Three Mariachi Plaza storefronts in Boyle Heights are for sale for $6.2M

A piece of property in the heart of Boyle Heights, including three Mariachi Plaza storefronts, is for sale with a $6.2-million price tag, reports Streetsblog LA.

A Loopnet listing, which went up in March, outlines the property. In addition to the trio of mural-covered storefronts, it includes a parking lot and a house on Boyle Avenue. Marketing materials advertise the site as a “rare development opportunity.”

The gazebo-like kiosko right at the corner of Boyle and First and the bandstand, are not included in the listing. Like the vacant lot at the opposing corner of the block, they are both owned by Metro.

In 2014, Metro was planning to move forward with a project by developer Primestor to build a huge medical office complex with retail on the Metro-owned land.

As part of that plan, Metro would have purchased the property that houses the storefronts that are now for sale so that Primestor could raze them and put new shops in their place.

Community backlash against the project, which took many residents by surprise, was swift and firm. In the end, community opposition forced Metro to scrap that plan and begin again. Since the agency went back to the drawing board for the site, the property that houses the shops was not purchased.

John Sequeira/Curbed LA flickr pool

Just because the property’s for sale, doesn’t necessarily mean it will sell quickly. Other First Street-fronting properties “have gone on and off the market several times over the last few years, with no takers as yet,” says Streetsblog.

Metro is working on a new blueprint for the land around Mariachi Plaza it controls, recently considering a proposal to build affordable housing, commercial space, and possibly a park on the site.

• Parcel Containing Businesses on Mariachi Plaza up for Sale [Streetsblog LA]
• Metro considering new development plan for Mariachi Plaza in Boyle Heights [Curbed LA]
• Should Mariachi Plaza Become a Medical Office Complex? [Curbed LA]
• Mapping Metro's Gold Line Development Boom in Boyle Heights [Curbed LA]