Real estate finance, development and investment company Bolour Associates acquired a Fairfax site that includes a former 99 Cents Only store with an eye toward eventually building apartments on the property.

Bolour will repurpose the half-acre site at 601, 611 and 619 S. Fairfax Ave. for art-focused commercial, such as gallery and showroom retail space, in the near term, but the long-term plan is to redevelop it into a 120-apartment property. The timeline for the latter is unclear. Bolour paid just over $6M for the properties.

“We are excited to transform these buildings to commercial uses that align with the area’s creative character and with the demand generated from immediate neighbors such as the Los Angeles County Museum of Art,” Bolour CEO Mark Bolour said in a statement. “Longer term, the site provides equally promising opportunities for much-needed multifamily units.”

The closure of 99 Cents Only stores translated to more than 3.8M SF vacated in Southern California alone, most of it leased space, but the chain owned some locations outright. Brokers anticipated that whether for new retail or redevelopment, many of the sites wouldn't linger on the market for long.

The three-property site runs along Fairfax Avenue between Orange and Sixth streets, a short walk from the future Metro D Line subway’s Fairfax-Wilshire stop, which is slated to open in 2025.

Bolour purchased the 99 Cents Only property through a bankruptcy auction. 99 Cents Only declared bankruptcy earlier this year, closed all its stores and is going through the Chapter 11 process.

Bolour represented itself in the Fairfax acquisition. Hilco Global represented the seller.