Faring Seeks OK for Sunset Strip Office-Retail Project

Faring is asking West Hollywood to approve a five-story, roughly 53,000 square foot office and retail building at 9100-9176 Sunset Blvd, Bisnow reported. It would replace an empty two-story car dealership on the Sunset Strip.

The applicant of record is LDRL CA 306 LLC, which Bisnow linked to Illinois-based consumer goods company DRL Enterprises. West Hollywood is its own city within Los Angeles County, so the site is not subject to the City of LA’s Measure ULA transfer tax.

Why it matters

The plan is a bet on demand for new office space on the Strip. For developers eyeing West Hollywood, it is a live test of how far the city will bend its off-site sign rules to help pencil a project.

The proposal includes two animated digital billboards on the Sunset frontage. Under the city’s off-site signage policy, they would need a zoning map amendment. Neighbors objected to the animated displays at the hearing, Bisnow reported. Faring previously offered to darken the billboards from 2 a.m. to 6 a.m. daily.

The numbers

As proposed, offices would fill the second through fifth floors. The street level would hold two restaurant and retail spaces, an office lobby and outdoor dining, according to Bisnow. We have not yet pulled the city’s case file or staff report, so the figures here are attributed to Bisnow.

What’s next

The West Hollywood Planning Commission held a public hearing earlier in October and voted to continue the item without setting a new date, Bisnow reported. The commission has not voted on the project or the billboard amendment. Faring’s plan remains a proposal, and any approval would still be pending further city review.

For other deals moving in the market, see Post Investment Group’s reported purchase of the Violet on Virgil apartments, or browse Los Angeles coverage.