Frank Gehry’s Sunset Strip design delayed again

A mixed-use complex on the Sunset Strip designed by Frank Gehry, which has been mired in lawsuits and appeals for more than two years, has been handed yet another setback.

The Los Angeles Cultural Heritage Commission voted unanimously Thursday to delay demolition of the 1960s Lytton Savings bank – a city historic landmark – which stands in the way, CurbedLA reported. Townscape Partners, the developer, wants to tear the 1960s building down, which is now a Chase bank, to make room for its project.

The project, named 8150 Sunset, was approved by the city in 2016. This 180-day delay is to give Townscape time to investigate the possibility of relocating the landmark bank, which is distinct for its zig-zag style roof.

When complete, 8150 Sunset will include 334,000 square feet of space, 229 apartments, a market, a restaurant, retail space, and a new bank. The design has Gehry’s fingerprints all over it, with unique twists, bulges and waves going up the structures that will be as tall as 178 feet high.

Project representatives will come back to the commission by December to update commissioners on the study.

Preservationists have been turning to landmark designations to stop development in Los Angeles. In September, a group in Venice filed for monument consideration for a historically black church there, which billionaire heir and media mogul Jay Penske wants to largely replace with a massive single-family home. [Curbed] – Gregory Cornfield