The short version
Framing is complete on the first building of Alveare, a 100% affordable housing project that fills a full city block at 1405 S. Broadway in downtown Los Angeles's South Park neighborhood, Urbanize LA reported Monday. The first phase, called Alveare Parkview, will hold 105 apartments for low- and extremely low-income families. When all three phases are done, Alveare is set to be the largest affordable housing community in downtown, according to the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles (HACLA).
The Alveare affordable housing project matters for more than its size. It sits on state land, it did not need a city rezoning, and it is a test of California's plan to turn surplus government property into homes. Here is the backstory, how the deal works and what it means for agents who work South Park.
The backstory: an empty state office block
For decades the site held offices used by the state Employment Development Department. By the time the state looked for developers, both buildings on the block were vacant, according to the state's 2021 request for proposals. The block covers about 1.46 acres bounded by Broadway, Hill, 14th and 15th streets.
City parks officials had once eyed the land for downtown green space, Urbanize LA reported in 2022. That changed after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Executive Order N-06-19 in January 2019. The order told the Department of General Services (DGS) to inventory state land that agencies no longer need and to offer it to affordable housing developers through low-cost, long-term ground leases. Its reasoning was simple: land costs make affordable housing hard to pencil, and the state already owns parcels in cities where housing is scarce.
What happened, and when
- September 2021: DGS asked developers for proposals. Related California submitted its bid on Nov. 23, 2021.
- April 19, 2022: The state signed a ground lease option with Related and nonprofit partner Weingart Center Association, allowing a 99-year lease, according to a HACLA board report from April 2026.
- November 2025: Officials broke ground on phase one.
- Oct. 26, 2026: Urbanize reported that framing is complete on Parkview. HACLA's April report had already listed Parkview as under construction.
Topping out means the structure has reached its full height. Interior work, building systems and inspections still follow, so this is a midpoint, not move-in day. HACLA's project page lists first units as available in 2027 or 2028.
How the deal works
State land, state rules. Because the State of California owns the property, the project is not subject to local regulations, including city zoning, HACLA's board report explains, citing Article XI, Section 11 of the state constitution and Government Code sections 53090 and 53091. The block was zoned for public facilities, so a private developer would normally need a zone change. State ownership removed that step. The state also filed a Class 32 infill exemption under the California Environmental Quality Act, which spared the project a full environmental impact report.
A ground lease, not a sale. The developer leases the land at low cost instead of buying it, and affordability requirements are tied to the lease, according to the DGS Excess Sites program FAQ. That takes land cost out of the budget while the state keeps ownership.
Layered funding. The state housing department (HCD) committed more than $44 million, per HACLA's groundbreaking announcement: a $7.23 million Infill Infrastructure Grant, a $2 million Excess Sites matching grant, and a $19.6 million loan plus a $15.6 million grant from the Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities program, run jointly with the state's Strategic Growth Council. HACLA's board also authorized up to $57.56 million in tax-exempt notes and $31.7 million in taxable notes for Parkview.
Vouchers tied to the units. HACLA is converting unused public housing authority into Section 8 project-based vouchers through the federal Rental Assistance Demonstration program. The board report commits 62 such units at Parkview, 38 at the second phase and 40 at the third. A project-based voucher is a rent subsidy attached to the apartment rather than to the tenant.
Who it serves, in dollars
Parkview targets households earning, on average, less than 40% of area median income (AMI). In Los Angeles County, the 2026 median for a family of four is $108,100, according to the county's 2026 income limits. Forty percent of that is about $43,240. Tax credit rents are generally capped at 30% of the relevant income limit, as economists Rebecca Diamond and Tim McQuade explain, so a unit set at that level for a family of four would rent for roughly $1,080 a month. Exact rents vary by unit size, utility allowances and program.
The plan has three standalone buildings that can be built in any order as funding lands:
- Parkview: 105 family apartments, now topped out.
- Terrace: 100 senior apartments. HACLA said the developer planned to apply for low-income housing tax credits in May 2026. An award has not been publicly reported.
- Oakview: up to 68 family apartments in one eight-story building at 14th and Hill, with rents set from 20% to 60% of AMI and a $67.3 million budget in HACLA's April 2026 report.
The unit total has moved over time. The 2022 environmental filing described 335 units in three seven-story buildings. The 2025 groundbreaking announcement said 303, including a 98-unit supportive housing building. HACLA's April 2026 plan for a 68-unit family building points to about 273. Treat the final count as unsettled.
Who backs it, and the criticism
Supporters present Alveare as proof that public land can speed up housing. "Public-private partnerships are a key component to addressing the affordable housing crisis," Related California chairman Bill Witte said at the groundbreaking. HACLA chief executive Lourdes Castro Ramirez tied the project to the agency's goal of expanding deeply affordable housing. DGS, in its 2025 year-end roundup of Excess Sites projects, listed Alveare among the state-land projects where construction had started.
The main critique is cost. Oakview's budget works out to roughly $990,000 per apartment. Los Angeles has argued about these numbers for years. A 2022 City Controller review of Proposition HHH found average per-unit costs for supportive housing projects had reached $596,846, with some above $700,000, and pointed to complex funding stacks as one driver. Alveare relies on a similar mix of grants, loans, bonds and tax credits, and construction costs have risen since that review.
Park advocates also lost a site. The block will not become the park officials once considered, though the plan includes a public pocket park of about 6,000 square feet at 14th and Hill, according to Urbanize.
What it means for nearby property
Research gives a mixed answer on values. Diamond and McQuade's study, later published in the Journal of Political Economy, found that tax credit housing raised nearby home prices about 6.5% in lower-income neighborhoods and lowered them about 2.5% in higher-income areas, with the effect concentrated within about a tenth of a mile. South Park is a dense, mixed-income district of towers and converted lofts, so those national averages do not map neatly onto it.
Alveare is also part of a cluster. Urbanize notes a 235-unit mixed-use building recently finished across 14th Street, and HACLA bought the 154-unit Emerald apartments at the opposite corner of 14th and Hill for $51.6 million in 2025 to keep its rents affordable. Downtown and Central LA also posted the market's lowest apartment occupancy, 91.7%, in the third quarter, according to Colliers data reported by Commercial Observer.
What it means for LA agents
- Know the facts before a buyer asks. Alveare is 100% income-restricted, sits on a 99-year state ground lease and carries long-term affordability covenants (55 years for Oakview, per HACLA). It will not convert to market-rate condos.
- Leave it out of your comps. Restricted rental units do not trade on the open market, so they will not appear in sales data. Price South Park condos off actual resales and current listings.
- Plan showings around construction. With Parkview topped out and two more buildings to come, expect construction around Broadway, Hill, 14th and 15th streets for several years. Schedule nearby showings outside heavy work hours and note it in listing remarks.
- Point landlords to the right competition. Parkview's tenants will be families earning around $43,000 a year, a different pool from renters in new luxury towers. For owners of nearby market-rate units, downtown occupancy and concessions matter more than Alveare.
- Watch the next two phases. A tax credit award for Terrace or Oakview will set the timeline. HACLA board agendas and DGS Excess Sites updates are the places to check.