Playa Vista: Donald Bren's Multifamily Makeover for Millennials
While Playa Vista has emerged as a tech hub that rivals Santa Monica, the trendy market is missing one thing: apartments geared toward the Millennial crowd. Well, leave it Donald Bren and Irvine Co to solve the problem.
The company has plans to construct a three-building community dubbed Villas at Playa Vista, which will include more than 1,500 units. The project represents more than half of the total multifamily construction footprint in the market, according to Urbanize LA. The complex is slated for delivery early next year and was designed by MVE & Partners. The market has lacked sexy apartment development for the tech worker, which has been shifting to Playa in droves. The project from the country's richest real estate mogul will be a mix of one- and two-bedroom units, clearly not looking for families. Here's how Donald got so rich.
This type of construction is just the next step in the renaissance taking place in Playa. Just last month, institutional money showed its interest in the market, with Invesco paying Jeff Worthe and Shorenstein $300M for the Reserve (above), a campus inhabited by Microsoft, TMZ and Sony Playstation. In addition, the market has pulled in major tech tenants recently, highlighted by Yahoo leaving Santa Monica and Google planting $120M roots next to Ratkovich's Hercules Campus. And the tech office revolution is still in progress, with Clarion working on its six-story, 301k SF i/o at Playa Vista complex (i/o stand for "interaction/optimized").
As for the apartments, the smallest building will contain 309 units on five acres. That building has slightly larger units and features high-end amenities, such as poolside dining and a wine cellar. Another building will include 491 units on about 6.5-acres, geared more toward the average pro. And the largest building will include 703 units on nine acres and will be marketed toward the coveted young Millennial, with smaller units and more tech trendy amenities, such as an Internet cafe and game room. [URBN]
