Dive Brief:

• Los Angeles experienced a significant boost in development in 2016 with 2,671 residential units constructed and 4,000 more underway, according to Curbed Los Angeles, citing a recent report from the city's Downtown Business Improvement District.

• In the fourth quarter alone, proposals for 7,645 residential units, including 1,200 condos, were put forth for the downtown area.

• Meanwhile, rents in commercial towers increased as Class A office space vacancy rates fell 4.5% from 2015 to 16.8% in 2016.

Dive Insight:

The surge in residential proposals likely stemmed from developers attempting to get their plans in ahead of the Measure S vote on March 7. The initiative, which would have put an embargo on the zoning changes needed to construct a number of large-scale, high-density developments in the city, was voted down last week.

The measure's advocates contended that an increase in upscale residential projects has forced out lower-income residents who can no longer afford to live nearby, while those on the other side of the aisle say building more housing units is the only way to combat the city's mounting housing crisis.

While 2016 brought a development boom to the city, 2017 is slated to be another strong year for the Los Angeles' construction scene. The potential for the 14.5-acre 6AM development in the Los Angeles Arts District brings the promise of 1,700 for-sale and for-rent residential units, retail and office space, two hotels, a school, 23,000 square feet of space for public art and two parks to the city's downtown. 

In early February, the L&R Group of Companies filed a similar proposal for a 52-story, mixed-use residential tower designed by Gensler. The tower would add residential units, office and retail space and parking to the area. Later that month, Los Angeles developer TriCal proposed a dual-tower, 53-story hotel development, also designed by Gensler, across from the city's convention center. The 1,024-room hotel tower would take the place of a 100-unit apartment complex currently occupying the site.

While some welcome the influx of high-density residential development in the city's center, others argue these megadevelopments change the landscape of existing neighborhoods and strain infrastructure and resources there.

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