J
amison Services is set to transform a 13-story office building in Koreatown into 236 homes, marking its 10th adaptive reuse project. The company bought the 233,000-square-foot building at 3325 Wilshire Boulevard for $15 million in 2005 and plans to convert it into studio, one- and two-bedroom apartments atop ground-floor shops and restaurants. A parking garage with space for 450 cars will be retained.

    The conversion is designed by Corbel Architects, with interior redesigns by Donaldson + Partners. The building will feature a gym, coworking office, screening room, golf simulator, and outdoor deck. Funding includes $60 million in taxable multifamily housing revenue bonds from Western Alliance and First Hawaiian Bank.

    Residents are expected to move in within 18-24 months. Jaime Lee, CEO of Jamison Properties, notes that Koreatown's high demand for housing is driven by its 24/7 live-work-play environment. The neighborhood has a population density of 110,000 people per three square miles, with 91% of residents renting.

    Jamison has been a leader in converting Los Angeles' older workplaces into homes, turning 1.4 million square feet of offices into 1,200 apartments over the past dozen years. Such conversions now make up 20% of the company's portfolio. The project is part of a larger trend, with Rand Corporation identifying 2,300 underused office and hotel properties in Los Angeles County that could be converted to housing, potentially adding 113,000 units to meet demand by 2030.