LOS ANGELES | Countywide Project Rundown Megathread

[citywatch]

Originally Posted by sopas ej

I was actually sad those old buildings had to go

In my case, I'm relieved whenever a rundown section of dtla....throughout LA overall....is removed. I recall when most of Fig St across from the convention ctr was parking lots or old masonry bldgs. When visitors to the convention ctr saw that area....some of them tourists attending a large event across the street...that didn't help their impression of dt.

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[citywatch]

Originally Posted by LA21st

Nashvillle doesnt have anything. NYC will be in the same boat as GA and New Mexico soon. New Mexico dropped from 700 million in 2024 for productions to like 200 million in 2025. Soundstages dont mean anything if the states are gonna quit the tax credits race. Which they will.
Look at the Las Vegas Whalberg backed studio plan that failed last year.

London is credible, because they actually have production companies and studio offices. NYC doesnt have shit in comparison. Culver City beats NYC on its own.

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[Illithid Dude]

Speaking of Oceanside, Kordansky Gallery has a new exhibition which features a photorealistic "sculpture" of the building.







I think it's awesome and would love to own it. Whoever finishes the project should buy the miniature and place it in the lobby.

https://www.davidkordanskygallery.com/exhibitions/sayre-gomez2/individual-works?view=slider#106

More on the show here:

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/10/arts/design/sayre-gomezs-art-los-angeles-oceanwide.html

[HusBy]

So that's amazing. Wow. Will be checking this out in person.

[colemonkee]

Wow!! Love that!

[ReDSPork02]

That project needs to move ASAP. and that's not gonna happen. Glad there's still potential.

[IcedCowboyCoffee]

That sculpture is so rad, wow!

[38 Geary]

Moved mayoral candidate discussion to the LA politics thread.

[Illithid Dude]

New development in Chinatown contains a decently tall midrise.

The first project set to receive funding are two components of New High Village, which would rise from a County-owned parking lot located at 725 N. Spring Street in Chinatown. The County would provide $7.2 million for a 158-unit senior apartment complex, which is estimated to cost $101 million, as well as $6.6 million for a 146-unit family apartment complex, which would cost approximately $142 million.

According to a project page from the website of developer Linc Housing Corp, New High Village would include a mix of studio, one-, two-, and three-bedroom homes, as well as 14,000 square feet of community-serving commercial space and a public plaza. A rendering depicts the project as consisting of contemporary low-rise and mid-rise structures designed by Studio One Eleven.

I've been spending a lot of time in Chinatown recently. Great food options. Hopefully we get some good restaurants in here and continue the trend.

[LA21st]

Chinatown has potential to redevelop those warehouse blocks with little nimby backlash. It should be a priority to build there really.

[SoCalKid]

Originally Posted by LA21st

Chinatown has potential to redevelop those warehouse blocks with little nimby backlash. It should be a priority to build there really.

Luckily with new state laws NIMBY backlash can no longer block housing in infill areas. CEQA isn't required anymore (so no suing under that) and cities are not allowed to deny housing when the site is zoned for it. The primary obstacles to new housing now are financial - high city fees, affordability requirements, Measure ULA/transfer taxes, rent control, etc.

[SoCalKid]

Originally Posted by kittyhawk28

2 years ago I heard AEG was one of the original interested bidders for Oceanwide, going so far as to retain the original architects.

Regardless of who takes over, I hope they keep the original plan for LED signage at the base of Oceanwide Plaza. Its complements very well with the LED screens at Circa and Moxy, giving the entire Figueroa corridor adjacent to the Convention Center a Times Square feel

The LED signage will be the most profitable part of the whole project (literally), so don't worry, no buyer is going to ditch that aspect unless they are doing away with the entire development.

[sopas ej]

Originally Posted by Illithid Dude

New development in Chinatown contains a decently tall midrise.





I've been spending a lot of time in Chinatown recently. Great food options. Hopefully we get some good restaurants in here and continue the trend.

Ah, just a few doors down from the live poultry place. I wonder if that business, as well as Long's Family Pastry, will be demolished?

I used to work near a live poultry place in Rosemead; that place would get really busy right before Chinese New Year and create a lot of traffic, people buying their freshly slaughtered chickens and whatnot for their Chinese New Year feasts. Has anyone ever had freshly killed and cooked chickens? So much tastier than chickens that have been frozen or refrigerated.

[citywatch]

Originally Posted by Illithid Dude

I've been spending a lot of time in Chinatown recently. Great food options. Hopefully we get some good restaurants in here and continue the trend.

I recall what this area north of chinatown was like as recently as around 2017, before the new park opened.

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In the meantime, I don't know why doing basic projs like filling in the dirt lot at 1st St & Broadway for a park is too much for LA city govnt.


urbanizela.com

https://engineering.lacity.gov/about-us/divisions/environmental-management/projects/1st-and-broadway-civic-center-park-project

[citywatch]

Mario Tama/Getty Images

After construction halted in 2019 when the Beijing-based developer ran out of cash, the skeletal high-rises across from Crypto.com Arena became an open invitation to the streets. Taggers took on the challenge in 2024, covering the trio of skyscrapers from top to bottom in the colorful scrawl that gave it its current nickname: “Graffiti Towers.” They made their global debut at that year’s Grammy Awards.

Two years later, the unsightly landmark has finally cleared a major legal blockade by reaching a bankruptcy exit deal with its creditors, opening the door for a sale. According to a Jan. 28 court filing, first reported by Bloomberg, lawyers for Oceanwide argue “a prompt sale and eventual completion of the project is a major priority for the city and the public at large, particularly with the upcoming 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.”

The XXXIV Olympiad looms large in these debates because the site’s location — in the shadow of a major competition venue and expected visitor corridors — makes its derelict state especially conspicuous. Leaving a graffiti-covered complex dominating key sightlines through 2028 would be an embarrassment, not just for local residents but for the city’s global brand.

But even with the bankruptcy deal clearing legal hurdles, the practical and financial obstacles to cleanup and completion are considerable. The graffiti itself is the easiest part of the problem to describe; removing it across dozens of floors without modern facades, while securing and repairing the underlying structure that has sat exposed and unfinished for years, is far harder.

There were also moves through the City Council to step into the cleanup process. In early 2024 the council approved roughly $4 million to beef up barriers, bolster security, and remove graffiti if the developer failed to act. Some council members pushed to have the city take action and recover costs from the owner. But that city-driven cleanup effort has stalled — in part because of legal and financial hurdles.

In early 2025 the city quietly decided not to spend taxpayer money to scrub the graffiti off the privately owned towers, citing a determination that it was not its responsibility to incur the costs of abatement on private property.

Brandon R. Guzman-Johnson: Construction at The Broad goes vertical. The expansion is scheduled to open in the Spring of 2028.


Brandon R. Guzman-Johnson

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[citywatch]

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[citywatch]

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[sopas ej]

Originally Posted by citywatch

I recall what this area north of chinatown was like as recently as around 2017, before the new park opened.

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This is why I straddle the fence with the Dodger Stadium gondola. The LA State Historic Park has become a nice, well-used public space. If/when the gondola goes in, the views will be ruined by the tall towers supporting the criss-crossing gondola cables, as well as the gondolas themselves. I guess people would get used to it, but still...

[HusBy]

Originally Posted by sopas ej

This is why I straddle the fence with the Dodger Stadium gondola. The LA State Historic Park has become a nice, well-used public space. If/when the gondola goes in, the views will be ruined by the tall towers supporting the criss-crossing gondola cables, as well as the gondolas themselves. I guess people would get used to it, but still...

I love that park, quite possibly the best urban park in LA. But I don't think the views will be ruined, quite the opposite - I think it would be really cool to see the gondola cutting across that view.