A Fashionable Investment
Publish Date: 11/10/2003
LA Downtown News
Landmark's
SANTEE COURT—DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES
LOFT HOUSING HITS A PIVOTAL MOMENT
Los Angeles, CA – MJW Investments has begun pre-leasing for the first phase of its $130 million adaptive reuse development, Santee Court. As the largest adaptive reuse endeavor in Los Angeles, this marks a pivotal moment in downtown’s effort to provide mixed-use, mixed-income housing.
Over the past year Santee Court has accumulated a long waiting list as waves of prospective downtown-bound residents search for unique loft housing at reasonable rents. These renovated historic & industrial lofts range from 650 to 1,300 square feet, and average about $1,550 per month. The first public tours of the model unit started on October 4, 2003.
“Our median rents are targeted for city workers and local downtown employees,” says Mark Weinstein, founder and President of MJW Investments. As one of the only developers voluntarily including 20% affordable housing for the workforce community, he is confident in the neighborhood’s growth. “With eight separate buildings, our project has a critical mass that no other adaptive reuse project in the City of Los Angeles is able to offer.”
Located on the southeast corner of Los Angeles and 7th Streets, the first three buildings to open—the Connell Building, the Bailey Hat Building, and the Brownstein-Louis Building—will house a total of 44 different floor plans designed to make the best use of their space and high ceilings. “Offering diverse floor plans affords our tenants flexibility to fit their diverse needs,” explains Brad Gwinn, vice president of development.
Phase One, slated for completion early 2004, consists of 165 lofts for rent and 40,000 square feet of retail space.
Santee Court Condos, slated for completion in early 2005, consists of 88 lofts for sale and 12,000 square feet of retail space.
Phase Two, slated for completion early 2006, consists of 299 lofts for rent and 40,000 square feet of retail space.
The History Behind Santee Court
The Start of the Fashion District
At the beginning of the 20th century Michael J. Connell, an Irish businessman, established the first garment and textile manufacturing buildings to accommodate the growing fashion industry in Los Angeles. In 1908 he purchased most of the east side of Los Angeles Street, between Seventh and Eighth Streets—the cornerstone of the Fashion District’s development.
Between 1911 and 1912, Architect Arthur Angel and contractor Carl Leonardt built Connell’s first four buildings: the 714 Building (the Connell Building), the 716 Building (the Bailey Hat Building), and the adjoined 720 and 724 Buildings (the Brownstein-Louis Building).
The Connell Building, a five-story moderne structure located on the southeast corner of 7th and Los Angeles, has a streamline façade with fluted piers that echo between paired windows. The Bailey Hat Building, named after a former manufacturer’s rooftop sign, lies behind the Connell Building but can be identified by its wall-size steel grid windows which were designed for maximum light and ventilation. The Brownstein-Louis Building once had a very ornate facade which was altered to look more “modern” in the late ’50s. It has horizontal-rotating pivot windows facing the street and a new interior courtyard garden. These buildings will re-open as Phase One of Santee Court’s loft housing in early 2004.
The buildings within Santee Court were designated as local historic monuments due to their social and architectural significance in the history of industrial Los Angeles. After renovation, the three-phased project will include 552 loft/condominiums, 100,000 square feet of retail space, a series of rooftop amenities, and a 400 foot-long courtyard/promenade.
“What it comes down to is this,” explained Weinstein to the Los Angeles Business Journal. “You have the choice of living in something with character and historic charm, or you can settle for a traditional apartment with four flat walls.”
A more detailed history is available on the web:
www.santeecourt.com
11/10/03 Landmark's Advertising Editorial
|
Press
Back to Press page
