R.D. Olson Construction: Building According to Schedule at Union Station

Los Angeles, Calif.— R. D. Olson Construction will work under the watchful eye of Los Angeles commuters when it builds a residential complex and bridge at the site of one of the country’s busiest transportation hubs while the hub remains in full operation.

Los Angeles Union Station--where the Metrorail, Amtrak, MTA, DASH and Metrolink converge at 800 N. Alameda St.--will be home to a new two-building Class A apartment complex. The five-story buildings will be constructed on both sides of the 65-year-old Union Station; one will partially sit atop the Metrolink tunnel. The complex will house 278 apartment units and subterranean parking. A rooftop pool will sit upon one of the apartment buildings, giving bathers a distinct view of the city.

Because the structures will replace current lots used for taxi and bus passenger pick up and drop off, R. D. Olson Construction must develop viable travel routes during construction. Building plans will be formulated to prevent interruption in transportation services. Once construction is complete, the loading and drop-off area will continue to service passengers between the two apartment buildings.

“This is a highly complex project that will entail extensive staging plans so Union Station can keep transportation on schedule,” said Robert Olson, CEO and president, R. D. Olson Construction. “We will have a lot of stakeholders, including city officials and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority counting on our expertise.”

The Irvine-based construction company also will build a bridge over Union Station’s service entry that connects the apartment buildings at the third floor level. This added convenience will allow residents to travel from one structure to the other without having to traverse the busy street-level crosswalk.

In total, R. D. Olson Construction will build 500,000 square feet of new space. Of that, 20,000 square feet will be dedicated to administration offices and a recreation area. The architecture of the complex, which was designed by Santa Monica-based GMP Architects, will remain consistent with Union Station’s old world mission style flavor. Construction cost of the project is $35 million.

Groundbreaking of the new complex is planned for late April. Construction will progress in phases with one building set for completion in June 2005 and the other in September 2005.

The apartment complex is owned by Lincoln Property Company, which recently purchased the lots from Union Station owner, Catellaus Group.

R. D. Olson Construction was founded in 1979 by Robert Olson. The company has since built such well-known establishments as Marriott’s Shadow Ridge, Palm Desert; Marriott’s Newport Coast Villas, Newport Beach; La Costa Glen Senior Housing, Carlsbad; Courtyard by Marriott, Lake Forest; and Madison Walk Multi-Family Development, Pasadena—all in California. Current projects, also in California, include a $50 million renovation of the Ojai Valley Inn & Spa Resort, Ojai, and major renovations to the Regent Beverly Wilshire, Beverly Hills and Mission Inn Spa, Riverside. New building projects R. D. Olson Construction is overseeing include the Hilton Garden Inn, Oxnard and Phase 4 of Marriott’s Shadow Ridge, Palm Desert.