A Pico Boulevard landmark could soon meet with the wrecking ball, as the presences of the Expo Line and the demand for housing near jobs drives new development in West Los Angeles.

Late last year, an entity affiliated with the Amoroso Companies purchased the half-acre site that is currently home to the Fantasy Island strip club for $8.8 million.  The property, located in close proximity to Metro's Expo/Sepulveda Station, is well-known to passersby for the imitation lighthouse which stands above both Pico and Exposition Boulevard.  The building previously operated as a Hawaiian restaurant known as Kelbo's.

Amoroso, which is based out of Los Angeles, has targeted this stretch of Pico Boulevard before.  At Centinela Avenue, the company completed a 94-unit apartment building in 2014.  Near Bundy Drive, Amoroso is now in the midst of construction for a five-story, 100-unit development with ground-floor retail space.

Other developers have also set their sights on the corridor.  Towards Barrington Avenue, a 71-unit building with street-fronting commercial stalls recently opened, while next-door to Fantasy Island, a five-story, 129-unit apartment complex is planned to replace a small shopping center.