Goldrich Kest seeks to build 296-apartment complex in Monrovia

Goldrich Kest wants to bulldoze half-century old apartments in Monrovia and build a 296-unit complex. 

The Culver City-based developer has filed plans to build the six-story complex at 150 West Colorado Avenue and 125 West Olive Avenue in the San Gabriel Valley, Urbanize Los Angeles reported. It would replace two apartment buildings from the 1970s containing 156 homes.

Plans for the replacement complex, dubbed Oak Park, include 296 one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments.

Goldrich Kest seeks density bonus incentives to allow a larger building than local zoning rules allow. The project would require city approval of a general plan amendment and a zone change.

The existing apartments have 54 units restricted to senior citizen households by covenant, as well as 96 units now occupied by below market-rate tenants, which fall into a protected category for relocation under SB 330, according to Urbanize.

The Oak Park project, designed by an undisclosed architecture firm, would be clad in white, gray and beige plaster, wood, and brick, with upper level setbacks to match the scale of nearby buildings.

Plans also call for a “public parklet” along Primrose Avenue.

Pending approvals, Goldrich Kest expects to break ground early next year and complete the building in August 2027. 

In addition to the new Oak Park development, a commercial complex to the south across Olive Avenue is poised to make way for 200 apartments above shops and restaurants.

While around 1,000 new apartments have been approved or built within walking distance of Metro’s Monrovia Station in recent years, development may move northward, according to Urbanize.

Last month, Goldrich Kest beat back an appeal by a labor group trying to block its 129-unit apartment complex in Studio City. The Los Angeles City Council voted to back plans to build the six-story building at 4260 North Arch Drive, along the Los Angeles River.

The project is the first ground-up development in 15 years for Goldrich Kest, which is best known for building apartment complexes in Marina del Rey.

The company also plans to build an 84-unit complex next to the historic Hotel Green in Pasadena. 

The company was founded in 1957 by its namesakes Jona Goldrich and Sol Kest, who died in 2016 and 2010, respectively. Members of their families continue involvement with the firm.

Also known as GK, the company manages 132 apartment buildings with 15,204 units, five marinas with 2,087 boat slips, 22 senior living facilities with 4,168 beds and more than 7 million square feet of commercial, retail and industrial properties, according to its LinkedIn page. Among the apartment buildings are 71 properties for low-income families. 

— Dana Bartholomew

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