
Mark and Arman Gabay are well known developers throughout Los Angeles County. Under their company, The Charles Company, Arman Gabay was arrested on federal bribery charges last May and his brother Mark Gabay, is seeking approval for a new project in South LA.
Related: Developer with Major Projects in WeHo Arrested on Federal Bribery Charges
The Gabay brothers were due to build housing in nearby city of Hawthorne, at the site of the former Hawthorne Mall, and after getting the city council to bend over and heed their development plans, the site still sits shuttered with no construction. The plans to cancel the development occured two months before Arman Gabay’s arrest.
Related: Makeover of decrepit Hawthorne Plaza Mall canceled — again
Will the South LA site, at the intersection of Crenshaw and Obama Blvd, formerly Rodeo Rd., finally see a development?
Gabay is proposing a 75 foot structure with 577 rental units and 943 parking spaces. Of the 577 rental units, not a single one will be set aside for affordable housing.
Related: Can LA Councilman Marqueece Harris-Dawson be Trusted
As usual, City Council President Herb Wesson’s office has “no comment” on why he continues to work with developers, who’s relatives are facing scrutiny from law enforcement officials and more importantly, why low-income folks don’t have any space in “Destination Crenshaw” besides being intentionally removed.
This is exactly why Herb Wesson has NO business being elected to the LA County Board of Supervisors.
Read the full article of Wesson’s betrayal to the Black community on LATimes.com
3 Comments
I represent the family of a man who died in a fire at the 9080 Santa Monica Building owned by the Charles Company controlled by the Gabay Brothers. If you have information regarding the fire at 9080 Santa Monica Boulevard
or about the Charles Company letting its properties fall into disrepair please contact me Robert Scott Shtofman at Telephone 818-609-0090 or email [email protected].
I was one of the appellants on the project at 3700 Crenshaw, formerly known as the District Square and have been fighting this development for over 10 years. We had all the Neighborhood Councils aligned against this behemoth development, we had letters from Herb Wesson’s office and we fought this project according to City guidelines, and we had our entire Commission vote in support of the appeal. The original project was bad, but the last iteration, the one we have to live with is an eyesore and doesn’t serve the community at all. My home will be eclipsed by this monstrosity looming 6-7 stories, looking directly into our back yards. The project’s allotted parking structure will not accommodate the number of residences, nor will there be any “down time” as this facility will be accessible 24/7. Finally it was like pulling teeth to get any kind of “affordable housing” concessions from this developer. 10 years ago the project development team promised stores like Target, we were promised a 24HOUR Super Ralphs and other so-called amenities for the surrounding community and the project’s scale was much smaller. Instead the developer had one of the few grocery stores in the area demolished and left a barren wasteland of the land which they do not maintain. Now the development is an example of terrible architectural design concerned with only luxury style apartments which will impact renters and cause a new wave on gentrification. It didn’t matter the whole of the neighborhood was adamantly against this project. We took all the steps necessary to quash this project, only to have our appeal overturned by a judge, with the City Commissioners opting no further action on the project. My mother is 95 years old, infirm and frail. We are the original owners of this property with my grandfather purchasing the house in 1939. I am heartsick that we have been unable to have our voices heard, and even when it seemed we were successful in our appeal, have the court steamroll the majority and give the okay to this project.
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