Unfinished Concerto Sells Out in Hours

The developer of Concerto, the high-profile condo development at Figueroa and 9th Sts., was able to sell all 77 loft units in one busy day last Saturday, August 29. Phase I of the iconic, angled-glass tower is almost complete, with move-in scheduled for early next year. But the fire sale of the initial units will allow Astani Enterprises, Inc. to move ahead with phase II, regardless of the state of outside financing. At an average of $375 per sf, Astani says the buyers did get a deal on the building, which cost $500 per sf in construction costs.

But the lowered sales prices are well worth the $31 million cash infusion, according to Astani, because he does not have to worry about further construction lending. The cash will allow him to proceed swiftly on the second, 30-story luxury condo tower. Astani expressed concern over whether his lender, Corus Bank of Chicago, would be able to follow through with the final 5 to 10% of the $200 million construction loan. Corus has met with uncertainty thanks to sour investments following the real estate boom. Sonny Astani, head of the Beverly Hills development office, has already invested $55 million of his own money in the project.

The phase II condo tower is also almost complete and may begin sales as early as next month. Once complete, the complex will consist of twin 30-story condo towers, a 7-story loft building, and an acre of green space boasting firepits, a saltwater pool, cabanas, and...a Tai Chi park?

NoHo: What Recession?

When visiting North Hollywood these days, one is unavoidably greeted by a thicket of construction cranes and high-rise steel skeletons. The scale of development here seems to have actually increased in the past couple of years, almost resembling its namesake brother to the south in the early 2000s. But if you look closely at the street banners, you’ll notice that this neighborhood has been designated as the NoHo Arts District. And the City of LA has done a fairly good job at marketing it as such and attracting small art galleries, stage theaters, and even bigwig entertainment offices like Disney Interactive Media and the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. But of course, with the establishment of an arts community, comes the inevitable influx of trendy, market-rate condos.

The most obvious of these newcomers is NOHO14, the massive residential tower located across the street from the Metro station. Having opened in October 2008, this upscale loft complex is having difficulty filling units however, with occupancy at just 20%. Opposite the station lies NoHo Commons, a large mixed-use village with medium-density housing in back and retail along Lankershim Blvd (including a spin-off of the famed Hollywood wing joint Big Wang’s). The latest and boldest however is phase III of NoHo Commons, a freestanding structure located one block further south on Lankershim. Essentially in the backyard of the Academy of Television, what was a patch of dirt in September is now an attractively imposing tower. NoHo may be experiencing a real estate renaissance, but the scale and ambition of the Metro mixed-use office/hotel/retail/residential development above the Red Line subway station, to be developed by Lowe Enterprises, is absolutely insane. Best of luck to ‘em.

The majority of this new construction was spurred by the arrival of the Metro Red Line subway in 2000. But CRA/LA, the non-profit community redevelopment organization, designated North Hollywood as an immediate intervention zone because of overcrowding and slum conditions in 1979! Today, slum is the last word that comes to mind while strolling down Lankershim Blvd, which is lined with cute restaurants, high-rise condos, and shiny office buildings. The neighborhood has maintained its uniqueness over the years, partly because it is somewhat off-the-map and not easily discoverable. New construction seems to be taking place exclusively on vacant lots, rather than replacing existing lower-density housing, which continues to exist outside of the commercial core. The resulting mixture of residential and commercial uses is interesting and dynamic. Despite a seemingly reckless building boom, the area is ripe for new development, especially in the moderate density range. Who knows – maybe NoHo will be the next valley neighborhood to join the high-rent ranks of Studio City and Sherman Oaks.