If you’ve ever driven down the 10 or the 5 through East LA at night, you’ve seen it. That massive, 226-foot Art Deco tower looming over Olympic Boulevard like a silent, concrete ghost. For nearly a century, the historic Sears building LA has been the North Star for the Eastside. It’s a landmark so big it basically has its own weather system. But honestly, if you walk up to it today, it’s a weird mix of majestic and heartbreaking.
Most people see a "dead mall" or a boarded-up relic. They aren’t entirely wrong. The ground-floor retail store—the last gasp of the building's original life—finally shuttered in 2021 after 94 years. Now, the 1.8-million-square-foot behemoth sits mostly empty, caught in a tug-of-war between developers, city officials, and a community that is rightfully terrified of being priced out.
The Original Amazon: Roller Skates and Corkscrew Chutes
Let’s get one thing straight: this wasn't just a department store. When it opened in 1927, this was the "Original Amazon" of the West Coast.
Sears, Roebuck & Co. didn't just want a shop; they built a distribution machine. The scale was stupidly ambitious. We’re talking about a facility that processed mail orders for the entire Rocky Mountain and Pacific Coast regions. At its peak, employees literally wore roller skates to zip around the 11 acres of floor space just to pull orders. If you ordered a toaster or a bicycle in 1940, it probably slid down one of the building's massive internal corkscrew chutes before being loaded onto a truck.
The construction itself was a flex. The Scofield Engineering Construction Company built the whole thing in just six months. They had steam shovels running day and night. It was one of the largest buildings in Los Angeles, and in its first month, 100,000 people showed up just to stare at it. For decades, it was the economic heart of Boyle Heights.
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Why the Historic Sears Building LA is Stuck in Limbo
So, why is it still empty? It’s complicated.
Izek Shomof, a developer known for big downtown projects, bought the site in 2013 for about $29 million. Since then, the plans have changed more times than the weather.
First, there was the "Life Rebuilding Center" idea. Shomof proposed turning the massive complex into a gargantuan homeless resource hub with 10,000 beds. It sounded noble to some, but the community pushback was intense. Locals called it a "concentration camp" for the poor, fearing it would concentrate the city's entire unhoused population into one already struggling neighborhood. Shomof eventually scaled the plan back to 2,500 beds, but it never got the political green light.
By 2026, the vibe has shifted again.
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The Art Gallery Controversy
Recently, the fifth floor saw some life with the opening of the Mark Jude Gallery. You’d think an art gallery would be a win, right? Not in Boyle Heights. For many long-time residents, art galleries are the "canary in the coal mine" for gentrification. There’s a fear that if the building becomes a trendy "Arts District" extension, the rent in the surrounding blocks will skyrocket, and the families who have lived there for generations will be gone.
The Current State of the "Eastside Beacon"
Right now, the building is a shell. Most of the 1.8 million square feet is "historic use"—which is developer-speak for storage and empty office space.
If you visit today, you’ll see:
- The Tower: Still iconic, still Art Deco, but looking a bit rough around the edges.
- The Stairs: The famous long flight of stairs leading to the Olympic Boulevard entrance is often gated or quiet.
- The Neighborhood: Surrounded by warehouses and fast-food joints, the building remains a "gateway" that nobody is allowed to enter.
There’s a real tension here. On one hand, you have a massive "eyesore" that could house thousands of people or provide jobs. On the other, you have a community trying to protect its soul from "luxury lofts" that nobody in the zip code can afford.
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Facts You Probably Didn't Know
- The Materials: Almost everything used to build it in 1927 was sourced from LA County, except for the steel window sashes.
- The Jobs: When the distribution center closed in 1992, over 1,300 people lost their jobs overnight. It was a massive blow to the local economy.
- The Landmark Status: It’s been on the National Register of Historic Places since 2006, which means you can’t just tear it down. It has to be preserved, which makes renovation incredibly expensive.
What’s Next for the Olympic and Soto Landmark?
The Shomof Group has basically shelved the massive "Life Rebuilding Center" for now, citing "inaction by elected officials." Instead, they are leaning into smaller activations, like the gallery, while keeping the rest for distribution and storage.
Honestly? The building is too big for any one simple solution. It's a city within a city.
If you want to see it for yourself, the best view is still from the Soto Street bridge or the parking lot across the street. It’s a reminder of a time when LA was the king of American industry. Whether it becomes a tech hub, a housing complex, or stays a beautiful, empty monument depends entirely on whether the city and the community can finally agree on what "progress" looks like for Boyle Heights.
How to Explore the History
- Drive by at Sunset: The way the light hits the Art Deco tower is still one of the best free views in Los Angeles.
- Visit the Mark Jude Gallery: If you want to see the interior (and the fifth floor), check their schedule. It’s one of the few ways to legally get inside the upper floors right now.
- Support Local Boyle Heights Businesses: If you’re heading over there to take photos of the architecture, grab lunch at the local spots on Olympic or Whittier Blvd. The community is the reason that building matters.
- Check the LA Conservancy: They occasionally host walking tours or webinars specifically focused on the industrial history of the Eastside.