Los Angeles Downtown News has recognized The Desmond as one of the most transformative recent additions to Downtown Los Angeles as part of the 15th annual Downtowners of Distinction Awards. The SOM-designed renovation restored an abandoned, century-old warehouse in South Park to serve as a creative office hub for AEG, one of the world’s leading sports and entertainment companies. With architecture, interior design, and structural engineering services provided by SOM, The Desmond is the first project to be completed by the firm’s new Los Angeles office.
“Even as South Park boomed in the past decade, the Desmond Building sat empty,” writes the magazine’s staff. “No more. In November, a renovation of the 99-year-old former car dealership was completed at 11th and Hope streets. The impact was instantaneous, as the structure is now a buzzing, creative office hub holding 500 AEG employees who previously worked outside Downtown. The brickwork and large windows command attention in a neighborhood increasingly filled with glass and steel skyscrapers.”