LOS ANGELES | Downtown Project Rundown 3.0

[Wright Concept]

Originally Posted by JDRCRASH

I think you and I appear to be on the same page, LABeauty. I don't expect this to DIRECTLY cause a high-rise boom, but I do think that it will encourage people to live closer to work rather than biking there.
Echo, that post didn't make any sense. You say that "oil scarcity and rising costs aren't giong to help DTLA", but then at the end of the paragraph you say that "it will help DTLA in the long term".

It made 1000% of sense on the long term aspects because the cost of living of commuting long distances will bankrupt people and then force them to then move closer to where the activities/jobs and modes to which you are not required a car to do any and everything which in turn helps Downtown because we're equipped to do those very things.

I would agree with him/her on the short term that this effects Downtown High-rise construction because it takes a lot of fuel to power the concrete mixers and move the cranes and the material around to build the structures. This is something I pointed out a while back on another thread. In addition we will need to go back to a local sustainable method of building design and materials and methods of construction while still gaining the density and affordability we need.

However with China's major building boom their fuel costs will help slow down their construction and help improve the cost of our construction since the price of the material needed for all of these will go down for us since China won't have a monopoly on steel and concrete. It's a chain reaction how one thing leads to and effects other things.

[DTLA]

So, since you guys are talking about the subject of transportation anyway, I am in Seattle on vacation for a couple of days and they had a story on the Seattle news this morning about how LA's public transit is being overrun with new riders and that the system is in need of an upgrade because of it, so apparently LA's need for more public transportation is gaining national attention. Either that or it was just a REALLY slow news day.

[JDRCRASH]

No, your right; the system is overflowing with passengers, especially the Metrolink system, and here's why:

So many commuters drive daily from all of the nearby counties to Los Angeles County, and even Downtown. The Metrolink's web of routes go virtually everywhere in the Los Angeles area; the METRO Light-Rail does not, which is why I support pretty much everything on that future concept of what it will look like in the coming decades, even if most of it IS visionary plan, as Westsidelife pointed out in another thread.

What i'm surprised is that there hasn't been that much local coverage of Transit use in the region.

BTW, we have been warned before that we really shouldn't be talking solely about Mass Transit, DTLA; but it has some say in the matter, as it effects developments in the area.(traffic-wise)

[RuFFy]

Seriously, seriously seriously....

This whole idea that people will leave the suburbs to live into downtown LA is ridiculous. There's no sense going to work when work can come to you. Just a thought, maybe the smarter ones will know what I mean.

[JDRCRASH]

RuFFy, this is how you cause problems.

[ladowntowner]

Originally Posted by JDRCRASH

RuFFy, this is how you cause problems.

IIRC, that honor belongs to you, JDRCRASH, not RuFFy. I guess that's why you can speak so authoritatively on the subject.

[JDRCRASH]

Tsk, Tsk, Tsk. Once again, ladowntowner, you fail to read things before you comment, just like what you did concerning how many floors 717 Ninth will have. And BTW, my track record has improved, despite the fact you may remember things that happened months ago.

LOL, why does it seem as if I had a feeling you would come out and say this?

Originally Posted by RuFFy

maybe the smarter ones will know what I mean.

Its posts like these that make people upset. Why couldn't he have said "maybe some people with more knowledge will know what I mean"? Being smarter has nothing to do with it.

[colemonkee]

While the transportation conversation is fascinating, it's devolving into personal quibbles. Time to get this thread on track, and what better way to do that than a photo update!

Photos of the Ritz Carlton Residences, 717 Ninth, Concerto and LAPD Headquarters are in their respective threads. You can click on the links to go directly to the latest shots.

Evo

From Flower, with AT&T Center's new crown.




AT&T Center

Speaking of which, here's a close-up of the progress thus far. DCB, I think you had asked about this earlier this week. Those are transparent glass panels.




LA Live



The hotel starting to make an impact.



The Olympic side of the Grammy Museum/Club Nokia building. It's weird; from Figueroa this building looks like a deconstructed mess, but from this side, it's starting to look like an average 4-story office building.




San Pedro Apartments

Working on the third floor.

[colemonkee]

I updated the first page, moved Hanover Tower to complete. Looks like I'll have to update it again in a few weeks...

From the Downtown News


University Gateway Sets July Groundbreaking

Developer Urban Partners last week announced that the formal groundbreaking for the long-delayed University Gateway project will take place July 10. The development, to occupy a half-block on the northwest corner of Jefferson Boulevard and Figueroa Street, will house USC students and faculty in 421 apartments and feature 81,500 square feet of ground-floor retail space with a bookstore and restaurant. Previously estimated at $135 million, the project's current construction cost has not been disclosed. The development was delayed for more than two years by legal challenges filed by competing USC-area housing developer Conquest Student Housing. The lawsuit was settled in January. The groundbreaking ceremony will begin at the construction site, at 3335 S. Figueroa St., at 9:30 a.m. Preliminary site work began this month. The complex is slated for completion in July 2010.

page 2, 6/23/2008

[LongBeachUrbanist]

Originally Posted by colemonkee

Evo

From Flower, with AT&T Center's new crown.

Am I the only one here who thinks Evo is too dark? It's definitely a darker gray than I thought it would be, from the renderings.

From the 10, it almost looks like one of those cheapo government buildings from the 1960s.

[LosAngelesBeauty]

^ It's also surprising how small all these new towers look from the 10 freeway. Hanover, Evo, etc. barely make a dent in the skyline. It's almost like it's mandatory for a tower to be at least 30 stories to make any impact on the skyline. I guess the skyscrapers dwarf everything else and makes everything seem shorter because if you look at another skyline--say Salt Lake City--their tallest building, the Wells Fargo Center (422 feet), is about the same height as the Verizon Tower (formerly MCI at Macy's Plaza, 414 feet). But when you go to Salt Lake City, you think the skyline is "decent" because all the buildings are shorter.


utahrealestateguide.com



24hourmenu.com


Anyway, I think the only way South Park will really become a significant extension of the rest of downtown from the "skyline perspective" is if LA Central is built because then it will fill in that gap from the AT&T Tower to Ritz Carlton.

[Echo Park]

^If South Park succeeds at the street level then I don't really care how big or continuous our skyline looks.

[DowntownCharlieBrown]

^Edit: (looks like you beat me to it Echo)..LA Central, yes, and if any of the Southpark Towers ever get built, it will also help from a "Skyline Perspective" There are 3 of them and at least the first one is 44 floors. But what will help Southpark the most is to have all those parking lots wiped out and replaced with density.

From LBU
Am I the only one here who thinks Evo is too dark? It's definitely a darker gray than I thought it would be, from the renderings.

The windows in the rendering come across more blue and the concrete portion appears lighter and from this view, less of it.


BTW, great photo update colemonkee. Thanks!

(Photo credit: http://www.evo-south.com/)

[colemonkee]

The gray area on Evo is metal panels, which more or less match the rendering. Aside from the glass being a bit darker than what the render might suggest, which is probably exacerbated by the fact that they are very dirty, I think it's pretty true to the rendering.

[DowntownCharlieBrown]

Originally Posted by JDRCRASH

What i'm surprised is that there hasn't been that much local coverage of Transit use in the region.

I have either read or seen multiple stories regarding mass transit in the last week. Basically they are covering the increased ridership, but throw in comments about needing more trains, more cars added to trains, and more lines needed. It has been great to see.

Oh, and on a news story last night they showed a scene of Union Station with crowds of people and mentioned that "15 years ago, the city contemplated tearing Union Station down because it was obsolete". Times are a changing.

[DJM19]

I would be perfectly happy with a sea of Hanover- and Evo-size buildings...like a smaller version of Tokyo.

The one thing I dont want in any development is a lot of wasted space. The most urban part of the building should always front the urban street, not be set back on some side street. Dev's should also get the most bang for the buck they can out of a given plot. I guess this has a lot to do with laws though.

[ladowntowner]

^ You're right colemonkee. I, for one, am refusing to get sucked into yet another senseless battle... at least publicly.

[LongBeachUrbanist]

Originally Posted by colemonkee

The gray area on Evo is metal panels, which more or less match the rendering. Aside from the glass being a bit darker than what the render might suggest, which is probably exacerbated by the fact that they are very dirty, I think it's pretty true to the rendering.

I think it's mostly the fact that in the rendering, it's set against black, which makes it look lighter. In its actual surroundings, it looks pretty dark by contrast.

[DowntownCharlieBrown]

From Curbed LA
http://la.curbed.com/archives/2008/06/thatorsini_deve.php#reader_comments

A reader files a report on last night's meeting on the newest Palmer project. G.H. Palmer, of course, is the developer behind the city's unfortunate rash of faux Tuscan-style buildings around the city. We'd try and confirm the report with the company but this is a developer that does not return calls. Our reader writes: "Went to an EIR (Environmental Impact Report) scoping meeting last night for the newest Palmer monstrosity. This time on 23rd between Flower and Figueroa, on 8 acres that used to be Orthopedic Hospital. Now they want to shed the permanent Q (hospital) zoning and the CRA's PF zoning to become...a 1,400 unit 50 story glass and steel luxury rental tower! Connected by a sky-walk on the 3rd or 4th floor to a six-story in the more "traditional" Palmer faux-talian style. This shall be grandly termed The Lorenzo, which is apparently his favorite name so he's been saving it for somethin' special. Just what South LA needs, luxury market rate units instead of a hospital."

Though they're "not student housing" they are banking on a lot of USC students, either from existing Palmer properties (they'd be delighted if people moved out of Orsini, which is getting a lot of interest, the EIR consultant said), or from elsewhere. While USC students desperately need more housing, I don't know that the luxury market is as big as it once was, now that Tuscany is on-line and University Gateway is underway.

This will be the first Palmer property to use a density bonus, meaning 140 of those 1,400 units might be made affordable to those earning 80% of AMI. And to get that 50 stories they would need a TFAR from the six-story building (not to mention zoning changes).

As far as details, there won't be any retail, but the CRA wants them to do something like a sit-down restaurant like a Denny's, a small grocery store, and maybe a coffee shop..."

[BrandonJXN]

Oh dear God no.