$300m L.A. residential project begins, more than 100 L.A. development projects ongoing

Hankey Investment Co. and Jamison Properties have broken ground on their $300 million 25-story residential tower located at 2900 Wilshire Blvd. in Koreatown, a major submarket adjacent to Downtown Los Angeles.

"As the Los Angeles housing market continues to be impacted, additional rental units will help provide much needed homes in a very desirable location,” said W. Scott Dobbins, president of Hankey Investment Co., who serves as the lead on the development team. “As Koreatown’s housing market continues to flourish, 2900 Wilshire provides a golden opportunity to revive an otherwise long-time vacant site, bringing much needed housing to the community.”

The curved structure will contain 644 residences housed in the 25-story tower and units which wrap around the project’s 1,000-parking-space podium. Apartment homes will range from studios to three-bedroom, two-story penthouses. A one-acre rooftop park amenity deck will top the podium, providing resort-style living including separate buildings for gym and clubhouse along with a pool, spa, business center, private open-air dining areas, BBQs, firepits, a dog park, a Zen garden and a viewing deck to provide a respite from city life.

The project also will include 15,000 square feet of prime retail on the ground floor to bring additional vibrancy to the vicinity, which will cater to residents, locals and Koreatown visitors. Currently, the area is home to a Neighborhood Target in the year-old Next on Sixth apartment project, one block away. Retail tenants for 2900 Wilshire, which is slated for completion in early 2021, have not yet been announced.

In 2018, the companies completed CIRCA, a $500 million luxury mixed use complex project in downtown Los Angeles.

Development activity is everywhere and in every sector in Los Angeles. The following are some projects that have made progress announcements in the past six months. There are more than 100 local projects in progress, reported Los Angeles Downtown News.

• Anschutz Entertainment Group unveiled its $1.2 billion proposal to add 350,000 square feet of space to the Convention Center, and to transform the complex, now made up of two separate buildings, into a contiguous space.
• Aerial Rapid Transit Technologies has plans to break ground on the new Dodger Stadium in 2020.
• Canadian developer Onni Group is planning a 60-story mixed-use tower on Olympic Boulevard in Downtown Los Angeles. The tower would include 700 residential units and 15,000 square feet of ground floor commercial space. In addition, the developer is developing a 40-story tower and a 31-story tower, totaling 730 units, located at 1212 S. Flower St.
• Developers Mack Urban and AECOM Capital are currently in the final phase of their $1.2 billion multi-phrase South Park project, located at 1120 S. Grand Ave. Recently, the Aven tower was completed. A 60-story, 713-unit high-rise at 1120 S. Olive St. will follow. And a 51-story building, also with 536 units, would be at 1115 S. Olive St.
• Jamison Services and Hankey Investments completed two $500 million, 35-story towers overlooking the Los Angeles Convention Center.
• Legendary Investors Group and Fairfield Residential are developing a 472-unit apartment complex on 950 E. Third St. The $215 million project is a six-building Arts District complex.
• Crescent Heights is anticipating a ground-breaking ceremony for its $300 million tower at 1045 S. Olive St. this year. The 70-story project will total 794 units.
• Palisades Capital Partners revealed designs for its $600 million 111 Sunset project in January and is currently preparing the environmental impact report. The site, the former headquarters of the Metropolitan Water District, will hold a mix of low-slung and high-rise buildings, including towers that stand 31 and 49 stories. There also will be a 17-story hotel with 98 rooms, retail along Sunset Boulevard and 48,000 square feet of office space.
• SunCal is in the process of receiving entitlements for its $2 billion 6AM project at 1211 Wholesale St., which will total 1,305 apartments and 431 condos.
• Chinese developer Shenzhen Hazens broke ground on its $700 million Luxe Hotel Development at 1020 S. Figueroa St., which will total 435 apartments, 300 hotel rooms.
• Greenland USA completed Tower II of its $1 billion Metropolis project in July 2018. The 6.5-acre development includes three residential towers, the 350-room Hotel Indigo and 70,000 square feet of retail space. And the latter property was put up for sale this year even as construction continues.
• Related Cos. has a $950 million project at the southeast corner of First Street and Grand Avenue. It will be a 39-story tower with 436 residential units, a 314-room Equinox hotel and 173,000 square feet of leasable retail. In January, Related released updated designs for the project and announced the Downtown office of the firm AECOM will serve as construction manager.
• Avedis and Ara Tavitian received final city approvals for their $1.2 billion The Reef project at 1933 S. Broadway.
• George Lucas is currently developing a $1 billion museum at 3800 S. Vermont Ave.
• Oceanwide Plaza, one of the biggest real estate development projects in Downtown Los Angeles, has stalled due to financing troubles, reported local media outlets. The condominium, hotel and retail complex across the street from Staples Center is expected to cost more than $1 billion. It will lead the emerging entertainment, hotel and residential district along Figueroa Street. The plaza is being built by Oceanwide Holdings, a Beijing-based publicly traded conglomerate. According to The Los Angeles Times, federal investigators have inquired about the Oceanwide project in relation to possible crimes including bribery, extortion, money laundering and kickbacks that could potentially involve City of Los Angeles officials and other development executives.