Valley’s Tallest Apartment Building Is Going Up
A tower is rising in low-rise NoHo.
Construction will begin today on a 15-story apartment building in North Hollywood that will be the tallest residential tower in the San Fernando Valley when it is completed next year.
The $43-million NoHo Tower being developed by JSM Construction Inc. will include 191 apartments and 17,000 square feet of shops on the ground floor at Lankershim Boulevard and Cumpston Street, across from the Red Line subway station.
The tower is part of a large-scale city redevelopment plan in North Hollywood that includes the nearby NoHo Commons, a $218-million mixed-use development that is underway and will eventually house 716 apartments along with retail and office space.
Los Angeles City Councilman Tom LaBonge, who represents the area, has predicted the tower would become “an instant landmark.” But from the top steps of the Metro Rail station -- where the very existence of a subway stop in the sprawling suburban landscape is incongruous -- anything tall would be a landmark.
The plush tower will loom over North Hollywood Ice Co. and a Ford dealership in a neighborhood that appears to be making a transition to a more urban-flavored future. Just down Lankershim, Dairy Queen shares a roof with Starbucks. On nearby Magnolia Boulevard, AMS Auto Repair fixes cars a block or so away from NoHo Modern, a gallery celebrating postwar design of home furnishings and fashion.
Dense development will speed the transition, according to the Los Angeles Community Redevelopment Agency, which provides grants and loans to developers who want to build in the area around the subway. JSM arranged its own financing but did agree to set aside 14 units for low-income tenants to take maximum advantage of a city program that allows more dense housing development around transit stations, company President Craig Jones said.
The Redevelopment Agency also has a program to provide loans and grants for theater owners to renovate their buildings and add marquees to stimulate the emergence of the NoHo Arts District as a place to see plays, eat and shop.
The design of NoHo Tower by DE Architects includes a convex glass curtain wall with floor-to-ceiling windows. The units will have one to three bedrooms, and rents are expected to range from $1,500 to $3,500.
Supporting the tower will be a five-story garage with more than 300 parking spaces. Its roof will hold a landscaped recreation area including a pool, spa and gym. Residents “can have the San Fernando Valley lifestyle yet be downtown in 24 minutes on the Red Line,” Jones said.
Santa Monica-based JSM specializes in developing urban sites close to transportation hubs. The company has built three mixed-use residential and retail projects in Old Pasadena and 22 apartment complexes in Santa Monica.
The developer received a variance from the Redevelopment Agency to build housing instead of a commercial building on the North Hollywood site. “Right now the market is primarily residential, said David Riccitiello, manager of the agency’s North Hollywood Redevelopment Project Area.
The agency joined with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to hire the Urban Land Institute, a nonprofit education and research group based in Washington, D.C., to draft a comprehensive plan for future commercial, retail, residential and transportation developments in North Hollywood. The plan will be released Friday.
