Close: April 10, 2025
Cost: $34.7 million
BCCC NMTC Allocation: $13 million
Sponsor: SoLA Impact
Investor: Valley National Bank
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Description: SoLA Crenshaw Lofts (SoLA) consists of a 33,970 square foot multi-use facility which will house the Tech Center West and the Crenshaw Café.
The Tech Center West is Workforce-Focused Media & Event Programming space which will serve as a youth and adult training hub designed to foster significant community engagement and economic opportunities. Programs focus on in-demand skills such as live event production, music business fundamentals, media content creation, and digital literacy—resources that have been lacking in the neighborhood. By connecting participants to industry-relevant curricula, mentorship, and employer networks, Tech Center West will open new career paths in tech, media, and entertainment for low-income residents. Tech Center West is projected to train over 2,500 students each year, of which 83% are expected to be low-income persons or residents of low-income communities.
Crenshaw Café is a workforce-focused development program that provides hands-on culinary education in food safety, knife skills, and nutrition, California Food Handlers Certification and other credentials. Participants gain real-world experience working in a community-based café setting, eliminating the need to travel to distant or expensive facilities. By coupling classroom instruction with on-the-job practice, Crenshaw Café broadens local access to job-ready credentials and lays a foundation for entrepreneurial ventures in the food service industry. Crenshaw Café will serve 70 people when fully operation of which 86% are expected to be low-income persons.
In addition to education and job training, SoLA will serve as gathering spaces for neighborhood events, workshops, and cultural programming (including the Live Nation Studio). Through workshops, youth empowerment programs, cultural showcases and public events, these spaces will collectively host thousands of residents each year—promoting engagement, education, and cultural celebration. This approach addresses a longstanding deficit of accessible, community-centered venues in the surrounding low-income community, creating a healthier environment where neighbors can come together, learn new skills, and support one another’s personal and professional goals.
SoLA is closely aligned with Destination Crenshaw, a community-driven initiative focused on revitalizing the Crenshaw Corridor by celebrating Black art, culture, and economic development. By introducing a Tech & Entertainment Center and a culinary training café in the heart of South Los Angeles, SoLA is working in parallel with Destination Crenshaw’s broader vision to bring job opportunities, entrepreneurship support, and vibrant public gathering spaces to the neighborhood.