Community blocks purchase of Baldwin Hills mall in L.A.

A $110 million acquisition of Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza in South Los Angeles has been quashed by pressure from community activists uncomfortable with the purchaser’s past dealings with the Trump Organization and Kushner Companies.

The deal proposed by LIVWRK and DFH Partners was the second one pulled back this year due to opposition from a group called Downtown Crenshaw that feared national retail chains would displace local businesses at Baldwin Hills, according to a report in the Commercial Observer.

In June, CIM Group withdrew its $130 million offer for the 869,000-sq.-ft. mall, which it intended to convert into office space. CIM, too, was pressured to back off due to its dealings with Kushner, controlled by the family of President Trump’s son-in-law and adviser Jared Kushner.

Downtown Crenshaw has launched an effort to rally local investors to make a $100 million offer for the mall and redevelop it with office space, affordable housing, studio space, and a civic center.