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DTLA REAL ESTATE EMPIRE
Movin’
on Up!
Downtown LA Civic Sector is About to Get One Heck of a View
It’s official: the County Board of Supervisors just gave the green light to snag the Gas Company Tower for a whopping $205 million. This 1.5-million-squarefoot office gem at 555 W. 5th Street will soon be County-owned. Plus, they’re also buying rights to air space with over 1,000 parking spots at the nearby World Trade Center complex.
Best part ever, no more drab offices of warm out carpets with long lines and only inpatient patrons to look at. Once the purchase is complete, LA County offices, soon to be surrounded by electric giants and historic landmarks, will enjoy the some of the most glorious views the town has to offer.
Why the buy?
Well, it’s no secret that the downtown office scene is still reeling post-pandemic, and this tower—appraised at a cool $632 million just four years back—is quite a deal. By grabbing it now, the County can shuffle its staff out of leased offices and into a sleek, modern space built in 1991, all while saving big bucks down the road.
The County did its homework, too. Out of 42 potential downtown buildings, they narrowed it down to three before choosing
the Gas Company Tower. The plan is to turn this place into back offices rather than spaces for public services.
Currently, the County’s real estate portfolio sits at a hefty 16.5 million square feet of office space, and they’re shelling out about $195 million yearly on leases. Almost half of the County-owned buildings are over 50 years old, and 40% of those are in “poor” or “very poor” shape.
And let’s talk earthquake concerns: 33 County-owned buildings, including the Hall of Administration, need seismic retrofits, and those fixes aren’t cheap— they’re in the hundreds of millions. But even with all that on the table, the Board’s decision wasn’t unanimous. Supervisor Janice Hahn was the lone “no” vote, defending the Hall of Administration named after her father, and lamenting, “It’s just a soulless building in a sea of skyscrapers. County Government belongs with the people, not up in the clouds.”
Adding to the mix, the tower’s namesake tenant, Southern California Gas Company, announced earlier this year that they’re moving out. The Gas Co. will be shifting over to a 200,000-square-foot spot in
the 2Cal Tower by 2026, leaving the Gas Company Tower only 50% leased.
In a move aiming to bring County employees and services closer to modern amenities, the Board gave the go-ahead for the $200 million purchase of this downtown skyscraper. With this 52-story, 749-foot-tall addition, the County can relocate staff from aging Civic Center offices to a Class A building with style and stability. This Class A skyscraper will provide a safe and modern space for our County employees, saving hundreds of millions on retrofitting old buildings.
However, not everyone’s thrilled.
Supervisor Janice Hahn, whose father, aka LA County Super-man, Kenneth Hahn’s name is stamped on the Hall of Administration on Temple, voiced her discontent, saying, “Funds that were supposed to preserve the Kenneth Hahn Hall are being used on this.”
Yet, with current occupants of the Southern California Gas Company officially set to leave, the County’s now doubling down on transforming this massive tower into a vibrant, new HQ.
SPOTLIGHT ON SOUTH PARK
South Park Deserves a Public Park: AEG & The City Just May Be Willing to Build It
Today, South Park is home to nearly 15,000 downtown Los Angeles residents. As of now, the only parks in the district, better known for its entertainment venues and sports arenas, are privately owned.
For residents who long for common spaces to get to know one another, there are one of two choices: the South Park Commons with its enchanting 20-foot wishbone or the anti-dog, highly regulated and heavily gated refuge of FIDMs adjacent green space.
Lo and behold! Downtown Los Angeles is notorious for its temporary parking lots— open spaces that have long been hot spots for future development.
Great news! There just happens to be a seemingly ordinary patch of asphalt at 11th Street and South Grand Avenue, dwarfed by the surrounding residential towers, that could soon become a vibrant public space.
The 0.31-acre property, currently owned by entertainment giant AEG, was originally intended for a hotel that never materialized. Today, it serves as a private lot for AEG, only opening to the public during peak event times and private events such as downtown’s annual Taste of South Park, presented by SPNA.
Yet, the city’s existing parkland guidelines recommend 10 acres of parkland per 1,000 residents.
Recently, through the efforts of South Park BID director Nolan Marshall III and former CD14 Councilmember Kevin de León, the Los Angeles City Council has directed city officials to negotiate the purchase of the property from AEG with the goal of converting the 11th/Grand Street lot into a public park.
Since joining the district in 2022, Marshall has been a vocal advocate for park spaces, recognizing their potential not just foractivity but also as economic catalysts. His experience leading economic development and placemaking in major cities like New Orleans, Dallas, and Vancouver, has established a park that would attract new businesses and boost property values.
“New urban parks are incredibly rare because of the market dynamics of acquiring land downtown,” explained Nolan Marshall III, executive director of the South Park Business Improvement District, to the LA Times. “This is huge for us.”
DT Weekly reached out in congratulations, and received this reply from the South Park BID Director, “This park has the potential to be culturally significant, leveraging partnership with sports and entertainment brands that are iconic and already proud to call this neighborhood home. Imagine the GRAMMY Museum hosting a series of tiny desk style performances, or the Lakers building a purple and gold playground for tiny hoopers. The mashups of public space and partnership are dream worthy in this neighborhood.”
The news has also been met with excitement by South Park residents, who have long yearned for a dedicated public space, especially seeing as the original vision for South Park envisioned a 50acre park and lake surrounded by highrise residences, akin to New York City’s Central Park.
The city plans to utilize development fees, known as “air rights,” collected from other public sites in South Park to finance the purchase. @southparkla
the thrill of victory
Ysabel Jurado Becomes the Newest Voice of Downtown LA
From a dimly packed warehouse riddled with graffiti in the heart of the city, DJs spun the hardest beats to a crowd that gathered around a makeshift stage at Downtown LA’s famed Clifton’s Cafeteria.
Enter: Ysabel Jurado and Kevin de León, stepping up to the mic with one goal: to win the respect of the people of City District 14.
Remixing de León’s leaked taped scandal with her support for renters and union workers, Ysabel Jurado became the next Los Angeles City Councilmember for District 14, winning the crown and making her the political voice of El Sereno, Boyle Heights, Eagle Rock, Highland Park, and Downtown Los Angeles. And that was the mic drop that rocked DTLA history.
Achieving a surprising victory over incumbent Kevin de León. Jurado steadily widened her lead, ultimately receiving over 56% of the vote compared to de León’s 43% of the vote.
On Thursday evening, Jurado announced her victory in a statement expressing gratitude to her supporters. “This win is not mine—it belongs to our community. It was the community that came together to knock on over 83,000 doors; it was the community that mobilized into a thousand-plus army of volunteers; it was the community that wrote and sent over 8,000 postcards,” she stated.
Nearly 24 hours after Jurado’s declaration, de León conceded in a Friday evening statement.
“While the results of this election did not go our way, I respect the decision of the voters and our democratic process. I am proud of what we’ve accomplished together,” the former councilmember said.
Jurado’s rise had already surprised many during the March primary, where the first-time candidate garnered more support than de León and other prominent figures, including Assemblymembers Miguel Santiago and Wendy Carrillo. De León, who had previously overcome recall attempts after being caught on tape in a controversial redistricting discussion using racist language, fell short in his re-election bid.
Jurado herself faced some criticism after a recording surfaced in which she used the F-word while discussing the police in a meeting with students at Cal State LA.
That didn’t sit well with downtown voters who deal with mental illness and rapid crime and who’ve been calling for an increase in police presence for almost a decade.
Although she faced backlash for her words, it ultimately didn’t stop her from claiming victory over de León. However, it did spark some panic among downtown residents who felt that Jurado might lack the experience—or even the willingness— to develop productive relationships with the police to help tackle the area’s crime issues.
Be careful what you wish for.
Like any ambitious leader ready to take on the thrown, Ysabel Jurado now faces the reality of her new role.
Work. Work, and more… Work.
The job will demand a lot—constant pressure and relentless scrutiny from the public over every decision, with every word and action likely to be dissected in the media. And then there’s… social media.
She’ll be bombarded with public demands as well as the kindest of requests and held to a higher standard of integrity. Above all, she’ll have to place the job and the people above her own interests, less fall into the same fate as her CD14 predecessors.
Jurado will be picking up where de Leon left off, towing the future of downtown’s aspirations. She’ll have to blend seamlessly with existing leadership, developers, local press, residents, business owners, the tourism industry, and the conservationists, within a whirlwind of longstanding downtown nemeses—homelessness, public safety, and transportation infrastructure issues that date back over a decade.
Hopefully, she’ll know how to throw a great party. Welcome to DOWNTOWN!
music to your ears
2024 JEXA Awards Gala: Added Elegance Honoring Linda Sam at the Biltmore Hotel
Combining blackties, world-class performances with elegant dining on November 9, the JEXA’s largest fundraiser honoring four local heroes of Los Angeles’s thriving jazz scene got underway with a pre-show cocktail reception and silent auction, magic at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles.
Ballroom Doors opened at 6 PM, which included an elegant dinner and awards ceremony in Crystal Ballroom.
The JEXA Awards Gala, hosted by Keri Kelsey and comedian Chris Spencer, is a benefit for JEXA’s music education programs to advance the art form of jazz in the Southern California area and beyond, led by Executive Director Jerome Pittman.
Honoree Linda Sam, founder of JazzZoneJazzabration.org, a nonprofit organization whose mission has been preserving the legacies of Jazz and Blues Legends since 2010, used her acceptance speech, beginning with, “It feels great to be recognized, and my soul feels realized,” followed by a heartfelt thank you to the many musicians she had the honor of working with along the way, as well as fellow Jazz ensemble booker and co-founder Roscoe Lee Owens, who had long founded JazzZone, Inc., in tribute to his late father, legendary jazz drummer
Jimmy Owens. The two produce numerous jazz events throughout Los Angeles and host a weekly jazz show in the Barbara Morrison Theater in Leimert Park.
Legendary bassist Michael Saucier, premiere jazz vocalist Dwight Trible,
and the iconic keyboard/arranger David Moscoe were among other honorees, including a climatic performance by Grammy award-winners Patti Austin and Gordon Goodwin’s Big Phat Band, which headlined the night’s event. @jazzlindamorgan
LITTLE TOKYO STREET FAIR
and the Joys of Early Holiday Shopping to Weller Court
Holiday gift season is just around the corner. Around the corner at the Little Tokyo Street Fair, to be exact. The fair is returning November 23rd, to Weller Court, sharing space with the Ellison S. Onizuka monument, honoring NASA’s first JapaneseAmerican astronaut.
Located on 2nd and San Pedro Streets at The Little Tokyo Street Fair offers a diverse range of vendors, from traditional Japanese goods to contemporary art and fashion.
Everything from handcrafted ceramics and unique souvenirs to the delicious Japanese Cuisine, like all-you-can -eat Wagyu, sushi, drinks and the full service grocery market can be found inside of Weller Court, where the street fair takes place.
In full view of the street, each kiosk offers something truly unique, making the street fair an absolute treasure hunt of Japanese culture for and heartfelt mementos.
urban fashion with art and musical influences.
One such enchanted item at the fair is the highly sought after, potted plant by Bozu, a family-run business that specializes in curating exotic plants and pairing them with one-of-a-kind handcrafted pots.
Each BOZU design is unique, personally selected to match its new owner. Some of their plants, such as the sacred bonsai, are believed to bring good luck and prosperity.
The attention to detail and the artistry involved in each piece make them truly special gifts and great room mates.
Kiosk Boys designs are made to stand out from the crowd, and no two designs are alike.
Free tastings, art, jewelry, psychics and other artisan crafts may also be found at the fair.
Shopping for gifts at the Little Tokyo Street Fair means not only buying a gift, but supporting a local, family business while contributing to the rich cultural tapestry of Little Tokyo all at once.
And it comes with the joy of early holiday shopping. @bozu_la @kioskboys
