Brookfield Residential unveiled its latest Playa Vista neighborhood, The Collection. It's the first new hood in L.A. to have smart-home technology included standard. Brookfield Residential COO Adrian Foley spoke to ABC 7 Eyewitness News and the Los Angeles Times about why the company chose Apple HomeKit and how it works in the tech hub of Playa Vista, Silicon Beach.
Blog: Updates on Urbanology
A Year in Urbanology, 2016
Jack Skelley and JSPR thank colleagues, clients and cohorts for another inspiring year. For a 20-second highlight reel click below...
Real Estate Trends in L.A. 2017 -- Tami Halton Pardee, ABC7
Tami Halton Pardee, Founder of Halton Pardee + Partners, discusses 2017 real estate trends with reporter Elex Michaelson. Live on ABC 7 Eyewitness News, December 14, 2017. Tami discussed where interest rates are going and the mood in the market, post-election. Tami also pointed out L.A.'s next hot neighborhoods, including those along the Expo Line light rail.
$6 Billion in Destination Investment Taking Place in Anaheim
Approximately $6 billion in investment is coming to Anaheim around the city’s world-famous theme parks and around Angel Stadium of Anaheim.
The investment includes the coming Stars Wars-themed land at Disneyland Park but much more: four new luxury hotels and other lodging, expansion of the Anaheim Convention Center, plus new homes, shopping, dining, offices and hotels at the Platinum Triangle around Angel Stadium.
This level of investment in Anaheim is among the largest in the U.S.
It comes as Anaheim is enhancing its visitor industry on a global scale. More than $3.5 billion in investment is coming to the Anaheim Resort District alone -- a 1,100-acre area that includes the Disney Resort, Anaheim Convention Center and hotels.
With the luxury hotel market growing quickly, these new properties help secure Anaheim’s place on the map of world-wide destinations.
Here is ABC7 Eyewitness News interview with John Woodhead, Director of Community & Economic Development for the city of Anaheim
A Year in Urbanology: In 2015 Our Friends Set the Trends
The Toast of Bunker Hill: JSPR partnered with The Related Group on The Emerson, DTLA’s finest for-lease residences. Just a year after launching, The Emerson was filled with “cultural creatives" -- entertainers, gallery owners, entrepreneurs who are the essence of urban vibrancy. A host of sommeliers makes The Emerson their home. At the center of this cool clique is Elizabeth Heuttinger of friendly-chic Otium restaurant, between the Emerson tower and the new Broad museum.The
Home Sweet Work: Ehrlich Architects was firm of the year. American Institute of Architects said so, noting Ehrlich’s approach to “classic California Modernist style.” Its latest design is a creative office environment that looks and feels like a residence. At elevon at Campus El Segundo, there are lofty studios, rooftop conferences, outdoor fireplace/TV rooms. Bring your dog. The office condominium project is nearly 100% sold out. Retail too. Next door to the new L.A. Lakers Practice Facility.
Preservation Development:40 years in the making, Marblehead is finally a thing. Sea Summit at Marblehead in San Clemente opened in November. “These inspiring homes, trails and nature preserve reflect decades of careful planning – one of the longest development periods for a coastal project in California,” said Taylor Morrison Division President Phil Bodem. The Wall Street Journal depicted Sea Summit’s 116 acres of protected habitat, preserving views and creating public trails.
China and Climate Change: Climate breakthroughs included the Paris treaty and U.S. and China agreeing to lower carbon emissions. The design world was ahead of them with an historic commitment among 52 design firms working in China to design to low carbon standards. Cuningham Group Architecture has long been a leader here, organizing the Themed Entertainment Sustainability Summit among the top theme park developers working in China.
Largest New Community, Fastest Internet:Ontario unveiled SoCal’s first masterplan with ultra-high bandwidth data. As with the Google Fiber cities outside of Cali, gigabit living means lightning-fast downloads and future-proofed homes. Homeowners pay directly through their HOA (at reduced rates). The L.A.Times wrote about it. CBS2 broadcast it. Ontario Ranch is built by some of the country’s best homebuilders, including Brookfield Residential.
Silicon Beach Waves: Urban coolness inundated Playa Vista: Mayor Garcetti trumpeted the new Runway retail. Yahoo moved into its new HQ. Google planned its own move. Maltzan Architecture designed the new Brickyard creative space. Gensler hacked an older building, which nabbed new tenants (including Jessica Alba’s Honest Company). Culver City expanded transit service and connected with Expo Rail. And Brookfield Residential opened two stunning, vertically sleek neighborhoods.
Props to Pardee Properties: Tami Pardee is #1 in Los Angeles, selling over $2 billion of residential and commercial properties. And #17 in the U.S., says Real Trends/Wall Street Journal. But forget the haughty stereotype of celebri-brokers. Tami is about community commitment. Pardee Properties’ Giving Back program directs 10% net sale proceeds to essential charities: Over $750,000 has gone primarily to needy neighborhoods. JSPR worked with CBS2 on two stories “Tami’s Tips” for renters, and "When is the Right Time to Buy?"
Huge Explosion in the Arts District: Investor’s Business Daily covered it: $2 billion of institutional funds blowing-up the east end of DTLA. The boom included “curated” retail (as in ABC7’s Eye on L.A.) at the Michael Maltzan-designed One Santa Fe community. The Arts District became L.A.’s art and architecture center: Hennessey & Ingalls bookstore moves to OSF from Santa Monica. Hauser, Wirth & Schimmel museum opens in March a block away. Did we mention One Santa Fe took top honors in AIA-LA’s 2015 Design Awards, and launched L.A.'s largest private bike share program?
Foodie Districts: Anaheim now claims the world stage for more than Disney. The delicious urbanism of the Packing House food hall and nearby Center Street and their creators – City of Anaheim and LAB Holding – transformed the city’s downtown and were huge hits in the Wall Street Journal and at Urban Land Institute's international Fall Meeting.
At the Center of Real Estate Trends: Led by Director Stuart Gabriel, UCLA Ziman for Real Estate is the voice of knowledge in scores of media stories per year. Through its Economic Letter, the Ziman Center released groundbreaking research and analysi. Most recently, “Will Airbnb Go the Way of Napster?” detailed how the home-rental company can shift from a “disruptor” to a partner. Meanwhile, CBS2 featured Gabriel discussing when is the best time to refinance.
KFA: The Next 40 Years: Killefer Flammang Architects' adaptive-reuse work reshaped Los Angeles, including historic landmarks Eastern Columbia building and Ace Hotel. And yet, 75% of KFA’s work is new-construction, including in the fast-moving worlds of hospitality, residential, transit-oriented development and creative office. The firm celebrated its 40th anniversary and will soon announce bold 2016 news.
JSPR is grateful to its friends for an abundantly exciting year. We have the joy of working with the best creative partners in SoCal, including Urban Land Institute, InterCommunications, Greenhaus, Air Condition, Polaris Pacific, Hayes Martin & Associates, Hexa, Alexandria Abramian, Gunn Jerkins, Kulli Marketing, Salt&PR, Downtown Breakfast Club, White Oak Communications, Casey & Sayre, Mike Hoye Public Relations, Rachel Forman, Urbana, Balcony Press, Michelle Moreno and many more. Forgive us if we neglected any of you. But thank you all!
Drone Day: ABC7 Soars Over Preservation Development
Sea Summit at Marblehead unveiled its 100-acre nature preserve and hiking trails. ABC7 TV unveiled its drone camera. It was a match made on land and sea and sky.
Sea Summit at Marblehead in San Clemente is not only building a famously delayed coastal community, it is preserving and restoring over 100 acres of precious natural habitat. This includes a new wetlands preserve which provides a home for endangered waterfowl and helps divert and cleanse groundwater runoff during California drought conditions. The Center for Natural Lands Management meticulously oversees the preserve.
JSPR invited select media to join with The Center for Natural Lands Management and developer Taylor Morrison in a tour of the emerging community and nature preserve. And ABC7 News returned to shoot extensive drone coverage of the area.
One Santa Fe Offers a Home for Artists in DTLA
ABC 7 TV recently visited the Arts District of Downtown Los Angeles. The growing neighborhood's most significant new landmark is One Santa Fe, the new community designed by Michael Maltzan Architecture. It's not only the longest building in L.A., it offers new homes for artists and an alternative transportation program with a fleet of 50 bikes.
Preservation Development
It has taken four decades for Sea Summit at Marblehead to get going. During that time, this precious coastal property underwent rigorous approvals and seemingly endless community input (and lots of opposition!) The recession also slowed things down: The previous developer, SunCal, was backed by Lehman Brothers, one of the mega banks not to survive the financial meltdown.
But like a gem compressed over time, the final result is stunning. New developer Taylor Morrison Homes has begun integrating resort-style residences behind a nature preserve of canyon and bluff habitat. These more than 100 acres -- including 4 miles of hiking trails -- are overseen by the Center for Natural Lands Management. And the project enjoys widespread support.
Recent media attention has included an A-1 cover story in the Los Angeles Times and ABC7's Eyewitness News.