Mixed-use Next on Lex project breaks ground
The property at West Lexington Drive and North Orange Avenue has been fenced off, next to the Citibank building on the 400 block of North Central Avenue. Construction on the Next on Lex development has begun.
At nearly 500 units, one of the largest projects of downtown Glendale’s development boom has started construction.
Spread across a trio of six-story apartment buildings, the Next on Lex will take up most of a block bounded by Orange Street, Lexington Avenue, Central Avenue and Milford Street.
Developer Century West Partners garnered approvals from the City Council two years ago to move forward with the $280-million, mixed-use apartment project with 494 units.
The buildings are scheduled to be constructed in phases with the first opening in 2018 and the third and final the following year, said Kevin Farrell, the firm’s chief operating officer.
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More than 20 developments are in various phases throughout downtown, and 3,100 units are on the way over the next several years.
The property at West Lexington Drive and North Orange Avenue has been fenced off, next to the Citibank building on the 400 block of North Central Avenue. Construction on the Next on Lex development has begun.
Opponents who stress overdevelopment have long voiced concerns about increased traffic, but Farrell said he thinks residential projects can actually trim congestion.
“We found offices generate a lot of demand at peak traffic hours, rush hour in the morning and at night,” he said. “When we replace office use with residential, especially residential that’s close to jobs, it can actually have the effect of reducing the peak-traffic hour.”
However, Mayor Ara Najarian strongly disagrees, saying Farrell’s reasoning is something that’s been repeated by other developers along Central Avenue, and there’s an oversaturation underway in downtown.
He was the only council member to vote against the Next on Lex project, and said cumulatively, upcoming developments will increase traffic and have other impacts, such as raising police and fire response times.
“It’s not just about supply and demand at this point. It’s about how much can the infrastructure handle, and I think we’re past the point of what we can handle to maintain our quality of life so that we can enjoy it,” Najarian said.
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A traffic-impact study conducted by an outside consultant found there would be 215 outbound trips generated by the Next on Lex during the peak morning-rush hour. The report concluded that the traffic impacts on nearby intersections wouldn’t be significant.
Farrell said for those working downtown, the commute will likely be a walk or use of one of the bicycles the Next on Lex will have on site to lend its residents.
In 2006, the City Council — with then newly elected Najarian — adopted the Downtown Specific Plan, which established planning and zoning regulations exclusive to downtown to attract projects.
The applications, however, came in too fast through City Hall and the planning department, Najarian said.
The Downtown Specific Plan also requires developers to include community benefits, such as open space.
With the Next on Lex, that will come in the form of a public paseo that bisects the parcel.
“It’ll be landscaped with benches and allow people to hang out and have lunch, and the city could host certain functions in that space,” Farrell said.
For now, Century West Partners will relocate Citibank ATM machines on its property. Demolition is expected to take place next month with the tearing down of an existing office building on the site, Farrell said.
The existing Citibank at 414 N. Central will be relocated into the Next on Lex development. There will be other commercial components as well as restaurants and a coffee shop, Farrell said.
Construction will take place Mondays through Saturdays, and there could be occasional lane closures to accommodate construction, he added.
All of the units — ranging from studios to two bedrooms — will be rentals. Pricing, though, has yet to be set, Farrell said.
At the Modera project down the street on Central, a 1,200-square-foot studio leases for $3,340 a month at the top end. The going rate for an 800-square-foot, one-bedroom unit at the AMLI Lex on Orange around the corner from Next on Lex is $2,824 a month.
Philip Lanzafame, the city’s economic development director, said some of the developments that are already online are almost fully occupied.
For example, he said 90% of the apartments at the Lex on Orange are rented.
Some say the development boom is having adverse effects in Glendale, outside the downtown area.
Councilman Vartan Gharpetian said he’s noticing landlords in other parts of the city are raising rents because the newer downtown units are charging more.
“People who are paying $1,700 to $1,800 now have to pay $2,500 [a month],” he said. “It’s affecting the rental market, and it’s pushing rents up.”
However, there are some schools of thought that may point to a price drop at some point, possibly after the time all the development boom units are ready for leasing, Lanzafame said.
“If somebody is charging more than they can get, the market is going to correct that,” he said.
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Arin Mikailian, arin.mikailian@latimes.com
Twitter: @ArinMikailian
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