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Los Angeles

Shomof Group shops stake in 25-acre Sears redevelopment project

The firm is looking for a joint venture partner on the sprawling Boyle Heights site

Izek Shomof founder of the Shomof Group
Izek Shomof founder of the Shomof Group

Developer Izek Shomof’s company is shopping for an investment partner on its 25-acre mixed-use redevelopment project in Boyle Heights, The Real Deal has learned.

Dubbed the Mail Order District, the Shomof Group’s massive property includes the iconic Sears building on Olympic Boulevard. Six other buildings — half of which are entitled — are included in the project. The company’s plans call for more than 2,000 residential units along with a hotel, and along with large office and retail components.

Marketing materials from listing brokerage CBRE reveal the project is split into two separate phases. Jimmy Shomof, a project manager at the Shomof Group, confirmed the firm is looking for a joint venture partner.

Phase 1, which is already entitled, includes the adaptive reuse of the Sears building, a railway-themed retail section and a recreational landscaping project featuring a gathering plaza and walkways.

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Phase 2, which has yet to be entitled, proposes new construction of 1,150 residential units, 95,000 square feet of retail and a 120-room hotel. It would be spread out among four different buildings.

Plans for the historic Art Deco tower that used to house Sears’ mail order operation include building 1,030 residential lofts, 200,000 square feet of offices, a food hall, event space, parking and rooftop amenities. The Sears retail store still operating on the ground floor will remain intact.

It remains unclear whether the Sears at the site is among the 142 stores that will shutter as part of the retailer’s bankruptcy proceedings.

Renderings from Omgivning, an architecture and interior design firm based Downtown, show an industrial style with exposed beams and concrete columns.

Shomof Group has a track record of acquiring aging buildings and rehabbing them. The firm, which maintains a large portfolio in DTLA, also owns the Hotel Alexandria and Hayward Apartments on Spring Street. Both were deteriorating at time of purchase, and have since been renovated.

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