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LOS ANGELES—February 12, 2010 (Business Wire)—The
owners of the Century Plaza Hotel, Next Century Associates, along with
the Los Angeles Conservancy and the National Trust for Historic
Preservation, yesterday announced plans for a revised development
project that would preserve the famed hotel.
Next Century Associates originally proposed a project that called for
the demolition of the historic hotel and redevelopment of the property
with a mixed use project comprising hotel, residential, office, retail,
public plazas, and open space. In 2009, the National Trust listed the
hotel as one of America’s 11-Most Endangered Historic Places.
At the urging of Los Angeles City Councilmember Paul Koretz, the Los
Angeles Conservancy, the National Trust, and Next Century Associates
worked collaboratively to come up with a proposal that would preserve
the hotel while allowing for new development on the property.
“Next Century’s willingness to embrace a plan that preserves the hotel
is a great step forward,” said Councilmember Koretz. “The process
serves as a model of how a developer can work together with the
preservation community to bring forward a solution that preserves an
important structure, allows future development on the property, and
better serves the goals of the community.”
The revised development project will preserve the existing hotel
building while providing a mix of residential, office, and retail uses
on the property. The project will undergo the normal City review and
approval process including a full environmental impact report (EIR)
which will be submitted later this year. It will also be reviewed by
the Cultural Heritage Commission for eligibility as a City
Historic-Cultural Monument. Councilmember Koretz added, “I look forward
to reviewing the revised project and assuring a complete and open
community process. Any new development will have to be consistent with
the Century City North Specific Plan.”
“Our discussions with the Council Office, the Conservancy, and the
National Trust have been very encouraging, and we believe the City
Council will be excited about the merits of this type of collaborative
planning effort,” said Michael Rosenfeld, executive manager of Next
Century Associates. “Preservation of the hotel could only be achieved
if sufficient additional development was permitted on the site.”
“We are very pleased to have reached agreement on a plan that preserves
the Century Plaza Hotel as a vital asset and cultural touchstone for
Los Angeles,” says Linda Dishman, executive director of the Los Angeles
Conservancy. “We’re extremely grateful to Councilmember Koretz for his
leadership in bringing us all to the table, and to his staff for their
dedication to finding a preservation solution. Preservation is about
managing change, not preventing it. We’re thankful to Next Century
Associates for their vision in considering a project that includes the
preservation of the hotel, and we look forward to our continued
involvement in the project.”
“Together we've shown that with perseverance and dedication,
preservation advocates, developers, and our elected officials can
re-envision development to save our country’s one-of-a-kind places,”
said Richard Moe, president of the National Trust. “Historic
preservation inherently involves the conservation of energy and natural
resources. The decision to save the Century Plaza will not only save a
modernist iconic building, it will also positively impact the
environment.”
Completed in 1966, the Century Plaza Hotel was built as the centerpiece
of Century City, a “city within a city”, conceived 50 years ago as a
progressive approach to urban planning. Century City rose on the former
back lot of 20th Century-Fox Studios. The existing 726-room hotel with
its sweeping curved facade has been a gathering place for celebrities,
politicians and world dignitaries. The hotel was designed by architect
and engineer Minoru Yamasaki, who was also the architect of Century
City’s Theme Towers and New York's World Trade Center towers.
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