Signature Skyscraper in Downtown L.A. Is Sold

One of downtown Los Angeles’ signature skyscrapers, 777 Tower, has been acquired by Los Angeles real estate investment and development firm CommonWealth Partners.

The parties declined to discuss the price, but sources put it at more than $250 million.

The 53-story tower at the northwest corner of 8th Street and Figueroa Boulevard was sold by Tokyo-based Mitsubishi Estate Co. The 1-million-square-foot building, completed in 1991, was designed by architect Cesar Pelli & Associates to stand out on the skyline with its terraced, off-white metal exterior.

CommonWealth also acquired an adjacent parcel on Figueroa that has entitlements for 840,000 square feet of office, hotel or residential property. The company plans to develop the site, said Chief Investment Officer Brett J. Munger.

The purchase was CommonWealth’s first since it formed a partnership with Rockefeller Group International Inc. in November to acquire and develop large-scale projects.

The sale is a vote of confidence in downtown, said real estate broker Bob Safai of Madison Partners. “People are confident that continued growth is a long-term proposition,” he said.