Trump urged to open federal site in LA as homeless shelter, Whole Foods-anchored Sawtelle apartment project approved: Daily digest

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President Trump is asked to open a federal site as a homeless shelter. The request came from Councilman David Ryu, who wrote a letter to Trump, requesting access to an empty lot at 5161 Sepulveda Boulevard in Sherman Oaks for the construction of a temporary bridge shelter. The U.S. Army Reserve did not cooperate with an earlier effort to study the feasibility of the site. [LADN]

A rendering of the Sawtelle project (Credit: Landry Design Group)

City Planning Commission OKs mixed-use complex in Sawtelle. The Santa Monica-Barrington Apartments would include a Whole Foods supermarket and 180 apartments on a 2.6-acre site. 20 of the units would be set aside for “very low-income” renters. The approval sends the project to the City Council. [Urbanize]

Housing costs prompt Californians to consider leaving. About half of registered voters in the state have considered leaving California, according to a new poll released by the University of California, Berkeley. The share of young voters who considered leaving the state because of housing costs was higher. [LAT]

An 84-unit apartment project in Pico-Union will rise. The four-story building would include balconies and a rooftop deck. The units are to be a mix of studio and one-bedroom apartments. Goodson Real Estate is the developer. [Urbanize]

NBA star Paul George buys Pacific Palisades home. George already owns a home in Hidden Hills, but he’s reportedly shelled out $16 million for a home from DeAndre Jordan, a former Clipper now with the Brooklyn Nets. George was traded to the Clippers two months ago. [TRD]

San Pedro lot may add to the city’s growing multifamily pipeline. An individual named Mitchel Lindsay filed plans for the 56-unit development on 9th Street. An LLC tied to Lindsay bought the 8,100-square-foot lot in December for $2 million. It’s one of several small-lot multifamily projects underway in the South Bay community. [TRD]

Former Omega Cinema Props building to become creative offices. Plans call for at least 55,000 square feet of creative office space on a property across from the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, as well as an adaptive reuse of a neighboring property. [TRD]

WeWork is putting the brakes on all new lease agreements. Sources familiar with the matter say the SoftBank-backed office space-leasing company — among the largest tenants in New York City and London — appears to be bleeding out ahead of its IPO. [FT]

WeWork’s parent company bought 14 venture-backed startups since 2014. That far outpaces Twitter, who bought just 9 in the same period. According to sources familiar with the matter, the We Company is now trying to shed some of those acquisitions, many of which were purchased with stocks — leaving some investors feeling stuck holding the bag. [WSJ]

Mortgage lenders are using new tactics to retain borrowers. Some major banks are rolling out “loan mods,” allowing borrowers to modify mortgages at better terms. Unlike federal programs during the recession offering assistance to homeowners in foreclosure, these programs are intended for buyers who have no trouble paying back the loan. [WSJ]

WeWork co-CEOs Artie Minson and Sebastian Gunningham (Credit: Getty Images and Twitter)

Meet the new heads of WeWork. After WeWork CEO Adam Neumann stepped down earlier this week, the company’s CFO Artie Minson and vice chairman Sebastian Gunningham stepped in as co-CEO’s to right the ship. [TRD]

FROM THE CITY’S RECORDS:
A 69-unit mixed-use complex is planned at 3600 W. Stocker Street near the Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza mall. An entity called Echo Heights LLC filed for the project on Thursday. A half dozen units would be reserved for “very low-income” renters. [LADCP]