LOS ANGELES
DOWNTOWN
NEWS Volume 38, Number 7
INSIDE
Bowl and Get Lucky 16
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Another project goes rental, and more happenings Around Town.
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Community disappointed as a proposed Chinatown development stalls.
W W W. D O W N T O W N N E W S . C O M
February 16, 2009
The Rowan Rally Historic Core Property Sees 63 of 79 Available Units Sell at Auction by Richard Guzmán
Jewelry District thief released.
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Urban Scrawl on the mayor’s race.
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city editor
T
he developers of The Rowan condominiums were breathing easier last week, following a test case of a groundbreaking sales technique: On Sunday, Feb. 8, they put 79 of the residences in the Historic Core complex up for auction, the first time such an effort has been made in Downtown Los Angeles. The approximately three-hour event resulted in the purchase of 63 units. Although loans must be secured and escrows closed, officials with developer Downtown Properties called it a success. “It’s a near miracle in today’s market, a wonderful result,” said Bill Stevenson, a
partner in Downtown Properties, a firm which also includes international investor Goodwin Gaw. About 140 potential buyers participated in the auction, where starting bids for some units were as much as 45% below a previous asking price. Not all units received bids. The auction results totaled $21.8 million in sales for the $50 million adaptive reuse project at 460 S. Spring St. Real estate observers said that, despite the recession, the sales figures show that the market is not dead and that buyers are still out there, as long as the price is right. “That is a good number. I was sort of wondering if the thing would fall flat, so see Rowan, page 8
The Outsider Time for the Economic Forecast.
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The New Head of FilmL.A. Has No Entertainment Industry Experience, But He Considers That an Advantage by Ryan Vaillancourt staff writer
Get the Restaurant Buzz.
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Reviewing the Ahmanson’s Minsky’s.
P
aul Audley, the new president of FilmL.A., has been a police officer, a lawyer, a mayor and a business consultant, but nowhere on his resume is there a reference to film industry experience. To many, it may be a surprise that this administrative jack of all trades landed the gig as the leader of FilmL.A., the nonprofit organization in charge of coordinating film permitting in Los Angeles County. “It was a surprise to me too,” Audley said.
In fact, Audley didn’t even seek the post: a recruiting agency he was working with for another job was also representing FilmL.A., and he found the organization quite by chance. “The first thing we wanted was a leader and what attracted us to Paul was really his diverse background, and we didn’t limit ourselves to looking within entertainment,” said Mel Kohn, a FilmL.A. board member who chaired the organization’s president search committee. “Paul really brought us see FilmL.A., page 10
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Five great entertainment options.
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18 CALENDAR LISTINGS 20 MAP 21 CLASSIFIEDS
photo by Gary Leonard
Paul Audley, who became president of permitting organization FilmL.A. four months ago, faces issues such as runaway production and neighborhoods frustrated by intrusive film shoots.
photo by Gary Leonard
Goodwin Gaw (left) and Bill Stevenson of development firm Downtown Properties just before the Feb. 8 auction of condos in The Rowan. About 140 people bid on the Historic Core residences.
Big Dreams Can Mean Big Trouble Delays for Four Downtown Mega-Projects Highlight the Complexities of Billion-Dollar Deals by Anna Scott staff writer
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“The credit markets are all seized up, especially for a project of this size,” said Oskar Brecher, director of development for the New Yorkbased Moinian Group. “The ability of banks to finance large projects… is just nonexistent.” see Mega-Projects, page 11
hile the most recent groundbreaking deadline for the proposed Grand Avenue project came and went last week, the $3 billion effort is not the only Downtown megadevelopment on hold. Three other $1 billionplus projects are also stalled amid the ongoing recession. In addition to Related Cos.’ Grand Avenue plan, no groundbreaking is in sight for the Moinian Group’s $1 billion L.A. Central, a retail-heavy mixed-use project planned for a parking lot at Figueroa and 11th streets; the Houk Development Company’s Park Fifth skyscraper, a $1.3 billion residential-hotel complex proposed for a parking lot at Olive and Fifth streets; and IDS Real Estate Group’s Metropolis, a fourrendering courtesy of Kohn Pedersen Fox Architects phase, $1 billion-plus The proposed Park Fifth project at Fifth and residential-retail behe- Olive streets is one of four stalled Downtown moth in South Park that developments worth more than $1 billion. In deals has been in the works of this size, it can take dozens of banks to fund a for more than a decade. construction loan.
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