LA Leases Public Land to Nonprofit for $1 to Build Mixed-Use Museum
The LA City Council has unanimously agreed to lease a city parking lot at the intersection of West 6th Street and Vermont Avenue in Koreatown for $1 per year for construction of a permanent home for the Korean American National Museum.
The seven-story, mixed-use project includes 103 apartments, which were added after the original proposal for just the museum was approved in 2013, delaying construction until the lease agreement had been amended and reapproved to include the housing component, according to Curbed. All the apartments will be priced at market rate, except for 10 affordable units, and are expected to generate $500k annually. Designed by the locally based architectural firm of Gruen Associates, the museum celebrates Korean-American culture.
While local governments often lease nonprofits land for a pittance, it’s extraordinary in the case of projects that generate income, even though, in this case, the revenue will be used to operate and maintain the museum. Some view this deal as a $5M giveaway the city can ill afford, as that's the site’s estimated value. Additionally, the city must now foot the bill for a relocation site for the parking lot. [Curbed]
