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John Lautner's influential architectural legacy is hard to miss. Some of his works, like the Elrod House in Palm Springs or the Chemosphere in the Hollywood Hills, have been depicted in blockbuster Hollywood movies. Other projects, however, live on as humble—and not so... View full entry
Parker Center, the controversial building that housed the Los Angeles Police Department for over 50 years, is officially no more.
Yesterday, the City of Los Angeles' Bureau of Engineering announced that above-ground demolition of the eight-story building is now complete. The process, which began in August 2018, is expected to proceed through the end of 2019.
— Urbanize Los Angeles
"The site will be home to a new building, the Los Angeles Street Civic Building, which will house hundreds of City employees that are currently in more remote locations and in rental space," wrote the City of Los Angeles Bureau of Engineering in a statement published yesterday. Urbanize LA reports... View full entry
One of Frank Lloyd Wright's most notable disciples, John Lautner made a distinct impact in California, specifically in Los Angeles. Known for his residential works, Lautner's exploration of space and material echoes Wright's organic architectural influence. The eye-catching... View full entry
A slim hotel tower slated to rise on a Historic Core parking lot is slated to begin construction in spring 2020 and wrap up in 2022.
The Spring Street Hotel is developed by Lizard Capital and designed by Asap/Adam Sokol Architecture Practice. It would hold 170 rooms—20 of them suites—as well as a restaurant, bar, conference rooms, a screening room, and a gym.
— Curbed LA
Downtown Los Angeles has seen a significant revitalization in the last twenty years, with much of the change happening in its central Historic Core, the dense area of early 20th century buildings now largely occupied by wealthy residents. A striking new addition to the Historic Core might... View full entry
“We have this museum district,” says architect and theorist Dana Cuff, who oversees cityLAB, an urban research and design center at UCLA, “but the stuff that holds everything together is the part we call the city, and that is the part that Los Angeles has never gotten right.” — The Los Angeles Times
Carolina Miranda of The Los Angeles Times reports that despite a number of new and forthcoming institutional expansions coming to the Miracle Mile museum district in Los Angeles, the area's urban design is sorely lacking. The problem, according to Miranda, is worse by the fact that... View full entry
Continuing our featured list of employment opportunities for intermediate-level architects this week, Archinect has selected 10 Los Angeles-based firms currently hiring. OJMR Architects seeks an Intermediate Designer/Project Job CaptainThe firm seeks an individual with a minimum of 6 years... View full entry
With earthquakes in the news following a pair of recent tremors in California, it’s important to remember that seismic design is an integral and increasingly complex aspect of building design architects work hard to address. An ever-improving standard, seismic codes not only save lives, but also... View full entry
Housing costs have become so expensive in some cities that people are renting bunk beds in a communal home for $1,200 a month. Not a bedroom. A bed.
PodShare is trying to help make up for the shortage of affordable housing in cities like San Francisco and Los Angeles by renting dormitory-style lodging and providing tenants a co-living experience.
— CNN
In the last few years, we have written stories on recent trends in compromised living situations designed in response to severe economic conditions, such as tiny homes and micro-apartments. While these living types are challengingly small - some as compact as 100 square feet - they still... View full entry
Last week, Zumthor spoke about the project for the first time since museum officials presented a new plan in April. In an interview in the Zurich newspaper Neue Zürcher Zeitung first spotted by art writer William Poundstone, journalist Sabine von Fischer asked Zumthor about the controversy surrounding the museum’s proposal, and why the design has endured so many major changes. — Curbed LA
Curbed Los Angeles quotes the Swiss architect from his recent Neue Zürcher Zeitung interview: "Zumthor’s early experimentations within the grid-like limitations of the existing site left him unable to 'establish a meaningful relationship with the various architectural and urban elements' on the... View full entry
After nearly four years on the market and a few sizable price cuts, a 123-room Holmby Hills mansion known as The Manor has sold for $120 million, making it the most expensive home sold in LA County.
The seller is Formula One racing heiress Petra Ecclestone, who bought The Manor from Candy Spelling in 2011, paying $85 million in cash. She gave the home a flashy makeover, adding a nightclub in the basement and tanks for exotic fish.
— Curbed LA
$120,000,000 is the new record to set in the California real estate market, and the home to beat is the infamous Spelling Manor in Holmby Hills. Outdoor fountain at Spelling Manor. The 56,000 square foot home was originally built in the 1980s for TV producer Aaron Spelling and his wife Candy... View full entry
The United States Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) has unveiled its annual list of "highway boondoggles," a list of "budget-eating highway projects" that will "harm communities and the environment, while likely failing to achieve meaningful transportation goals." The proposed North Houston... View full entry
Construction is ramping up on a major mixed-use development in Downtown designed by Frank Gehry.
Over the weekend, the one of two concrete pours was completed at The Grand, laying down the foundation for the project’s 39-story residential tower. When finished, the Bunker Hill tower will hold 400 housing units, 20 percent of them affordable units.
— Curbed LA
Photo: Weldon Brewster, image courtesy of Related-CORE. Curbed Los Angeles reports that the first of two mat foundation pours for the residential tower of the enormous Gehry-designed The Grand project took "15 hours, and required about 140 workers and 1,348 trucks," installing 13,478 cubic yards... View full entry
The newest design for the LACMA campus, masterminded by Swiss architect Peter Zumthor, has received more criticism than your average museum expansion. LA Times writer Christopher Knight had some choice words about the futile nature of the proposal while Kate Wagner has dismissed it as little... View full entry
In a letter Monday to Garcetti and the Los Angeles City Council, Maersk, the global shipping giant, announced it will move ahead with introducing driverless cargo carriers at its port terminal, the nation’s largest, regardless of the outcome of a City Council vote on the project scheduled for Friday. — latimes.com
Thousands of dockworkers at the Port of Los Angeles could be put out of work as Danish shipping giant Maersk moves to automate its operations at the terminal against the wishes of local unions and politicians. In a letter explaining the decision, APM Terminals, the Maersk subsidiary that operates... View full entry
Contrary to plans previously announced by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures will not open in 2019, or any time prior to the 92nd Oscars on Feb. 9, 2020.
The $388 million project on the site of the old May Co. department store on the Miracle Mile, which was first announced in 2012, was initially slated to cost $250 million and open in 2017, but it has been delayed several times now.
— The Hollywood Reporter
Rendering of the completed Academy Museum. Image: © Renzo Piano Building Workshop/ © A.M.P.A.S./ Images from L’Autre ImageThe Hollywood Reporter published a statement released by the museum last week: "The Academy Museum's intention is to create a unique and unparalleled museum experience... View full entry
