Santa Monica OK's Massive Frank Gehry-Designed Complex

SANTA MONICA, CA — Iconic architect Frank Gehry is one step closer to planting a massive hotel and apartment complex in Santa Monica.

The city of Santa Monica on July 14 unanimously approved plans for the massive hotel and apartment complex at the planning commission's unanimous recommendation.

The project includes a 120-room full-service hotel and spa, 100 residential apartments, a new museum building, retail and restaurant space and a rooftop observation deck offering 360 degree views of Santa Monica Bay, according to a staff report prepared for the July 14 council meeting.

The project will also make use of two designated City Landmark Buildings: a Victorian residence built in 1906 at 1333 Ocean Ave. and a Spanish Colonial revival-style commercial building built in 1926 at 1337 Ocean Ave.

The building will sit on the northeast corner of Santa Monica Blvd and Ocean Ave.

The development, which has been in the works since 2013, will benefit the city in a number of ways, city authorities said.

“I’m just really glad I get to be here for what I think is a truly historic moment for the city, to get to potentially move this project forward,” Mayor Pro Tem Kristin McCowan said at the July 14 meeting, according to the Santa Monica Daily Press. “And I want to thank Mr. Gehry for what just appears to be a love letter, I think, to Santa Monica, and really sort of encapsulates so much of your artistry over your career. And as a local, this is such a beautiful way to give back.”

Access to the public rooftop will come with a $1 donation for every person over the age of 10, which will be donated to the Santa Monica Education Foundation. The developers also agreed to make a $1 million donation to early childhood initiatives in Santa Monica, according to the Santa Monica Daily Press.

Gehry recently opened a 45-story complex in Bunker Hill called Grand LA, which fills an entire city block, the Los Angeles Times reported. The complex includes a 436-unit apartment tower, a 305-room hotel, restaurants and a public plaza for free events and food.

The July 14 approval is far from the finish line for Gehry, according to the Santa Monica Daily Press. The project will still have to go before the California Coastal Commission and the city’s Architectural Review Board and Landmarks Commission.