Park Fifth Receives Final Approvals, Construction Loan

This is good. Even though the real estate market is down right now, this is a long term project that by the time it is completed, the real estate market may already be recovering.

And the fact is, the population of Southern California is projected to keep growing requiring more housing. Plus with fuel costs so high people don't want to live so far from the city as much anymore.

Last year, McGraw Hill listed BCEG as China's eighth largest contracting firm. Must be private rather than public. Certainly it is understandable that such an outfit would be flush with profits, wanting to invest with little volatility on the down side. What is not understandable is their reaching an agreement first and working out the details later, unless it is a verbal agreement and there are no signatures on paper and in the mean time, residential valuations continue to nose dive, particularly in California and Florida.

Would the developer be on a course to return previous deposits, put up the hotel portion and wait and see regards whether to go condo or rental? Have they got a hotel operator committed? Combination condo/rental on the second/76 story phase? $9.1 million plus whatever from Quimby might do it for the square. The last remodel cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $12+ million. With a more simplistic solution, that might do it again and then the same old problems would return.

Or,,,, with so much commentary on BlogDowntown, perhaps the developer has got himself in a tizzy and decided to puffmonger. Who knows how much value is put in verbal agreements in Beijing these days. Costs are skyrocketing and values plummenting. What will give?

The cost of living (not to mention construction) beginning this coming fall will rise precipitously due to inflation - to a degree unprecedented in ALL of our lifetimes. The condominium market in the central city will soon be flooded with product; a portion will spin off to the rental market. There was a comment a few weeks back by a real estate professional to the effect that the foreclosure scene in downtown is quite bad. I don't remember what site that was on; may have been the LABJ or LA Curbed.

I'm curious: can anyone out there fill us in regards the background and experience the Park Fifth developer has with projects of this scale? Yes, they have paid taxes all these years on the parcel at Pershing Square, have lately bought the Variety Arts Center and intend to write and produce plays. The owner/president once owned the Pasadena Playhouse and has been involved in light opera in the South Bay. Not being able to find a website for his firm, I'd like to know what other projects he has developed over the years.

The CRA has been quite cooperative on this proposed development judging by the TFAR agreement. They obviously have full faith in the developer.

With the Bunker Hill Competition in 1980 (five competing proposals) the word from the honchos at the agency belied scepticism as to whether the Maguire Partnership had the heft and experience to pull off the spectacular, path-breaking design that is now remembered as "The All-Stars Proposal." Very interesting in hindsight.

Presentation of the five proposals at a public meeting at the Hilton early in April of that year was interesting in itself. Following the Maguire Partners' presentation and the wild, foot-stomping ovation it engendered, the president of the CRA Commission quickly brought things to a halt and snidely rebuked Rob Maguire for taking three minutes in excess of his allotted time to present. That lifted a few eyebrows. The agency sure has changed it's tune regarding heft and scale. How soon will that $9.1 million check for Pershing Square be in the mail?

Yes, I can see the benefit on the plus side with time and the cost of commuting. If the Wilshire Subway had been constructed, Downtown would now be sitting so very pretty. But there are near term negatives on the horizon.

If WAMU were to suddenly close it's doors, would there then be rioting in the streets? It's a very big institution, coast to coast. If people aren't happy about a jury verdict, that's one thing. If they don't have much money and then they can't access what they do have, that's quite another.

But hey, let's not get real people. There are a group of oil lunatics in the White House and the Pentagon who, if they have their way in the next six months, could precipitate an economic, environmental and military catastrophe not seen since the Thirties and Forties. If they send our planes into Iran, a whole lot of people are going to loose their jobs. And after the Olympics are over, China can do whatever it wants in regards to international payments and/or financial demands. Don't forget what the premiere of Russia said while visiting Tehran: "An attack on Iran is an attack on Russia." So if a gallon of gas rises to $8+ per gallon because the Persian Gulf is blocked and the world's stock markets collapse and China redeems it's American notes, who will be left with a job?

Yeah, it's Friday afternoon. Let's go grab a cool one. All Al Queda has to do is just sit back and watch.

There are a group of oil lunatics in the White House and the Pentagon

I wonder if the owner of the proposed residential tower across from Pershing Square has put (or is putting) a big spin on his development as you're putting on political matters?

http://realdebatewisconsin.blogspot.com/2008/06/al-gores-house-still-energy-hog.html

Oh.

Have you checked how your stocks are doing lately? Or have you already hightailed it out of the market? Why would I need to spin (mine have gone up near 40% in the last ten days and I'm not talking about oil, precious metals or tankers)? [hint: fissionable materials].

Witness yesterday's appearance of Addington and Yoo before the senate committee. Witness the froth and foam bursting out between the lips of Kristol, Lieberman, Podhoretz, Boot, MSM puppets and members of Israel's Likud in recent months. Who would need to spin given all of that?

Yeah, fissionable materials. Those loonies are definitely moving me on up! The only leverage that Bush/Cheney would have is to threaten to push the launch button.

YES!!!!!

Respected northern California investment advisor Mark Cunniberti has been advising clients and listeners to his weekly radio program to get out of mutual funds in general and restrict their stock holdings to gold and oil plus Swiss annuities. Last night he issued a general message expressing concern that the stock market could possibly "crash" in the next two weeks. He followed that with a second message advising that if a panic atmospere were to arise and then spill over into money markets, that there is no safe or guaranteed or insured havens in that sector. If panic breaks out, it's (in his words) Katy Bar The Door.

Sub Prime, stocks and money market funds all in the tank? Sounds like 1929 to me.

If this were actually NEWS, then it would have appeared in other formats besides some guys blog. Park Fifth is still on very shakey ground financially. Their bulk email is merely a cheap attempt to drum up more business and show potential investors that there is significant interest in the project. Because in fact, people are pulling out. At $1100 a square foot, there are few people who are willing to pay for this. Living downtown does not save so much money in transportation costs, as Eric suggests. Living in Los Angeles means having a car, even if you work two blocks away from your home, you still have to drive everywhere else. So, unless you can't afford a car, public transportation is an additional expense to gas, insurance, and possibly a car payment.
Regarding the CRA, as Juanito points out they've been very cooperative. They're cooperative with any proposed residential construction since their agency is funded almost entirely by property tax. They do not have the best interest of the residents of downtown in mind as they recklessly approve any project that comes along. This is the same agency that approved demolishing St. Vibiana's Church about 10 years ago, which was fortunately blocked by a group of nuns. Which kinda makes the CRA seem like the devil to me.

Uh, the L.A. Conservancy is many things. Until now, I've never heard of it being described as "a group of nuns."

Now we know: when Ms. Dish gets out her ruler, watch out!