China's Gemdale Enters LA Market with $125M Mixed-Use Project

Gemdale Properties and Investments, a subsidiary of one of China’s largest blue chip real estate developers, Gemdale Corporation, announced that it is partnering with Los Angeles-based LaTerra Development to develop a $125 million mixed-use project in Hollywood. The project will be the first real state investment in Hollywood by a major Chinese company, which established its US headquarters in Los Angeles earlier this year. The Gemdale-LaTerra project at 1350 N. Western Avenue at Sunset Boulevard is planned to be developed with office, retail and apartments, explained Charles Tourtellotte, President and CEO of LaTerra. Curtis Palmer of CBRE was the broker on this transaction.

Jason Zhu, CEO of Gemdale USA, said: "This inaugural Los Angeles investment promises to be the first of many deals as we ramp up our capital investment and property development business in Los Angeles, a market that we are confident presents great value. There is abundant opportunity here and we are delighted to have partnered with LaTerra, the like-minded urban development partner we have been seeking."

"Both LaTerra and Gemdale are committed to topflight design, amenities and sustainable building practices," added Tourtellotte. "With our partner, Gemdale, we will be developing a project that will have a positive fiscal impact on the community."

Gemdale's announcement of its project is the first since the recent slowdown in the Chinese economy and dramatic losses on the country's stock exchange prompted worries that the tidal wave of Chinese investment in Los Angeles might come to a halt, according to a Los Angeles Times article. Simone Liu of Wells Fargo Advisors in Beverly Hills, who gives investment advice to Chinese clients, said the opposite dynamic appears to be in play. "After what happened in China, people are looking for ways to diversify their portfolios," she said "They feel like the U.S. is more transparent and there are more opportunities in the real estate market here."

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