area a big shot in the arm.

I don't even bother offering visitors a trip to Hollywood. I've had people visit me and forgo all of LA except for the beach cities only to plan a multi-day PCH trip up to SF. IMO Hollywood has lost most of its cachet and is now seen by outsiders as a place best encapsulated by the douchyness of The Entourage.

Lalaland
Jun 1, 2015, 10:55 AM
I don't even bother offering visitors a trip to Hollywood. I've had people visit me and forgo all of LA except for the beach cities only to plan a multi-day PCH trip up to SF. IMO Hollywood has lost most of its cachet and is now seen by outsiders as a place best encapsulated by the douchyness of The Entourage.

And yet, Hollywood and LA as a whole is looking better and has more to offer as a tourist destination than it has in many decades.

Quixote
Jun 1, 2015, 11:13 AM
I don't even bother offering visitors a trip to Hollywood. I've had people visit me and forgo all of LA except for the beach cities only to plan a multi-day PCH trip up to SF. IMO Hollywood has lost most of its cachet and is now seen by outsiders as a place best encapsulated by the douchyness of The Entourage.

Hollywood's a pretty vast neighborhood though. My geographic definition of it includes everything bounded by Hollywood, Melrose, Vermont, and La Cienega. WeHo, although a separate municipality, forms part of the same contiguous region.

I think if Hollywood continues on its current trajectory things will improve. Just make it an attractive place for young, educated types by luring in the same tech and media companies being recruited by these splashy new developments. By doing so, you outprice and outclass the douchebag wannabe types. Need proof that this formula works? Look no further than Santa Monica.

blackcat23
Jun 1, 2015, 1:24 PM
http://urbanize.la/post/first-glimpse-inside-1601-vine

Speaking of Hollywood, more renderings for 1601 Vine.

http://urbanize.la/sites/default/files/styles/1140w/public/field/image/vine2.JPG?itok=b-f919i0

http://urbanize.la/sites/default/files/styles/1140w/public/field/image/vine.JPG?itok=8G44nTEM

brudy
Jun 1, 2015, 1:47 PM
If we're talking Hollywood & Highland, that's pretty generic although there are some cool smaller museums around the area. But depending upon who's visiting I'll take them to the Observatory and probably to Amoeba. I have taken people to Crossroads of the World, just because it's so cool. Most of my visitors are from the east coast, where stuff like that doesn't exactly exist. Hollywood is getting better, especially that area around Vine and westward for a few blocks.

colemonkee
Jun 1, 2015, 2:04 PM
Isn't 1601 Vine going to be marketed as creative office space? If so, who are these people wearing suits in the lobby? Salespeople? ;)

SimonLA
Jun 1, 2015, 5:19 PM
Thank you Blackcat--I love this little office tower and think it fits in perfectly with the surroundings. One question--why is there nothing planned for the parking lot at Hollywood and Vine? Shouldn't there be something similar (or bigger) at one of the most famous corners in the world?

Bikemike
Jun 1, 2015, 8:06 PM
Hollywood's a pretty vast neighborhood though. My geographic definition of it includes everything bounded by Hollywood, Melrose, Vermont, and La Cienega. WeHo, although a separate municipality, forms part of the same contiguous region.

I think if Hollywood continues on its current trajectory things will improve. Just make it an attractive place for young, educated types by luring in the same tech and media companies being recruited by these splashy new developments. By doing so, you outprice and outclass the douchebag wannabe types. Need proof that this formula works? Look no further than Santa Monica.


Santa Monica is a good point, although I don't think it was ever as douchy, or run-down, as Hollywood. The highly commercialized movie industry ensures this douchiness will always be centered in Hollywood and I would be pleasantly surprised if Hollywood ever attracted as much tech as Santa Monica has.

Even so, Hollywood's luster for tourists has traditionally been Hollywood of old. Nowadays Hollywood is like the old-Elvis. It's kind of like Disney. People used to think it was cool but now it's kind of lame touristy crap that informed travelers try to avoid. How can you make it desirable without rehashing what made it famous?

Quixote
Jun 1, 2015, 10:10 PM
Santa Monica is a good point, although I don't think it was ever as douchy, or run-down, as Hollywood. The highly commercialized movie industry ensures this douchiness will always be centered in Hollywood and I would be pleasantly surprised if Hollywood ever attracted as much tech as Santa Monica has.

Even so, Hollywood's luster for tourists has traditionally been Hollywood of old. Nowadays Hollywood is like the old-Elvis. It's kind of like Disney. People used to think it was cool but now it's kind of lame touristy crap that informed travelers try to avoid. How can you make it desirable without rehashing what made it famous?

You're too fixated on Hollywood Boulevard between Highland and Vine. What about the Griffith Observatory, Hollywood Bowl, and Barnsdall Art Park? Those are, among other things, pretty cool in my book.

I just think that if you create livability and bring quality jobs, the rest will start to sort itself out. Douchebaggery isn't limited to v-neck-wearing meatheads and bimbos in short, skin-tight leopard print dresses and hoochie boots; nor is it limited to those who work in the motion picture industry (see Wall Street). If we're not talking about trashy airheads with no discernible talent, then we're talking about hipsters associated with things like organic food, fedora hats, scruffy beards, etc. The latter tends to be more cultured, intellectual while the former isn't. One is tolerable, one is not.

Munchitup
Jun 2, 2015, 12:37 AM
As someone who lived several years right at the crux of the Hollywood tourist area, it seemed the vast majority of the meathead/broho population in the neighborhood were visiting from elsewhere.

There were certainly more hipsters, Latino families, and run-of-the-mill studio professionals than "party people." Especially in specific areas of Hollywood like around LACC and Franklin Village.

I would hope that Hollywood doesn't end up with the population mix of Santa Monica, while it would be nice to have the area feel more middle class, I think it would make for a wholly less interesting neighborhood.

circuitfiend
Jun 2, 2015, 12:49 AM
Scaffolding has gone up at Sunset/Doheny (former Scandia restaurant, back in the day).

Bikemike
Jun 2, 2015, 12:49 AM
You're too fixated on Hollywood Boulevard between Highland and Vine. What about the Griffith Observatory, Hollywood Bowl, and Barnsdall Art Park? Those are, among other things, pretty cool in my book.

I just think that if you create livability and bring quality jobs, the rest will start to sort itself out. Douchebaggery isn't limited to v-neck-wearing meatheads and bimbos in short, skin-tight leopard print dresses and hoochie boots; nor is it limited to those who work in the motion picture industry (see Wall Street). If we're not talking about trashy airheads with no discernible talent, then we're talking about hipsters associated with things like organic food, fedora hats, scruffy beards, etc. The latter tends to be more cultured, intellectual while the former isn't. One is tolerable, one is not.

Hipsters in Hollywood still manage to be douchey and I contend that not all hipsters are made equal. For instance you will find a huge ocean of difference between Portland and LA hipsters, the latter of whom have a much more self-conscious wannabe vibe :yuck: Douchey is not really a type of dress so much as a state of mind. Hollywood and the movie industry seems to be really good at filtering self-conscious wannabes INTO LA. Like even in their hipsterness they manage to be super douchey and into themselves. I totally get why a lot of more informed travelers tend to skip this neighborhood altogether and I don't even bother recommending it unless they specifically ask to see it. My rationale is pretty much anyone is aware of Hollywood so if visitors had any interest they would have planned without my prompting.

But I will agree that the Bowl is a nice destination. It's one of those places locals know to be awesome reason to live here. I guess I was just talking about the Hollywood you actually walk through. Although technically in Hollywood, being perched up in a remote ravine you have to drive to isn't really the same as visiting an urban neighborhood. Unless you're there specifically to attend a concert (which is awesome btw) people don't go the bowl just to see it. By itself it's not much of a draw. Simply put I've found that Hollywood is kind of an overly-commercialized trap and it has a reputation as being kind of trashy, overrated, and uninteresting to the informed traveler.

By the way, I group travelers into two types. The Orlando/Hollywood type that loves buying themed T-shirts keychains and shotglasses (think National Lampoons) and the Lonely Planet/Anthony Bourdain type who has no interest in all that fuss and just wants to find "real" people and places. In my experience LA and especially Hollywood tends to drive the latter type away.

Bikemike
Jun 2, 2015, 12:59 AM
And Santa Monica is not comparable to Hollywood because unlike Hollywood, Santa Monica's virtue lies in being the most recognizable semblance of "city" in the metro, and this "city" being situated in a beautiful, iconic (LA supposed to = beaches), and natural setting.

And less douchey too :P

sopas ej
Jun 2, 2015, 1:07 AM
^^^
Santa Monica can be pretty douchey. It has long lost its slightly scuzzy yet laid back vibe, the way Hermosa Beach used to be until about 2001.

Bikemike
Jun 2, 2015, 1:36 AM
^^^Santa Monica these days has lost some of its douchiness to techies. What douchey was there was in Santa Monica was more like Stanford/Ivy League douchey than Hollywood douchey. And Santa Monica is more like a miniature SF or Seattle these days. It's become a pocket of ecotopia and techies surrounded by the stereotypical LA we know of (Benz driving Persian princesses, Jews, and barrios). Nowadays fewer failed Hollywood wannabe types than in days past. That scuzzy beach thing goes waaay further back and was lost to these aspiring Hollywood wannabes who also overtook the Venice area.

IMO after losing the punk scene Hermosa has been kinda douchey Bro'sville for decades.

DistrictDirt
Jun 2, 2015, 1:39 AM
^^^Santa Monica these days has lost some of its douchiness to techies. It's like a miniature SF or Seattle these days. It's a pocket of ecotopia and techies surrounded by the stereotypical LA we know of (Benz driving Persian princesses, Jews, and barrios). Nowadays fewer failed Hollywood wannabe types than in days past. That scuzzy beach thing goes waaay back even further and was lost to these aspiring Hollywood douches.

IMO after losing the punk scene Hermosa has been kinda douchey Bro's-ville for decades.

Its funny- as a relative newcomer to LA (a little over 5 years now), I just assumed Hermosa was always bro'sville. It wasn't until I picked up a copy of the Glen Friedman photo book My Rules and realized that half the photos of punk and hardcore bands were taken in Hermosa Beach that it occurred to me that the neighborhood used to be way more interesting and eclectic in the 80s and 90s than it is today. Reminds me of Georgetown in DC. During my time in DC (2004-2010) I only knew Georgetown as the poshest, douchiest part of town. Blew my mind when some friends clued me into the fact that Georgetown used to be the gutterpunk hangout back in the 80s. Gentrification is bananas.

Bikemike
Jun 2, 2015, 1:44 AM
Yup Hermosa was actually legit once. Center of the Hardcore universe. Nowadays it's Bromosa Beach. Our very own little patch of San Diego :cheers:

Quixote
Jun 2, 2015, 2:00 AM
Hipsters in Hollywood still manage to be douchey and I contend that not all hipsters are made equal. For instance you will find a huge ocean of difference between Portland and LA hipsters, the latter of whom have a much more self-conscious wannabe vibe :yuck: Douchey is not really a type of dress so much as a state of mind. Hollywood and the movie industry seems to be really good at filtering self-conscious wannabes INTO LA. Like even in their hipsterness they manage to be super douchey and into themselves.

Portlandia practically wrote the book on hipsterdom; of course it's going to attract its fair share of wannabes from all over who are self-conscious about their image.

Los Feliz/Silver Lake/Echo Park/Highland Park/Atwater Village hipsters are clearly not of the same breed as their Hollywood counterparts. Just speaking from personal experience, they tend to be professionals with college degrees who aren't "faking" anything. The former class is always what I'm referring to in terms of the LA hipster, as I hardly consider Hollywood douchebags to be "hipsters" in the traditional sense.

Bikemike
Jun 2, 2015, 2:10 AM
Portlandia practically wrote the book on hipsterdom; of course it's going to attract its fair share of wannabes from all over who are self-conscious about their image.

Los Feliz/Silver Lake/Echo Park/Highland Park/Atwater Village hipsters are clearly not of the same breed as their Hollywood counterparts. The former class is always what I'm referring to in terms of the LA hipster, as I hardly consider Hollywood douchebags to be "hipsters" in the traditional sense.

Silverlake hipsters are more "Portland" in that they are genuinely turned-off by your stereotypically image obsessed Hollywood wannabe. But in our behemoth of a city they are a drop in the bucket. I think it's safe to say Hollywood douchebags are much more pervasive and much more closely identified with LA's brand than is Silverlake, which could pretty much stand in for any other city's "hipster-quarters". In LA, Silverlake is relegated to the status of a requisite Chinatown. Every city big or small has one, but it doesn't say much for the city itself.

In the same way LA's long been typecast as being full of wannabe douchebags, Portland has been defined by hipsters long before Portlandia began satirizing it. SF has long been defined by hippies, Boulder by granola and so forth. These reputations are obviously oversimplifications but they also carry a lot of truth. I personally avoid Hollywood for the same reasons many of my visitor friends do. I don't care for the vibe.

Quixote
Jun 2, 2015, 2:21 AM
^ I disagree that they are merely just a drop in the bucket, at least not in terms of perception. Things have changed quite a bit in the last 10 years with the emergence/popularization of DTLA, Arts District, and NELA. Silver Lake/Echo Park in particular are clearly now the face of LA hipsterdom and not just to those who are "informed". Moreover, NELA has its own unique artistic legacy that has nothing to do with the film industry.

Bikemike
Jun 2, 2015, 2:42 AM
^ I disagree that they are merely just a drop in the bucket. I also think you're now just rehashing old stereotypes. Things have changed quite a bit in the last 10 years. Silver Lake/Echo Park are clearly now the face of LA hipsterdom and not just to those who are "informed".

You misunderstood me. My point was that despite the role of Silverlake within hipsterdom in overall, LA is still far too big to be defined to any great degree by this neighborhood much less an "improved" downtown that still probably isn't at the top of anyone's radar when they have only a couple weeks to spend in CA. You have to keep things in perspective and think from the visitor's point of view. Who's going to put aside three days of their trip to visit two coffeeshops and a Fixie shop on York and brave horrendous traffic to take pictures of the empty Hollywood Bowl? By themselves LA's individual sites aren't all that impressive.

And comparitively speaking anyway, Hollywood douchebaggery continues to define LA because the industry permeates LA culture FAR MORE than Silverlake does. You don't even have to work in the industry to take on this vibe. You'll find it in Agoura Hills or Manhattan Beach too. Hollywood nowadays may be less downtrodden or more fixie-obsessed than before but it's still Hollywood, and therefore even the improvements take on the polarizing douchebag vibe. All these improvements may be dressed differently and keeping up with trends but underneath they carry the same old douchey spirit. I guess that's my point. Really it always boils down to making an entire industry out of being image-obsessed and trying too hard. It will always be douchey as long as an industry based on images is the economic base.

IMO his remains a HUGE deterrent for visitors looking for "substance" in their travels. Again, I find that the Lonely Planet/Bourdain-watching backpackers more or less know there has to be some substance to a city as large and diverse as LA. They're too informed not to. But they still avoid it for the reasons above. I've had more than a handful of well informed visitors choose to skip LA because they didn't care to waste their time here.

I maintain that LA has tons of good stuff, but it's difficult to appreciate unless one lives here long enough to learn how to filter out the tons of lame stuff. So unlike some of the people who are obviously a little butt-hurt about it, I don't try to fight or argue with their feelings and can in fact fully understand why so many people feel this way and yet still be okay with living here.

Jaycruz
Jun 2, 2015, 3:56 AM
Being relatively new to LA myself, about 3-4 years, Took me a year to realize that I wasn't experiencing LA at all how the locals were. Long story short. I'm never leaving. Love this city and everything it offers, minus the traffic obviously.

I actually forsee Hollywood becoming a new tech center for the city. Its the only area of the city actually building new commercial mid-highrises and adding commercial anything if you think about it... No where else to build in santa monica and venice..... and the last bits of land in playa vista are already spoken for.

Santa Monica in my opinion is a lot like Hollywood. Its tourist central for LA. Take away the pier and the 3rd street promenade and what are you left with ? another LA beach town.

I see you guys brag about Santa Monica as being so pedestrian/bike friendly and being so urban and should be a praised for being so and somewhat copied but IMO, I think Santa Monica is one of the most over rated cities in the county.

Its a tourist trap to the fullest, congested, over priced, overrated, pricey generic food, once you get past 4th-5th street the pedestrian traffic dies off on some streets immediately and its FULL of parking, you guys slam downtown for parking but santa monica is not far behind, Are we forgetting the mega parking structures that line both sides of the 3rd street promenade and the residential apartments and condos that have tons of parking.

I would praise Long Beach more, being biased perhaps since I just moved here, but I think it has more going for it in terms of an urban feel and what the city has to offer, Minus the tech jobs. Fully separated bike lanes with barriers, Parking isn't easy to come by for residents, which I guess downtown actually works since traffic down there isn't horrible, their residential units downtown actually lack parking which works because the streets always have pedestrian activity.

Santa Monica overated. Long Beach, downtown and the Belmont shore district atleast, Continuously over looked and under appreciated on these threads.

Just a perspective from someone from the east coast who have seen what makes a functional downtown.

Lalaland
Jun 2, 2015, 4:23 AM
What's with all the Hipster this and Douchebag that nonsense? Sadly some of you guys really need a refresher course in tolerance and open mindedness. Can we please get back to development discussions?

dktshb
Jun 2, 2015, 4:27 AM
I have lived in Hollywood for 18 years and love the neighborhood. Runyon Canyon, the red line, Hollywood Bowl, Pantages Theater, Griffith Park, Amoeba Records, interesting architecture and so many good restaurants and shopping opportunities. Oh, and the people are not "hipster douchebags" either, they are actually a really nice diverse bunch.

Bikemike
Jun 2, 2015, 6:35 AM
Runyon Canyon is a great hike and has an amazing view but it's an ultra douchey trail. You know the Hollywood types. Over-sexified, overly dolled up, and unnaturally proportioned people just "out for a casual hike". It's like the Tom Ford agency had a field trip and everyone's trying WAY too hard to be regular people, defeating the whole purpose in the process :cool: Just google the words "Runyon Canyon Douche" and see how many results come back LOL

Why can't those people dress like the more down-to-earth people hiking Solstice or Icehouse Canyon? I guess my threshold for annoying showbiz types is lower than some here. :runaway:

Quixote
Jun 2, 2015, 8:28 AM
Why can't those people dress like the more down-to-earth people hiking Solstice or Icehouse Canyon? I guess my threshold for annoying showbiz types is lower than some here. :runaway:

Douchey is not really a type of dress so much as a state of mind.

...

We'll just leave it at that.

Illithid Dude
Jun 2, 2015, 8:59 AM
If you have no threshold for showbiz types you're probably living in the wrong city.

Quixote
Jun 2, 2015, 9:36 AM
If you have no threshold for showbiz types you're probably living in the wrong city.

Or Persian princesses, Jews, and barrios, for that matter.

Pretty obvious that this isn't the land of flannel, granola, and plain Janes. :haha:

blackcat23
Jun 2, 2015, 1:29 PM
http://urbanize.la/post/new-playa-vista-office-complex-revealed

This is Tishman Speyer's latest office complex in Playa Vista, currently under construction. Comprises slightly over 400,000 square feet of floor area, catacorner to Google's property. Design comes from Michael Maltzan Architecture.

http://urbanize.la/sites/default/files/styles/1140w/public/field/image/playa1.jpg?itok=2ow6EyO6

Steve8263
Jun 2, 2015, 1:52 PM
Are you sure that isn't One Santa Fe? ;)

bzcat
Jun 2, 2015, 7:07 PM
http://urbanize.la/post/new-playa-vista-office-complex-revealed

This is Tishman Speyer's latest office complex in Playa Vista, currently under construction. Comprises slightly over 400,000 square feet of floor area, catacorner to Google's property. Design comes from Michael Maltzan Architecture.


I like the way they've integrated the parking below grade. Much better than the surface parking lots just to the west (The Collective) and south (Hercules Campus)

cargocultpants
Jun 2, 2015, 7:11 PM
Blackcat, I think the page on MMA's site you meant to link to us http://www.mmaltzan.com/projects/the-brickyard/

blackcat23
Jun 2, 2015, 7:53 PM
Blackcat, I think the page on MMA's site you meant to link to us http://www.mmaltzan.com/projects/the-brickyard/

Thanks for the heads up. They changed their website on me after I posted.

LosAngelesSportsFan
Jun 2, 2015, 9:51 PM
Are you sure that isn't One Santa Fe? ;)

Lets call it 2 Santa Fe.... lol... They literally took one santa fe and bent it a bit

Illithid Dude
Jun 2, 2015, 11:13 PM
Lets call it 2 Santa Fe.... lol... They literally took one santa fe and bent it a bit

Just because this project is long and white does not make it One Santa Fe, just as much as two separate high rises being tall and glassy does not make those the same. Maltzan is one of the best architects and urban thinkers (read his book on Los Angeles, it's great!) that our city has, and I am always happy to see a developer choose him over some huge corporate architecture firm. I just wish he was designing office buildings for somewhere more urban than Playa Vista.

Bikemike
Jun 2, 2015, 11:26 PM
Or Persian princesses, Jews, and barrios, for that matter.

Pretty obvious that this isn't the land of flannel, granola, and plain Janes. :haha:

LOL just like how in that one judgemental map the region from Northern CA up through Vancouver was called Cascadia, I think Southern CA should be called "Kardashia". Or maybe "Car-dashia"

Bikemike
Jun 2, 2015, 11:36 PM
If you have no threshold for showbiz types you're probably living in the wrong city.

I do have a threshold but it's not high. I cringe when I see those obnoxious attention-whores gather at Runyon like a lemming run. It's like if someone from out of state told me to take him somewhere in LA where he could fulfill a stereotype way too easily Runyon Canyon would be my first stop. My favorite blogger ModernHiker (highly recommended! - he has the most amazing summaries of pretty much every single hiking trail in Southern California) feels the exact same way. But lucky for me LA is big enough that I can limit myself to small doses of Hollywood.

Quixote- I wasn't trying to be ironic but I think most people know what I'm talking about when I say other trails have more "normal down-to-earth people" than Runyon Canyon. I'm sure google's search results for "Runyon Canyon Douche" aren't a fluke either :D

Bikemike
Jun 2, 2015, 11:55 PM
Just because this project is long and white does not make it One Santa Fe, just as much as two separate high rises being tall and glassy does not make those the same. Maltzan is one of the best architects and urban thinkers (read his book on Los Angeles, it's great!) that our city has, and I am always happy to see a developer choose him over some huge corporate architecture firm. I just wish he was designing office buildings for somewhere more urban than Playa Vista.

Playa Vista is another HUGE opportunity blown by our planning department. It looks like Irvine or Costa Mesa. And I'm not sure how I feel about Maltzan. He does a lot of economical stuff and it's neat to take pictures of his buildings but up close it's very brutal. I'll give him credit for unconventional spatial programming. He's definitely not decorating boxes like everybody else is and for Playa Vista, Maltzan is definitely more out of the box than the usual shitbox crap that goes up there.

I'd rather hire Barbara Bestor (see the Blackbirds project in Echo Park, amazing). Now THAT's a thinker who understands and works with LA's architectural heritage. THIS nuanced and more thinking-person's architecture is the stuff LA should promote, not the gaudy and douchey side of things. It would be a dream if we could get her to do infill on a larger scale. I would go with PWP Landscape Architects for the grounds.

http://bestorarchitecture.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/01-Prestonl_Render_Green1.jpg

http://bestorarchitecture.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/04-Vestal_Render-green.jpg

bzcat
Jun 3, 2015, 12:11 AM
Playa Vista's form factor is a compromise because of NIMBY lawsuits. It's not fair to lay all the blame on the City or the developer. They both wanted something much denser and potentially taller development.

The Illusive Man
Jun 3, 2015, 12:11 AM
What's so spectacular about those houses? Really? Am I missing something here?

Bikemike
Jun 3, 2015, 12:46 AM
What's so spectacular about those houses? Really? Am I missing something here?

Uh, yeah! :rolleyes:

Here's my critique: In Blackirds Barbara Bestor pays heed to urban design as well as architecture. In LA there's usually a disconnect between the two with the architecture of the private winning out over any consideration for interplay with urban fabric (without consideration for urban design). Especially in LA where architects have usually been more interested in buildings as iconic objects rather than functional spaces (for example, Maltzan, Gehry, Mayne, etc.). In Blackbirds, Bestor opens up the site and avoids walling it off from the street by hiding parking within the complex and allowing the residences to face the street at a more humane scale. The individual units carry the vernacular of LA's single family residences but without ornamentation. It's a very pure and timeless treatment of a defining staple of LA.

But these are not detached homes. They are oriented like a bungalow courtyard (another definitively LA phenomenon), except unlike traditional bungalow courtyards, Bestor doesn't close the the courtyard off from the urban fabric either. Bestor encourages free movement within and without the property, blurring the distinction between private and public spaces. It's a mix between courtyard and detached. Public and private. Another recognition of LA's reluctant but growing embrace of shared spaces. And giving each home a distinct shape of its own lends the project a more organic feel and departs from the industrial past and from the tendency of developers to value-engineer "shoeboxes" in order to achieve density.

IMO Bestor acheives an ideal balance of density and respect for context and scale, a trait that is also lacking among the douchey "look at me" architects mentioned above, as well as the gaudy shitboxes going up evereywhere. Respect for vernacular (something LA has not developed, sorely lacks, and sorely needs). Acceptance for what LA really is and wants to be: Urban + suburban. Both car dependent and yet pedestrian oriented. Blackbirds is both a definitively LA project, and good. Bestor is one of the few people capable of achieving that.

These are the things that make this a rare but thoughtful project for our city. I'm not advocating that Bestor plunk one of these in the middle of downtown LA. I'm only using her example to say that thoughtful and respectful architecture that responds to social needs and context is much better than self-centered or "douchey" stuff we usually see.

Illithid Dude
Jun 3, 2015, 12:48 AM
Playa Vista was masterplanned in an environment that wasn't as hospitable to new urbanism as the LA of today is, so I accept its car-oriented nature. It's still better than the huge swath of undeveloped land that was there before.

Bikemike
Jun 3, 2015, 12:54 AM
Playa Vista's form factor is a compromise because of NIMBY lawsuits. It's not fair to lay all the blame on the City or the developer. They both wanted something much denser and potentially taller development.

I think Playa Vista's horrible walkability and total lack of vibrancy is the result of outdated zoning first. NIMBYs didn't draft the zoning rules.

timpdx
Jun 3, 2015, 1:25 AM
Not sold on the Blackbirds project. The center of the grouping is a huge slab of concrete. Big garages on the ground floor. Architecture is fine, nice mix of attached and joined homes, but that is a lot of pavement for a small project. Its hard to tell from the rendering, are there streets on both sides, or is the foreground street really a bike/pedestrian ROW only? Looks too narrow to be a city street.

I give Maltzan a pass, the firm works with tough, tough sites. Next to freeways, railways. And I think 1 Santa Fe is pretty decent given the conditions and constraints.

As far as Playa Vista, don't know how anyone expected anything but an office building in a park-like setting. That is the nature of the whole damn place (a wasted opportunity, oh well, that ship sailed 15 years ago)

sopas ej
Jun 3, 2015, 5:07 AM
Its funny- as a relative newcomer to LA (a little over 5 years now), I just assumed Hermosa was always bro'sville. It wasn't until I picked up a copy of the Glen Friedman photo book My Rules and realized that half the photos of punk and hardcore bands were taken in Hermosa Beach that it occurred to me that the neighborhood used to be way more interesting and eclectic in the 80s and 90s than it is today. Reminds me of Georgetown in DC. During my time in DC (2004-2010) I only knew Georgetown as the poshest, douchiest part of town. Blew my mind when some friends clued me into the fact that Georgetown used to be the gutterpunk hangout back in the 80s. Gentrification is bananas.

Bananas? This is an example of why gentrification can be awful.

Hermosa used to be really cool. Of the South Bay beach cities, it used to be the funkiest, but not too gritty like Venice was. I have fond memories of how Hermosa used to be; I learned how to rollerblade in Hermosa back in the early 90s. I remember when there was a cruisy sex shop on PCH where all kinds of people hung out. And Manhattan Beach was douchey even back then.

I still like to go to Hermosa, though, to walk along the pier and people-watch/check out the hotties. I like to eat at the New Orleans Cajun Cafe, too. I totally avoid the bars there, though. Although Hermosa has become what it's become, it's still not as bad as Pacific Beach in San Diego, or even Manhattan Beach, in my opinion.

sopas ej
Jun 3, 2015, 5:49 AM
Santa Monica overated. Long Beach, downtown and the Belmont shore district atleast, Continuously over looked and under appreciated on these threads.

Just a perspective from someone from the east coast who have seen what makes a functional downtown.

In my opinion, Santa Monica has better weather than Long Beach. Long Beach is always hotter in the summer than the other beach cities, because its coast faces south, and the PV Peninsula blocks the cool ocean breezes.

I like Long Beach too, and I've always felt that it is underrated. But it too has changed a lot in the last 25 years. I'm a bit biased myself; I grew up near Long Beach, and I went to Cal State Long Beach from 1990-1994. Belmont Shore used to be more laid back, and had some gay businesses, which had all shut down by the early 00s. Now, Belmont Shore seems kind of wild at night in that annoying way, with public drunkenness and people vomiting and yelling really loud after hours. I think it's all the bars they've opened there. I like the way 4th Street has evolved, and Broadway east of downtown Long Beach still has the same vibe as it did in the 90s. I still go to that coffeehouse called The Library on occasion. I loved that place when I was a college student, and I still love that place.

blackcat23
Jun 3, 2015, 1:25 PM
http://urbanize.la/post/office-building-rising-sony-picture-studios

Eight-story office building under construction at Sony Picture Studios.

http://urbanize.la/sites/default/files/styles/1140w/public/field/image/DSC04679_0.JPG?itok=8GIlqLUM

Steve8263
Jun 4, 2015, 2:10 PM
I think Playa Vista's horrible walkability and total lack of vibrancy is the result of outdated zoning first. NIMBYs didn't draft the zoning rules.

You guys have to remember that Playa Vista has had a very long tortured history dating back to Howard Hughes death in the 1970's with many nefarious characters involved over the decades- Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs, Dreamworks, Maguire Thomas (now bankrupt), The Ballona Wetlands trust, Moule Polyzoides, etc.

Plenty of different proposals came and went. Unfortunately with so many different cooks in the kitchen the final souffle is barely edible.

Here's a pretty good summary-
http://www.laweekly.com/news/playa-vista-was-going-to-be-a-utopian-planned-community-but-capitalisms-harsh-reality-keeps-creeping-in-4378497

blackcat23
Jun 4, 2015, 2:55 PM
http://urbanize.la/post/signs-progress-proposed-hollywood-hotel

Demolition is starting on the five-story office building at 1800 Argyle Avenue in Hollywood. The property is supposed to be redeveloped with a 16-story, 225-room hotel by Kimpton.

First of three towers planned at Argyle and Yucca Street.

http://urbanize.la/sites/default/files/styles/1140w/public/field/image/original.jpg?itok=NcMD8sx8

http://urbanize.la/sites/default/files/styles/1140w/public/field/image/kimpton.JPG?itok=qzRbeQHx

colemonkee
Jun 4, 2015, 5:36 PM
Do we have any idea what that building will look like? It'll be in a pretty prominent space up on that hill.

Bikemike
Jun 4, 2015, 11:55 PM
You guys have to remember that Playa Vista has had a very long tortured history dating back to Howard Hughes death in the 1970's with many nefarious characters involved over the decades- Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs, Dreamworks, Maguire Thomas (now bankrupt), The Ballona Wetlands trust, Moule Polyzoides, etc.

Plenty of different proposals came and went. Unfortunately with so many different cooks in the kitchen the final souffle is barely edible.

Here's a pretty good summary-
http://www.laweekly.com/news/playa-vista-was-going-to-be-a-utopian-planned-community-but-capitalisms-harsh-reality-keeps-creeping-in-4378497

I just read the article. Thanks for that. Sounds like Playa Vista suffered at the hands of the usual suspects of auto-friendly zoning codes, uninspired developers from OC, and cultural inertia from the time this project was initially conceived.

A lot of potential and a really big let-down Sounds like the story of LA :rolleyes:
Playa Vista is a hopeless mess. Got to hand it to Polyzoides for trying though. IMO he is absolutely correct in saying that progress is extremely incremental in LA. There are no such things as blank slates, even with a blank slate like Playa Vista.

blackcat23
Jun 5, 2015, 5:13 PM
Do we have any idea what that building will look like? It'll be in a pretty prominent space up on that hill.

Not yet. There were renderings back when it was planned as condominiums, but nothing official since then.

Kingofthehill
Jun 7, 2015, 10:53 AM
the amount of development in hollywood is pretty exciting! the whole are will definitely look and feel different in the years to come.

blackcat23
Jun 9, 2015, 1:21 PM
http://urbanize.la/post/nmsculver-city-reveals-itself

NMS@Culver City (131 apartments, 12,500 sq. ft. retail, designed by KFA) pulls off the scaffolding.

http://urbanize.la/sites/default/files/styles/1140w/public/field/image/DSC04744.JPG?itok=FT56g7uN

http://urbanize.la/sites/default/files/styles/1140w/public/field/image/nmsculvercity.jpg?itok=ZPLFdV6O

dtla818
Jun 9, 2015, 2:29 PM
Regarding NMS@Culver City, I've read in other posts that this is a six-story building, but I'm counting eight. Does anyone know why?

blackcat23
Jun 10, 2015, 3:00 PM
^^^I'm also not certain why the top levels of windows isn't counted as a separate floor. I'll look for site plans later.

http://urbanize.la/post/mixed-use-development-planned-west-los-angeles

New development planned on Pico Blvd, slightly east of Bundy and a few blocks south of the Expo Line. 100 units plus ground-floor retail space.

http://urbanize.la/sites/default/files/styles/1140w/public/field/image/pico.JPG?itok=ge07NWHp

Bikemike
Jun 10, 2015, 6:29 PM
That building is SOOO ugly. Too bad it's also enormous!

How does this crap get approved?!

Eightball
Jun 10, 2015, 9:32 PM
Building u/c at USC Hospital campus (I'm assuming its a parking garage?)

https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/456/18496064968_73643fa6f5_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/ubraHS)USC Hospital Campus new building u/c (https://flic.kr/p/ubraHS) by robb (https://www.flickr.com/photos/73028294@N00/), on Flickr

https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/303/18496065078_a95e8ba747_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/ubraKL)USC Hospital Campus new building u/c (https://flic.kr/p/ubraKL) by robb (https://www.flickr.com/photos/73028294@N00/), on Flickr

Quixote
Jun 10, 2015, 10:13 PM
That building is SOOO ugly. Too bad it's also enormous!

How does this crap get approved?!

Agreed. I can't believe that it was designed by Killefer Flammang. I also have come to expect more from Culver City, which generally has had some quality development in recent years.

I think the issue with much of LA's mid-rise development is that the lots they're being designed for are just too damn large. Hence, for fear of them appearing bland and monolithic, the architects feel the need to "dress up" these designs with an excess of color and other various elements.

StethJeff
Jun 11, 2015, 2:30 AM
Building u/c at USC Hospital campus (I'm assuming its a parking garage?)

https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/456/18496064968_73643fa6f5_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/ubraHS)USC Hospital Campus new building u/c (https://flic.kr/p/ubraHS) by robb (https://www.flickr.com/photos/73028294@N00/), on Flickr

https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/303/18496065078_a95e8ba747_b.jpg (https://flic.kr/p/ubraKL)USC Hospital Campus new building u/c (https://flic.kr/p/ubraKL) by robb (https://www.flickr.com/photos/73028294@N00/), on Flickr

It looks like they're placing a parking structure on part of the South San Pablo parking lot, which is mostly used by medical/pharm students at USC. Most of that crappy undeveloped land that circles the USC Health Sciences Campus has plans for future construction according to the old master plan. The original plan was to build a ton of commercial space to create an extensive private biomedical park to compliment USC.

blackcat23
Jun 11, 2015, 1:16 PM
http://urbanize.la/post/apartments-headed-palms-culver-city-border

Dunn Apartments (86 units). Developer is California Landmark Group, design by PSL Architects. Located immediately north of the NMS project seen above.

http://urbanize.la/sites/default/files/styles/1140w/public/field/image/dunn.JPG?itok=0ETAdVyB

colemonkee
Jun 11, 2015, 2:26 PM
^ Would that replace the medical building directly to the north?

blackcat23
Jun 11, 2015, 2:42 PM
It would replace the parking lot directly behind it on Dunn Drive.

colemonkee
Jun 11, 2015, 2:43 PM
Ahhhh, okay, so it's on the smaller side street. That explains the lack of retail, but not the lack of imagination. ;)

Steve8263
Jun 11, 2015, 4:05 PM
Here are a couple of views inside the pit of the Waldorf project in Bev Hills-

http://www.largoconcrete.com/news/waldorf-astoria/

http://www.largoconcrete.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/0000s_0006_Waldorf-Astoria55705e92554ac-450x320.jpg

http://www.largoconcrete.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/0000s_0005_Waldorf-Astoria55705e931912b-450x320.jpg

And a pair of more refined images I don't think we've seen before-

http://www.mattconstruction.com/project-detail/hotels/beverly-hills-hilton-redevelopment-waldorf-astoria-hotel-and-residences

http://www.mattconstruction.com/images/projects/_medium/Waldorf_angle.jpg

http://www.mattconstruction.com/images/projects/_medium/Waldorf_Rendering.jpg

colemonkee
Jun 11, 2015, 4:36 PM
That's gonna be so kick-ass when it's done.

timpdx
Jun 11, 2015, 6:25 PM
The Century City office tower proposed a while back is likely dead and the land is being put up for sale.

fair use quote:
JMB switched its plans for the site to a 37-story office tower, but now luxury residential sales have roared back and developers are competing for the best condo sites. A new owner could quickly resurrect JMB's plans for the condo development. Inquiries about acquiring the property for housing prompted JMB to put it on the market, a company representative said.



http://www.latimes.com/business/realestate/la-fi-century-city-sale-20150611-story.html

RIP
http://i.imgur.com/9zfRV1B.jpg
pic posted at SSC.

brudy
Jun 11, 2015, 6:43 PM
Agreed. I can't believe that it was designed by Killefer Flammang. I also have come to expect more from Culver City, which generally has had some quality development in recent years.

I think the issue with much of LA's mid-rise development is that the lots they're being designed for are just too damn large. Hence, for fear of them appearing bland and monolithic, the architects feel the need to "dress up" these designs with an excess of color and other various elements.

I completely agree. These lots are too large to build quality structures on and still be able to make money.

Illithid Dude
Jun 11, 2015, 6:50 PM
That's gonna be so kick-ass when it's done.

I love the design, but it's a bummer that it's so closed off to the street with the hedge.

The Century City office tower proposed a while back is likely dead and the land is being put up for sale.


So basically, it's gonna be luxury apartments now? I wouldn't mind seeing the original two-tower residential plan come back, even though I really liked the design for the office tower. Wonder when we are going to hear about the Century Plaza Towers again...

Illithid Dude
Jun 12, 2015, 2:24 AM
Passed by The Edition hotel site in West Hollywood and it looked very much under construction, so I'm moving it up in the front page.

timpdx
Jun 12, 2015, 3:12 AM
Is there any word on what is replacing the House of Blues, I drove past its closed doors last night. All I can find online is that Saudi investors bought it and plan a 190 room luxury hotel.

Kingofthehill
Jun 12, 2015, 12:07 PM
I completely agree. These lots are too large to build quality structures on and still be able to make money.

Thirded. Lot size is a huge factor as to why alot of these buildings are so bland, insipid, and unimaginative. Smaller infill lots usually lend themselves better to more creative and imaginative designs.

blackcat23
Jun 12, 2015, 1:19 PM
http://urbanize.la/post/new-plan-westchester-apartment-complex

176-unit apartment complex planned in Westchester at 6733 Sepulveda Boulevard. Developer is Sandstone Properties, architect is Johnson Fain.

http://urbanize.la/sites/default/files/styles/1140w/public/field/image/sepulveda.JPG?itok=xPmy4VLf

http://urbanize.la/sites/default/files/styles/1140w/public/field/image/sepulveda2.JPG?itok=HxTud8IZ

Steve8263
Jun 12, 2015, 2:33 PM
Passed by The Edition hotel site in West Hollywood and it looked very much under construction, so I'm moving it up in the front page.

Yep, the old Skandia building demolition took about an hour. The project site is big, incorporates both that lot and the adjacent parking lot to the west.

SimonLA
Jun 12, 2015, 3:54 PM
So, it's now been three months since both parties have been fully briefed in the Hollywood Target case. Lawyers/paralegals/law watchers: does this mean we'll have a decision any time soon? Because this is getting craaaazy.

http://appellatecases.courtinfo.ca.gov/search/case/dockets.cfm?dist=2&doc_id=2084287&doc_no=B258033

http://www.laobserved.com/intell/assets/target-hollywood-iris.jpg

blackcat23
Jun 13, 2015, 2:01 AM
http://urbanize.la/post/apartments-headed-palms-culver-city-border

This is the revised look for the Dunn Apartments, the 86-unit apartment complex I posted about a few days ago. Design is by Rios Clementi Hale.

http://urbanize.la/sites/default/files/styles/1140w/public/field/image/dunnapartments.JPG?itok=YgMPNzpC

LosAngelesSportsFan
Jun 13, 2015, 2:15 AM
Looks real good to me

Quixote
Jun 13, 2015, 2:21 AM
Big improvement. But I would drop the black and yellow accents in favor of all white.

timpdx
Jun 13, 2015, 3:16 AM
Looks quite good, with Palmer would take a design cue from this...

KPCC had a story on the Blackbirds project in Echo Park today including an 8 minute story with the developer.

http://www.scpr.org/programs/take-two/2015/06/12/43268/will-the-new-blackbirds-housing-development-change/

StethJeff
Jun 13, 2015, 8:41 PM
That looks terrific. And I'd keep the yellow-white-black.

SoCalKid
Jun 13, 2015, 8:58 PM
Is there any word on what is replacing the House of Blues, I drove past its closed doors last night. All I can find online is that Saudi investors bought it and plan a 190 room luxury hotel.

Hotel/condo project.

http://la.curbed.com/archives/2009/07/house_of_blues_project.php#green-1

http://laist.com/2014/08/05/sunset_strips_house_of_blues_will_b.php

SimonLA
Jun 14, 2015, 11:40 PM
I just realized something very discouraging: there are three multi-story apartment buildings going up on Sawtelle (Little Osaka but officially "Sawtelle Japantown"--yuck) and NONE are mixed-use. Two feature live/work units on the ground-floor but no real retail.

How is this possible on a street where every retail space is occupied and packed with customers? Absolutely, unbelievably short-sighted. There is the YMCA project, which is planned as mixed-use but watch that get value-engineered out just like it did with at least one of the under-construction apartment buildings (see below). What is wrong with our city planners cow-towing traffic-averse NIMBYs?

http://urbanize.la/sites/default/files/styles/1140w/public/nottinghill.PNG?itok=gzt2Rr9_

blackcat23
Jun 15, 2015, 1:00 AM
How is this possible on a street where every retail space is occupied and packed with customers? Absolutely, unbelievably short-sighted. There is the YMCA project, which is planned as mixed-use but watch that get value-engineered out just like it did with at least one of the under-construction apartment buildings (see below). What is wrong with our city planners cow-towing traffic-averse NIMBYs?

http://urbanize.la/sites/default/files/styles/1140w/public/nottinghill.PNG?itok=gzt2Rr9_

For the above project, the developer actually agreed to drop the retail component to appease the neighbors. City Planning staff had nothing to do with it.

SimonLA
Jun 15, 2015, 4:16 AM
Why couldn't it just have shrunk to like 1,500 sq feet of retail? Could they ever convert the live/work units to retail in the future? I love how they show people milling in front of the building; that won't be happening now since it will be a closed-off citadel.

blackcat23
Jun 15, 2015, 1:22 PM
http://urbanize.la/post/fly-through-remodeled-westfield-century-city

Some new renderings a video fly-through of the $800 million Westfield Century City expansion.

http://urbanize.la/sites/default/files/styles/1140w/public/field/image/CC.jpeg?itok=dUvi_AzM

http://urbanize.la/sites/default/files/styles/1140w/public/field/image/demo.png?itok=LN5JD_Ba

blackcat23
Jun 18, 2015, 1:23 PM
http://urbanize.la/post/playa-vista-office-building-receive-upgrades

Hudson Pacific Properties modifying older office building in Playa Vista to attract creative tenants. 96,000 square feet of space, designed by HLW International.
Plan:
http://urbanize.la/sites/default/files/styles/1140w/public/field/image/playa1_0.jpg?itok=nsXoLA3Q

Now:
http://urbanize.la/sites/default/files/styles/1140w/public/field/image/12655.jpg?itok=MGi-wtaQ

colemonkee
Jun 18, 2015, 6:22 PM
I actually prefer the original.