On occasion, I have had the opportunity to have drinks in the fourteenth-floor solarium of the Sovereign apartment building, located on Ocean Boulevard across from the Long Beach County Courthouse. It provides a great panoramic view from Palos Verdes to Dana Point that is absolutely wonderful at sunset. In the past couple years, however, the Sovereign’s view of Palos Verdes has been cut off by the construction of a pair of residential towers to the west, across Cedar Avenue. The last time I was in the solarium, I saw some new residents of one of these towers admiring the view from their large balcony. Being curious, I bellowed out a question, “How do you like living there?” The response was a simple as my question; the couple said “We love it!”
For me, their answer was unsurprising. Over the past few years, I have been watching the construction of this new 250-unit community, from when the first concrete pilings were driven into the ground to when the safety netting was hung from the helicopter pad atop each tower. For those seeking waterfront urban living, the two towers of West Ocean probably constitute the finest homes available between San Diego and the Bay Area, due to their excellent combination of location, views, amenities, and design.
Located on one of the few remaining developable properties along Ocean Boulevard in downtown Long Beach, the West Ocean towers represent the second phase of redeveloping the land where the now-defunct Pike amusement park was located. Preceding them were the Camden apartments, located on the side of the Sovereign and Blackstone historic apartment buildings opposite to the West Ocean towers. The third phase of this redevelopment is a proposed residential tower in the parking lot between the Verizon building and Ocean Center building. Located in one of Long Beach’s most pedestrian-oriented areas, between the new Pike shopping complex and Pine Avenue’s entertainment district, when completed this new neighborhood will total 1,000 units. If we take into account the numerous job opportunities provided by the millions of square feet of downtown commercial office space, it is conceivable that these new residents could leave their car parked most of the time.
The northern of the two new West Ocean towers is the third-tallest structure in Long Beach, just a few dozen feet shorter than the World Trade Center and Landmark Square Building. This tower is 31 stories tall, while the shorter south tower steps down in height toward the water at 22 stories. The towers are built on a podium structure containing commercial space along Ocean Boulevard, resident parking, and community facilities. The community facilities are incredible; a large pool and large gym, a media room, a lounge, wine storage facilities, and a guest suite for visiting family and friends. Serving as the base for the whole complex, this podium structure is well-designed; most community facilities are located along its edge, providing a lively street scene, with parking largely hidden behind.
Located as it is on the southern side of Ocean Boulevard, the West Ocean towers provide nearly unobstructed views of the Pacific Ocean for most residents. Due to its unique, every unit high enough to clear the Pike’s seven-level parking structure has some view of the waterfront. The two towers have small, relatively square footprints; every unit faces either the ocean or the coastline. This is in sharp distinction to some other residential towers along Ocean Boulevard (like the two Aqua towers or the Harbor Tower): as slab towers, their long, flat forms mean that up to a third of their units have only “city” views. In contrast, all but the smallest flats on the lower levels of the West Ocean towers are corner units. Since they face in two directions and have large balconies as well as floor-to-ceiling windows, residents of the West Ocean towers are nearly one with the Pacific.
The two towers of West Ocean are perhaps the most attractive modern towers in Long Beach; they are, without doubt, a welcome addition to the skyline. Their tall, slender forms are coated nearly completely in glass. The massing of the each tower decreases toward the top, giving the perception of infinity from the street. Unfortunately, the lack of a definitive feature at the top of each tower will likely prevent them from becoming as iconographic as the Villa Riviera. Perhaps my most unreasonable criticism of the West Ocean towers is in regard to their color palette: dull white, gold, and blood orange hues seem misplaced on these vertical forms. During construction, I had hoped that they would leave the concrete features of the buildings as is, but a marketing consultant likely voiced support for the current color selection. Buildings can always be repainted.
These aesthetic criticisms are relatively minor in light of the overall project’s success. The West Ocean development is clearly a superior residential product compared to any other recently-constructed residential building in Long Beach. If real estate market trends had continued their course of two years ago, we might have seen a half-dozen additional residential developments of this caliber. While many such projects are now on hold, others are slowly moving forward, seeking the right timing to catch the real estate market on the upswing. Until that day (and even, most likely, after it), the two towers of West Ocean will personify luxury waterfront city living in Long Beach and Southern California.
Developer: Intracorp; Vancouver, British Columbia
Architect: Perkins & Company; Seattle,Washigton
