LOS ANGELES | Downtown Project Rundown 4.0

[LA/OCman]

Originally Posted by LosAngelesSportsFan

FYI, the cranes going up at 9th and olive. Also, not sure whats going on at Mas Malo, but the front windows are covered up. i would be shocked if they are closing since they are full everyday of the week from open to close. im hoping they are taking off the drywall behind the windows so the beauty of the space would be visible from the street.

Not to worry about Mas Malo...there is an art installation going in...finally.

[LosAngelesSportsFan]

excellent. Its about time damn it lol

[blackcat23]

Originally Posted by LosAngelesSportsFan

FYI, the cranes going up at 9th and olive.

Not the one mounted in the cement, though.





8th and Hope has been laying the decking for the 2nd floor since late last week.

[mdiederi]

Originally Posted by LosAngelesSportsFan

FYI, the cranes going up at 9th and olive.

Originally Posted by blackcat23

Not the one mounted in the cement, though.

Actually, it is. In your second photo you can see that the large crawler crane is being used to build the tower crane mounted in the cement. You can see a gray section of crane already mounted and several more gray sections off to the side.

[blackcat23]

Originally Posted by mdiederi

Actually, it is. In your second photo you can see that the large crawler crane is being used to build the tower crane mounted in the cement. You can see a gray section of crane already mounted and several more gray sections off to the side.

I'm aware. They gray sections were moved closer to the one mounted in the ground sometime yesterday. They may have even started mounting the crane extensions after I left.


Here's Ava Little Tokyo, taken by me this afternoon.



The adjacent Sares-Regis project was supposed to break ground this month, but it's still a surface parking lot as of today. It looks like they're wrapping up the permitting process, based on what I can tell from the DBS permit website.

[LosAngelesSportsFan]

now the crane is officially going up at 9th and olive

[brudy]

More scaffolding is going up around the Pac Mutual building and big progress on the new Verizon storefront a few doors down means they're probably close to starting on opening up that courtyard. That's going to be a great addition once Tender Greens is in.

[LosAngelesSportsFan]

according to a short article in the LA Business journal this week, the sellers of 833 Spring will be converting their other property at 1315 s flower to a palihouse hotel .

[Illithid Dude]

Originally Posted by LosAngelesSportsFan

according to a short article in the LA Business journal this week, the sellers of 833 Spring will be converting their other property at 1315 s flower to a palihouse hotel .

What a terrible location. A block from the freeway, and next to the Blue/Expo line tracks.

[Muji]

It looks like Metro has released some draft alternatives for the Union Station master plan. I won't post the images here since they're pretty big, but they're all up on the Source . Definitely worth a look.

[blackcat23]

Very interesting!

The plans for running HSR through Union Station seem unnecessarily ambitious. I was under the impression that with some modifications to the existing Amtrak/Metrolink tracks (electrifiction, adding run through tracks and raising the station platforms), no aerial/subterranean structures would be required to accommodate HSR. Certainly would be a lot cheaper than tunneling or building a second level of tracks.

I also wonder if they're leaving enough for expanding rail service, especially if they relocate the bus terminal in between the Gold Line platform and the historic station building. The Santa Ana light rail line is pretty far down the Measure R timeline, but it is intended to run through Union Station and would likely need it's own platform. Perhaps if the bus terminal is underground with train tracks on top of it?

[Wally West]

Originally Posted by Illithid Dude

What a terrible location. A block from the freeway, and next to the Blue/Expo line tracks.

Aside from close distance to the freeway, I strongly disagree.

This hotel will literally be across the street of the Convention Center/Staples Center. Lots of people complain about the Convention Center for its lack of options in hotel space. Having a hotel right across the street from the Convention Center would be a big plus.

And despite it being close to the Expo/Blue line tracks, it's less than a block away from the Pico Station so hotel guests can easily travel through rail so they wouldn't have to be as dependent on a rental car.

[Easy]

Originally Posted by blackcat23

Very interesting!

The plans for running HSR through Union Station seem unnecessarily ambitious. I was under the impression that with some modifications to the existing Amtrak/Metrolink tracks (electrifiction, adding run through tracks and raising the station platforms), no aerial/subterranean structures would be required to accommodate HSR. Certainly would be a lot cheaper than tunneling or building a second level of tracks.

I don't think that there were ever any plans to use the Amtrak or Metrolink tracks for HSR. High speed trains will need to use the same platforms all the time so that they can get in and out quickly. And that can't really be coordinated with Metrolink/Amtrak which sit there for fairly long periods. And they can't really give 4 of the Amtrak or Metrolink tracks to HSR and still have enough to run their regular service. And then there are also noise issues which I recall will require HSR to take a slightly different route into LAUS when heading north.

[Muji]

Just wanted to share LADTN's little feature on the relatively new Maccheroni Republic, which is solid proof that you can successfully bring high quality dining at very affordable prices to downtown, even next to a McDonald's on Broadway! Other restaurateurs should definitely take note.

Original article: http://www.ladowntownnews.com/news/macch...aee7e50-aebf-11e2-b283-0019bb2963f4.html

Maccheroni Republic Finds Customers in an Unlikely Spot
By Richard Guzmán

[...]

De Mori and Tommassi were not alone or even early in coming to Broadway. They join eateries that have arrived on the street in the last two years such as the former pop-up gem Alma, the massive French restaurant Figaro, the quirky but popular Umamicatessen and the beer and burgers joint Los Angeles Brewing Company.

The other new arrivals, however, are all south of Sixth Street. That makes Maccheroni Republic a sort-of culinary island on the northern part of the thoroughfare (though, to be fair, it is across the street from Grand Central Market).

[...]

So far as many as 200 people a day have been coming to Maccheroni Republic. De Mori is happy with the figure, and expects it to grow once they secure a beer and wine permit.

[blackcat23]

Originally Posted by Easy

I don't think that there were ever any plans to use the Amtrak or Metrolink tracks for HSR. High speed trains will need to use the same platforms all the time so that they can get in and out quickly. And that can't really be coordinated with Metrolink/Amtrak which sit there for fairly long periods. And they can't really give 4 of the Amtrak or Metrolink tracks to HSR and still have enough to run their regular service. And then there are also noise issues which I recall will require HSR to take a slightly different route into LAUS when heading north.

The run through tracks are supposed to increase Union Station's capacity by 40-50% compared to the current stub end format. This eliminates the long periods of time where Amtrak/Metrolink trains have to dwell at the station. As a result, enough station capacity would be freed up for Union Station to devote four (or more) tracks entirely to high speed trains.

Here are some schematics of what this would look like from alternatives analysis for the Union Station - Anaheim seciton of CAHSR, via the Transit Coalition forum.





Obviously the plans for the CAHSR interface with Union Station haven't been finalized yet(hell, we don't even know for sure that the system will even be built), but this does show that the possibility of re-assigning Amtrak/Metrolink tracks to high speed trains is on the table.

[202_Cyclist]

The California Department of Finance released its 2013 population estimates for the state and there was strong growth in multi-unit housing last year, both state-wide and in Los Angeles.

"The trend is the same across the state, which gained about 45,000 new housing units, down from 200,000 in peak years but a healthy upswing from previous years. Of those new homes, about 23,801 were multifamily units....

The city of Los Angeles saw 100 percent housing growth in multifamily units..."

http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2013/may/01/demographics-california-san-housing/?page=1#article-copy

[brudy]

Originally Posted by Wally West

Aside from close distance to the freeway, I strongly disagree.

This hotel will literally be across the street of the Convention Center/Staples Center. Lots of people complain about the Convention Center for its lack of options in hotel space. Having a hotel right across the street from the Convention Center would be a big plus.

And despite it being close to the Expo/Blue line tracks, it's less than a block away from the Pico Station so hotel guests can easily travel through rail so they wouldn't have to be as dependent on a rental car.

I agree. I think that's a great location. And being close to the train is a total plus for a tourist.

[brudy]

Originally Posted by Muji

Just wanted to share LADTN's little feature on the relatively new Maccheroni Republic, which is solid proof that you can successfully bring high quality dining at very affordable prices to downtown, even next to a McDonald's on Broadway! Other restaurateurs should definitely take note.

I've mentioned this place a few times here. It's a great restaurant and exactly what downtown needs more of - great food, good atmosphere at a decent price. A lot of us residents seem to be going here almost weekly, people really like it.

[DistrictDirt]

Originally Posted by 202_Cyclist

The city of Los Angeles saw 100 percent housing growth in multifamily units..."

They have to mean 100% growth in multifamily unit housing starts, right? There's not way LA's overall inventory of multifamily units doubled in a year.

[202_Cyclist]

Originally Posted by DistrictDirt

They have to mean 100% growth in multifamily unit housing starts, right? There's not way LA's overall inventory of multifamily units doubled in a year.

Correct, it is either building permits, housing starts, or percent of total housing delivered in a year. The absolute number of multifamily units certainly did not double in one year.