Onni Group Scraps Hotel, Switches to Housing in Glendale

The Onni Group has swapped plans to build an 852-room hotel in Downtown Glendale for a pair of 36-story apartment buildings.

The Vancouver-based developer led by Rossano De Cotiis has revised its plans, which now call for twin towers with 858 apartments at 601 North Brand Boulevard, Urbanize Los Angeles reported. They would replace a parking lot.

Four years ago, Onni had proposed building what would be the city’s largest hotel, split between 34- and 35-story towers at Brand and Sanchez Drive, just south of the 134 Freeway. That plan replaced an earlier proposal to replace a 14-story office building with 600 apartments.

The firm’s latest plan includes a pair of 36-story buildings featuring 858 one- and two-bedroom apartments above 5,600 square feet of ground-floor shops and restaurants. An underground parking garage would serve 942 cars.

The change to housing will subject Onni to the city’s affordable housing standards, which would require it set aside 129 apartments as affordable to very low-income households. A density bonus for adding affordable units would allow a taller building than local zoning rules allow.

The glass-covered towers, designed by Chicago-based Solomon Cordwell Buenz, would soar to 380 feet, making them the tallest buildings in Glendale. The complex would include co-working offices, a fitness center, lounges and rooftop decks, with views past Downtown Los Angeles.

A year ago, Onni Group made similar reverse moves by adding extended-stay hotels to apartments under construction in Long Beach and Hollywood.

Onni is among three firms which have recently pitched high-rise buildings for Downtown Glendale, according to Urbanize. The plans include a 25-story hotel to the north across the 134 Freeway and a 24-story apartment building on the other side of Brand Boulevard.

The Canadian firm is now building a 60-story apartment tower in Downtown Los Angeles and plans to build a 17-story apartment highrise in Hollywood, plus a 42-story apartment tower in Mid-Wilshire.

— Dana Bartholomew