Years in the making, West Edge is wrapping up development on L.A.'s Westside

West Edge, a mixed-use project in West Los Angeles, is nearing its full opening.

West Edge, owned by Houston-based Hines real estate company, has been in development since 2020 after a long entitlement process that began in 2012.

The 12121 W. Olympic Boulevard campus, with its 750,000 square feet of office space, retail stores and residential units is now open. The office space is fully leased, and The Residences at West Edge are open for pre-leasing. Around 60% of the ground floor retail space has been reserved for incoming tenants. This includes restaurants, boutique retailers, and wellness brands.

Varun Akula of Hines, the Managing Director of West Edge, said that Riot Games, a video game company based in Los Angeles, is finishing up 200,000 square foot of office space. The move-in date is Q4 of this year. Riot signed a 10 year lease in November 2020 to expand the main campus.

Hines will also be moving into the building on the second floor, bringing their West Region office.

Akula was impressed by the way West Edge integrated its various sectors as soon as it began leasing office space.

He told L.A. Business First that when they were leasing an office building, people always asked about the retail and residential areas. This showed me that people want to go to work somewhere that has amenities and a unique environment that is different from their homes.

Office workers who pre-lease apartments at The Residences at West Edge – the residential component of the project – are a part of the synergy between office, retail, and residential. Akula stated that the firm has seen an increase in leasing activity by Riot Games and Hines employees.

The Residences at West Edge, managed by Hines’ multifamily property management company Willowick Residential and its first residents will move in next month, is bringing 600 high end apartment units to West L.A. Hines, despite marketing the property as "elevated boutique-living," is reserving 30 units for low-income residents and 90 units as workforce housing, as part of Hines’ below-market-rate program developed to meet affordable housing needs in L.A.

Akula stated that 'everyone gets access to one of the most amenitized project in West Los Angeles'. We're working together to create this mixed-use environment, with partners such as Gelson's who will be opening a new store on site, and other retailers that we'll bring on board in order to figure out the best way to get groceries to residents' doors, or to take care of their dog-walking, dry-cleaning, etc.

West Edge offers tenants the opportunity to customize their spaces prior to moving in. West Edge's flexible space is located on the second floor, where Hines and Riot will share an eight-story building.

Akula stated that they wanted to build a creative office building for the future. As the landlord, Akula said that we are providing a canvas for tenants to enter and add their own unique take on how to activate the space. We wanted to create an area that would be suitable for almost any type of user.

Akula explained that the outdoor terraces on floors 3 through 8 of the building are 16,000 square foot and can be used by tenants to host events or meetings. This feature was added in order to make use of L.A.’s climate. Hines added the same floor-to ceiling windows to the five floors.

He said: 'We are in a post Covid world, where we want to keep our employees healthy, so we do things that are progressive and forward-thinking in the way we design this building. For example, we add thermal storage tanks to the roof, which help us develop our sustainability strategies.' Riot can use this combination of features to create a building that is sustainable and meets their requirements.

West Edge also adds its own "special stamp" to the project by making subtle references about the history of the site. West Edge has integrated designs that pay tribute to Martin Cadillac into the project. The portal stair at the entrance of the project incorporates Cadillac seating elements, while the art in the leasing lobby is inspired by 1960s Cadillac colors.

Akula stated that despite the eight-year process of entitlement, which made West L.A. an incredibly difficult market to corner. Hines's project is expected to be fully open by the end the year when Riot, Hines and retail tenants move into their respective offices and the residents settle in their new homes.

Akula stated that they wanted to be a part of the flagship mixed-use development to show their investors and partners what we can do in terms of placemaking. Our space will showcase the great work Hines can do in West Los Angeles, a difficult environment for developers to operate in. It is very difficult to get a new product off the ground. We think that we have something unique and special.