Heavy equipment has appeared at the empty lot at the northwest corner of Olympic Boulevard and Ogden Drive in Mid-Wilshire, the first signs of work for a mixed-use project from Wiseman Residential.

Aerial view looking eastLabyrinth Design Studio

The project, which was issued building permits earlier this year by the City of Los Angeles, calls for the construction of a six-story building containing 57 studio and one-bedroom apartments above 1,200 square feet of ground-floor commercial space and semi-subterranean parking for 36 vehicles.

Wiseman secured entitlements for the development using Transit Oriented Communities incentives, which permitted the construction of a taller building with smaller setbacks than required by zoning.  In exchange, the developer will set aside six of the apartments as deed-restricted affordable housing at the extremely low-income level.

watermark Site prep at 6001 Olympic BoulevardUrbanize LA

Labyrinth Design Studio is the architect behind the project, which is located at 6001-6011 W. Olympic Boulevard.  Architectural plans depict a contemporary low-rise structure with an exterior of painted plaster and aluminum.  Planned on-site amenities include a rooftop deck and a ground-level recreation room.

The development site is one of a handful of new developments in the works near the notorious "asterisk" where Olympic Boulevard intersections with San Vicente Boulevard and Fairfax Avenue, including a smaller multifamily building proposed two blocks east and a mixed-use complex planned across the street.  Another project, the 144-unit Vinz on Fairfax apartments, opened in 2018.

6001-6011 Olympic BoulevardGoogle Maps

Wiseman, which is based out of the Sawtelle neighborhood, is no stranger to Mid-Wilshire.  The company is currently in the midst of construction at two similar developments a half-mile south on Pico Boulevard.