Defying the real estate downturn, a new 43-story residential condominium designed by Daniel Libeskind has been proposed for the southern edge of downtown LA’s South Park neighborhood.

The tower, at 1340 South Figueroa, across from the LA Convention Center, is being developed by a consortium of Korean companies called CA Human Technologies. Its massing follows that of many recent condo high-rises, with its main tower sitting on a podium of parking and retail. In true Libeskind fashion, the steel-clad building’s form is made of a series of angular cuts and protrusions from an otherwise square structure.

The cuts, and angularity of the building’s envelope, said Libeskind, are meant not only to give the building a distinct identity, but to break up the building’s mass, help it relate to the varying scales around it, and “give it space to breathe.”  Its street level retail, large plaza, and fractured base are meant to encourage street life on a boulevard who’s scale often discourages it.

“It’s meant to slow you down. It’s creating an atmosphere that celebrates the street, not just the car,” he said.

When constructed, the building will be Libeskind’s first in southern California. The project, still awaiting planning approval, includes 273 market rate units—each with its own balcony— two stories of retail, a spa, and 7 stories of parking, one of which is underground.

The building team, which also includes WSP Cantor Seinuk Structural Engineers, hopes to complete construction by 2013. The developer said it has in-house financing, so no delays are expected related to the credit crisis.

Project: 1340 South Figueroa
Architect: Daniel Libeskind
Location: Downtown Los Angeles
Developer: CA Human Technologies
Completion Date: 2013