April 19, 2004
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Dave Sotero / Marc Littman
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Developers Complete Major Transit Village in Hollywood

• Metro Hollywood Apartments, the first of its kind in Hollywood, is designed for low-income residents above Metro Rail Station

Metro, real estate developer McCormack Baron Salazar and other partners today announced the completion of a major joint development project in Hollywood that provides affordable housing, commercial space and daycare facilities immediately adjacent to the Hollywood/Western Metro Red Line Station.

The completion of this final phase of development, located at 1672 North Western Ave in Hollywood, provides low-income residents with an additional 60 residential housing units, 9,100 square feet of retail space and a 70-child day care center. The initial phase, completed in 2000, created 60 affordable housing units on the 1.68-acre parcel owned by Metro. Unit amenities include wall-to-wall carpet, full kitchen with refrigerator, range and hood, dishwasher, disposal and washer and dryers. Each unit also has one secure off-street parking space assigned in a below grade parking facility, which includes guest parking and a loading area. All 60 new housing units are already reserved.

"This project represents the first transit village built especially to serve low-income Southern Californians," said Zev Yaroslavsky, MTA Board chairman and Los Angeles County Supervisor. "While we're boosting the supply of affordable housing units, this development offers the added bonus of making public transit more accessible to some of the very people who need it the most."

"I'm so proud that this kind of innovation has taken place in Hollywood," said Councilman Eric Garcetti of the 13th District. "We are committed to be creative in serving our diverse population, and the Metro Hollywood Apartments will play an important role in helping families with their daily commute to school and work."

The mixed-use development represents a new trend of constructing affordable housing over rail hubs in Los Angeles County. Residents have immediate access to Metro Red Line trains, which operate every four minutes during peak commute periods. Additionally, seven Metro Bus Lines serve the area: Metro Bus 163, 180, 181, 212 and 217 along Hollywood Boulevard and Buses 207 and 357 on Western.

Leaders also have praised the project for helping to alleviate gridlock by locating denser housing next to transit facilities in one of the most congested areas of Los Angeles.

"These kinds of transit villages transform the urban environment, creating a better quality of life for residents while dramatically improving their mobility," said Roger Snoble, CEO of Metro. "In the future, we will see more urban areas within Los Angeles County transformed and connected with transit."

Metro Hollywood Apartments was created through a partnership between Metro, McCormack Baron Salazar and the Hollywood Community Housing Corporation.

"Los Angeles County, more than ever, needs more low-income units," said Tony Salazar, president of McCormack Baron Salazar, a real estate development company specializing in revitalizing urban neighborhoods. "If we can produce such units with a day care center and retail space, all the better. We are concerned in addressing different ways working-class families can improve their future."

"Everything is virtually provided under one roof," said William Harris, executive director of Hollywood Community Housing Corporation. "Metro Hollywood Apartments represents how a housing development can be more than just a place to live but a means to create a place to thrive and sustain a community.

The property is part of Metro's Joint Development Program, which seeks to encourage comprehensive planning and development around station sites and along transit corridors and to reduce auto use and congestion through transit-linked development throughout Los Angeles County. The program is one of the most successful joint development programs in the country, representing more than $1 billion in local development investment.

MTA-073

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