To preserve and celebrate the Venice vibe and values in every aspect of what we do, reflecting a deep respect for the history, culture, and vibrancy that pulse through our village by the sea.
Located on the north end of Abbot Kinney, the project preserves much of the existing architecture, while adding a new boutique hotel with an expanded courtyard, spa, eateries, shops and creative office space.
Businesses will employ a significant number of local residents, bringing jobs to Venice and personalizing the guest experience.
The Venice Place Project will feature a boutique 78-room hotel with 4 apartments, set back from Abbot Kinney and integrated into the block. It includes a new restaurant, spa, rooftop garden, pool deck, bike/skate board/surf board rentals, and an expansive Outdoor Living Room.
The Outdoor Living Room will become a new favorite destination for locals and visitors alike to meet friends, share a moment or just enjoy the beauty of the neighborhood. The Living Room is a central outdoor courtyard space connecting the existing and new elements of the property.
At the center of the project is the "Outdoor Living Room" which has an ample 4,000 sf communal outdoor space surrounded by the hotel lobby, restaurant and bar, creative office, and existing restaurant space.
Existing restaurant spaces, the classic Venice Place building, and the new hotel restaurant, as well as a pedestrian entrance to the hotel will help activate the northwest end of Abbot Kinney.
The Westminster corner, consisting of retail, café, and hotel rooms above will activate the South end of the block. (Neither the former church building nor the blue-and-white-striped building are part of the project.)
On the southern corner of the project there will be a mixed-use building consisting of retail stores, a small café, and office space. The ground floor will be active on 4 sides with walkways and business on every side and includes a bike sharing center. Hotel rooms occupy the 2nd and 3rd floors.
The motorcourt on Electric plus the car, bike, and board valet occupy 50% of the ground floor of the Electric building. The design elements, the openness, and the ability to look out into the courtyard and Abbot Kinney provide a pleasant pedestrian experience.
The Electric & Broadway buildings are separated by a 10-foot walkway that breaks up the project into a collection of buildings and allows access to the central courtyard. The Electric building on Broadway contains creative office space and the hotel library. The Broadway building also has the hotel business center and support space. Hotel rooms occupy the 2nd and 3rd floors.
The Westminster & Electric buildings are separated by a 10-foot walkway that breaks up the project into a collection of buildings and allows access to the businesses in the Westminster building, the bike sharing center, the central courtyard and the Spa in the Electric building. Hotel rooms occupy the 2nd and 3rd floors.
The Final Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the Venice Place Project was released in July of 2019 by the City of Los Angeles, marking a major milestone for the project.
The report is a comprehensive set of documents, studies, and information that analyzes the project to a very deep degree, providing information to the public and City decision-makers on potential environmental impacts of our proposal, and where appropriate required mitigation measures to reduce or eliminate these potential impacts. An EIR is the most robust level of environmental review under state law. EIR’s such as this are usually only required for projects much greater in size than this one. We believe going the extra mile and above and beyond what’s required was important to ensure that our project will be an asset to the community for generations to come.
The Final EIR includes responses to all comments received during the 45-day public review period, and it concludes that there are no significant long-term impacts with one exception. The buildings currently housing Ecole Claire Fontaine are potentially historic under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). One of the project alternatives contemplates a similar mixed-use project that preserves these buildings, mitigating any impact. We will work with the City on a detailed construction plan that will be in place to minimize a few, short-term, temporary construction-related noise impacts.
ONLINE
The report is available at the Department of City Planning’s website - VIEW REPORT.
AVAILABLE AT THE CITY & LOCAL LIBRARIES
City of Los Angeles – Department of City Planning | 221 North Figueroa Street, Suite 1350, Los Angeles, CA 90012 Contact Adam Villani at 213-847-3688; [email protected] | Juliet Oh at 213-978-1186; [email protected]
Los Angeles Central Library | 630 West 5th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90071
Venice-Abbot Kinney Memorial Branch Library | 501 Venice Boulevard, Venice, CA 90291
Mar Vista Branch Library | 12006 Venice Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90066
With its world-famous beach, creative community atmosphere and rich cultural history, Venice is one of the most unique, popular, and most-visited neighborhoods not only in Los Angeles, but the entire U.S.
That’s why Venice Place is proud to call Venice home. It honors the spirit of Abbot Kinney and his vision for this seaside town with an eclectic mix of restaurants, shops and outdoor space.
Venice Place’s Felix Trattoria has been widely acclaimed for its outstanding cuisine. Esquire named it the best new restaurant in America following its opening in 2017 and LA Eater’s Restaurant Editor Bill Addison agreed, while Bon Appetit declared it had the best pasta of the year. Felix was also named a James Beard Award finalist in 2018 (LA Eater James Beard), and has firmly established itself as one of the city’s most popular dining spots.
Neighbor restaurant which opened in August of 2017 was featured in LA Eater, and Hoodline posted a nice review after the opening.
Once home to the beloved Hal’s Bar & Grill and CasaLinda, both of which closed last year, Venice Place looks forward to welcoming a new exciting restaurant in that space in the near future.
Started by founder and master esthetician Sophia Marzocchi, Spa Sophia is dedicated to creating holistically-based, scientifically-proven, and carefully vetted treatments. They offer a luxurious, therapeutic experience for whole mind, body and spirit rejuvenation. For more information, visit spasophia.com.
The Cook’s Garden by Home Grown Edible Landscapes provides local restaurants with organic food. The group also designs commercial sustainability gardens, creates edible landscapes and "water smart" gardens with native plants, and teaches how to use landscapes in a more environmentally sound and productive way. For more information, visit groedibles.com, or take a look at this video of the garden.
The Venice Place values giving back to the community by providing assistance to local nonprofit groups and schools. It is proud to be a long-time supporter of numerous organizations including Westminster Elementary, Venice Family Clinic, Venice Community Housing, Venice Arts, Venice Pride, WAVE Awards, Venice Art Walk, and others.
The Venice Pop Up Park is a creative outdoor office and relaxation space open to the public for free use Tuesdays-Fridays from 11am-4pm. It’s hosted many successful events for organizations such as Animo Charter High, the Boys and Girls Club, the Children’s Lifesaving Foundation, Gather for Good, and Girls PACT. For more information, see venicepopuppark.com.
And if you visited the Pop Up Park in 2017 or early 2018, you may have seen Venice-based, national public artist Robin Murez working on a full-scale, Venice-themed, bicycle-propelled Flying Carousel. The Venice Place Project sponsored her work by providing studio space in the Pop Up Park until she needed to move to an enclosed studio. Murez and the carousel project were featured in Yo Venice 2017. If you are curious about her project or want to be involved, you can learn more at veniceflyingcarousel.com.
The Sculpture Gardens Nursery, which closed in 2017, was developed into a lovely public garden sanctuary for all to enjoy. Stay tuned as the side area is transformed into a place to eat lunch and enjoy an Abutilon grove that will commemorate the former owner and founder of the garden, Dr. Jerry Rowitch.
Annual Venice Holiday Sign Lighting - The Venice Place is proud to join the community in supporting the annual changing of the lights on the historic VENICE Sign to a festive red and green.