Broadway Plaza Nears Restart

Eric Richardson

DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES — After a contractor change and some developer shuffling, work on the conversion of the Blackstone department store to 82-units of mixed income housing could be set to get a restart. Work on the building at 901 S. Broadway has been paused at 50% complete since 2005, when contractor Fassberg Construction Company filed for bankruptcy. 17 of the units will be affordable, at 50% of area median income. The other 64 units, mostly studios and 1 bedrooms, will be market rate.

With the delays due to changing contractors and shuffling developers, total project cost has risen to $30.6 million. $10 million in tax-free bonds was approved in 2001, and approval for another $7 million is currently working its way through the city and state. The extra money would cover the funding needed to restart development.

The Blackstone Company signed a deal for the site at the southwest corner of 9th and Broadway on September 19th, 1916. The Times -- never one for hyperbole -- called it "one of the most important transactions in the history of business movements in downtown Los Angeles." The store opened one year later, on September 20th, 1917. Building design was done by the office of prolific Downtown architect John Parkinson.

The current developer is listed in filings as Standard Development, LLC. Records for the company give an address in Sherman Oaks.