LOS ANGELES | Downtown Project Rundown 4.0

[citywatch]

Originally Posted by Illithid Dude

A blank wall on a 40 story buildings is imposing, hostile, maybe a little scary. There's no life. Just glass.

illithid, first of all, no one even knows what the design is like. and if a wall is made of glass....which suggests the presence of windows....then it's not blank. actually, in order to maximize the number of apts in a bldg, I'd think the design would, if anything, require having windows all over the place. barry shy even punched holes into the solid walls of the 1960s era office bldg on spring st that he converted from offices into apts.

and then we debate such points til we're blue in the face, & the proj ends up not even being built. Or it ends up being downsized to a 7 story wood framed bldg, & then ppl will complain about it being too short & burban like.

[LosAngelesDreamin]

Originally Posted by ThreeHundred

The same people who think of Santa Monica when you say 'Lets go to Third Street.' Things sound much better when they are organic. And I'm not talking about Trader Joes.




DTLA should have retail yes but a mall? No. We already have a crappy one (Macy's Plaza). I'd be 100% on board if Macy's Plaza were to undergo a Santa Monica Place type renovation but I don't want to see malls all over DTLA. If there WERE to be a mall, it should be something like LA Central. Or just build LA Central.

well i mean not the typical malls you see today, i think you're imagining a Beverly Center with a tower over it.. but what i mean is a mall that has stores that open up to the streets and outside facade on the upper floors... basically instead of 1st floor retail just make it 4 or 5 floors of retail and then add a tower on top for offices, hotels, residents or a mix..

[BrandonJXN]

Originally Posted by LosAngelesDreamin

well i mean not the typical malls you see today, i think you're imagining a Beverly Center with a tower over it.. but what i mean is a mall that has stores that open up to the streets and outside facade on the upper floors... basically instead of 1st floor retail just make it 4 or 5 floors of retail and then add a tower on top for offices, hotels, residents or a mix..

That's what LA Central is/was.

[LosAngelesDreamin]

Originally Posted by colemonkee

The Downtown News has been Tweeting renders of the replacement for the 6th Street Viaduct. Here they are:

HNTB Corp.



Parsons Brinckerhoff



All Images Sourced From: LA Downtown News Twitter Feed

omg i love the HNTB one... its very eye catching and passes the whole "test of time" thingy.. it looks very elegant, almost heavenly and elvin due to the arches, curves and twists.. perfect for the "City of Angels". It also has a hint of similarity to historic architecture. It also has pedestrian access.

Parsons is pretty cool too with the Brooklyn bridge style walkways... but the design of the bridge doesn't look very jaw dropping =/. I think i'll take a Divine looking bridge WITH pedestrian access over a mediocre looking bridge with an awesome pedestrian walkways.

Thats just me though. Who knows what will get approved -_-''

[Illithid Dude]

illithid, first of all, no one even knows what the design is like. and if a wall is made of glass....which suggests the presence of windows....then it's not blank. actually, in order to maximize the number of apts in a bldg, I'd think the design would, if anything, require having windows all over the place. barry shy even punched holes into the solid walls of the 1960s era office bldg on spring st that he converted from offices into apts.

Windows can be just as imposing as concrete. A blank wall is a blank wall, regardless of material. And Shy Barry punching holes in the wall is a sore spot for me. First, he paints a very well materialed building is cheap, tacky greens and blues, and the wholes he punches in are irregular, random. It's worse then what was there before, from an aesthetic standpoint. Ugh.

[citywatch]

Originally Posted by Illithid Dude

Windows can be just as imposing as concrete. A blank wall is a blank wall, regardless of material. And Shy Barry punching holes in the wall is a sore spot for me. First, he paints a very well materialed building is cheap, tacky greens and blues, and the wholes he punches in are irregular, random. It's worse then what was there before, from an aesthetic standpoint. Ugh.

Painting over what I believe is polished granite was kind of , but are the newly created windows all that irregular or random? From what I've seen, that one change to the bldg seemed fairly tame or even okay.

[colemonkee]

Move the discussions about business tax receipts, power lines, empty parking lots, NY, SF, and areas of the "hood" that are not part of active projects or proposals, or what people outside of downtown think about downtown out of this thread and into the City Discussions forum or you will be suspended.

That goes for all of you. I'm am sick and tired of babysitting. Moderating this thread has turned into a job that I am not being paid for, and I will not have it take up any more time than it needs to.

This thread is to discuss development projects in downtown Los Angeles. If you are not sure if your post directly relates to a project do not post it.

[RST500]

Was Metropolis canceled?

[colemonkee]

It has not been officially canceled. There is a rumor (unsubstantiated, but from a normally reliable source), that the current developer may be looking to sell the property. But there has been no announcement - official or otherwise - of cancelation.

[Quixote]

So, Brigham is reporting on his blog that Urban Outfitters is interested in possibly opening shop at the Rialto Theater on Broadway.

This is huge news if true and it will really accelerate Broadway's revival.

[Illithid Dude]

Originally Posted by Westsidelife

So, Brigham is reporting on his blog that Urban Outfitters is interested in possibly opening shop at the Rialto Theater on Broadway.

This is huge news if true and it will really accelerate Broadway's revival.

Whoa. This is huuuge. Of course, will Huizar, with his theater obsession, let Urban turn the Rialto into a store? Either way, where Urban goes, others will follow. This is the beginning of quite a large snowball effect. Exciting news.

[Mojeda101]

Originally Posted by illithid dude

yes, i do think a blank wall would bother them more. A blank wall on a 40 story buildings is imposing, hostile, maybe a little scary. There's no life. Just glass. The parking lots in dt, for what they are, aren't that bad. There's street art, people walking to and from their cars, sunlight. A blank wall stretching 400 feet in the air feels like its forcing you off the sidewalk, like there's no escape. It's threatening, and no one wants to feel threatened.

Think of it like this. That's another 350 people walking in the streets to go to the stores within a block away.

[SD_Phil]

Originally Posted by Illithid Dude

Whoa. This is huuuge. Of course, will Huizar, with his theater obsession, let Urban turn the Rialto into a store? Either way, where Urban goes, others will follow. This is the beginning of quite a large snowball effect. Exciting news.

As with any of these re-use plans, it all depends on the execution. The Rialto is a historical and architectural treasure and deserves respect. Still, it's better for the building and the neighborhood if it is used instead of sitting empty.

[Illithid Dude]

Originally Posted by SD_Phil

As with any of these re-use plans, it all depends on the execution. The Rialto is a historical and architectural treasure and deserves respect. Still, it's better for the building and the neighborhood if it is used instead of sitting empty.

Apparently, I've just learned that the Rialto theater was heavily damaged in the Northridge earthquake, and that inside, everything was torn out. Therefore, there really isn't anything to loose. Build away!

[202_Cyclist]

Proposal for downtown L.A. NFL stadium advances to City Council
Planning Commission decides that economic benefits of bringing the NFL to downtown L.A. outweigh the stadium's effects on traffic, air quality and other issues.


Farmers Field, a $1.35-billion project, would be adjacent to the L.A. Convention Center. (Image courtesy of the LA Times)

By David Zahniser and Kate Linthicum
Los Angeles Times
September 14, 2012

"A $1.2-billion plan for bringing an NFL stadium to Los Angeles passed a major test Thursday, even as anti-poverty activists pressed powerful developer Anschutz Entertainment Group to make millions of dollars in additional concessions.

After 10 and a half hours of review, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's appointees on the Planning Commission signed off on a set of agreements for the 72,000-seat stadium, concluding the project's economic benefits outweigh the "significant and unavoidable" impacts it will have on traffic, air quality, noise and light glare..."

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-0914-stadium-20120914,0,4319446.story

[colemonkee]

LA Streets Blog has a good article on the new 6th Street Viaduct designs that has a picture of the model of the Parson Brinckerhoff design. Looking closer at the model, I'm really warming up to that design. Looking from the side, the suspension arms are clearly modeled to look like angel's wings. It's an obvious reference, but a well placed one. Plus I really like the pedestrian ramp that provides access to the west side of the newly-greened riverbank (which I hope is a part of any design that's built). Here's the article:



Image Source: LA Streets Blog

Competing Visions for 6th Street Viaduct “Iconic,” but Residents’ Concerns More Practical
by Kris Fortin

“This is era, a new chapter, a new opportunity to do something different,” said Mayor Antonio Villaragosa of plans to rebuild the 6th Street Viaduct. Replacing the crumbling bridge is one of the major infrastructure projects on the city’s plans for the next couple of years, and there’s no shortage of big visions.

While everyone from Villaraigosa, to 14th District Council Member Jose Huizar, to the architects seems to want an “iconic” bridge that is known worldwide; at the unveiling of the 6th Street Bridge Viaduct proposals, Boyle Heights residents felt that the proposals ignored their needs and the community as a whole. The three finalists are HNTB, AECOM, and Parsons Brinckerhoff.

Read the rest of the article here:
http://la.streetsblog.org/2012/09/13/com...c-but-residents-concerns-more-practical/

[Kingofthehill]

Originally Posted by Westsidelife

So, Brigham is reporting on his blog that Urban Outfitters is interested in possibly opening shop at the Rialto Theater on Broadway.

This is huge news if true and it will really accelerate Broadway's revival.

Wow, definitely a game-changer. Broadway, in its current iteration, will be virtually unrecognizable in the years to come. Exciting stuff!

[DJM19]

Curbed has more bridge renderings up. HNTB pulled ahead for me:

Link

[Quixote]

Originally Posted by DJM19

Curbed has more bridge renderings up. HNTB pulled ahead for me:

Link

Me too. I hope the landscaping comes with the bridge.

[LosAngelesDreamin]

Originally Posted by colemonkee

LA Streets Blog has a good article on the new 6th Street Viaduct designs that has a picture of the model of the Parson Brinckerhoff design. Looking closer at the model, I'm really warming up to that design. Looking from the side, the suspension arms are clearly modeled to look like angel's wings. It's an obvious reference, but a well placed one. Plus I really like the pedestrian ramp that provides access to the west side of the newly-greened riverbank (which I hope is a part of any design that's built). Here's the article:



Image Source: LA Streets Blog

Competing Visions for 6th Street Viaduct “Iconic,” but Residents’ Concerns More Practical
by Kris Fortin

“This is era, a new chapter, a new opportunity to do something different,” said Mayor Antonio Villaragosa of plans to rebuild the 6th Street Viaduct. Replacing the crumbling bridge is one of the major infrastructure projects on the city’s plans for the next couple of years, and there’s no shortage of big visions.

While everyone from Villaraigosa, to 14th District Council Member Jose Huizar, to the architects seems to want an “iconic” bridge that is known worldwide; at the unveiling of the 6th Street Bridge Viaduct proposals, Boyle Heights residents felt that the proposals ignored their needs and the community as a whole. The three finalists are HNTB, AECOM, and Parsons Brinckerhoff.

Read the rest of the article here:
http://la.streetsblog.org/2012/09/13/com...c-but-residents-concerns-more-practical/

I think its actually suppose to portray Eagle wings... a freakin bird... another reason i think why is because that observation area under the bridge is a called the "Nest".... i think this design is boring and it already looks outdated to me