Times building "virtually worthless'

Mark Lacter isn't alone in predicting that Sam Zell would be lucky to get any value for the Los Angeles Times property in the Civic Center.

Downtown guru Tom Gilmore flippantly suggested that the building could be used "as a mausoleum for Sam Zell, or maybe a theme park. Call it 'the times of our lives.' "

Then, he got serious: "It is virtually worthless as a piece of real estate, other than the L.A. Times ... Maybe in 20 years, when downtown is so overbuilt, and we are really dying for space. But we are still building out buildings in downtown. Someday, it will be a lovely shopping mall or something ... or maybe it could be sold to the government. .... The federal, state and local governments are constantly complaining about space."

That's from the Times' own news blog. Much more detail and analysis inside at Lacter's LA Biz Observed post.