"New Owner for the Eyesore Building?"...Graffiti Tower Finds Buyer After 7 Years of Neglect

LA 'Graffiti Tower' Faces 600 Billion Won Acquisition Bid
A Signal for Downtown Revitalization Ahead of the Olympics

The 'Graffiti Tower', long regarded as a major eyesore in downtown Los Angeles (LA), now has a much higher chance of finding a new owner.

View of the 'Graffiti Tower' left abandoned for seven years in downtown LA. AFP/Yonhap News

Bloomberg News reported on the 24th (local time), citing documents filed with a U.S. court, that real estate company KPC Group and Lendlease Joint Venture (JV) recently submitted a letter of intent to the U.S. Bankruptcy Court to purchase Oceanwide Plaza in downtown LA for 470 million dollars (about 677.8 billion won). If no additional prospective buyers emerge, ownership is expected to be transferred in April. The 470 million dollar price includes 70 million dollars in cash to cover delinquent taxes, liens, and other costs that have accrued since the bankruptcy filing.

Oceanwide Plaza, into which 1.2 billion dollars was invested, has had construction halted for years, and its exterior has been covered in graffiti, earning it the nickname 'Graffiti Tower'. A Chinese real estate developer initially pursued it as a mixed-use development project consisting of up to three buildings with 55 floors, but construction was suspended in 2018 due to funding problems. The project is about 60% complete and was designed to include one 55-story tower, two 42-story towers, an 11-story hotel, and a large electronic billboard.

In particular, in 2024, artists left large graffiti on the exterior walls of the unfinished high-rise buildings, saddling it with the notorious label of 'Graffiti Tower'. The complex is adjacent to key cultural and commercial facilities such as Crypto.com Arena, home to National Basketball Association (NBA) games, the Grammy Museum, and the LA Convention Center, and has long been criticized for blighting the cityscape.

LA Mayor Karen Bass said in a statement, "The derelict Oceanwide Plaza has sat without an owner and as an eyesore for far too long," adding, "I am encouraged that this sale is moving forward as we prepare for the Olympic and Paralympic Games just across the street."

Lendlease, headquartered in Sydney, was the main contractor for this mixed-use project. In a statement, Lendlease said that KPC will serve as the developer and overall general contractor, while Lendlease will participate as an equity partner.

KPC stated that once the court filings are completed and the approval process moves forward, it will release detailed information about the project.