The Court Residences Break Ground at 1540 West Court Street in Echo Park

A new affordable community is moving out of the permitting stage and into construction on a hillside at 1540 West Court Street in Echo Park. Filed under the name The Court Residences, the project steps up the slope just west of Glendale Boulevard, replacing older low-rise structures with a seven-story building that fronts the curve of Court Street.

Visionary Developments is leading the project. City records list JZA Architecture as architect of record. The City approved the plans through Mayor’s Executive Directive 1, which streamlines fully affordable housing. The building is approved without on-site parking, a detail called out directly in the construction permit.

1540 West Court Street Elevation 2 via JZA Architecture

Plans on file put the program at 189 apartments spread across roughly 86,000 square feet of residential floor area. The unit mix skews small by design: 99 studios, 84 one-bedrooms, and six two-bedrooms (including one manager’s unit). Recorded affordability levels are very-low, low, and moderate income, with the majority restricted at the low-income tier, per the LADBS permit.

The architecture answers to a tricky site. Elevations show a stepped, saw-tooth façade that “pushes and pulls” along the street wall to break up mass and pull daylight deeper into units. Alternating light and dark bands with ribbed panels add rhythm along the curve of Court Street, while a long podium terrace creates a perch above the sidewalk for shared open space. The building’s mass tucks into the hillside as it rises, limiting excavation while maintaining light and air to the rear—an approach documented in the section drawings.

1540 West Court Street Elevation via JZA Architecture

Homes will be 100% income-restricted, serving low- and moderate-income households under ED1. The no-parking entitlement keeps the footprint compact and prioritizes homes over stalls—reasonable here given the quick bus connections on Glendale Boulevard and Sunset, and short trips to everyday services in Echo Park and Historic Filipinotown.

With grading, shoring strategy, and the stepped slab geometry spelled out in the permit set, The Court Residences is positioned as a careful fit for a steep lot that rarely lends itself to fully affordable construction. Construction activity is underway.

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