Times Mirror Square is a complex of buildings on the block bounded by Spring, Broadway,

First First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and reco ...

and Second streets in the Civic Center district of Downtown Los Angeles. It was headquarters of the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the ...

'' until 2018. It is currently vacant, with plans being proposed regarding how to best utilize the existing buildings and the total ground area of the site.

Components

Times Mirror Square includes: #The Los Angeles Times Building (or "Kaufmann Building") at the southwest corner of First and Spring Streets, opened in 1935. It was built as the headquarters of the ''

'' and was designed in Art Deco style by Gordon B. Kaufmann. The building won a gold medal at the

1937 Paris Exposition The ''Exposition Internationale des Arts et Techniques dans la Vie Moderne'' (International Exposition of Art and Technology in Modern Life) was held from 25 May to 25 November 1937 in Paris, France. Both the Palais de Chaillot, housing the Mu ...

Harry Chandler Harry Chandler (May 17, 1864 – September 23, 1944) was an American newspaper publisher and investor who became owner of the largest real estate empire in the U.S. Early life Harry Chandler was born in Landaff, New Hampshire, the eldest of four ...

, then the president and general manager of Times-Mirror Co., at its opening, declared the building a "monument to the progress of our city and Southern California". #The ten-story 1948 Mirror Building or Crawford Addition at the northwest corner of Second and Spring, designed by Rowland Crawford Site of the 1880s Nadeau Hotel and adjacent to its west, a building used as City Hall from 1884 to 1888. #The 1973 Pereira Addition, a six-story glass and steel structure on the southeast corner of First and Broadway, which was inaugurated as the headquarters of the Times Mirror Company. The

International-style International style may refer to: * International Style (architecture), the early 20th century modern movement in architecture * International style (art), the International Gothic style in medieval art * International Style (dancing), a term used ...

wing designed by

William Pereira William Leonard Pereira (April 25, 1909 – November 13, 1985) was an American architect from Chicago, Illinois, who was noted for his futuristic designs of landmark buildings such as the Transamerica Pyramid in San Francisco. Remarkably p ...

"recapitulates the geometric order and monumentality of the Kaufmann structure", according to the

Los Angeles Conservancy The Los Angeles Conservancy is a historic preservation organization in Los Angeles, California. It works to document, rescue and revitalize historic buildings, places and neighborhoods in the city. The Conservancy is the largest membership based ...

. #A parking garage at the northeast corner of Second and Broadway The parking garage at 213 S. Spring, stretching from the west side of Spring to the east side of Broadway between 2nd and 3rd streets, is sometimes referred to as the "Los Angeles Times Parking Garage", but is not actually part of Times Mirror Square. On both sides there are relief sculptures by

Tony Sheets Tony may refer to: People and fictional characters * Tony (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Gregory Tony (born 1978), American law enforcement officer * Motu Tony (born 1981), New Zealand international rugby leag ...

, ''Evolution of Printing'' and ''Evolution of Los Angeles'', respectively, created in 1988–1989.

Gallery

1948 Crawford Mirror Addition at the SE corner of Times Mirror Square, NW corner 2nd and Spring.jpg, File:Los Angeles Times building perspective side view.jpg, 1973 Pereira Addition at the NW of the complex, SE corner 1st and Broadway File:Los Angeles Times parking garage.jpg, Relief sculpture ''Evolution of Printing'' by

on the Los Angeles Times parking garage at 213 S. Spring St., adjacent to Times Mirror Square on the south.

History

Times Mirror Square is located on a major portion of what was in the 1880s and 1890s, the central business district of Los Angeles. On April 13, 2018, LA Times employees were notified that ownership was unable to reach a new lease agreement to remain in the Times Building. The staff of about 800 employees would relocate to a new campus under construction in suburban El Segundo, to the southwest when the lease at the Times Building expired on July 31, 2018. Onni Group, a Canadian developer which became the owner after

Tribune Publishing Tribune Publishing Company (briefly Tronc, Inc.) is an American newspaper print and online media publishing company. The company, which was acquired by Alden Global Capital in May 2021, has a portfolio that includes the ''Chicago Tribune'', ...

lost control of its real estate in bankruptcy reorganization, reportedly wanted to increase the monthly lease by $1 million. The new Times owner

Patrick Soon-Shiong Patrick Soon-Shiong (born July 29, 1952) is a Chinese-South African transplant surgeon, billionaire businessman, bioscientist, and media proprietor. He is the inventor of the drug Abraxane, which became known for its efficacy against lung, breas ...

moved the paper to a building he owned in El Segundo, leaving the building empty. The vacant building is currently underused, with vacant space being used for movie shoots, earning the company as much as $4 million one year. The original building, despite its historic and architecturally significance, is not listed as a historical landmark. It is not in the listings of

Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monuments are sites which have been designated by the Los Angeles, California, Cultural Heritage Commission as worthy of preservation based on architectural, historic and cultural criteria. History The Historic-Cult ...

California Historical Landmarks A California Historical Landmark (CHL) is a building, structure, site, or place in California that has been determined to have statewide historical landmark significance. Criteria Historical significance is determined by meeting at least one of ...

, or U.S. Registered Historic Landmarks in Los Angeles. Omni has planned to redevelop the site.

Redevelopment

The Onni Group, a real estate development company, has proposed to expand and renovate the adjacent 1973 Times Mirror complex with residential units and retail. Two residential towers were proposed, a 37-story tower rising 365 feet. A taller 53 story building rising 655 feet. They will include 1,100 apartments with 24 moderate-income units and 10 low-income units. The design emphasis walkability and retail around the Civic Center area of DTLA. The new underground Historic Broadway light rail station will open on the 2nd Street side of the building when construction of the

Regional Connector Transit Corridor In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

is completed in 2022. City Hall approved tearing down all the additions to the original 1937 building, including the Pereira additions, to make way for the proposed addition towers to be completed in 2023. LA TIMES lobby - Michele Castagnetti

References

External links