Taft Building (Los Angeles)

The Taft Building is a historic twelve-story building at 6280 W. Hollywood Blvd. and 1680 North Vine Street, Hollywood and Vine, in Hollywood, California.

Taft Building
Taft Building
Taft Building (Los Angeles) is located in the Los Angeles metropolitan area
Taft Building (Los Angeles)
Location of building in Los Angeles County
Location6280 W. Hollywood Blvd. and 1680 North Vine Street, Hollywood, California
Coordinates34°06′05″N 118°19′35″W / 34.10139°N 118.32639°W / 34.10139; -118.32639
Built1923
ArchitectPercy A. Eisen, Albert R. Walker
Architectural styleneo-Renaissance
Part ofHollywood Boulevard Commercial and Entertainment District (ID85000704)
LAHCM No.666
Significant dates
Designated CPApril 4, 1985
Designated LAHCMSeptember 29, 1999

History

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The Taft Building was built for A.Z. Taft, Jr. (1889–1941), who purchased the Hollywood Memorial Church for $125,000, tore it down, and commissioned the Taft Building on the property.[1] The architecture firm Walker and Eisen, known for the Fine Arts Building, James Oviatt Building, and Beverly Wilshire Hotel, amongst others, designed the building, which features Classical Revival architecture.[2] The building was constructed in 65 days and opened in 1924,[3] making it the first high-rise office tower in Los Angeles.[4]

The building's primary tenants were dentists (including Clark Gable's), doctors, and lawyers,[3] and every Hollywood movie studio had an office in the building, as did Charlie Chaplin, Will Rogers, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and numerous agents, casting companies, and publicists.[1][4]

In 1984, the Hollywood Boulevard Commercial and Entertainment District was added to the National Register of Historic Places, with the Taft Building listed as a contributing property in the district.[2] In 1999, the building was designated Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument #666.[5]

In 2011, Langer Meringoff Properties sold the building for $28.5 million to DLJ Real Estate Capital Partners, who then spent an additional $15 million in renovations.[6][7] The building was later purchased by Ocean West Capital Partners for $70 million, and in March 2023, Elat Properties purchased it for $28 million.[8]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Early Los Angeles Historical Buildings (1925 +)". Water and Power Associates. p. 6. Retrieved July 23, 2024.
  2. ^ a b "National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination Form - Hollywood Boulevard Commercial and Entertainment District". United States Department of the Interior - National Park Service. Retrieved June 18, 2024.
  3. ^ a b Jaak Treiman (2011). A Diplomatic Guide to Los Angeles: Discovering Its Sites and Character. Velak Publishing. p. 152. ISBN 978-0-9835158-0-7.
  4. ^ a b "The Taft Building". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Retrieved June 25, 2024.
  5. ^ "Historic-Cultural Monument (HCM) List" (PDF). City of Los Angeles. April 6, 2024.
  6. ^ Miller, Daniel (10/12/2011) "Hollywood's Historic Taft Building For Sale", The Hollywood Reporter
  7. ^ "29 Jan 2015, Page C1, C4 - The Los Angeles Times at Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com. Retrieved April 2, 2022.
  8. ^ Modi, Priyanka (April 4, 2023). "Elat Properties Buys Hollywood Office Building at Discount". The Real Deal. Retrieved June 10, 2023.
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