A firm run by Jordan Shalom wants to build an 11-story affordable apartment building in the Hollywood Hills under a fast-track order by Mayor Karen Bass.
The Beverly Crest-based LLC, 3450 Floyd, filed an application under the mayor’s Executive Directive 1 to build the 68-unit highrise at 3446 North Floyd Terrace and 3445 North Barham Boulevard, Urbanize Los Angeles reported. It would replace a vacant lot.
Plans call for 68 studio, one- and two-bedroom apartments above a two-level, 24-car garage a half mile east of the 101 Freeway, a quarter-mile south of Universal Studios.
Bass issued her policy, known as Executive Directive 1, during her first week in office in late 2022 as a way to encourage the construction of affordable housing and end homelessness.
The affordable housing option allows developers to quickly approve large, 100-percent affordable housing projects.
ED1 approvals can save developers tens of thousands of dollars in permitting fees, while exempting them from some environmental studies and public hearings. By sidestepping a review from the Planning Commission, builders save both time and money — with less risk of projects being killed during the city’s complicated “discretionary review process.”
Shalom seeks ED1 density bonus incentives to allow a larger structure than would otherwise be permitted by zoning rules. The project is eligible for the incentives, as all of the proposed apartments would be set aside for rent below market rate, according to Urbanize.
The 120-foot building, designed by Culver City-based Open Office, soars above a bank of trees, with clean, geometric angles that include large windows and inset balconies.
While ED1 projects are rare in the Hollywood Hills, Open Office has worked on several others across Los Angeles, including two with SoLa Impact on Broadway and Normandie Avenue in South Los Angeles, according to Urbanize.
Last month, the Oakland-based Yes In My Back Yard and an affiliate of Chatsworth-based Uncommon Developers sued L.A. after the City Council refused to allow the builder to employ ED1 to construct a tall apartment building in a single-family neighborhood in Winnetka.
The mayor’s executive order, which initially didn’t prohibit ED1 projects in single-family communities, was followed by applications for eight affordable complexes in San Fernando Valley neighborhoods. They included plans by Uncommon to build an 80-foot building next to homes.
In June, Bass updated her directive to close the loophole.
— Dana Bartholomew
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