Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
Massive Development Proposed For Arts District Includes The Neighborhood's First Skyscrapers
The landscape of the Arts District, one of them most rapidly changing neighborhoods in Los Angeles, is poised for yet another wave of transformation, as an Orange County-based developer has proposed a 15-acre mixed-use complex at 6th and Alameda that will include twin towers reaching 58-stories apiece—making them the first skyscrapers to be built in the neighborhood.The L.A. Times reports that the proposal for the development, known as "6AM," from Irvine development firm SunCal includes:
1,736 residences, two hotels, shops and creative offices and a school on a lot now the site of two warehouses. About 430 of the residences would be condos, the rest apartments. There would also be 23,000 square feet of "art opportunity space" and two "major urban parks."
L.A. Downtown News did the math, reporting that this works out to "1.4 million square feet of apartments and 674,000 square feet of condominiums." They also reported that the project will cost roughly $2 billion. Wowza.
The designs come from Basel, Switzerland-based architects Herzog & de Meuron (known for Beijing's "Bird's Nest" stadium) whose renderings show what the towers ("needles" as they describe them) would look like rising out of the Arts District, as well as a series of low-rise sections that are set to include spaces for retail, offices, restaurants, and other "creative" endeavors.
Support for LAist comes from
The Times' architecture critic Christopher Hawthorne wrote that the project is, "thoughtful in its response to its site — and more broadly in the way it adds to the conversation in Los Angeles about the role of vertical architecture." He also added that the architectural design itself "would be unlike anything recently completed in Los Angeles — muscular, intricate and porous all at once."]
But Hawthorne is also skeptical about how this development could be executed, writing:
A bigger question is whether this sort of megablock development, so much more intensely built up than the buildings around it, will feel less like an extension of the neighborhood than a contrived stage set for sophisticated urban life, a high-design Swiss spin on a Rick Caruso outdoor mall.
Arts District resident Mike Parillo told the Times that while the idea of 60-story towers in the neighborhood "seems out of place," he also noted that because of the city's housing crisis, the development could indeed be an asset, saying, "we have an incredible opportunity for density."
But whether that opportunity can be realized has yet to be determined. On Friday, SunCal's chief executive and architect Pierre de Meuron informally presented 6AM to city officials, but formal plans have yet to be submitted to the city. The Times notes that if that terrible Neighborhood Integrity Initiative ballot measure passes, the ability to build 6AM as densely as planned would be severely hindered.
L.A. Downtown News writes that the project is expected to be formally submitted to the Department of City Planning this week, but a finalized design—which would include securing entitlements and assessing community feedback—could take two years.
As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.
Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.
We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.
No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.
Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.
Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.
Chip in now to fund your local journalism
(
LAist
)
Trending on LAist
-
The U.S. Supreme Court lifted limits on immigration sweeps in Southern California, overturning a lower court ruling that prohibited agents from stopping people based on their appearance. -
Censorship has long been controversial. But lately, the issue of who does and doesn’t have the right to restrict kids’ access to books has been heating up across the country in the so-called culture wars.
-
With less to prove than LA, the city is becoming a center of impressive culinary creativity.
-
Nearly 470 sections of guardrailing were stolen in the last fiscal year in L.A. and Ventura counties.
-
Monarch butterflies are on a path to extinction, but there is a way to support them — and maybe see them in your own yard — by planting milkweed.
-
With California voters facing a decision on redistricting this November, Surf City is poised to join the brewing battle over Congressional voting districts.
Best of LAist