Yesterday, the Los Angeles City Council approved plans for the Palladium Residences, a proposed $320-million development which would flank the Hollywood Palladium.

Plans from Miami-based developer Crescent Heights call for the construction of two 28-story buildings on large parking lot which abuts the historic performance venue.  The towers, each standing approximately 350 feet tall, would create a total of 731 residential units, 24,000 square feet of ground-level commercial space and residential amenities.  Other elements of the project include a above- and below-grade garage with parking accommodations for 1,900 vehicles and 820 bicycles, as well as 37 units of affordable housing with rents ranging between $400 and $1,000 per month.

Designs from San Francisco-based Stanley Saitowitz / Natoma Architects pay homage to the Palladium, with a grid-pattern facade inspired by the marquee of the concert hall.  The curving, L-shaped footprints of the towers also allude the the Palladium's Streamline Moderne architecture.

Previous reports have indicated that Crescent Heights intends to break ground on the project in 2018.

The project sits directly across the street from Columbia Square, a similar development which involved the preservation of a historic building and the construction of a new high-rise structure on an adjacent parking lot.

The Palladium Residences have become a lighting rod for an ongoing debate over development in Hollywood, joining controversial neighbors such as the Millennium Hollywood and the Sunset Gordon tower.  Opponents of the project have vowed to sue to prevent its construction, and are pursuing a ballot measure aimed at curbing development citywide.