Completed in December 2011, the 112-unit, two-building complex aims to have an impact on the historic neighborhood of Boyle Heights in Los Angeles.

Photo Courtesy of Jonathan Kurtz

Each building has four residential floors above two subterranean parking levels. Upper-floor units of the $24.97-million affordable-housing project offer views of downtown. The site has two courtyards, playgrounds and a clubhouse.

The First United Christian Molokan Church, originally on the property, has been preserved, relocated and restored as a community center.

Once a dumping ground, the sloping 2.62-acre brownfield site required extensive mitigation, including permanent soil-nail walls and stormwater controls to minimize runoff. Existing buildings were shored to ensure structural integrity.

Lorena Heights Apartments

Los Angeles

Key Players

Owner: The Michaels Organization, Irvine

Contractor: VCC, LLC, Irvine

Lead Design: KTGY Group Inc., Irvine

Structural Engineer: Arciero Bros., Placentia

Civil Engineer: Sharma General Engineering Contractors, Moorpark

MEP Engineer: L D I Mechanical, Corona

Electrical: W.M. Masters & Assoc., Huntington Beach

Plumbing: AMPAM Parks Mechanical, Wilmington

Submitted by VCC