An initial study published by the Los Angeles Department of City Planning offers up new details for the Fig & 8th development, a proposed high-rise development that would replace one of Downtown's most prominent parking lots.

Mitsui Fudosan America, the U.S. subsidiary of the Japanese conglomerate Mitsui Fudosan, has owned the one-acre subject site at 8th and Figueroa Streets for more than 20 years.  They plan to remove the existing parking lot to construct a 42-story high-rise edifice that would feature 436 residential units, approximately 10,000 square feet of ground-floor commercial space and a 479-car garage with four below-grade levels and four above-grade levels.

The proposed 489-foot tall tower is being designed by Johnson Fain, the Chinatown-based architecture firm behind recent Downtown developments such as Blossom Plaza, College Station and the La Plaza Cultura Village.  Renderings of the finished product portray a shimmering glass and steel tower, rising above a podium.  Outdoor amenity decks would be situated at both the rooftop and above the building's parking garage.

Per the initial study, construction of 8th & Fig is expected to commence in March 2018 with a targeted completion date in the third quarter of 2020.

The project finds itself at the eye of the storm in the booming Financial District, which has recently seen expansive makeovers at both the Figat7th shopping center and the Bloc.  One block north at 7th Street, the construction of the 73-story Wilshire Grand tower has captured the attention of Angelenos for the past three years.