A pending presentation to the Los Angeles City Planning Commission reveals design changes to a proposed high-rise apartment tower in Downtown's South Park community.

Onni Group, the developer behind the project, intends to replace a surface parking lot at the intersection of Olympic Boulevard and Hill Street with a 60-story building containing 700 apartments above a podium containing 1,075 parking stalls and 15,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space.

The project, which was previously presented to the City Planning Commission in November 2018, is returning this month to address a request to redesign the tower's roofline to create a more distinctive presence in the Downtown skyline.  Onni answered that charge by removing a boxy, illuminated structure in favor of a series of angled screens lined with vertical mullions and a sloping trellis.

"The similarity in appearance of the mullions on the top roof screen and the facade of the podium work to create a sense of cohesiveness between the top and bottom of the building," reads a design narrative.  "Angular shapes and forms including the balconies on the two sides of the building as well as the triangular shaped screen at the roof are used to create a dynamic impression."

Other key design elements - including habitable space wrapping above-grade parking levels - are largely unchanged

In addition to the reshaped roofline, a staff report to the City Planning Commission also makes new recommendations for the distribution of $12.7 million to be paid by Onni in exchange for a transfer of floor area rights.  Half of that would be paid as a direct provision to Downtown projects including the Pershing Square redesign, the affordable housing trust fund, and enhanced streetscape improvements.

The staff report recommends that the Commission should approve the proposed transfer plan allocations.

An environmental study conducted for the project was approved by the City of Los Angeles in June.  The study estimates that construction of the Olympic and Hill tower is to occur over 30 months, with project delivery anticipated in 2022.

Onni, which is based out of Vancouver, has invested heavily in Downtown Los Angeles, buying numerous office buildings and building four residential towers.  The Canadian developer is also planning ground-up projects in the Arts District and adjacent to the former home of the Los Angeles Times.