Serving Larchmont Village, Hancock Park, and the Greater Wilshire neighborhoods of Los Angeles since 2011.

Brookside HOA Spotlights CIM Development, Crime

 

At its first in-person meeting since 2019, the Brookside Homeowners Association met last night at Memorial Library for an update from CIM Group and the LAPD. Security company SSA also made a presentation.

 

CIM Group Development on Wilshire Blvd.

 

CIM Group Vice President of Development Lina Lee went block by block through the company’s multiple impending construction projects along the south side of Wilshire Blvd. in the Brookside area. She emphasized that each project is separately targeted and managed, but the neighborhood will have a centralized information point to answer any questions.

Commercial property owner and developer CIM Group purchased four blocks along Wilshire Blvd. between Keniston and Muirfield from Farmers Insurance in 2014 and moved to the area shortly thereafter. The 4700 block contains the company’s U.S. headquarters and the remainder have had various uses as CIM developed and adjusted its plans, most recently in response to economic changes since the COVID pandemic.

Lee reported that construction is about to begin on the western block of CIM’s parcels, containing 4750 Wilshire. That building will keep its current footprint and height, but will transform from office space only to mixed use. A total of 68 rental units, with an average just over 1,000 square feet, are being added. There will be six affordable units as part of LA’s Density Bonus plan. Building amenities include a fitness center, co-working space and a courtyard. Rental prices are expected to start at about $3,000 a month. Construction access will be on Hudson.

 

CIM rendering of 4750 Wilshire Blvd., between Keniston and Hudson.

 

The current parking lot behind the building will remain, Lee said; residential and commercial tenant access will be through gates on Keniston and Hudson. Completion is expected by the end of 2024.

On the next block to the east, along the 8th Street side of the block between Hudson and Rimpau, the company is developing 12 townhomes utilizing the current parking entrance on Rimpau. The units, currently in plan check, will be sold or rented. CIM recently demolished a single-family home on the property.

The eight-story Farmers Insurance tower at 4680 Wilshire will also be a mixed-use building. Two-thirds will consist of condos, with an average unit size of more than 2,000 square feet, plus three penthouse units. Pricing is anticipated to be around $900 per square foot. The development will have its own HOA. Permits are being obtained as testing and assessments, as well as “soft demo,” are underway. Due to significant concrete retrofitting, Lee said, construction is estimated to take 28 months.

 

Current CIM rendering of the developments planned for the blocks on the south side of Wilshire, from Rimpau to Mullen, to Muirfield.

 

Lee also said the parking lot adjacent to the tower will remain and will be restriped and have trees added. The tower itself has below-grade parking. Residents will enter on either Mullen or 8th Street.

Finally, the block between Mullen and Muirfield, about 2.5 acres (see rendering above), will contain 16 single-family homes with an average size of more than 4,000 square feet on lots of about 6,000 square feet. There will be two types and four floor plans. Five homes will face Mullen, five will face Muirfield and six will face 8th Street. Access is behind rather than via individual driveways, with a T-shaped alley. The development will also upgrade gutters, sidewalks and a fire hydrant. It will not be gated.

 

Brookside Crime: Up and Down

 

LAPD Senior Lead Officer Hebel Rodriguez started with the bad news: in Brookside, during the six months ending January 31, burglaries increased 33%, robberies 37% and auto thefts 176%, from 13 to 36.

In response to this uptick in crime, Rodriguez said LAPD made Brookside a “Mission Area.” The focus on such target areas means saturation with police and generally higher visibility. As a result, Rodriguez presented the good news: from February through March 8 there was only one car break-in, two burglaries, one robbery and one theft from vehicle.

Brookside has not experienced a significant issue with homelessness, Rodriguez said, but there have been reports of people sleeping in cars. Rodriguez noted that “homelessness is not a crime, but when you see someone shooting up or breaking into your car, that’s a crime.”

 

SSA Security

 

SSA representative Michael Providence described the benefits available to clients of the 32-year-old private security company, including response times of 5-10 minutes or less. The company can monitor client homes when owners are away, as well as bring in trash cans after pickup and store packages that have been delivered. All SSA guards are off-duty or retired law enforcement professionals.

In answer to a question from an audience member, Providence said the monthly cost for residential service is $299. When an area has about 100 subscribers, it receives its own dedicated car. Currently, Providence said, Brookside is covered as part of the area from 6th Street to Olympic, Queen Anne Place to Cloverdale. The area has about 200 current SSA clients.

 

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Laura Foti Cohen
Laura Foti Cohen
Laura Foti Cohen has lived in the Brookside neighborhood since 1993. She works as a freelance writer, editor and consultant. She's also a playwright affiliated with Theatre West.

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