LOS ANGELES | Downtown Project Rundown 4.0

[alki]

Every little bit helps.

Honda Advanced Design Studio Relocating to Downtown LA from Pasadena

Posted on August 29, 2012 by Brigham Yen | 3 Comments




Honda Advanced Design Studio is relocating their design headquarters from Pasadena to South Park in Downtown LA

The concept of urban re-centralization is an especially wonderful phenomenon when applied to Los Angeles. Basically, the anecdote to LA’s diluting effects of suburban sprawl and its energy-intensive, socially-destructive dependency on automobiles is to consolidate as much mixed-use and commercial activity as possible into one compact walkable urban center. In this case, Downtown LA with its expansive commercial street grid has the potential to be the most energetic “one stop shop” for pedestrians in all of Southern California. With many notable companies now moving back into The City (i.e., Gensler from Santa Monica, SAA from Pasadena, the American Diabetes Association, etc.), Honda Advanced Design Studio is yet another company attracted to Downtown LA’s growing relevancy with plans to relocate from Pasadena.

After being in Old Pasadena (at the intersection of Raymond and Union) for almost six years, Honda Advanced Design Studio has leased a ~6,400 square foot space on the ground floor of the 77-unit Concerto Lofts on Flower Street between 9th and Olympic Blvd. The new downtown studio will likely continue with a similar design objective as the Pasadena studio “focusing on advanced design concepts and the creation of concept vehicles for future Honda and Acura products.” It is still unclear if or when Honda will decide to vacate their space in Old Pasadena or if they will just find another use for it.

It is great news that Honda Advanced Design Studio has chosen to make Downtown LA their new home. My only concern is what the interaction will be with the studio and the sidewalk outside. I hope Honda will, at the very least, design their new studio to be visually engaging to the pedestrians who walk by.


http://brighamyen.com/2012/08/29/honda-a...relocating-to-downtown-la-from-pasadena/

[pesto]

Originally Posted by alki

Every little bit helps.

Honda Advanced Design Studio Relocating to Downtown LA from Pasadena

Posted on August 29, 2012 by Brigham Yen | 3 Comments




Honda Advanced Design Studio is relocating their design headquarters from Pasadena to South Park in Downtown LA

The concept of urban re-centralization is an especially wonderful phenomenon when applied to Los Angeles. Basically, the anecdote to LA’s diluting effects of suburban sprawl and its energy-intensive, socially-destructive dependency on automobiles is to consolidate as much mixed-use and commercial activity as possible into one compact walkable urban center. In this case, Downtown LA with its expansive commercial street grid has the potential to be the most energetic “one stop shop” for pedestrians in all of Southern California. With many notable companies now moving back into The City (i.e., Gensler from Santa Monica, SAA from Pasadena, the American Diabetes Association, etc.), Honda Advanced Design Studio is yet another company attracted to Downtown LA’s growing relevancy with plans to relocate from Pasadena.

After being in Old Pasadena (at the intersection of Raymond and Union) for almost six years, Honda Advanced Design Studio has leased a ~6,400 square foot space on the ground floor of the 77-unit Concerto Lofts on Flower Street between 9th and Olympic Blvd. The new downtown studio will likely continue with a similar design objective as the Pasadena studio “focusing on advanced design concepts and the creation of concept vehicles for future Honda and Acura products.” It is still unclear if or when Honda will decide to vacate their space in Old Pasadena or if they will just find another use for it.

It is great news that Honda Advanced Design Studio has chosen to make Downtown LA their new home. My only concern is what the interaction will be with the studio and the sidewalk outside. I hope Honda will, at the very least, design their new studio to be visually engaging to the pedestrians who walk by.


http://brighamyen.com/2012/08/29/honda-a...relocating-to-downtown-la-from-pasadena/

Hope he meant "antidote" not "anecdote".

This is the sort of thing that could have gone to the westside or South Bay but came DT instead. That is a really favorable development, way beyond football stadiums and upscale retail, since it shows that employers are comfortable with putting tech jobs DT.

[pesto]

Originally Posted by ThreeHundred

I like it. Not groundbreaking in terms of design but quality infill nonetheless.

A nice addition. Brings some real urban presence instead of suburban-style apartments transferred to downtown. This is something you would find very little of in Culver City or NoHo.

[alki]

Originally Posted by pesto

Hope he meant "antidote" not "anecdote".

This is the sort of thing that could have gone to the westside or South Bay but came DT instead. That is a really favorable development, way beyond football stadiums and upscale retail, since it shows that employers are comfortable with putting tech jobs DT.

I agree. Now if a big user took 100 sq ft that would give the development some momentum.

[alki]

Originally Posted by colemonkee

File under: Awesome, , &


[SIZE="1"]Image Source: .

Really like this bldg.......makes an attempt to relate to the surrounding bldgs in terms of massing and scale and has a deco feel to it which is in character with the neighborhood. Hope it gets built as designed.

[Illithid Dude]

Originally Posted by alki

Really like this bldg.......makes an attempt to relate to the surrounding bldgs in terms of massing and scale and has a deco feel to it which is in character with the neighborhood. Hope it gets built as designed.

That's an old rendering of the previous proposal, a parking lot. The new proposal will look a lot more like the rendering I posted on the previous page. In fact, that rendering may, in fact, be the new proposal, though there is no confirmation.

[Mojeda101]

This?



Yeah, I prefer this one.

[alki]

Originally Posted by Illithid Dude

Downtown Managment is just the best. The care they put into restoring their buildings is incredible. Also, I think I have a rendering for the apartmen-ified building. A while ago, I posted a rendering of a 12 story apartment building for this lot. I was told that a parking garage was currently planned for where the 12 story building was, and I thought that the render I posted was an old, outdated, pre-recession vision. Now, I am thinking that the rendering I posted was not old, but was, in fact, the newest vision. Let me repost it. It's a fantastic rendering.

ID, you are famous.......at least at Curbed LA. In this Curbed article:

http://la.curbed.com/archives/2012/08/dt...top_parking_lot_with_residences.php#more

They talk about Hellen's garage project on Spring St and then by clicking on these linked words:

has a much glassier version

they link to your post here on SPF to show the rendering of the revised bldg.

What can I say...........all of built LA is looking to you for direction, ID.

[alki]

This article points out that hotel occupancy is up in LA County with an important highlight for DTLA:

Javier Cano, general manager of the Ritz-Carlton and JW Marriott hotel complex in downtown Los Angeles, also attributes the higher tourism numbers to the "renaissance of downtown Los Angeles," particularly with the opening of new restaurants, clubs and theaters over the last few years.

He declined to disclose exact occupancy rates for his hotels this summer but said they exceeded 80%.

"I definitely think that the economic conditions are something to consider, but I think Los Angeles is faring better than the overall country," Cano said.

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-hotel-occupancy-20120830,0,4893392.story

And given the good occupancy figures esp in DTLA, its no surprise that this article appeared in Curbed LA this past week:

South Park Carwash Site Will Probably Birth Mixed-Use Hotel

http://la.curbed.com/archives/2012/08/so...e_will_probably_birth_mixeduse_hotel.php

Growth begets growth.

[colemonkee]

^ More of anecdotal evidence than anything else, but I've noticed a lot more tourists walking around downtown on weekends lately. I spoke to a couple visiting from Salt Lake City Saturday morning at Ground Floor Cafe who only had good things to say about their visit thus far.

Originally Posted by blackcat23

1340 Figueroa; it's been under construction for a few months now, on the site where the Libeskind designed tower was proposed years back. Still mostly a dirt lot at this point, but you can see it from the Expo/Blue lines as they approach Pico station.

I drove by this the other day and it's far more than just a dirt lot. They have a very deep pit dug out and there were visible rebar columns that didn't quite reach ground level, but were getting close. We should see this one reach ground level in the next few months.

[Mojeda101]

I haven't looked at the live feed of the Marriott but wow, in just a week this is how it transformed!

[BrandonJXN]

Originally Posted by colemonkee

^ More of anecdotal evidence than anything else, but I've noticed a lot more tourists walking around downtown on weekends lately. I spoke to a couple visiting from Salt Lake City Saturday morning at Ground Floor Cafe who only had good things to say about their visit thus far.

There is a lot of tourists that have been going downtown as of late. And they are all over: Broadway, Bunker Hill, Spring Street, LA Live, Historic Core. It's really good to see.

[alki]

Originally Posted by Illithid Dude

That's an old rendering of the previous proposal, a parking lot. The new proposal will look a lot more like the rendering I posted on the previous page. In fact, that rendering may, in fact, be the new proposal, though there is no confirmation.

I like them both although the second one has apts so its probably better for the street.

[LosAngelesSportsFan]

more good news



Clothier Splendid moving offices to historic industrial complex

By Roger Vincent |
Updated 8 minutes ago
VF Corp., one of the world’s largest apparel companies, will move the headquarters of its Splendid and Ella Moss clothing lines to a historic industrial complex in downtown Los Angeles.

The clothier agreed to lease 80,000 square feet in Alameda Square near the intersection of Alameda Street and Olympic Boulevard, said real estate broker John Zanetos of CBRE Group Inc. The 10-year deal is valued at about $18 million.

VF will convert raw warehouse space into offices in preparation for a move early next year. The lease marks the beginning of an effort by landlord Evoq Properties to renovate long-vacant industrial buildings in the 1.5-million-square-foot Alameda Square and convert them into offices for tenants in creative businesses, Zanetos said.

“Downtown really has become an attractive area for a younger and more collaborative work environment, with the residential population growing, access to public transportation and an amenity base that has just exploded in the past few...

http://www.latimes.com/business/money/la-fi-mo-splendid-alameda-20120831,0,5221096.story

[202_Cyclist]

This might not specifically be downtown but my girlfriend and I went to Yang Chow for dinner tonight and the Chinatown Gateway development (280 units) on Broadway is under construction. It is already two floors.

[Illithid Dude]

Originally Posted by alki

I like them both although the second one has apts so its probably better for the street.

I like how it keeps the 150 foot street wall, something that I think is very important.

[LosAngelesDreamin]

Originally Posted by 202_Cyclist

This might not specifically be downtown but my girlfriend and I went to Yang Chow for dinner tonight and the Chinatown Gateway development (280 units) on Broadway is under construction. It is already two floors.

I think Chinatown is part of downtown... a lot of people just don't see it that way because its split by the freeway... once the cap park is built tho.. it'll all connect again.... someone correct me if im wrong??? idk thats what i've always thought same with everything a little more west passed the freeway

[sings twin]

Originally Posted by Mojeda101

I haven't looked at the live feed of the Marriott but wow, in just a week this is how it transformed!

Wow. They are really cracking on with the build there.

[alki]

Originally Posted by Illithid Dude

I like how it keeps the 150 foot street wall, something that I think is very important.

Its important but I don't think its sacrosanct on Spring because there are so many bldgs of that height that the average pedestrian wouldn't notice and if looking from afar, there is no real skyline as we like to think of .........bldgs of significantly varying heights......so that if one bldg is 3-4 stories than the rest, I don't think its a big deal. I get upset when the scale is completely out of whack.........a 70 story bldg next to one that is 5 stories.....but scale differences of a few stories are okay with me

On Spring I think what is most important is keeping the street wall at the sidewalk level............I think its what gives the street its sense of urbanity.......and having the architecture beneficially reflect the surrounding bldgs. Hellen's bldg doesn't have any of the ornateness and detail of the surrounding bldgs but by aping the window treatments of its neighbors, it fits in........and the cutout in the center of the bldg makes it interesting. Again, IMO.

I wanted to mention......a while back people were talking about flat tops vs spired bldgs. The LA developer who most tried to get around that LAFD requirement was Maguire. His building that got destroyed during the movie, Independence Day, was an attempt to get around the LAFD requirement. I think its what makes the bldg interesting and iconic.

Its too bad Maguire got into trouble financially because he was a very visionary developer IMO. Had DTLA had the vitality of some other cities and their DTs, he could have done some amazing things. Even without that vitality, he created some of DTs best bldgs and helped bring about Library Square. Unfortunately, I think it was his vision coupled with DT's lack of vitality that knee capped him.

[Valyrian Steel]

Originally Posted by LosAngelesDreamin

I think Chinatown is part of downtown... a lot of people just don't see it that way because its split by the freeway... once the cap park is built tho.. it'll all connect again.... someone correct me if im wrong??? idk thats what i've always thought same with everything a little more west passed the freeway

Yeah, I think the general thought is that downtown is bounded by the 101, 110, 10, and LA River. But even the skyline includes skyscrapers west of the 110, and Union Station is considered part of downtown.