The site of a supermarket in Koreatown is up for sale, and its new owner could build a multifamily development on the site.
LLR Investment, a limited liability company linked to Kenneth Lee, has put a Northgate Supermarket on the market with an asking price of $26.5 million, according to LoopNet. Records show the LLC has owned the property since 2003.
Located at 2323 West Olympic Boulevard, the entire 72,000-square-foot property is currently zoned for commercial use. However, a buyer could take advantage of Los Angeles’ transit oriented communities program, which encourages multifamily and affordable housing development near public transit using tax incentives.
A new owner could also build a mixed-use development on the site, given current zoning.
LLR Investment bought the property for $6.7 million in 2003, records show, and most recently secured $4.75 million in refinancing from Wells Fargo. Anaheim-based Northgate Gonzalez Market, which specializes in Latino groceries at 41 stores throughout Southern California, has leased the property in Koreatown since 2010.
The supermarket has a right of first refusal, meaning LLR Investment had to offer the site up for sale to Northgate first, before marketing it publicly. Northgate currently has proposed plans to tear down one of its stores and replace it with a residential development in Santa Ana.
In recent years, developers have flocked to Koreatown to build multifamily projects, given TOC incentives and proximity to Downtown Los Angeles, Hollywood and the Arts District.
In December, Larchmont-based Villas at Westmoreland filed plans to build a seven-story, 45-unit project at 430 South Westmoreland Avenue, a few blocks away from the Metro’s Wilshire/Vermont light-rail station.
The latter half of last year saw a number of other proposals. Elk Development filed plans for a 60-unit complex at 728 South Manhattan Place. San Francisco affordable developer Bridge Housing also filed plans for a 95-unit affordable housing development at 701-710 South New Hampshire Avenue.