LOS ANGELES–Taggers have graffitied what appears to be more than 25 stories of a Downtown Los Angeles skyscraper that’s been sitting dormant for several years on Tuesday, January 30.
Construction on Oceanwide Plaza, a $1 billion mixed-use retail and luxury apartments project with three towering unfinished structures, stalled in January 2019 after the Beijing-based developer lacked the funds to complete it.
It is unclear exactly how those responsible for the graffiti covering much of the building’s exterior gained entry to the site, or when they began their daring and illegal project. “The measures will be implemented immediately, and the graffiti will be removed,” the LAPD said.
The project is across the street from the Crypto.com Arena, which is the home of the Los Angeles Lakers. Also, near the now-tagged tower is the entertainment area LA Live.
The Oceanwide Plaza project was to have two 40-story towers, according to its website.
Construction stopped in 2019 amid questions about whether the company had the funds to continue, the Los Angeles Times reported at the time.
A possible foreclosure was blocked by a state court of appeals in August, real estate publication The Real Deal reported.
It’s far from the first project in Los Angeles to become a target for attention-grabbing graffiti.
The brand-new 6th Street Viaduct in downtown, which cost $588 million, was spray-painted by vandals after it opened in July of 2022. Street racing and takeovers also prompted the periodic closure of the bridge shortly after it opened.
By Christopher