Chinese companies invest in U.S. development projects

Global Business

There is no sign of a slow down in Chinese investments abroad. Chinese investors are behind an increasing number of development projects in the biggest cities in the U.S., reviving the Los Angeles’ historic downtown is just one of the projects. CCTV America’s May Lee reported this story from Los Angeles.

You look at Eastern Columbia, California and it’s one of the most beautiful examples of art deco architecture in the United States. Real estate expert and noted blogger Brigham Yen loves downtown Los Angeles also referred to as DTLA and its transformation. After years of downtown neglect the building are going through a rapid renaissance.

Chinese companies invest in U.S. development projects

There is no sign of a slow down in Chinese investments abroad. Chinese investors are behind an increasing number of development projects in the biggest cities in the U.S., reviving the Los Angeles’ historic downtown is just one of the projects. CCTV America’s May Lee reported this story from Los Angeles.

“I heard so many people over the years, the skeptic’s never going to happen, it’s never going to happen and every single year, more and more things open, more people come downtown and we keep proving them wrong,” Brigham Yen, Founder, DTLA Rising said.

One area of DTLA that’s literally concrete proof of the revitalization push is the historic Broadway corridor. This was the heart of LA in the early to mid-20th century, the birthplace of vaudeville and cinema. Reviving Broadway. Advocates have said, is vital to restoring downtown’s luster.

“Los Angeles is the last great urban frontier in this country, and now this makes us really in a category that we weren’t in before, which is a world class city, because you can’t be a world class city if you don’t have a vital center,” Carol Schatz/Pres. & CEO, Central City Assoc. of LA said.

But DTLA’s transformation isn’t just about making what’s old new again. Overseas investors are pouring billions of dollars into the area with brand new multi-purpose projects.

Greenland Real Estate Group of Shanghai is one of three Chinese developers who launched major projects in the past year totaling $2.5 billion. The Metropolis is Greenland’s $1 billion development, which, when finished, will add three residential towers and a hotel to downtown LA.

Greenland also has a $6 billion development in New York City and sees these two major projects as just the tip of the investment iceberg in the U.S.

“Those projects have a great deal of influence over American property market and market potentials. But we think two projects are not enough, ” Chairman & Pres. Greenland Real Estate Group Zhang Yuliang said. “We are negotiating other projects and hope to find more opportunities from American urban development initiatives and public affairs projects.”

Another $1 billion Chinese project is Fig Central, right next to the Staples Center sports arena. Beijing-based Oceanwide Real Estate group bought the lot for $200 million. Once finished, it will consist of three high-rise residential towers, a hotel and plenty of retail space right in the heart of downtown LA.