The Streamline Moderne Coca-Cola Building, an ocean liner–inspired structure moored at the corner of 14th Street and Central Avenue in Downtown Los Angeles, is charting a new course. Last week, Mayor Karen Bass joined Reyes Coca-Cola Bottling executives to mark the start of a $47.5 million revitalization of the historic facility, affectionately known as “The Ship.” The project will modernize and restore the landmark ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup and the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
“Los Angeles is an economic engine, connecting local businesses to the rest of the country and the world,” said Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass. “Reyes Coca-Cola Bottling has decided to renew and expand on their investment in our city, continuing to support good paying jobs for Angelenos and playing an integral role in Downtown LA – another signal that Los Angeles is open for business.”
The building, its prow cutting a sharp line into the sky and its portholes gleaming like rivets on a hull, was designed in 1939 by architect Robert V. Derrah, and is an example of Streamline Moderne, a style defined by aerodynamic forms and nautical motifs. The building wraps around earlier factory structures, transforming them into a cohesive Streamline composition with promenade decks, catwalks, and a bridge-like crown. The structure was designated a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural landmark in 1975 and was later used as office space.
Three years before the Coca-Cola Building, Derrah tested his nautical imagination at Crossroads of the World, a ship-shaped complex on Sunset Boulevard. In 2019, the city approved a major redevelopment of the site, preserving Derrah’s landmark but replacing surrounding rent-stabilized apartments with luxury towers, a move critics dubbed the “Manhattanization of Hollywood.” Derrah’s other ship on Central Avenue is undergoing a similar treatment, restored to its former glory, but outfitted with modern comforts, including a roof deck and bar.
The revitalization will also include a full restoration of the building’s metal facade, with crews removing non-historic additions and adding new porthole windows and doors to bring in natural light and improve accessibility. Inside, the offices and production spaces will be modernized to support greater efficiency and flexibility, preparing the site for long-term use. Sustainable design measures are set to enhance environmental performance and occupant well-being throughout. the building is poised to regain its sheen, and maybe a touch of its original fizz.
David Carey, Reyes Coca-Cola Bottling’s Market Unit President for Los Angeles and Nevada, called the project “another chapter,” emphasizing the company’s century-long presence in the city.
The renovation, by Gensler in collaboration with preservation specialists Chattel and developer Ryan Companies, will be executed in two phases: the exterior and public areas will be completed ahead of the 2026 World Cup, while the interior will be finished before the 2028 Olympics.
Reyes’s reinvestment in “The Ship,” comes as the city accelerates infrastructure and cultural upgrades in anticipation of 2028. From Grimshaw, Gruen Associates, and Arup’s new LAX/Metro Transit Center to Torti Gallas + Partners and RIOS’s revitalization of Exposition Park, Los Angeles is using the Olympics as a catalyst to rethink its urban identity.
“Reyes Coca-Cola Bottling’s investment is exactly the kind of partnership Downtown Los Angeles needs, one that honors our industrial legacy, sustains good union jobs, and drives new economic opportunity,” said Councilmember Ysabel Jurado. “It reflects the momentum and boundless potential of our City’s core, and our shared commitment to building a Los Angeles as resilient and determined as the people who power it.”
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