The City Council approved a plan to incorporate a historic gay nightclub into a nine-story hotel in West Hollywood.
With the 4-1 vote in favor, progressive developer Faring will proceed with Robertson Lane, an adaptive reuse project that will meld Factory, a nightclub, into a nine-story hotel with 241 rooms and a rooftop pool.
The developer is also planning ground-level retail and event space, along with restaurants and six levels of underground parking for 750 vehicles for the 1.94-acre space at 9091 Santa Monica Boulevard.
Hodgetts + Fung Architects designed the project, which is set to rise at La Peer Drive and Robertson Boulevard.
Unlike most projects, Robertson Lane required the approval from the West Hollywood Historic Preservation Commission due to the historic former nightclub. The Factory building opened in 1929 and originally housed Mitchell Camera, an early movie camera maker. It then served as the Studio One nightclub in the 1980s.
The preservation commission signed off on the project in January. It later passed unanimously in the West Hollywood Planning Commission in March.
Faring, led by Jason Illoulian, is also incorporating another historically LGBT spot into the French Market, a nearby project at 7985 Santa Monica Boulevard. Faring plans to remodel the iconic 1936-built French Market structure, rather than demolish it. If approved, Faring will build a ground-floor restaurant, coffee shop and creative offices on the site.