Details on the Proposed Reuse of the Former LA Times Building in Costa Mesa

Source: The Press

By: Chad Kim

An initial environmental document released on the City of Costa Mesa's website shows plans for the proposed reuse of the former LA Times building site consisting of a total of 315,000 square feet of new office space construction along with the reuse of the existing LA Times building which has a total of 339,063 square feet. 


Located in the City of Costa Mesa, the former LA Times site is located near the I-405 Harbor Boulevard exit and is across the street from IKEA. The proposed project site consists of the former LA Times building site consisting of 19.5 acres along with a four acre baseball field both of which are owned by Tribune Publishing. 

The start of the LA Times building was back in 1968, stopped printing in 2010, and in 2014, the LA Times at this project site closed. 

A partnership was formed in November 2015 with the owner of the project site, Tribune Real Estate Holdings, and Kearny (development partner) to develop the proposed creative office campus known as The Press. The project architect is LPA.

The proposed project consists of three phases: 

Phase 1: Reuse of the Former LA Times building: 

This phase consists of renovating the former LA Times building with a maximum height of 56.5 feet. The renovation will utilize the building's existing steel-structure and will include two levels of tiered mezzanine. The proposed project is to also construct  outdoor amenities, approximately three-acres, during the first phase which includes, "...an amphitheater area, sports court, and dedicated bike path...would include 20,000 sf of covered patio areas." (p. 3-1). 

Rendering of the renovation of the former LA Times Building as part of The Press project. Source: The Press

Interior rendering of the former LA Times Building. Source: The Press

Rendering of outdoor amenities and exterior facade of the former LA Times Building. Source: The Press

​Phase 2: Five Story Building (North of LA Times Building):

The second phase consists of constructing a new five story office building with a total of 190,000 square feet.

Phase 3: Five Story Building (East of Harbor Boulevard): 

The final phase consists of constructing a new five story office building with a total of 125,000 square feet. 

Site Plan:

Source: City of Costa Mesa

Each building will have an accompanying new parking structure along with surface parking which, in total, will provide 2,788 vehicle parking spaces. 

Construction is anticipated to start in January 2018 with Phase 3 completed in March 2022.

References:

thepressoc.com/

http://www.costamesaca.gov/ftp//developmentservices/planning/environmentalbulletin/ISMND_Former-LA-Times-Site-June-20,-2017.pdf

http://www.kearny.com/office-acquisions/thepress.html​