Final Design of New Wilshire Grand Unveiled

In the late spring of 2011, Korean Air announced the closure of one of the most well known and beloved buildings in downtown Los Angeles, the Wilshire Grand.  The following year, construction crews began the laborious process of dismantling the building piece by piece.  Now, after several years of planning and negotiations, the final design for the building that will rise in its place has been unveiled.  Initially, plans called for two independent buildings, a sixty-five story office structure and a forty-five story luxury hotel.  However, the Los Angeles Times reports that the new design consists of a single seventy-three story tower that will 'slightly surpass in height the 72-story U.S. Bank Tower on Bunker Hill that has held the title of tallest west of Chicago since 1989.'  Such an ambitious redesign, especially this late in development, is yet another example of increasing investor confidence in the L.A. economy.