711 New Hampshire Ave – Historic Mansion to be Repurposed as Transit-Oriented, 100% Affordable Housing to Help Revitalize a Los Angeles Neighborhood
REVITALIZATION
February 2, 2022
On February 2, 2022, Virginia-based architecture firm KTGY unveiled designs for 711 New Hampshire, a 100% affordable, supportive housing redevelopment in the Koreatown neighborhood of Los Angeles, California.
With the site’s proximity to the Wilshire/Vermont metro station, KTGY’s design leverages transit-oriented community incentives to increase density and reduce parking requirements.
In addition to these enlightened and sustainable approaches, the redevelopment includes the adaptive reuse of the site’s three-story historic mansion into apartment units and community amenities.
“711 New Hampshire is a cutting-edge example of crafting solutions for multiple critical urban issues: affordability, housing the unhoused, revitalizing neighborhoods and preserving energy and resources,” said KTGY’s Keith McCloskey, associate principal.
“And it does so with an attractive design in harmony and scale with its surrounding community,” he added.
All of the units are proposed to be deeply subsidized affordable households, with supportive services included to help residents return to stable living situations. The project is at 7th Street and New Hampshire Avenue.
KTGY is partnering with BRIDGE Housing Corp., the San Francisco-based non-profit developer, to redevelop the Children’s Institute campus in Koreatown.
The on-site, 110-year-old mansion will bring new apartments to the upper floors, with a lobby, community amenities, plus supportive and case-management programs on the ground floor.
Adjacent to this building, the development adds a six-story supportive housing tower. Construction consists of five levels of light-gauge steel construction over a one-level, above-ground concrete podium. The development will have a combined 95 units between both buildings.
Extending the project’s revitalization and preservation strategies, the existing subterranean parking garage (with 12 spaces) is being retrofitted with structural enhancements.
KTGY’s design complements the architecture of the mansion in both color and materials and establishes a campus-like environment and welcoming sense of place. A ground-floor covered breezeway will traverse a middle courtyard and connect the two buildings.
The lower levels of the new building pull forward and out to engage the street and frame a new entry court off the existing building. The podium massing matches the height of the mansion and is clad in a similar brick texture with a contemporary take on the window openings and detailing.
The upper levels step back to respect the space around the mansion and are clad in a more modern stucco texture with angular-framed window surrounds. An inner courtyard between the buildings provides space for meditation.
