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Premiere Towers, Los Angeles

In May, 2004, I moved from the USC area to downtown Los Angeles, specifically to Premiere Towers at 621 S. Spring St. Since there's a lack of information available online about the building, I've posted bits and pieces on my site as I've come across them. This page is my attempt to centrally locate the information I have.

Building History

The building that is Premiere Towers was initially two buildings: The California Canadian Bank Building (1923) and The E.F. Hutton Building (1931).

The California Bank opened the doors to its new offices on Monday, September 24, 1923. The LA Times raved that "Everywhere one finds the comfort and convenience of the bank's depositors and customers the first consideration; the structure having been designed with this characteristic in mind." The building's imminent construction had been announced in the April 23, 1992, issue of the Times.

(Source: "New California Bank Adds Luster." The Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, Calif.: Sep 24, 1923. pg. I9, 2 pgs)

E.F. Hutton's Los Angeles branch moved into its new offices on March 23, 1931. Previously it had been across the street, at 643 S. Spring.

Conversion

In 1984 the Los Angeles Central Redevelopment Agency (CRA) joined the two adjacent office buildings, making the inside into 120 condo units. The conversion was a financial disaster for the CRA. A 1993 article in the Los Angeles Business Journal tells the story well.

When the condos didn't sell well individually, the CRA sold 88 of them to an investment partnership headed by Beverly Hills accountant Murray Neidorf, which planned to rent out the units as apartments.

The 32 single-unit owners objected, so the CRA in 1991 considered buying back their units. Instead, it was decided that the CRA should buy back the Neidorf units first, and eventually make a decision about selling the whole building.

Skipping ahead we find the financial results of this back-and-forth.

The CRA is currently collecting rent from 33 units (37 percent occupancy), but it is not enough to even pay association dues for the entire building. There are still 31 individual-unit owners, all of whom have stopped paying association dues and have therefore lost their voting rights.

Neidorf estimates the building is now worth about $6 million, and that when all is said and done, the CRA will have lost about $8 million to $10 million on the deal.

(Source: LABJ)

In 2000 the City of Los Angeles approved the sale of the building to Spring Towers, LLC, for $4 million.

(Source: City Council Agenda, May 24, 2000: Item 14)

Current Status

Premiere Towers is operated by Spring Towers, LLC, as rental apartments. The building has 1-, 2-, and 3-bedroom units, and usually runs near 100% occupancy. The manager's office phone number is 213-627-6913.

Photos