Canadian firm Onni Group is one of the most active developers in DTLA, and it looks like they will be even busier with the newly-approved project, Onni Times Square. The Los Angeles City Planning Commission recently conditionally approved the project, located at 121-47 S Spring Street, 100-42 S Broadway, 202-34 W 1st Street, and 205-21 W 2nd Street, and this week published its Determination Letter dated August 11, 2020.
The decision arrives after Onni presented new designs at a July hearing after being told to go back to the drawing board at an earlier meeting in May.
Approvals include the transfer of Floor Area Rights whereas nearly 550,000 square feet of floor area from the Los Angeles Convention Center can now be used for the Onni project site. Other approvals include a Master Conditional Use permit for the sale of alcohol at up to 16 sites within the development and three for off-site consumption. Now the project advances to the Los Angeles City Council and can be appealed by August 26.
The new development consists of a 37-story “North Tower” and a 53-story “South Tower” that will total 1,127 residential units (34 for affordable housing) and up to 34,572 square feet of commercial space. The project proposes approximately 1.5 million of floor area.
Along with a new mixed-use development, the existing former L.A. Times headquarters, Plant, and Mirror buildings which are part of the Times Mirror Square complex Onni acquired in 2016 for $120 million, will be rehabilitated. To make way for the new project, the existing Executive Building at the corner of W 1st Street and S Broadway will be demolished.
The adaptively reused buildings will be limited to a maximum of 50,000 square feet of grocery uses with 18,817 square feet tailored to retail/restaurant uses, and 307,288 square feet for office. Concerning parking, there will be a maximum of 1,661 spaces.
Groundbreaking is expected in late-2021 with delivery by the fourth quarter of 2024.
