Long-delayed work is nearly complete on Kor Group’s 148-room Proper Hotel in Downtown Los Angeles.
The hotel is set to open in July, according to Urbanize. Construction started on the adaptive reuse five years ago with an original projected completion date in 2018.
A steel subcontractor sued the developer and contractor McGuire Builders in 2019, alleging $2.4 million in unpaid work. The subcontractor also alleged that McGuire issued multiple and excessive changes on the project.
The hotel sits on the corner of 11th Street and Broadway. The 1920s-era building was previously the Case Hotel and is an L.A. Historic-Cultural Landmark.
Architecture firm Omgivning designed the adaptive reuse. It includes the addition of a rooftop restaurant and lounge, a pair of other restaurants and a 14,000-square-foot meeting and event space.
The historic designation does not preclude redevelopment or redesigns, but such projects typically move faster through the city approvals process if original features are kept.
Designer Kelly Wearstler, who designed the interiors, said that window casings and brickwork were retained, among other features.
The Proper Hotel is one of L.A.’s several dozen hotels in the planning stage or under construction. A lot of that development is in Downtown L.A., where city lawmakers have pushed to add hotel rooms.
Kor is also behind Santa Monica’s 271-room Proper Hotel, which opened in 2019.
[Urbanize] — Dennis Lynch