Like many of the projects broached several years ago, the development from Korean company Human Technologies LLC never came close to breaking ground. Now, the site is being envisioned for a far more modest development.

The ironic part is that, while the new plan lacks the spectacle of one with the Libeskind imprimatur, it is far more likely to happen. In fact, a developer aims to break ground on a $95 million apartment project next year and open a pair of seven-story towers with a combined 247 units in 2013.

"This is an area that makes sense," said Steve Fifield, CEO of Chicago-based Fifield Companies, which is partnering with Los Angeles-based Michael Sorochinsky of Cypress Equity Investments on the development currently known as 1340 S. Figueroa, though the name will likely change. "We see a tremendous demand, a growing demand for the [rental] market Downtown."

Working as a joint venture called Century West Partners, Fifield and Sorochinsky in September paid $16 million for two South Park parking lots at 1340-1360 S. Figueroa St. and 1355-1365 S. Flower St. Fifield said the development cost is $95 million, and that financing is coming from Century West and the Washington D.C.-based Carlyle Group.

Construction, Fifield said, is slated to start in April 2012 with completion scheduled by the end of the following year.

The project is one of several that Century West Partners plans to build in Los Angeles, creating a total of 1,000 apartments. The other projects are slated for Koreatown and Santa Monica.

The developers have extensive experience with residential projects. Fifield Companies has built $4 billion worth of mid-rise and high-rise apartments, condominiums and office buildings in Chicago, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C. and Las Vegas. In L.A., they developed the Beverly West and The Californian on Wilshire condo towers.

Sorochinsky purchased and rehabilitated more than 50 apartment buildings with approximately 3,500 units from 2000 to 2005. The company liquidated the vast majority of its portfolio by 2007.

The South Park project will include units that range from studios to two-bedroom apartments with rents from $1,250-$2,500. The residences will sit above 11,000 square feet of ground floor retail and a 252-space garage. There are plans for a fitness center, lounge, roof deck, pool and theater room.

A bridge will connect the buildings. Fifield said the majority of units would be built in the edifice that fronts Figueroa Street, with about 70 in the property fronting Flower Street. The architect is GMP Architects.

Plans Change
The Libeskind condo project was first announced in 2008, and was fully entitled as the developer tried to secure a construction loan. Plans called for the building to include 11,673 square feet of space for two restaurants, a 9,325-square-foot spa and 379 parking spaces.

That was the same time, however, that numerous projects either slowed down or fell into serious trouble. Many were never built. Others from that era were completed but remain in a state of limbo. Those include the Roosevelt Lofts on Seventh Street and the Apex, developed by Sonny Astani and formerly known as the Concerto.

Fifield said they opted for two mid-rise rental buildings rather than a high-rise full of condominiums because prices in the for-sale market still do not pencil out.

Mark Tarczynski, executive vice president of the real estate firm Colliers, said that considering the still difficult buyer's market, and the continued demand for housing in the area, the developers are making the right move by going the rental route.

"I think the buyer's market is difficult and still shrinking," he said. "The rental market is what's growing."

In recent years, numerous Downtown buildings, including a few in South Park, have changed before opening as for-sale units to rentals. They include the Watermarke, a few blocks away in South Park. The tallest purely residential tower in Downtown at 35 stories, it was developed by Meruelo Maddux as luxury condos. However, the market turned, Meruelo Maddux filed for bankruptcy, and ultimately sold the building for $110 million. It is now apartments.

Although the party may be over for Downtown high-rise condominium buildings, at least for now, Fifield is among those who believe the appetite for apartment living in the area remains strong.

"Instead of spending more money on construction of high-rise buildings, we can put that money into better amenities and finishes in a mid-rise building," he said
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Like many of the projects broached several years ago, the development from Korean company Human Technologies LLC never came close to breaking ground. Now, the site is being envisioned for a far more modest development.

The ironic part is that, while the new plan lacks the spectacle of one with the Libeskind imprimatur, it is far more likely to happen. In fact, a developer aims to break ground on a $95 million apartment project next year and open a pair of seven-story towers with a combined 247 units in 2013.

"This is an area that makes sense," said Steve Fifield, CEO of Chicago-based Fifield Companies, which is partnering with Los Angeles-based Michael Sorochinsky of Cypress Equity Investments on the development currently known as 1340 S. Figueroa, though the name will likely change. "We see a tremendous demand, a growing demand for the [rental] market Downtown."

Working as a joint venture called Century West Partners, Fifield and Sorochinsky in September paid $16 million for two South Park parking lots at 1340-1360 S. Figueroa St. and 1355-1365 S. Flower St. Fifield said the development cost is $95 million, and that financing is coming from Century West and the Washington D.C.-based Carlyle Group.

Construction, Fifield said, is slated to start in April 2012 with completion scheduled by the end of the following year.

The project is one of several that Century West Partners plans to build in Los Angeles, creating a total of 1,000 apartments. The other projects are slated for Koreatown and Santa Monica.

The developers have extensive experience with residential projects. Fifield Companies has built $4 billion worth of mid-rise and high-rise apartments, condominiums and office buildings in Chicago, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C. and Las Vegas. In L.A., they developed the Beverly West and The Californian on Wilshire condo towers.

Sorochinsky purchased and rehabilitated more than 50 apartment buildings with approximately 3,500 units from 2000 to 2005. The company liquidated the vast majority of its portfolio by 2007.

The South Park project will include units that range from studios to two-bedroom apartments with rents from $1,250-$2,500. The residences will sit above 11,000 square feet of ground floor retail and a 252-space garage. There are plans for a fitness center, lounge, roof deck, pool and theater room.

A bridge will connect the buildings. Fifield said the majority of units would be built in the edifice that fronts Figueroa Street, with about 70 in the property fronting Flower Street. The architect is GMP Architects.

Plans Change
The Libeskind condo project was first announced in 2008, and was fully entitled as the developer tried to secure a construction loan. Plans called for the building to include 11,673 square feet of space for two restaurants, a 9,325-square-foot spa and 379 parking spaces.

That was the same time, however, that numerous projects either slowed down or fell into serious trouble. Many were never built. Others from that era were completed but remain in a state of limbo. Those include the Roosevelt Lofts on Seventh Street and the Apex, developed by Sonny Astani and formerly known as the Concerto.

Fifield said they opted for two mid-rise rental buildings rather than a high-rise full of condominiums because prices in the for-sale market still do not pencil out.

Mark Tarczynski, executive vice president of the real estate firm Colliers, said that considering the still difficult buyer's market, and the continued demand for housing in the area, the developers are making the right move by going the rental route.

"I think the buyer's market is difficult and still shrinking," he said. "The rental market is what's growing."

In recent years, numerous Downtown buildings, including a few in South Park, have changed before opening as for-sale units to rentals. They include the Watermarke, a few blocks away in South Park. The tallest purely residential tower in Downtown at 35 stories, it was developed by Meruelo Maddux as luxury condos. However, the market turned, Meruelo Maddux filed for bankruptcy, and ultimately sold the building for $110 million. It is now apartments.

Although the party may be over for Downtown high-rise condominium buildings, at least for now, Fifield is among those who believe the appetite for apartment living in the area remains strong.

"Instead of spending more money on construction of high-rise buildings, we can put that money into better amenities and finishes in a mid-rise building," he said
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Fifield has extensive experience in building apartment complexes, with more than 50 projects totaling $4 billion in value, including the multi-tower Alta at K Station complex in Chicago. He lives now in Chicago with wife Randy, vice chairwoman and principal of the company, though the couple did live in Los Angeles for a few years in the past decade.

He tells GlobeSt.com that he produced a couple of multifamily projects in the Los Angeles area, including the Californian on Wilshire and Beverly West condo towers. However, he says he wanted to venture into apartment development, and found a good partner in Sorochinsky. “He’s got great local contacts,” Fifield says. “He had more than 50 buildings until 2005, when he sold most of them off at the peak of the market.”

For its debut, Century West is building two seven-story buildings, about 245 units, at 1340 S. Figueroa, near LA Live and the Staples Center. The Washington, DC-based Carlyle Group is providing equity for the development, expected to cost about $95 million. The site, a parking lot, was supposed to be a condo project but the plan tanked with the economy. The project will include 11,000 square feet of retail and a 252-space parking garage. Construction is expected to start in April 2012 and finish in November 2013. Fifield says there are two other current Los Angeles projects in the Century West pipeline, including a planned building in the Korea Town district and another in Santa Monica. “We want to try to get 1,000 new apartments under construction in the next 12-18 months,” Fifield says. Each complex will range about 250 units, Randy Fifield tells GlobeSt.com.

Steven Fifield says he wants to expand more in Los Angeles because of the diversity. “In Chicago, there’s just one healthy market, the downtown,” he says. “The suburbs are just not doing much, because the projected rents can’t justify development. In LA, there’s multiple submarkets that are healthy, you’ve got downtown, Korea Town, Santa Monica, West LA, there’s just much more of a buzz, and so many markets that rents are high enough to justify construction.”
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