In an era when most new Downtown residential units come in the form of a renovated loft, the developers of a South Park project near Staples Center have adopted a novel approach: They're building anew.

On Sept. 30, Portland, Oregon-based developers Gerding Edlen and Williams & Dame will break ground on an $85 million project called the Elleven, named for its address at 1111 S. Grand Ave. It marks the first new construction of a high-rise residential complex Downtown in more than two decades.

Once completed in early 2006, the two-tower condominium development at Eleventh and Grand will add approximately 400 units to the South Park district. The project is helping to catapult the neighborhood, which until recently lacked substantive living spaces, into a residential neighborhood. The area is currently home to at least half a dozen housing construction sites, most of them renovated lofts.

The developers call their units "soft lofts." According to Tom Cody, a principal with South Park LLC, the developers' joint venture, the project will mix loft-like standards of industrial finishes with crisp drywall, skyline windows and defined spaces normally associated with condominium developments.
"It offers a different alternative" to traditional loft-style living, said Cody.

While high-rises have been going up in Portland and other cities in recent years, they have been rare in Downtown, due mainly to high land and construction costs. Cody, however, believes South Park is poised to accept new and larger residential developments. His blueprints call for approximately 400 units in two earth-tone buildings on the 82,000-square-foot lot. Tower one begins construction this month. Tower two will break ground next fall. Floor plans range from 750 to 1,000 square feet.
Tenant parking will be located on the building's first two floors and a residential common area will be housed on each of the tower's fourth floors. Amenities will include hardwood floors and stainless steel appliances.

Prices will run from $300,000 to more than $1 million, said development spokesperson Jean Walcher. While the project will not contain any affordable units, Walcher said the less expensive units will serve as "workforce" housing.

"That is an important need not being met Downtown," she said.

Walcher said the developers are targeting Downtown working professionals, empty nesters and 35-54 "urban pioneers." The units go on sale Nov. 6.

The Community Redevelopment Agency approved the project in June. The developers are not receiving any public funds. Most of the city permits have been obtained, Walcher said.

The developers purchased the block-long plot last December for about $9 million from Anschutz Entertainment Group, the company that owns the nearby Staples Center and is planning a $1 billion entertainment complex around the arena called L.A. Live.

With a suddenly re-energized South Park, Cody said his group sensed there is a niche for new construction. "We've been refining our approach to urban housing up here in Portland," said Cody, "and we identified a void in the market in Downtown Los Angeles for the next phase of housing."
Mike Pfeiffer, executive director of the South Park Stakeholders Group, said developments such as Elleven will enliven the area, helping shape it into a community with residential as well as retail and entertainment options.

"It's part of the overall exciting changes for South Park," Pfeiffer said. "It's an exciting time Downtown and all the growth towards a 24-hour environment."


by Chris Coates