![]() In February 2015, Wesson scheduled a lunch meeting with a high-level Carmel executive at Morton’s Steakhouse, according to emails reviewed by The Times. “Mike, this project is very important to us,” wrote Wesson chief of staff Deron Williams in an email to Michael LoGrande, then the city’s planning director. From the beginning, Wesson and his staff made the project a priority, arranging a meeting between the development team and high-level city officials.īehind the scenes, Wesson’s top deputy repeatedly pushed city agencies to move quickly on the project, according to emails reviewed by The Times. council members typically defer to the wishes of the council member who represents the area where a project is proposed.Ĭarmel Partners filed its first paperwork on the Cumulus project in December 2014. Getting Wesson on board was crucial, since L.A. To make Cumulus a reality, Carmel needed the council to change the property’s zoning from manufacturing to one that could accommodate 1.9 million square feet of commercial development, including housing. LA Radio LLC, the Cumulus subsidiary that owned the site, authorized Carmel to handle the project’s application at City Hall, according to planning records. The property, home to Cumulus radio stations KLOS-FM and KABC-AM, was marketed to potential buyers as a chance to create a “city within a city” right next to an Expo light rail station.Ĭarmel Partners entered into a purchase agreement with Cumulus Media in mid-2014, starting a two-year escrow period, according to a Carmel spokeswoman. The push to build Cumulus, located on La Cienega Boulevard one block outside of Culver City, began in 2013, when radio broadcasting company Cumulus Media announced it was selling the 10-acre site. Earlier this year, Carmel Partners said the Huizar case featured “numerous” false or misleading conclusions, saying campaign donations were not the reason its downtown project was approved.Ī construction worker takes in the view from a floor of the 30-story residential tower called Arq on La Cienega Boulevard. Huizar has pleaded not guilty in the case. Prosecutors have accused Huizar of securing financial benefits from Carmel while reducing the amount of affordable housing required in its project. Instead, the bribery investigation has focused largely on real estate projects in Councilman Jose Huizar‘s downtown district, including a 35-story Carmel Partners tower. However, prosecutors have made no mention of the Cumulus development and have not publicly accused Wesson of any wrongdoing. Since the council approved the project, Carmel Partners has come under scrutiny in a federal corruption probe that has led to the arrest of two council members. Those prices, tenant advocates say, will still be out of reach for most residents of West Adams and nearby L.A. While Carmel has not revealed how much those rents will be, city officials say workforce housing can rent for up to $2,959 for a single, $3,379 for a one-bedroom and $3,803 for a two-bedroom. Those units constitute affordable housing, the company said in a statement. But the company said it plans to voluntarily charge “workforce” rents in at least 180 units of the project’s 900-unit second phase, now under construction. (Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times)Ĭarmel Partners, the project’s developer, acknowledged the 300-unit Arq tower is catering to higher-income renters. ![]() As of last year, a 1,600-square-foot penthouse was listed for rent at the rate of $17,000 per month.Los Angeles City Councilman Herb Wesson, pictured in 2015, the year his son began working for Cumulus Media. ![]() The glass-and-steel tower contains a total of 300 studio, one-, and two-bedroom apartments above a parking podium.Ī leasing website for the property lists 451-square-foot studio units starting at $3,527 per month - up from $2,769 per month in July 2021. The most visible element of the Cumulus project is Arq, a 31-story, 320-foot-tall building which now ranks as the tallest building in Los Angeles city limits to the south of the I-10 freeway. Just over half of that ground floor space is occupied is occupied by a Whole Foods, which is set to open for business on August 31. In its place, Carmel Partners has built a sprawling mixed-use development that features more than 1,200 apartments and 100,000 square feet of ground-floor retail. Located across the street from the La Cienega/Jefferson Metro station, the project occupies an 11-acre property that was previously the site of a radio broadcast facility. ![]()
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