Wikipedia

Oceanwide Plaza

Oceanwide Plaza is an unfinished residential and retail complex composed of three towers in downtown Los Angeles, California, across the street from Crypto.com Arena and the Los Angeles Convention Center.[2] The complex, designed by CallisonRTKL, is owned by the Beijing based developer Oceanwide Holdings.

Oceanwide Plaza
Map
Former namesOceanwide
General information
TypeRetail and residential
Location1101 Flower St.
Los Angeles, California
Coordinates34°02′33″N 118°15′55″W / 34.04250°N 118.26528°W / 34.04250; -118.26528
Construction started2015
Completed2020 (originally projected) unknown
Cost$1 billion
OwnerOceanwide Holdings
ManagementOceanwide Holdings[1]
Height
Architectural206.4 m (677 ft)
Top floor206.4 m (677 ft)
Technical details
Floor count49
4 below ground
Floor area2 million sq ft
Lifts/elevators49
Design and construction
Architect(s)RTKL
DeveloperOceanwide Holdings[1]
Structural engineerEnglekirk Structural Engineers
Main contractorLendlease Group

Construction began in 2015 but stopped when Oceanwide Holdings ran out of funds in 2019.[3] It is unknown when the complex will open; development has been beset by financing problems related to ongoing geopolitical tensions between the US and China.[4][5][6] In late January-early February 2024, at least 27 floors of multiple towers at the complex were tagged with graffiti.[7]

Design edit

Oceanwide Plaza was designed by CallisonRTKL. Tower one was designed to feature a 184-room five-star Park Hyatt hotel and 164 Park Hyatt serviced condo residences, a live-in hotel option. It was designed to reach a total height of 675 ft, 49 floors. Towers two and three were designed to have 504 residential condominiums.[5] They were designed to reach a total of 530 ft (160 m), 40 floors in height.[1] A retail mall was designed for the first three floors above ground with 153,000 sq ft (14,200 m2) of retail space.[8] The 9th floor was designed to feature a two-acre private park.[9]

History edit

The site was a vacant parking lot used by Crypto.com Arena patrons in the South Park neighborhood of Downtown Los Angeles. The site is immediately northwest of Los Angeles Metro Rail's Pico station.[10][11][12]

This development is part of a group of projects being developed on Figueroa Street in the 2010s, which allowed the addition of giant video advert screens facing Staples Center. Nearby projects include the Circa Towers and the Luxe Development. Oceanwide renderings also featured large ribbon-style video LED screens.[13][14]

The three apartment towers were constructed in April 2018. In January 2019, interior construction on the project was put on hold. The developer cited restructuring of capital and indicated work on the plaza would resume "shortly".[15][16][6] Contractor Lendlease suspended work until late March 2019, when it was announced that construction had resumed after nine active liens had been filed by subcontractors totaling US$98.6 million.[17] Due to the three-month pause in work, the opening date was delayed to an unknown date.[18] Work once again stopped in late 2019. Media reported that the towers were stuck in limbo over unpaid work and pending lawsuits.[19] The towers were an example of Chinese reductions in capital and investing in US real estate due to the country's ongoing trade dispute with the US and a Beijing crackdown on credit and capital flight.[4] Completion of work was reported to be uncertain and all work was on hold as of 2019.[3]

After failing to pay its debts, the project was foreclosed on by China-Oceanside in June 2023 and listed for sale. No asking price information was released. China-Oceanwide owed $157 million to a group of EB-5 lenders and planned to repay them from the proceeds of the sale. Lendlease filed a claim in court that it should be first in line for payment in the foreclosure sale. Lendlease also filed with the California Court of Appeals to invalidate the EB-5 loans altogether, claiming fraud and misrepresentation. In filings with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, China-Oceanwide said that more than $1.2 billion was needed to finish the project and that they had already spent $1.1 billion.[20][21]

Graffiti and Vandalism edit

 
Oceanwide Plaza Graffiti

In late December of 2023, three taggers, Akua, Sour, and Castle, broke into the tallest building of Oceanside’s three towers and spray painted their names across its floor to ceiling windows.[22] Following the event, more members of Los Angeles’ graffiti community began to participate in tagging the skyscraper.[23]

 
Oceanwide Plaza Graffiti

Soon after the first instance of graffiti back in late December of 2023, the number of graffiti artists tagging Oceanwide Plaza’s skyscrapers rose sharply in late January and early February of 2024.[24] In late January and early February 2024, at least 27 floors of multiple towers at the complex were tagged with graffiti, attracting national attention.[7][25] On February 3, an artist named Endem and his NCT (Nightmares Come True) crew snuck past a security guard and ascended up more than 28 flights of stairs. Following the event, those same graffiti artists added their own signatures to Los Angeles’ skyscrapers (Oceanwide Plaza). Soon after the event, more taggers began to tag the building and within 24 hours, one full skyscraper had been covered in graffiti. By February 6, all three skyscrapers had been tagged and covered in graffiti. The building was tagged by graffiti artists well-known within the Los Angeles community, and by taggers from different parts of the United States. Oceanwide Plaza’s Skyscrapers were spray painted with words and phrases like “Set the pace” and “Amen.”[26][27]

The event sparked political urgency in Los Angeles, leading the Los Angeles Police Department to allocate resources to safeguard property while ensuring public safety. The Los Angeles Police Department dedicated resources to deploying helicopters to keep watch and arrest numerous occupants. Several people have been arrested,[28][29] and city officials and a downtown business association condemned the graffiti.[30][31][32] By contrast, columnist Gustavo Arellano described the "street art" as "L.A. at its finest" because it "transform[ed] something ugly into something far more vibrant".[33] Soon after the tagging of Oceanwide Plaza, the Los Angeles City Council announced a cleanup campaign for the graffiti.[34] On February 9, the Los Angeles City Council voted to bill Oceanwide approximately $4 million for expenses including graffiti removal and barrier reinforcement. Concerns have begun to arise as Oceanwide has filed for bankruptcy, potentially placing the financial responsibility on LA taxpayers if compliance is not met.[35]

Rick Caruso, a 65-year-old billionaire developer and a former Los Angeles mayoral candidate, has voiced criticism towards the city's handling of graffiti, raising questions about the allocation of associated costs, with implications for taxpayers potentially being responsible. Caruso has criticized both the city of Los Angeles and the graffiti artists for their conduct in relation to Oceanwide Plaza’s skyscrapers.[36]

Recently, some residents of Los Angeles have begun to voice concerns that the project to have the skyscrapers cleaned is an extravagant expenditure of resources. Due to the announcement of the plan to initiate a project for the removal of the graffiti, many citizens and Los Angeles residents have expressed that since graffiti artists are finding more and more new ways to enter the site, it may not be worth the effort and money to clean the building. However apparent “antagonisms already were between economic classes in Downtown Los Angeles, the unfolding events at Oceanwide Plaza have spelled them out more plainly.”[37]

In mid-February an individual was spotted parachuting from the top of one of the skyscrapers. Footage of the incident attracted the attention of many residents, including Los Angeles’ Mayor Karen Bass, who has expressed concern over growing unrest in the city the safety of the citizens of Los Angeles. Mayor Karen Bass has expressed the desire to minimize the reliance on the city and police resources but believes it is necessary to prevent dangerous situations. [38]


Brief overview of Graffiti History

Modern graffiti first emerged in New York, Los Angeles, and Philadelphia in the 1960s and 1970s. Initially not recognized as art, graffiti evolved as the movement gained momentum and resulted in tags becoming increasingly complex.[39] Many graffiti artists are known for using unorthodox methods of creating art such as cans of aerosol spray paint, wall paint, and graffiti markers. Street Art has also been called independent public art, post-graffiti, and guerrilla art. The latter term is suitable for the tagging of Oceanwide Plaza’s Skyscrapers.[40] The term guerrilla art describes graffiti that appears in unauthorized spaces, such as billboards and buildings where graffiti is not permitted.[41] Since the 1960s and 1970s, various structures such as bridges, subway cars, and buildings, including those at Oceanwide Plaza in Los Angeles, have been tagged with graffiti.

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b c "DTLA Mixed-Use Complex Tops Off". Boutiquedesign.com. Retrieved October 30, 2019.[dead link]
  2. ^ Fly Through DTLA's Oceanwide Plaza Urbanize.LA
  3. ^ a b "L.A.'s $1 billion trophy tower halted as China pulls back". Bloomberg News. October 30, 2019. Retrieved October 31, 2019 – via Finance & Commerce.
  4. ^ a b "L.A.'s $1 Billion Trophy Tower Halted as China Pulls Back". Bloomberg.com. Bloomberg. October 30, 2019. Retrieved June 26, 2021.
  5. ^ a b Kilpatrick, Christine (March 26, 2018). "Massive High-Rise Project Finds Room to Grow in LA | 2018-03-26". ENR. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  6. ^ a b "Construction restarting at Oceanwide Plaza as debt soars to $98.6M - Curbed LA". La.curbed.com. March 21, 2019. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  7. ^ a b Lin, Summer; Gauthier, Robert (February 1, 2024). "Taggers seen in action at graffiti-covered L.A. skyscraper. Across street in 2 days: The Grammys". Los Angeles Times.
  8. ^ "Oceanwide Plaza". CallisonRTKL. March 6, 2018. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  9. ^ "L.A. Condos Take Wellness to a New Level | Multifamily Executive Magazine | Condo Trends, Condominium, los Angeles-Long Beach, CA". Archived from the original on April 9, 2018. Retrieved April 8, 2018.
  10. ^ "Press". Oceanwide Plaza. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  11. ^ Kim, Eddie (June 2, 2017). "Two-Tower Circa Project Tops Out | Development". ladowntownnews.com. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  12. ^ "LA's Largest Mixed-Use Development Releases Never-Before-Seen Offerings | Unique Homes". Blog.uniquehomes.com. February 2, 2018. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  13. ^ Pingel, Maile (August 23, 2018). "3 Development Projects Rising In Los Angeles - Luxe Interiors + Design". Luxedaily.luxesource.com. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  14. ^ Hendrickson, V. L. (June 10, 2018). "Towers that Wow: New Buildings in Los Angeles, Toronto and Dubai". www.mansionglobal.com.
  15. ^ Vincent, Roger; Alpert Reyes, Emily; Zahniser, David (January 25, 2019). "Construction halts on $1-billion mixed-use complex in downtown L.A." The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 25, 2019.
  16. ^ "Construction at massive Oceanwide Plaza in downtown L.A. remains stalled". Los Angeles Times. February 2019. Retrieved February 23, 2018.
  17. ^ Sargent, Joe (March 26, 2019). "US$1 billion LA plaza work restarts". KHL. Retrieved October 30, 2019.
  18. ^ "After Financial Challenges, Construction For Oceanwide Plaza Restarts". Bisnow.
  19. ^ Jones, Orion (September 16, 2021). "Lendlease to Exit Oceanwide's LA Megaproject". The Real Deal Los Angeles. Retrieved September 17, 2021.
  20. ^ https://www.costar.com/article/2030217368/los-angeles-skyscraper-unfinished-and-for-sale-draws-potential-buyers-—-and-new-ideas
  21. ^ Jack Rogers. "Oceanwide Default Puts $2B Los Angeles Project on Selling Block". GlobeSt.
  22. ^ Abramovitch, Seth (February 14, 2024). "L.A.'s Graffiti Tower Sparks Broadside From Rick Caruso As Mayor's Office Scrambles". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  23. ^ "L.A. joins ranks of cities with 'ghost towers' with graffiti-covered Oceanwide Plaza". Los Angeles Times. February 10, 2024. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  24. ^ "Taggers graffiti 27 stories of skyscraper in downtown Los Angeles". KTLA. February 1, 2024. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
  25. ^ Carballo, Rebecca (February 4, 2024). "Multiple Floors of Los Angeles Skyscrapers Are Covered in Graffiti". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
  26. ^ Magazine, Smithsonian; Binswanger, Julia. "Graffiti Artists Tag 27 Floors of Abandoned Skyscraper in Los Angeles". Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  27. ^ "Title: Inside the graffiti-covered Oceanwide Plaza building in downtown ..." www.google.com. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  28. ^ DuBose, Josh (February 1, 2024). "2 arrests made in tagging of downtown L.A. skyscraper under construction". KTLA-TV. Retrieved February 2, 2024.
  29. ^ "Four more trespassing arrests made at graffitied downtown skyscraper". Los Angeles Times. February 7, 2024. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
  30. ^ "City determined to stop taggers, clean up downtown LA high-rises covered with graffiti". ABC7 Los Angeles. February 8, 2024. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
  31. ^ "Two arrested in connection with tagging graffiti-covered L.A. skyscraper across the street from Grammys venue". Los Angeles Times. February 2, 2024. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
  32. ^ "Clean and secure your tagged high-rise or we'll do it for you, L.A. proposes telling owner". Los Angeles Times. February 9, 2024. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
  33. ^ Arellano, Gustavo (February 3, 2024). "Column: Vandalism or street art? What the graffiti-tagged high-rises say about L.A." Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
  34. ^ "Los Angeles Sets Deadline for Oceanwide Plaza Cleanup".
  35. ^ "Why Rick Caruso turned down the chance to buy the graffiti towers - KNX News On Demand". omny.fm. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  36. ^ "Why Rick Caruso turned down the chance to buy the graffiti towers - KNX News On Demand". omny.fm. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  37. ^ ""The people of Los Angeles waited patiently for half a decade to make use of a useless site"". Dezeen. March 11, 2024. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  38. ^ "Parachuter jumps off graffiti-covered high-rise in downtown LA, video shows". ABC7 Los Angeles. February 13, 2024. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
  39. ^ Thompson, Margo. American Graffiti. New York: Parkstone International, 2009. Accessed April 12, 2024. ProQuest Ebook Central.
  40. ^ "Street and Graffiti Art Movement Overview". The Art Story. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
  41. ^ "Guerrilla Art and the Politics of Punitive Literacy". The Courtauld. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
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