This afternoon the City Council unanimously approved the mixed-use CasdenWestLA project, just days after the developer announced a pretty major reconfiguration of the plans. Gone are plans to develop an adjacent Metro-owned property, much of the sprawling retail space that was going to be home to a Target and supermarket, seven stories from the tallest building in the development, and 43 units from the residential component. What remains are 595 apartments, including 66 affordable units for seniors (down from 71 in the previous iteration); between 5,000 and 15,000 square feet of retail space; 144 bike parking spaces for residents (but no bike storage); public restrooms in the retail space but not the station; and a transit concierge, plus informational kiosks. Brian Lewis, a rep for the developer, says that "While we continue to believe that a transit-oriented development is the type of smart growth that the Westside needs, it is infeasible to build such a project on just 4 acres of land. Instead, we are moving forward with what we are confident is a sensible project for the site and meets the surrounding community's concerns." Time will tell if the surrounding community agrees.
· CasdenWestLA Archives [Curbed LA]
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