In 2016, plans were announced for the Park Hyatt Los Angeles, which was supposed to open in 2019. Unfortunately that’s not exactly how things have played out. Construction on the development started in 2015, and the project topped out in 2019, but unfortunately construction has been stalled ever since, as these towers have now been abandoned for seven years. Could there finally be a positive update, though?
Park Hyatt Los Angeles at Oceanwide Plaza background
The Park Hyatt Downtown Los Angeles was initially supposed to open in 2019, as part of a billion dollar mixed-use development project named Oceanwide Plaza. The project was being developed by Chinese conglomerate Oceanwide Holdings. This development was supposed to consist of three towers, located across the street from L.A. Live., on a full city block bounded by Figueroa, Flower, 11th, and 12th Streets.
One tower (49 floors) was supposed to have a 184-room Park Hyatt plus 164 serviced condo residences. Then the other two towers (40 floors) were supposed to include 340 residential condominiums, known as The Residences of Oceanwide Plaza. The development was also supposed to include 153,000 square feet of retail space, plus a 700-foot-tall LED display.
Interestingly this development was supposed to mark the return of the Park Hyatt brand to Los Angeles. Back in the day there used to be the Park Hyatt Los Angeles in Century City, which was eventually rebranded as the InterContinental Century City. That hotel closed in early 2021, though.
Anyway, construction on Oceanwide Plaza initially stopped in very early 2019, despite all three towers of the development having topped out. The developer seemed to be having some financial issues, and cited restructuring of capital as the reason for work stopping.
Within a few months liens were paid off, and construction resumed. However, months later, in late 2019, it once again stopped. Since then, nothing has happened, and the project has been stuck in limbo. This clearly seems to be part of a bigger issue with Chinese companies pulling back on real estate investments in the United States.
For years, there were claims that work on the project would resume. According to the developer at the time, the physical structures and curtain walls for all three towers were completed. Inside the buildings, 85% of electrical and mechanical work had been completed, and in two of the towers, 60% of drywall installation had been completed.
Despite that, 2022 estimates suggested that it would cost $2.3 billion to complete construction on the development, which is twice as much as the entire development was initially estimated to cost. Oy. This has increasingly just been known as the graffiti towers, and has become a real eyesore in DTLA.
Oceanwide Plaza project being acquired in bankruptcy
There’s finally an update on the Oceanwide Plaza saga, given that the project is in bankruptcy. The Los Angeles Times reports that California real estate developer KPC Development is planning on buying Oceanwide Plaza for $470 million, with bankruptcy court approval expected by April 9, 2026.
If no higher qualified offer is received by that date, the court is expected to approve the sale. Once the new developer has control, the plan is to first remove graffiti, and to then build housing, a hotel, retail space, and restaurants, as originally planned. The project would be renamed, though, given that Oceanwide Plaza was named after the previous owner.
While it’s great news that a party finally plans to finish this project, let me emphasize that it’s anyone’s guess if this still keeps the Park Hyatt branding. The potential new owner has plans to complete the project and also have a hotel component to it, but that’s not to say that it’ll necessarily still be a Park Hyatt.
For what it’s worth, as of now Hyatt’s property development page still shows this as being a Park Hyatt project.
So we’ll mark this as “developing” for now. Some news is better than no news. I’d imagine that absolute best case scenario, we’re probably looking at a 2029 opening at this point. And that assumes this goes anywhere at all…
Bottom line
The Park Hyatt Los Angeles was announced a decade ago, but still hasn’t become a reality. Despite the development topping out in 2019, nothing has happened there in the past seven years… well, except for the endless graffiti.
There’s finally a potentially positive update, as a California real estate developer has agreed to buy this project in bankruptcy court, and if there’s not a better offer by April, then this deal should be finalized. The developer’s plan is to move forward with the project as planned, though it’s anyone’s guess if the hotel portion of this maintains Park Hyatt branding.
Even if this deal does get finalized, realistically I imagine it’ll be a year or so before all necessarily permits are obtained to continue work.
What do you make of the prospects for the Park Hyatt Los Angeles?
