By Jay Jackson for Los Angeles Sentinel
Originally published March 5, 2026
Rumbling dump trucks, belching bulldozers, and constant backup beepers will add to the neighborhood soundtrack around LA’s Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza for the next two to three years, now that ground has been broken on phase one of construction on the historic shopping center’s massive redevelopment.
“The Crenshaw Baldwin Hills Mall, I’ve been coming to pretty much my whole life,” said Mayor Karen Bass, who took part in the March 5 groundbreaking ceremony, along with Councilwoman Heather Hutt, and Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson.
“For me, it’s very exciting because when I did the executive directive around adaptive reuse, which allows commercial buildings to include housing… part of the executive directive expedited and got rid of the red tape to make projects like this be developed quicker. So, I’m very excited to see that come into fruition.”
“This space is one of the most critical spaces in our community and all of Southern California,” added Harris-Dawson. He told the 50-plus neighbors, workers and gathered community leaders, “Everybody has been invited to the table. Everybody has had input. What you will see will be a reflection of the best of who we are.”
The ceremony was the first in a multi-phase plan that will see 92 residential homes go up on a sprawling lot along Santa Rosalia Drive, Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Crenshaw Boulevard. The homes will be multi-story townhomes with attached garages, connected by walking paths, courtyards, and community spaces.
What will be torn down is the historic Sears building, its automotive center, several surrounding buildings, and the parking lot around the Sears building. It’s the first demolition “dirt-work” in what will ultimately be a massive transformation of the entire mall’s 42-acre footprint, stretching from the Albertson’s supermarket near 39th and Crenshaw to Stocker Street.
“We really look forward to building something that stands the test of time,” said David Schwartzman, whose Harridge Development Group is charged with overseeing the project, which has an overall price tag of $1 billion. To land the deal, one of the requirements was to ensure 25 percent of his construction crew would come from the community.
“It obviously makes sense to hire locally. Some of the people you hire will become your buyers. It keeps the economy growing, it raises the value in the area, which raises your value.”
Along with Harridge, Access Industries Inc., SilverPeak, Atlas Development group and the city of Los Angeles are driving the project. They all fall under the coordinating umbrella of what’s called the Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza Partnership, or BHCPP. When Jason Lombard was making popcorn at the Magic Johnson Theater as a young man, he never dreamed he’d be head of the BHCPP years later, overseeing the transformation plans for the mall.
“What we saw today with the groundbreaking was that the community has embraced the project,” said Lombard, who serves as the partnership’s managing director. “To be able to bring homeownership to the area is an important part of the project. In addition to that, being able to continue this as a regional center has always been important neighborhood-wise.”
Important enough for Natalie Powell to attend almost every community meeting that focused on every development about the project. As a member of the Crenshaw Manor Community Association, she liked what she heard.
“We’re so happy that the development is moving forward, and we’re looking forward to the final results,” said Powell.
While the 92 homes are expected to be finished no later than 2029, the entire redevelopment won’t be complete for another five to seven years. There will be 961 apartments and condominiums on the property, a 400-room hotel, an office tower, 330,000 square feet of new retail space, and nearly 150,000 square feet of office space. All told, it will be a 3 million-square-foot mega-project designed to transform the newly minted Black Cultural District and far beyond.
For James Brumsfield, whose custom menswear store has been in the mall for more than a quarter century, the upgrade is the work of higher powers.
“There is a change coming here,” said Brumsfield. “This right here, I humbly believe, is the will of God.”
