Wilshire Courtyard: a Giant Step for Revival
Mayor Tom Bradley and Councilman John Ferraro--opponents in the recent Los Angeles mayoral race--underscored the importance of the $150-million Wilshire Courtyard office/retail complex when they appeared together last week at the project’s ground-breaking ceremonies.
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The 1-million-square-foot, two-building complex--a partnership development of the J. H. Snyder Co. and California Federal Savings--is more than just another office building. It is part of the ongoing revitalization of the Miracle Mile office and retail district.
Wilshire Courtyard, designed by McLarand, Vasquez & Partners Inc., Costa Mesa, and built by M. H. Golden Co., Pasadena, will occupy an eight-acre site at 5750 Wilshire Blvd., between Masselin and Curson avenues, when it is completed early in 1987.
The project is the third phase of Snyder’s personal effort to bring new life to the declining Miracle Mile neighborhood.
In the first phase, Snyder bought and renovated the 1948-vintage, 10-story Prudential Square complex, renaming it Museum Square because of its proximity to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Museum Square is now more than 90% leased, Snyder said.
The second phase was the restoration of the two-story former Ohrbach’s department store, renamed The Promenade and housing two-story office suites highlighted by a two-story atrium.
With floors ranging from 38,000 square feet to more than 100,000 square feet, Wilshire Courtyard will be ideal for large firms seeking a prestigious, centrally located address, Snyder said.
The development is already 50% leased: California Federal Savings has signed a 20-year lease valued at $300 million for the entire eastern building, the one across the street from Cal Fed headquarters at 5670 Wilshire Blvd.
Robert R. Dockson, chairman of the board of CalFed Inc. and California Federal Savings, lauded the project as an outstanding achievement that took years of work and preparation.
Rather than building a large high-rise structure, the developers and the architects came up with a concept of two six-story, C-shaped tiered buldings facing each other. The complex will front on the south side of Wilshire Boulevard, extending south to 8th Street. It will incorporate all of the space between Masselin and Curson avenues. Sierra Bonita Avenue will be blocked off to form a cul-de-sac, with pedestrian plazas on either side of the street. The development will include restaurants, shops and a health spa.
The buildings will be faced with red granite and solar bronze glass, with the first floor using transparent green Solex glass. Extensively landscaped planters will serve as railings for the terraces, which will range in size from 225 to 825 square feet and will be suitable for business entertaining.
The landscape plan, designed by Fong & Associates, includes a quarter-mile jogging track, coral trees, alternating Washingtonia and Queen palm trees and several fountains and sculptures.
Steve Chase Associates is the interior designer; Swimmer, Cole Martinez & Curtis is the space planner.
Snyder began his career in custom building and residential remodeling at the age of 20 in the Long Beach area. He soon moved to burgeoning Orange County and was building as far from his base in Garden Grove as New York’s Staten Island by the 1960s. As early as 1961, his company introduced a golf course, social center and Olympic-sized pool in Friendly Valley, an adult-oriented residential development in the Santa Clarita Valley.
Snyder’s firm built the 10-tower, 1,463-unit Coronado Shores development near San Diego. Other projects include Beverly Glen Park and Glenridge in West Los Angeles, Wilshire Green in suburban Chicago and water-oriented town houses in Fullerton.
All together, the Snyder firm has built more than 30,000 residential units, valued at more than $500 million.
