Park Fifth Receives Prestigious Los Angeles Business Council Architectural Award.

Opulent, $1 Billion Condominium Project Honored as Multi-Family High-Rise in the "Unbuilt Building" Category

LOS ANGELES -- The precedent-setting luxury high-rise Park Fifth condominium and hotel towers, designed by renowned architects Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates (KPF) and developed by Africa Israel, Namco Capital Group and Houk Development Company, has been honored with a Los Angeles Architecture Award by the Los Angeles Business Council (LABC). Named one of Los Angeles County's most laudable new projects in the LABC's 37th Annual Awards Program, Park Fifth will rise at the corner of Fifth and Olive Streets, across from historic Pershing Square. Park Fifth received the award in the "Unbuilt Building - Multi-Family High Rise" category at a ceremony on June 14 that brought together world renowned architects, contractors and developers.

The LABC Awards Program recognizes entire project teams (architects, contractors and developers) whose developments improve the quality of architecture and enhance the urban fabric of Los Angeles. Awardees were selected by a nine-member jury of distinguished peers. The awards were presented to 25 teams in 12 categories: Housing, Interiors, Mixed-Use, New Buildings, Preservation, Public Use, Landscape Architecture, Renovation, Sustainability, Unbuilt, Honorable Mention and Grand Prize.

The striking architecture of Park Fifth, as envisioned by KPF, also received a 2007 Project Merit Award from the New York Chapter of the American Institute of Architects. The design features lofty 76-story and 43-story towers, connected by a 15-story residential bridge. A grand staircase connects the principal pedestrian entrance in the 43-story tower to Park Fifth's defining feature, the plaza above. Two 14-story mid-rise structures surrounding a plaza create street life and activity.

The design of Park Fifth integrates the refinement of a New York-style luxury residential tower with the golden, quintessentially Southern Californian climate and lifestyle. The estimated $1 billion landmark project is conceived of as a collection of 732 residences of varying sizes, each with its own "backyard" living space introducing the California outdoor lifestyle to downtown Los Angeles for the first time. Park Fifth's exciting, new concept of "Infinity Living" is also expressed through the use of expansive glass walls that command floor-to-ceiling, unimpeded panoramic views of the city, from the ocean to the mountains.

The entire Park Fifth project is conceived as a progression through outdoor spaces of varying scales and levels of privacy: from the street-level park (public) to the elevated plaza (semi-public) to the 15th floor roof garden (semi-private) to the individual units and terraces (private). A cantilevered restaurant terrace mediates between the public street level and the semi-public plaza.

The hotel will occupy the lower floors through the bridge area, and the condominium units in the 43-story tower will be identified with the hotel brand and offer their residents access to the hotel's amenities and services.

While the 76-story tower will attain icon status as the tallest residential building west of Chicago, the mid-rise buildings will establish the foreground of the composition by relating in height and proportion to the early 20th century commercial buildings of the historic downtown core. A 150' high street wall continues the cornice line established by the adjacent Title-Guaranty and Subway Terminal Buildings. A monumental nine-story "urban window" through the Fifth Street facade frames a view into the plaza from Pershing Square.

About Kohn Pedersen Fox

Recognized as one of the most respected architectural design practices in the world, Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF) is a prestigious international architectural firm with studios in New York and London and a growing presence in Shanghai. The firm's extensive portfolio, developed over 30 years, includes designs ranging from a small jewel-like glass pavilion for Rodin sculptures to an entire new city in Incheon, Korea. KPF, led by 17 partners and directors, provides full architectural design, programming, urban design and master planning services for clients in both the public and private sectors. With an international perspective on local projects, KPF's extensive experience ensures design excellence that creates uplifting spaces for people and responds to community, context and environment. KPF has won more than 200 awards. Its work has been widely exhibited and is the subject of 13 monographs.

About Park Fifth

The tallest luxury condominium high-rise ever to be developed for Downtown Los Angeles, the estimated $1 billion Park Fifth development will rise across from historic Pershing Square at 427 West Fifth Street in the symbolic center of Downtown Los Angeles. Park Fifth will include 732 living units of varying sizes, attuned to the infinitely varied styles of California living and a five-star hotel, to be operated by one of the leading names in luxury hospitality. Groundbreaking is planned for early 2008 with occupancy slated for 2010. Capital partners for the project include Africa Israel, a publicly traded international development company based in Israel with its U.S. headquarters in New York, and Brentwood-based Namco Capital Group along with development partner Los Angeles-based Houk Development Company. For more information, visit www.parkfifth.com

About the Los Angeles Business Council

The Los Angeles Business Council (LABC) is a nonprofit association of more than 300 businesses, agencies and individuals working to address critical issues and concerns that impact the business climate and economic health of Los Angeles. As a 70-year-old advocacy and educational institution representing the business and professional community, the LABC serves as an influential link between the public and private sectors in Los Angeles, connecting the power of business with the power of government to improve the state of the region. More information on the Los Angeles Business Council and the Los Angeles Architectural Awards is available at: http://www.labusinesscouncil.org.