City of angels flying high

Los Angeles has indicated that it could be heading towards a healthier property market with news that the first new high-rise downtown property development for twenty years - which will be shaped like a ship's sail - is to be built on the site of the 50 year old Wilshire Grand hotel...

The sparkle may have been noticeably absent in Tinseltown's property market of late but a new development has sparked hope that the market could be on the road to recovery.

Thomas Property Group's plan includes the construction of a £673 million 80-storey glass-walled building with a slanted profile that would be built on property owned by development partner Korean Air Company.

The design also includes a 40-story hotel and condo tower and an 18,000-square-foot public park that would replace the 50-year-old Wilshire Grand hotel.

The planned building will be the first new downtown construction project since the property market started its downward curve and the first major office high rise for 20 years.  

The median price for new homes downtown has plummeted from £360,000 in the first quarter of 2008 to about £284,000 in the first quarter of this year, a 21 per cent drop, according to tracking firm MDA DataQuick. The median price for all new condos in Southern California dropped about 14 per cent during that time.

But now, optimism is starting to return and experts are now hoping that the plans will be the first step in a rebirth for the country's second largest city.

Thomas Property Group's Chairman and Chief Executive James A. Thomas said, "The city's first major office high-rise in some 20 years will satisfy a rising demand for business real estate as downtown grows after the recession.

"There is no place that has the amenities, the attractions that downtown Los Angeles has.

"Construction costs are down, material costs are down. It's ideal to be placing yourself to be ready to ride the wave when the recession turns and the economy moves up," added Mr Thomas.

Thomas Properties and Korean Air planned to seek financing from lenders and investors on both sides of the Pacific and begin construction in 2011.

Picture by manamedia