Kennedy Wilson and Jamison are teaming up to deliver 4,000 affordable housing units in Los Angeles via adaptive reuse and new construction, according to a Kennedy Wilson press release.
Los Angeles-headquartered Jamison is a multifamily development firm with experience in high- and low-rise construction and adaptive reuse conversions, while Beverly Hills, California-based Kennedy Wilson brings expertise in affordable housing development, per the release. The partnership is between Jamison's new affordable housing division, Arden Residential, and Kennedy Wilson’s affordable housing development joint venture, Vintage Housing.
The pair is kicking off the collaboration with the conversion of the former LA World Trade Center at 350 S. Figueroa Street, which was approved by the city under the new adaptive reuse ordinance, according to the release. The 400,000-square-foot office complex will be converted into 512 affordable one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments and rebranded as “Sky Castle.”
The aging 10-story trade center office building first opened in 1975, per the Downtown LA website. Such office-to-apartment conversions are growing in number, and the pipeline at the start of 2026 increased 28% year over year, according to a March RentCafe report.
Each unit will feature new kitchens and bathrooms with appliances and an operable window, per the release. There will also be community amenities such as a dedicated co-working space, rooms available for resident events, a resident lounge, on-site storage, laundry rooms and mail parcel rooms.
Phase I of the conversion project, expected to begin in August, will add 241 affordable housing units for families earning 30% to 80% of Area Median Income on the concourse levels, according to the release. Phase II will add 271 affordable units in the office tower above.
In 2015, Kennedy Wilson acquired an equity stake in Vintage Housing, which focuses on affordable, long-term housing for working families and active seniors, per the release. It has since helped grow Vintage’s platform from 5,000 to over 13,000 units across the West.
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