Fresh city design review materials are giving Santa Monica residents their clearest look yet at a 23-story glass-and-steel tower planned for 1518–1524 7th Street in downtown. The proposal from Hankey Capital and Ottinger Architects would wipe out a 10-unit rental building and rise roughly 256–257 feet, with about 124 condominiums stacked over more than 200 parking spaces. The new images and plans landed at the city's Architectural Review Board on Monday for a design review focused on materials and how the building meets the street, marking the latest in a string of high-density ideas along 7th Street that trace back to earlier "builder's remedy" filings.
According to a City staff report presented to the Architectural Review Board, the application describes a 23-story, 257-foot-tall condominium tower with 124 units in total. That breakdown includes 119 market-rate homes and five on-site deed-restricted affordable units, along with two subterranean parking levels and three podium parking levels. The report also notes that staff recommends approval, states that the project is ministerially exempt from CEQA under Section 15268, and lays out possible conditions tied to proportions, material transitions and ground-floor landscaping.
Design details
City staff highlight a curved, sail-like tower profile, noting that "the tower design features glass façade walls that overlap and flare at the top," while the podium is sketched with wood slats on the first floor and fluted metal panels above to give the base a heavier, more grounded presence. The plans call for a fourth-floor communal deck plus a rooftop amenity level with a pool and lounge space, features staff say help deliver usable open space for residents. City staff also suggests tweaks to the tower ends and the podium-to-tower transition as conditions for approval.
How the project landed here
The tower traces back to a 2023 builder's remedy application that surfaced when Santa Monica's housing element fell out of compliance with state law, according to Urbanize LA. WS Communities, which originated many of those filings, later lost control of much of its Santa Monica portfolio to lenders in 2024, and lenders including Hankey Capital have since pushed ahead with new plans for several of those parcels, The Real Deal reported.
What's next
City staff have recommended approving the design at the ARB stage, but the board's power is limited to issues like architecture and materials and it cannot cut the number of units once the project clears objective standards. If the board's decision stands and the conditions are met, the developer would move on to plan check and building permits. Demolition of the existing structure would then be subject to a 75-day waiting period that gives organizations a window to file historic designation nominations.
What it means for downtown
If built, the tower would join a growing pack of high-rise proposals reshaping parts of downtown Santa Monica as developers respond to state housing mandates. That shift has reignited arguments over height, scale, affordability and neighborhood character. Residents and city officials are expected to haggle over design adjustments in the coming weeks as the project moves through the city's review pipeline, with final approvals and any construction timetable still up in the air.
