Venice Empty Lot to Become Three-Story Apartment Building

A derelict empty lot in Venice could see new life as a three-story apartment complex.

Hypericum Companies, headed by owner Daniel Saparzadeh, filed an application with the Los Angeles Department of City Planning to build 16 units at 748 East Flower Avenue, off Lincoln Boulevard, Urbanize Los Angeles reported.

The project would bring 16 one- and two-bedroom apartments to the area as well as a 19-space subterranean parking garage. The developer is looking to secure density bonus incentives to build more apartments than zoning rules allow in exchange for two apartments set aside for very low-income residents earning 30 to 50 percent of the area median income.

The white stucco and beige brick-clad structure, designed by Carpira Design Group Company, would rise across the street from University of California, Los Angeles’ Venice Dental Center.

Apartments would be set back from a block that has troubled neighbors in recent years. Homeless encampments have sprouted up outside the fenced-in lot, causing a headache for pedestrians and contractors working at the corner of Lincoln. In 2022, Saparzadeh explained to Yo! Venice! that he was seeking to build residences on Flower Avenue, “but not until we have a street where people want to move in and set roots.”

“For the past four years, Flower looked like a skid row with people camping on the parkway, sidewalk and even one lane on the street,” he said in 2023, conceding that building fencing is “not a long-term solution as you cannot find enough fences to cover every parkway and every sidewalk.”

The new Flower Avenue building would be the latest multifamily addition to the neighborhood. In 2022, Venice Community Housing Corporation opened its permanent supportive housing project two blocks away from the site on Rose Avenue. That development provides 35 units for homeless youth and adults and a resident manager.

Saparzadeh previously faced pushback for a proposed mixed-use development at Olympic Boulevard and Butler Avenue in Sawtelle. That 77-unit project was unveiled in 2021 after nearly a decade of back and forth, Urbanize reported.

— Chris Malone Méndez