The Roster at the Ritz A luxury condo near Los Angeles's sports arenas attracts athletes and hard-core fans, reflecting the growing popularity of L.A.'s downtown April 25, 2013 By Lauren Schuker Blum When Hyun-Jin Ryu, the Dodgers' new starting pitcher, first envisioned his move to Los Angeles from South Korea, he imagined himself in a house with a pool in Beverly Hills. Instead, he bought a condo downtown, a grittier part of the city. A Hub for Athletes and Fans Michal Czerwonka for The Wall Street Journal Owing in part to a slowdown in new condo construction, the Ritz-Carlton Residences at L.A. LIVE is downtown's most expensive and most available luxury residential tower. In March, Mr. Ryu, 26, purchased a place at the Ritz-Carlton Residences at L.A. LIVE, paying just under $2 million for a 2,082-square-foot, two-bedroom unit with 10-foot-high ceilings and floor-to-ceiling windows that offer views of the Hollywood sign. Moving to the Ritz Residences "was a very convenient and appropriate decision for me," he says. "I am very close to the Korean-American community [and] I can see Dodger Stadium from my house." Mr. Ryu is the latest sports professional to bypass Beverly Hills and buy into the Ritz-Carlton Residences, a collection of 224 luxury condo units that sits atop a 54-story tower that also houses the Ritz-Carlton and JW Marriott hotels. Dodgers player Carl Crawford, nicknamed "The Perfect Storm," is a renter at the Ritz, as is J.P. Howell, another pitcher for the Dodgers. Jesse Buss, the 25-year-old son of the late Lakers owner Jerry Buss and the basketball team's current director of scouting, owns a condo there. Star soccer player Landon Donovan, 31, who plays for the Los Angeles Galaxy, recently bought a two-bedroom unit with a den.
Hyun-Jin Ryu: The Dodger pitcher bought a two-bedroom unit in March. Other notables in the building include former "Entertainment Tonight" host Mary Hart, who owns a unit, and Coachella founder Paul Tollett. Steve Bing, the major Democratic donor and film producer, is a renter. Getty Images Carl Crawford: The Los Angeles Dodger rents a unit at the Ritz. Since the Ritz was opened by developer AEG two years ago, it has become popular with buyers from the sports world in large part because of its proximity to the city's major arenas, including the Staples Center next door and Dodger Stadium, a 10-minute drive away. The Home Depot Center, where the Galaxy plays, is about 20 minutes away.
Jesse Buss: The son of late L.A. Lakers owner Jerry Buss owns a unit. Meanwhile, downtown Los Angeles, an area previously dominated by parking lots and abandoned buildings, has flourished over the last five years, with a spate of new restaurants, retail stores, night spots and art galleries springing up. Public transportation is improving: A new streetcar line has been approved for downtown, which will connect the complex the Ritz is housed in and the Staples Center to the Grand Avenue corridor, home to Walt Disney Concert Hall and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles. Associated Press J.P. Howell: The Dodgers pitcher is a renter at the Ritz. The population of downtown Los Angeles has more than doubled in the past 13 years to more than 50,000 residents in 2012 from about 18,000 in 1999, according to the Downtown Center Business Improvement District. Yet while there are currently more than 3,600 new rental apartments under construction in the area, very few condos are currently being built, according to real-estate consultant Alan Mark. During the downturn some planned condo projects converted to rentals instead, and it was easier for developers to secure financing for new rental buildings than for condos.
Landon Donovan: The star soccer player recently bought a two-bedroom. As a result, the Ritz remains downtown's most expensive and most available luxury residential tower. "There are only about 63 new condos currently on the market downtown," adds Mr. Mark. "Almost all of those are at the Ritz." After a slow start amid the downturn, the building is currently about 80% sold; the sold units include all of the one-bedrooms, which average 1,100 square feet in size and about $1 million in cost. The Ritz also houses downtown's priciest penthouse a 5,862-square-foot, two-story space currently listed for $9.3 million. Getty Images Mary Hart: The former 'Entertainment Tonight' host owns a unit. The Ritz still hasn't sold 10 of its 12 penthouses, something Kimberly Lucero, vice president of sales and marketing for the Ritz-Carlton Residences at L.A. LIVE, attributes to the fact that the spaces weren't finished or staged. But agents note that many potential buyers would rather spend $5 million or $9 million on a house with a pool and a backyard in Bel Air, Beverly Hills or other affluent places on Los Angeles's Westside.
Steve Bing: The producer and major political donor is a renter. Los Angeles's downtown is far inland: The Ritz is 15 miles from the beach in Santa Monica a distance that can take an hour or more to drive in bad traffic. "Typically, it's not as desirable to be in the concrete jungle downtown as it is being by the ocean, or near the mountains," says Paul Habibi, a professor of real estate at the University of California, Los Angeles. Skid Row, an area that has one of the largest populations of homeless people in the country, is less than 2 miles from the Ritz. Downtown Los Angeles's gritty, urban roots also mean that it has fewer retail outlets and residential amenities, such as grocery stores. Splash News/Corbis Paul Tollett: The Coachella founder lives in the building. "One big glaring hole in downtown has been the lack of amenities," adds Mr. Habibi. "Up until six or seven years ago, there wasn't even one grocery store downtown. That has since changed, but it is emblematic of how hard it can be to live downtown." The Ritz's Ms. Lucero says that new infrastructure downtown has significantly altered the landscape, and adds that the city has also improved safety in the area.
The Ritz-Carlton Residences are part of L.A. LIVE, the sports and entertainment district that is now one of downtown L.A.'s busiest hubs. Developed by AEG, L.A. LIVE spans 27 acres and includes restaurants, clubs, concert venues, movie theaters, the headquarters of both AEG and Herbalife, and the Ritz-Carlton's 54-story hotel and condominium tower, which is also home to the 878-room JW Marriott Los Angeles hotel. Floors one through 21 are the JW Marriott, floors 22 through 26 hold the 123-room Ritz-Carlton hotel, and the Ritz-Carlton Residences occupy floors 27 through 52. Nate Padavick Since the Ritz-Carlton Residences are under the same roof as the Ritz hotel, they come with hotel-like amenities that are unusual for Los Angeles buildings, including 24-hour room service, valet parking and a daily breakfast service in a private lounge. The building has dog walkers for hire, and there is a 24-hour concierge who will stock your fridge with groceries. There's a dedicated gym, movie theater, library and billiard room, and residents have access to the rooftop pool and cabanas and hotel spa. For a price, there is turndown service available (at $35 a pop) as well as housekeeping. Monthly maintenance fees range from $1,493.55 to $3,593.38, depending on the size of the unit. The Ritz-Carlton Residences currently has a box at the Staples Center that is reserved for residents, many of whom are sports fans who previously commuted for events. Residents sign up for tickets on a first-come, first-serve basis. For highdemand games like the playoffs, there is a lottery. While the development's sales team targeted international buyers from Asia and sports professionals, they say the bulk of buyers have been local residents in Southern California. About 85% of the buyers have been domestic, with 15% coming from abroad. And of those domestic buyers, the vast majority already live in Southern California.
Michal Czerwonka for The Wall Street Journal Close to the Action: Sharon Hernandez, pictured, and her husband bought a 2,200-square-foot two bedroom so they could be closer to sports games. One of those residents is Sharon Hernandez, the 56-year-old co-owner of vegetable and fruit company Melissa's Produce. Ms. Hernandez and her husband, who started the company with her, attend a sporting event almost every night. The couple found themselves driving for an hour or more to attend games until 2011, when they moved into a 2,200- square-foot, two-bedroom unit at the Ritz, for which they paid $1.8 million. Like the vast majority of Ritz residents they own another home a four-bedroom Tuscan-style house on the water in Huntington Beach, Calif., that they have lived in for 29 years. Now, they split their time between their house and their downtown pad. "We are sports fanatics so we love that everyone in the building is totally sports-oriented," says Ms. Hernandez. "All of our neighbors have seats next to us at the games, so we'll go to see the Lakers together at night and then talk about the game at breakfast." Lydia F. Cruz and her husband, who paid $2.18 million for their three-bedroom, used to spend up two hours getting to games from their former home in La Cañada Flintridge, including looking for parking. "Now," she says, "we just walk." http://online.wsj.com/article/sb10001424127887324874204578438702071171558.html#articletabs%3darticle