New Developers Take Over Gold Line-Adjacent Housing Project in East L.A.

With plans to build affordable housing on property near the Gold Line in East Los Angeles going nowhere, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors has turned to a new developer.

Last year, the Board of Supervisors voted to enter into an exclusive negotiation agreement with Azure Development for three County-owned site at the intersection of 3rd Street and Dangler Avenue. In order to win a request for proposals for development rights to the property, the Commerce-based company had teamed with Romero Management Consultants - owners of an adjacent lot - to propose a project which would create 76 apartments - most of which would be priced for households earning between 30 and 50 percent of the area median income - with ground-floor shops and restaurants.

However, the proposal was contingent on Azure's ability to package the County-owned site with an adjacent property. Citing a failure to purchase the adjoining land, the County terminated its agreement with Azure earlier this year.

On September 24, the Board of Supervisors voted to enter into an exclusive negotiation agreement with National CORE, the second runner-up for in the prior request for proposals. The Rancho Cucamonga-based non-profit developer has proposed to build 78 affordable housing units - including 16 to be set aside for homeless households - with 39 parking stalls, a fitness room, a community center, a courtyard, and a rooftop lounge.

The housing would be priced for households earning at or below 30, 50, 60, and 80 percent of the area median income, save for one manager's unit.

The exclusive negotiation period will run for an initial term of 180 days, with the option for two 90-day extensions.

The East Los Angeles property is not the first County-owned site which National CORE is expected to develop. Two years ago, it teamed with LINC Housing to secure the rights to a Department of Public Social Services site adjacent to the Crenshaw/LAX Line in Inglewood.

National CORE is also part of the team which won the request for proposals to redevelop the Rancho San Pedro housing complex near the Los Angeles waterfront.