Overhaul for North Hollywood’s Laurel Plaza approved

The expansive mixed-use complex incorporating over 600 apartments, a movie theater, office space, and, of course, shops on the site of North Hollywood’s Laurel Plaza shopping mall got the stamp of approval from city officials this week, reports the Daily News.

Construction is expected to start by early 2017 on the retail component of the 25-acre development near the 170 Freeway and Laurel Canyon Boulevard. The new complex will be called NoHo West.

Developers Merlone Geier Partners and GPI Company will devote one-third of the site’s space to rentals—642 of them. About 100 more were originally proposed, but “the developer was asked to increase the emphasis on retail and commercial areas at the site,” says the News.

The project will also include 190,000 square feet of offices, almost 300,000 square feet of retail and restaurants, and a gym and movie theater. The retail portion of the project is expected to be done first, in 2019, but the timeline for the residential element hasn’t been hammered down.

The Laurel Plaza shopping center suffered a lot of damage in the 1994 Northridge earthquake, and “most of the buildings at the center were demolished” following the quake. The Macy’s survived the shaking but closed up for good in October.

Take a tour through the project in this video from August:

• Here’s what’s next for the former Laurel Plaza Macy’s in North Hollywood [Daily News]
• First Look at the Huge Plan to Turn Sleepy Laurel Plaza into a Multi-Use Mini-City [Curbed LA]
• Get a close-up look at what’s in store for North Hollywood’s Laurel Plaza [Curbed LA]