The Civic Center is one step closer to total transformation.
The Los Angeles City Council voted unanimously last week in favor of a plan for a $483 million, 27-story office tower which would replace the LAPD’s Parker Center at 105 N Los Angeles Street. As part of the 15-year civic center master plan, which also includes retail and housing, the Parker Center will be demolished.
Preservationists vehemently opposed the razing of the 1955-built structure, designed by Welton Becket, citing the history of the city’s police force, the Los Angeles Times reported.
The L.A. Conservancy also alleged that the city overestimated the cost of preservation by at least $100 million.
Critics of the building, however, argue that it’s architecturally mundane and serves as a symbol of the LAPD’s racist past.
The development has the support of several community leaders as well as Council member Jose Huizar, who helped push for a plan that connects the civic center to Little Tokyo, Chinatown and El Pueblo. Restaurants and stores will also be ushered into the area between Chinatown, the Historic Core, and Little Tokyo.
“Our current civic center is outdated and poorly designed,” Huizar said. [LAT] — Cathaleen Chen