"Recent JLL Report Names South Park As LA's Most Vibrant District"

LOS ANGELES, Feb. 6, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL), a premiere commercial real estate and investment management firm surveyed the Downtown LA district of South Park in late 2013, and released its report with compelling findings. GQ Magazine recently hailed Downtown Los Angeles as "The Next Great American City" and the New York Times ranked Downtown LA as the #5 recommended destination to visit in 2014. Impressively South Park, according to the JLL report, "is emerging as the most vibrant and fastest growing district within Downtown LA."

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The explosive growth in South Park found its beginnings two decades ago when the district was peppered with small warehouses and mostly vacant parking lots. The construction of STAPLES Center paved the way for South Park's dramatic transformation, followed by a flurry of luxury high-rise apartment, condominium and hotel projects. Today, South Park is witnessing an unprecedented growth with more than 1.9 million sq. ft. of hospitality and 1.2 million sq. ft. of residential coming online within the next four years.

As young professionals seek to live closer to where they work, and entertainment amenities offered by L.A. LIVE, STAPLES Center and Nokia Theatre continue to entice a more affluent crowd, there are increasingly compelling reasons to move Downtown. With a median income of $98,700 for individuals, Downtown residents are demanding high-quality options for recreation, dining and shopping. 

Among the migrants of young professionals are those in the entertainment, media and creative industries known as the "creative class." According to the JLL report, South Park is positioned as a hub for this creative economy. The Los Angeles creative class as a whole remains positive and is expected to grow through 2015, with digital media growing 10.4 percent annually; entertainment is expected to grow by 6 percent annually.

Developers are responding to the creative economy with an abundance of new projects currently underway. The Desmond, a 76,000 sq. ft. brick building slated for construction in South Park, will target creative tenants. Developer, Lincoln Properties, plans to turn the 1917 building at 11th and Hope streets into a luxury creative office and retail complex.

"In addition to the large-scale entertainment venues, South Park has valuable existing community assets such as the California Hospital Medical Center, LA Convention Center, Metro Charter School and numerous religious institutions, positioning it to be a

full-service neighborhood in a vibrant urban environment" says Jessica Lall, Executive Director of the South Park Business Improvement District, a non-profit organization that works closely with South Park businesses and stakeholders to improve the livability, business conditions and safety of South Park.

In addition to a demographic shift, the report also focuses on transportation and its crucial role in the future of South Park. The MyFigueroa Project and the proposed Downtown Streetcar Project are expected to add the City's first separated cycle track and an at-grade streetcar, respectively, to the South Park's multi-modal transportation offerings. The proposed LA Streetcar, slated to begin in 2016, will provide a car-free option for the thousands of residents and visitors. The proposed LA Streetcar line will glide along 11th Street between L.A. LIVE and Broadway. Innovative mobility projects such as these, in addition to the existing and future capacity along the Expo and Blue light rail lines, position South Park as a test bed of innovative infrastructural support for a more livable urban neighborhood.

Six parcels, now mostly parking lots in the shadow of the AT&T Center, were recently purchased for more than $80 million in what may be the largest Downtown land acquisition by acreage since the Great Recession. Mack Urban has partnered with AECOM Capital in the acquisition and development of the sites. Retail will accompany 1,500 high-rise residential units accented by small-scale alleyways, parks and townhomes.

"We have never doubted that the L.A. market would rebound and when the opportunity to invest in South Park was presented, we knew this was a prize location like no other," said Mack Urban CEO Paul Keller. "This venture is exciting on so many levels—the partnership with AECOM Capital, the proximity to L.A. LIVE and STAPLES Center, the developing transportation links, the limitless prospect for growth—and last but by no means least, the landmark development we will create for DTLA's future."

For a full list of development projects underway or for a copy of the JLL report, please contact Jessica Lall at the South Park Business Improvement District at 213-663-1112 or [email protected], or visit their website at www.southpark.la.

ABOUT
The South Park Business Improvement District is managed by the South Park Stakeholders Group, a coalition of residents, property owners, and businesses who are deeply committed to the ongoing improvement of the district. Since 2005, the South Park Business Improvement District (BID) has worked to make South Park safer and cleaner for the people who live, work, and visit South Park.

Contact:
Amanda Irvine
Tel: (213) 663-1110 
[email protected]

SOURCE South Park Business Improvement District