22-Story Baldwin Hills Office Development Moved Forward By City

Developer Samitaur Constructs‘ 22-story office tower project slated for 5850 W. Jefferson Blvd. has moved a step closer to a groundbreaking after the city officially moved to approve the project last week. The city’s determination follows a decisive 8-0 vote by planning commissioners last month, appealable to the city council until December 30.

Designed by Eric Owen Moss Architects, the new project is slated for just a block south of another office project by the Samitaur-Moss duo: Wrapper, a 17-story tower rising at 5790 Jefferson Blvd.

Located in the Baldwin Hills neighborhood, the younger project is scheduled to open in 2023 after a 2021 construction start date, according to planning documents. The development will consist of about 340,000 square feet of office space and four below-grade parking levels holding 908 parking spots. The existing 4.53-acre project site consists of a surface parking lot and approximately 50,000 square-foot media-production building, but the latter will be preserved amid the construction of the tower. Project plans also call for about 66,100 square feet of “park-like space” to surround the circular office building.

The latest Jefferson Boulevard project approval comes as interest in Baldwin Hills office development remains high but also as the Los Angeles office market as a whole faces struggles related to the coronavirus pandemic. Net absorption came out to about negative 2.7 million square feet in the third quarter as over 7 million square feet of office space is under construction in the greater LA area, according to brokerage CBRE.