The adaptive reuse of a vintage office building in Downtown Los Angeles is beginning to show results.

The Freehand Los Angeles, a $40-million undertaking by the Sydell Group, is repurposing the 13-story Commercial Exchange Building at the intersection of 8th and Olive Streets.  The former office building, built in 1924, will feature 226 guest rooms and ancillary uses above ground-floor restaurant space.

Under designs from Killefer Flammang Architects, the adaptive reuse project will offer a mixture of traditional hotel rooms and hostel-type accommodations.  Plans also call for a number of guest amenities, including multiple lounges, a fitness center and a rooftop pool deck.

Completion is expected by late 2016

The building sits at the bustling intersection of 8th and Olive Streets, which has recently transformed through the addition of a Whole Foods Market and a 33-story tower by developer Carmel Partners.  A half-block south, work began earlier this year on a 50-story development by the Vancouver-based Onni Group.

The Freehand L.A. is one of two ongoing projects for Sydell in the Downtown area.  The other, located one block north on 7th Street, is converting the former Los Angeles headquarters of the Bank of Italy into the second location of the NoMad hotel chain.

To see what the Commercial Exchange Building looked like prior to restoration, check out this photo tour from architectural photographer Hunter Kerhart.