A longtime surface parking lot near the historic Grand Central Market in Downtown Los Angeles could soon make way for a skyline-altering mixed-use development.

Yesterday, plans were filed with the City of Los Angeles for a new 33-story residential tower on a nearly one-acre property at 338 South Hill Street.  The proposed development, located directly above an entrance to the Pershing Square subway station, would include 428 residential units and approximately 2,900 square feet of ground-floor commercial space.  Like many recent developments in the central business district, the new tower would feature substantially less parking than normally required by code.  Plans call for a total of 433 parking stalls within the project, amounting to approximately one space per dwelling unit.

Although Downtown's wave of high-rise development has previously restricted itself to the South Park district, taller projects have recently made incursions into the neighborhood's Historic Core.  One block east of the proposed tower at 338 Hill Street, developer Izek Shomof continues to pursue entitlments for a 34-story building at the intersection of 4th Street and Broadway.  Other veteran Downtown landlords such as Joseph Hellen and Barry Shy have also proposed high-rise complexes for various properties further south on Spring, Main and Hill Streets.