Years after fencing off a small parking lot across the street from Weller Court in Little Tokyo, developer ETCO Homes has broken ground on a mid-rise apartment complex.

The project, known as Lotus 77, is located at 118 Astronaut Ellison S Onizuka Street.  Approved plans call for the construction of a nine-story, 120-foot-tall building that will feature 77 studio, one-, and two-bedroom apartments up to 1,249 square feet in size.  Other components of the mixed-use development include approximately 2,300 square feet of ground-floor retail space, a rooftop pool and amenity deck, and three levels of basement parking.

Bucilla Group Architecture designed the mid-rise edifice, which will feature an exterior of dark grey stone, simulated wood, aluminum, and varying tones of stucco.

A representative of ETCO has confirmed that construction began for the project this week with the demolition of the existing parking lot and small commercial constructures.  Previous reporting by the Downtown News indicates that the project is scheduled for completion in 2020.

The project follows a handful of similar multifamily residential developments recently completed nearby, including Holland Partner Group's Stoa and Sares-Regis Group's Wakaba.