An office landlord is trying out a new play in Mid-City: affordable housing. Mansfield Developments, an affiliate of Elat Properties, has filed plans to tear down a row of bungalows at 1418 S. Mansfield Avenue and replace them with a five-story building holding 81 one- and two-bedroom apartments. Nearly every unit is slated for low- and moderate-income renters, with just one apparent market-rate apartment reserved for an on-site manager.
The Real Deal first spotted the application in the city’s planning files. Drawings included in the filing show a contemporary podium-style design by JZA Architecture with no on-site parking at all, according to Urbanize Los Angeles. The paperwork lists Aviel Golbari as the project applicant and identifies Mansfield Developments, an Elat-affiliated entity, as the developer; documents indicate that, apart from the manager’s unit, all 81 apartments would be income-restricted.
How ED1 Changes the Playbook
If the building stays 100 percent income-restricted, the proposal could qualify under Executive Directive No. 1, the mayoral order that speeds up permits and offers a ministerial approval track that can bypass public hearings and City Council votes, as laid out by Los Angeles City Planning. The mayor’s office and housing agencies have published implementation guidance and fast-track procedures for ED1-eligible projects, and the directive itself, along with its implementation documents, is available from the Mayor's Office.
Affordability by Numbers
ED1 has reshaped Los Angeles’ development pipeline. Reporting shows that developers have filed plans for tens of thousands of income-restricted units since the policy launched, and a The Real Deal analysis found roughly 42,300 proposed units, with about 31,700 of those approved as of late 2025. That surge has turned fully affordable projects into the most workable option for many builders facing higher financing and construction costs.
An Office Owner's Pivot
Elat Properties is far better known for buying office buildings than for putting up apartments. Company leaders, including Aviel Golbari, have been active office buyers in Los Angeles in recent years, according to CoStar. The Mansfield proposal suggests Elat is now testing whether its land near Pico and other Mid-City corridors can be reworked for housing as a hedge against a soft office market.
Where This Fits in Mid-City
The project site sits just southwest of 5050 W. Pico Boulevard, a property the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles acquired and converted into the Pico Square apartments under city housing programs, according to HACLA records documenting the purchase and build-out. That location places the Mansfield property in a run of Pico-adjacent lots that have drawn multiple affordable housing proposals over the past several months.
Next Steps
The application is now with the Department of City Planning for staff review. If the team pursues ED1’s ministerial route, the entitlement process could move far faster than a typical discretionary case. If the project does not qualify for ED1’s ministerial benefits, it would instead move through the standard path of public hearings, environmental review, and discretionary approvals before any building permits or construction can proceed, according to Los Angeles City Planning.
The Mansfield proposal is one more data point in a broader shift toward income-restricted development types across Los Angeles. “Market-rate housing [construction] has been essentially canceled at this point,” an industry figure told reporting this year, a blunt assessment that helps explain why an Elat affiliate is now pitching a fully affordable project in Mid-City.
