L.B. Planning Commission OKs 2 Downtown High-Rises

The Planning Commission has unanimously approved plans for a 27-story apartment tower and an adjacent 14-floor office building downtown.

The towers, which will be built on the north side of Broadway across the street from the future home of the World Trade Center, will cost $60 million to $70 million, said the developer.

The 278-unit apartment building will provide medium-priced housing, which city officials say is “very important” to Long Beach’s downtown revitalization project. The adjacent office-retail building will have 167,388 square feet of space.

Harold Provin, an investor in the project, said construction probably will begin in early 1986. Provin is chief administrative officer for M. C. and D. Corp., the Downey investment firm that owns the property.

The parcel, which is bounded by Magnolia Avenue on the east, is vacant along its northern, Third Street boundary. A wholesale food business that fronts Broadway and a 14-unit apartment building will be demolished to make way for the buildings, according to Dennis Eschen, zoning administrator.