Four-story apartment building in the works next to Echo Park Lake

Plans are underway to transform a grassy corner lot in Echo Park into a four-story apartment building, says the Eastsider.

Plans filed with the city Tuesday show that developer Echo Park Capital Venture LLC envisions an 11-unit building with 16 parking spaces and 13 spots for bikes.

Located across a small, residential street from the Echo Park Lake, the site at 1601 Park Avenue is in a prime spot in a prime neighborhood.

It was once part of land owned by the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel, whose flagship Angelus Temple is two blocks away, at Glendale Boulevard and Park Avenue. The church was founded by Aimee Semple McPherson in the early 20th century and grew to incredible prominence in the 1920s.

The church put its collection of 14 properties up for sale, including this one, two years ago. Downtown LA-based developer and real estate investor Fred Afari paid $8 million for them in 2015. (Eastsider notes that it’s unclear if Afari is behind Echo Park Capital Venture LLC.)

The 12,400-square-foot site was last occupied by a two-story residential building built in the 1920s, says Eastsider, but in 2010 the structure collapsed, killing one person, injuring three dozen, and leaving the more than 50 tenants homeless. Last summer, the site was used for a pop-up mini-golf course.

Another Echo Park Lake-adjacent apartment building is planned for a hilly site along Glendale Boulevard. This one would rise five stories and hold 13 units if approved.

• New 4-story apartment building planned across from Echo Park Lake [ELA]
• Foursquare Church Selling 14 Properties in Heart of Echo Park [Curbed LA]
• How America's First Megachurch Changed LA's Echo Park [Curbed LA]
• Five-story apartment complex would overlook Echo Park Lake [Curbed LA]