Grand Avenue Designs Approved
Related Cos. One Step Closer to Securing Phase One Financing
by Anna Scott
http://www.downtownnews.com/articles...ews/news04.txt
The Grand Avenue plan took a small step forward Monday, Feb. 25, when city, county and redevelopment officials approved updated designs for the first phase of the Bunker Hill mega-development. The move allows developer Related Cos. to move forward with seeking an estimated $600 million-plus construction loan.
"It's a necessary milestone for us," said Related of California President Bill Witte.
Plans for phase one of the $3 billion, Frank Gehry-designed project, dubbed The Grand, call for a 48-story Mandarin Oriental Hotel & Residences with 295 rooms and 266 condominiums, a 19-story residential tower with 126 market-rate apartments and 98 affordable units, 250,000 square feet of retail, an Equinox health club, a nightclub and a 16-acre civic park. Completion is expected in 2011.
Designs had previously been approved for phase one, but the new documents provide a more detailed picture of the project.
"We've gone in and we've designed all of the materials of the façades - glass, stone, etc. - to a very high level of specificity that's ready for detailing," said Brian Aamoth of Gehry Partners, who displayed slides during last Monday's meeting of the Grand Avenue Authority. In addition to identifying materials, the new documents define the buildings' exterior volumes and interior layouts.
During his presentation, Aamoth highlighted the planned multi-level landscaping, terraces and open space with canopies to create shading between the two towers, as well as plans for retail and entrances on multiple sides of the project.
"What would normally be considered the back side of the project, we don't treat as the back side," said Aamoth. "We've taken advantage of all sides of the project to create a porous and active project."
Aamoth also touched on The Grand's relationship to Walt Disney Concert Hall, another Gehry-designed effort, which stands across from the development site.
"In a sense, the way that Disney Hall has a large hall and smaller pieces, we've sort of taken that design approach on this project," Aamoth said. Pointing out the diagonal placement of the two towers, surrounded and linked by smaller structures housing commercial components, he said, "Our intent was to break down the monolithic scale."
The documents presented Monday focused on the structural elements of The Grand. Developers are expected to bring detailed plans for landscaping and art inclusions to the Grand Avenue Authority on June 1.
The new specifications will inform the project's construction documents, expected to total more than 1,000 pages, which help determine building costs and how much is needed in a construction loan.
In December, Related began lead paint abatement on a multi-level parking structure at Grand Avenue and First Street, where the towers will rise. The company expects to demolish the structure by the end of this month, after its new phase one equity partner - Istithmar, a sovereign fund controlled by the royal family of Dubai - is approved by the Community Redevelopment Agency, the County Board of Supervisors and the Grand Avenue Authority.
Last week, Los Angeles Downtown News broke the news that Istithmar had committed to joining Related after the previous partner, California Public Employees' Retirement System, and its investment manager MacFarlane Partners, pulled out.
Istithmar has committed $100 million to the project, which Witte says he expects to account for about 40% of the total equity. Another partner, the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, has committed $42 million with another $20 million expected, Witte said. Related will take responsibility for the balance, he said, "and we may elect to bring in another partner."
Related currently has almost $90 million invested in The Grand. The developer previously predicted its total equity cost would be approximately $300 million, which Witte says was a "rounded up" figure.
A formal groundbreaking is slated for the summer.
The latest designs for the Grand Avenue project were presented and approved last week. The first phase of the Frank Gehry-designed development is scheduled to open in 2011.
Renderings courtesy of Related of California