Megadeveloper Avalon Bay Communities has snatched up the long-stalled but hotly-discussed Movietown Plaza project in eastern West Hollywood and has, naturally, made some pretty big changes. The old strip mall on the site has been empty except for the Trader Joe's and a couple other businesses for two years now--back in 2010, Casden Properties LLC received approvals for a 371-unit mixed-use development in two 10-story towers. But right before groundbreaking last year, the company got caught up in a nasty partnership dispute and most of its projects were put up for sale. Avalon Bay (which also owns developments in Playa Vista and Hancock Park) picked up Movietown and plans to build two seven-story towers, according to both Wehoville and the WeHo News.
The number of units will stay the same, but the units will be smaller and the project will be going from mostly condos to all rentals. Commercial space will be downsized from 32,300 square feet to 26,000 square feet and there'll still be 77 units of affordable senior housing. The downsized plans will only have to be reviewed by city staff, so don't expect any angsty hearings in front of the city council on this one. Work is expected to start in early 2014. [Pictured: Casden's old 10-story plan via WeHo News]
· Depleted Movietown Plaza Has New Developer, New Plan [Wehoville]
· Movietown Plaza changes hands, downsized [WeHo News]
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