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  #301  
Old Posted Mar 21, 2006, 5:22 AM
dragonsky dragonsky is offline
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So Cool! Good!
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  #302  
Old Posted Mar 21, 2006, 6:29 PM
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Wow, that's about 2000 units going up in a 2 block radius, so approximately 4000 people and a modest hotel too. I am excited but I hope the new residents will take advantage of walking and the subway as I do because if they're all going to be car dependant we're in for 24/7 gridlock.
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  #303  
Old Posted Apr 25, 2006, 6:11 AM
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Update on the Hollywood/Vine & Madrone projs at carealestatejournal.com:


Gatehouse Capital's Hollywood & Vine project includes 70 affordable units. While Laing wants to create a retreat, Gatehouse Capital wants to be part of the remaining urban core. "Hollywood means a lot of things to different people," said Marty Collins, president of Dallas-based Gatehouse Capital. "We have an urban spin on Hollywood."

Gatehouse Capital and HEI Hospitality plan to break ground in November on their project, which includes a 300-room W hotel, 150 condominiums, 50,000 square feet of retail and 375 rental units. Legacy Partners will build the apartments and 30,000 square feet of the retail. "As the CRA likes to say, this is the real deal. It is urban. It is gritty. It is not a ride at Disneyland. It's an urban condition," Collins said. Even though it has taken five years for Gatehouse Capital to get its project off the ground, Collins said it was worth it.


Laing Urban opted to develop a project more redolent of the Hollywood Hills a mile away from the urban core at 1683 La Brea Ave. near Hollywood Boulevard. "We were looking at properties at both ends, but we felt that we could control the environment in the neighborhood better in the west end," said Phil Simmons, president of Laing Urban. "The east-end properties are all tied in with this master-planned vision we weren't sure we wanted to be a part of."

Simmons sees its mixed-use Madrone project, composed of 187 units and 11,700 square feet of retail, as anchoring the west side's development. There, Simmons said, his company can set the tone and the bar. "Frankly, what our niche in Hollywood is is more of an urban retreat," Simmons said. "Our buyers don't want to be amid the chaos. They want easy access to the activities of Hollywood, but want to be able to come home to more of a retreat."

The condominiums are being built so that when residents go out the front door, they are in Hollywood. If they go out the back door, they will be in a courtyard retreat featuring a fire pit and cabanas reminiscent of old Hollywood.
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  #304  
Old Posted Apr 25, 2006, 6:25 AM
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looking good
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  #305  
Old Posted Apr 25, 2006, 9:36 AM
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[QUOTE=citywatch]^ since that link will expire, I'll post the entire article here. It doesn't cover anything most here aren't already aware of. However,

FOCAL POINT: An architectural rendering of the W Hotel at the southwest corner of Holly-
wood Boulevard and Argyle Avenue. (HKS Architects)



HOLLYWOOD HOMES: Developer Brad Korzen outside the former Broadway department
store, which his Kor Group is converting into 96 condominiums over a restaurant and
shops. (Stefano Paltera / For The Times)


These picks are much better than the previous renderings of sunset/vine. The good thing about them is that they seem to have taken the flash level down a notch, so it looks more liveable rather than ostentatious. Hollywood needs to take itself and it's architecture more seriously.

But really, I think downtown has more potential than Hollywood. Hollywood is still very much 21 and over. Everything seems to be related to alcoholic consumption. Whereas downtown seems more about providing livability such as parks, supermarkets, affordable restaurants.

The problem with both of them is that no one seems to be providing housing that most of us can afford.

Last edited by ocman; Apr 25, 2006 at 9:48 AM.
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  #306  
Old Posted Apr 26, 2006, 5:45 AM
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yes, a huge improvement.
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  #307  
Old Posted Apr 27, 2006, 3:29 PM
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From the L.A. Times:

Hollywood and Vine's New Zoning OKd
From Times Staff and Wire Reports
April 27, 2006



The City Council unanimously approved a zoning change Wednesday for a $400-million project at Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street.

About 30 small businesses are being displaced through the city's eminent domain powers to make way for a W Hotel, condominium and apartment units, and shops and restaurants.

One business owner, whose luggage store has been there for 60 years, is fighting the displacement.

The project is one of the most ambitious revitalization efforts in Hollywood.
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  #308  
Old Posted Apr 27, 2006, 6:49 PM
citywatch citywatch is offline
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^ Ironic that Hollywood has long suffered because certain businesses & retailers started moving out beginning many yrs ago, or never wanted to be there in the first place, & then there are other businesses, like the owner of the luggage store, that because they don't want to leave, slow down the efforts to improve the hood.
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  #309  
Old Posted Apr 28, 2006, 8:30 AM
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^ Although it isn't something I would say across the board, I think in this situation, those "30" small businesses (are there really that many; isn't there only like at most 10?) should be removed for this beautiful project. Having them there keeps the status quo intact, which is pretty much a lame urban area. After the W Hotel complex is complete, the entire neighborhood will see a huge jump in pedestrian life and amenities.
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  #310  
Old Posted Apr 28, 2006, 2:51 PM
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^I was wondering about that "30" figure as well. Perhaps there's a little skewing of numbers going on...

But anyway, this can be greatly mitigated if the project coordinators/CRA/etc. will help these businesses find other locations. They can even include some of them in the finished project.
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  #311  
Old Posted May 29, 2006, 8:26 PM
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Hollywood Beckons As LA's Hot New ZIP Code

By Christina Almeida
Associated Press Writer
May 29, 2006

LOS ANGELES -- Hollywood's best days were behind her. The glamour of the '20s had long ago been replaced by crime and grime. Teenage runaways mingled with prostitutes at the city's most storied intersection, Hollywood and Vine. Yet something curious happened. Hollywood refused to fade away.

The first signs of life surfaced a decade ago with new nightclubs and restaurants. Now, people are flocking to Hollywood to live in thousands of luxury condos and apartments. More than $1 billion in residential development is slated for a few blocks surrounding Hollywood Boulevard and Vine Street, an unprecedented buildup designed to bring the "It" factor back to a place that once was the epicenter of cool.

"Five years ago we were desperate for any development. Now we can pick and choose," said City Council President Eric Garcetti, whose district includes Hollywood.

The turnaround began in the mid-1980s when the city created a redevelopment area in Hollywood. Subway stops were later added, and a group of merchants banded together a decade ago to form a business improvement district and step up security patrols. All this prompted developers to invest hundreds of millions of dollars to revitalize the area's entertainment core, anchored by the Hollywood & Highland Center, home of the Kodak Theatre and the Academy Awards. Now Hollywood is a place to be rather than flee, with more than 3,500 residential units in the works.

"Everywhere we looked we saw an opportunity," said Shaul Kuba, principal and founder of CIM Group, owner of Hollywood & Highland and developer of several pending residential-retail projects.

The renaissance is reshaping Hollywood and Vine, where two major developments are leading the residential makeover. The KOR Group, a real estatement investment company, is renovating the old Broadway department store for a project that includes 96 luxury lofts and cinematic views of the Hollywood sign and the landmark Capitol Records building. The Broadway Hollywood is nearly sold out after just two weekend sales events, with prices from the high $500,000 range to $3 million. "What you have is people that maybe two years ago would never have thought about buying in Hollywood are now literally fighting amongst themselves for units," said Kate Bartolo, vice president of development for The KOR Group.

For Peter Varano, a 48-year-old New York transplant, it was an easy decision to buy a loft. "I like the city feel and the city vibe," said Varano, a voice-over agent who recently sold his Hollywood Hills home. "It's kind of like now I'm creating my own little New York, because of the revitalization that's happening in Hollywood."

Celebrities are also taking another look at Hollywood. Actress Charlize Theron has reportedly purchased a penthouse, and starlet Lindsay Lohan is looking. Bartolo declined to comment, citing buyer privacy. Hollywood's hip factor will also be boosted by the arrival of a W Hotel at Hollywood and Vine as part of a $500 million retail- residential project with more than 300 apartments and 150 condos.

Not everyone is happy with the plan. About 30 local businesses are being forced to vacate after the city invoked eminent domain. Bob Blue, who owns a luggage shop opened by his father in 1946, has twice sued to stop the project. He lost the first lawsuit but feels confident he can win on the eminent domain issue. "Hollywood is reviving without any government help or eminent domain," Blue said. "It does seem wrong that things are going good, and you're getting kicked out."

Other critics had feared the famed Capitol Records building might be bought and converted to condos. But city leaders said the landmark is off-limits.

Developers are seeing astonishing returns on their investment in Hollywood, spending about $150 a square foot to convert office space into residential units, then selling 1,000-square-foot condos for somewhere between $400,000 and $1 million-plus, according to Steven Tronson, vice president of Ramsey-Shilling Commercial Real Estate Services Inc. Rents now run as much as $2,400 a month for an 800-square-foot apartment, compared to about $800 a decade ago.

Despite concerns about residential saturation and lost office space, the pending projects will bring lasting changes. "There is no going back," Tronson said. "There is too much political will, too many serious investors and too much money being spent for this not to succeed."

Challenges remain, however. Crime has dropped, but teenage runaways and prostitutes can still be seen off Hollywood Boulevard. "It's really still a work in progress," said Kerry Morrison, executive director of the Hollywood Entertainment District, the merchant group. "Hollywood took many decades to fall into a state of decline so it's not going to be rebuilt in a decade's time."
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  #312  
Old Posted Jun 5, 2006, 6:59 PM
citywatch citywatch is offline
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So many truly good businesses (movie studios, for example) have avoided or abandoned the hood through the yrs. Why can't ppl like Robert Blue join that list?

And Robert Nudelman is bothered more by giant billboards instead of the hood's many deadzones?




Developers are trying to force out Robert Blue and his store, Bernard Luggage.

Aging Hollywood Getting Face Lift

By Haya El Nasser, USA TODAY
5/30/2006

LOS ANGELES — Small business fights City Hall. Big developers try to lure celebrities to a neighborhood that has little star appeal beyond the stars on its Walk of Fame. Residents fight to protect old buildings and landmarks at one of the world's most legendary intersections: Hollywood and Vine.

It's a plot befitting Tinseltown. But this scenario is unfolding in real life a few blocks from the Ripley's Believe It or Not Museum and Grauman's Chinese Theatre as the latest effort to spiff up Hollywood. Despite Hollywood's image as the world capital of glitz, this 18.7-square-mile district in Los Angeles has struggled to revitalize run-down neighborhoods that had become hangouts for teenage runaways, tattoo parlors and tacky souvenir shops. But millions of tourists a year still flock to see the concrete handprints of celebrities outside the Chinese Theatre and stroll along the Walk of Fame — sidewalks emblazoned with stars paying homage to showbiz personalities.

The goal around Hollywood and Vine is to attract not just tourists but people who want to live there. A key selling point: living in luxury within sight of landmarks such as the sign spelling out Hollywood and the iconic Capitol Records tower, home to the label that signed Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra and Judy Garland.

"Over the next five years, that will be where everything is happening," says Leron Gubler of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce. "The ultimate vision is to create an exciting urban entertainment center that meets people's expectations of Hollywood." More than $1 billion has been invested already, he says, and there's $2 billion more in the pipeline.

"The Hollywood market is hot," says Kimberly Lucero of Kor Development, which is building luxury lofts in an old department store. "That corner ... is a landmark destination that's known around the world."

High-profile hangout

The corner became famous in the 1920s as an entertainment industry hub. The Brown Derby restaurant was a place to see and be seen. Charlie Chaplin and Will Rogers had offices nearby. From 1949 to 1959, the Academy Awards were held at the Pantages Theatre. ABC set up its first West Coast studio there.

What's happening now:

• The 1920s-era Broadway department store is being converted into 96 luxury lofts and penthouses by Kor Development. Prices: $500,000-$2.75 million. All seven penthouses and all but one of the lofts have sold, mostly to actors, producers and other entertainment honchos who want a Hollywood "pied-à-terre" in an urban setting rich in history (Howard Hughes used the top floor as a personal office). On a clear day, the view from the rooftop pool stretches to the Pacific Ocean, the Hollywood hills and the downtown skyline.

• A $400 million-plus hotel, residential and retail complex is the grandest and most controversial proposal. At the core would be a luxury W Hotel, 150 condominiums and 375 apartments. About 75 apartments would rent at below-market prices to create affordable housing.

To make way for this project, about 22 small businesses would have to relocate. One shop, Bernard Luggage Store, is resisting. The city's Community Redevelopment Agency is using its condemnation power to force property owner Robert Blue and the owners of a two-story office building to sell, riling many locals.

"Sure, I'm in favor of eminent domain for schools and parks or if a freeway needs to go through, but use eminent domain to give it to a private developer?" asks David Scholnick, president of the Hollywood Studio District Neighborhood Council.

Bernard Luggage has been in a 5,000-square-foot building on Vine since 1955. Blue took over after his father died in 2002. "I have architectural plans to restore the building, convert the interior and have the back portions be lofts," he says.

Council President Eric Garcetti, whose district includes Hollywood, is trying to mediate a compromise.

Redevelopment frenzy

Hollywood's cleanup began in the early 1990s on the western stretch of Hollywood Boulevard. The biggest projects were the Hollywood & Highland Center and the Kodak Theatre, site of the Oscars and "American Idol" finals shows. The redevelopment frenzy now has shifted eight blocks east to Vine Street. The push is on to create an urban residential core near one of Los Angeles' few subway stops — a development trend that has caught on in cities across the United States. About 700 residential units have been added in the past two years, Gubler says, and 4,500 are planned in the next five years. "For the last 50 years there probably haven't been 700 units built in Hollywood," he says. "It's almost mind-boggling."

While Hollywood's comeback gains momentum, median household incomes of neighborhood residents remain low at $19,000 to $22,000, Garcetti says. Citywide, incomes are closer to $40,000. "There's still a lot of crime and blight," but new developments can lift incomes, create jobs and reduce crime, he says.

Robert Nudelman, director of preservation issues for the non-profit Hollywood Heritage, worries that the area is losing its distinctive architectural flavor and bemoans the proliferation of giant billboards: "They think this is Times Square."

The goal is to create an urban scene, Gubler says. "We do not want to destroy the funkiness of Hollywood....There's nothing wrong with a wig shop or tattoo parlor, but we don't need three wig shops."

Scholnick admits that Hollywood looks better now. "There are less empty lots," he says, "at least until the next earthquake."
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  #313  
Old Posted Jun 5, 2006, 8:47 PM
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is the W Hotel complex gona level the dmv building?
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  #314  
Old Posted Jun 6, 2006, 5:41 PM
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W Hollywood Residences Website

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  #315  
Old Posted Jun 13, 2006, 10:50 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by citywatch
Robert Nudelman, director of preservation issues for the non-profit Hollywood Heritage, worries that the area is losing its distinctive architectural flavor and bemoans the proliferation of giant billboards: "They think this is Times Square."
As if the current Hollywood without the vibrant and electrified signages would have been possible without them! lol If you take down the beautiful and energetic billboards, Hollywood returns to a dark and BORING area devoid of life outside of illicit activities.

Light is the continuation of life after dark and idiots like Nudelman denigrate "Times Square" when that area in NYC beats LA in terms of energy like an elephant stomping on a mouse.

NUDELMAN, PLEASE GO HOME! It is imperative for LA to forsake and ignore the conservative old-timers if it is to regain any sorta title as a progressive city not content with the suburban status quo.
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  #316  
Old Posted Jun 13, 2006, 2:07 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by LosAngelesBeauty
NUDELMAN, PLEASE GO HOME!


I think ppl like him are one reason our hoods have been stuck with so many deadzones for so many yrs. IOW, such ppl have a mentality where the crap of the city is more acceptable (or less bothersome) than, for example, big new lighted signboards.

Makes me think of all the homeowners in the Hollywood hills who back in the 1990s raised a big stink about the large signage & congestion that the Hollywood & Highland proj was going to bring to their part of town. How come those ppl never griped about the huge fugly parking lot that sat directly east of Grauman's Chinese for yrs & yrs & yrs?
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  #317  
Old Posted Jun 20, 2006, 9:19 PM
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Looks like this is planned for the vicinity of Argyle and Yucca. Anyone know more details on this? I need Colemonkee to post the renders (again!)

http://www.gruenassociates.com/arch_argyle_yucca.html

Last edited by Steve2726; Jun 20, 2006 at 10:02 PM.
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  #318  
Old Posted Jun 20, 2006, 9:41 PM
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^ When was that tower released?
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  #319  
Old Posted Jun 20, 2006, 9:54 PM
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here you go,

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  #320  
Old Posted Jun 20, 2006, 9:58 PM
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^^^^ Awesome, thanks.
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