By Jason Islas
Lookout Staff

August 2, 2012 -- A week after the nearly $60 million sale of the building that is to house the new Apple Store on Santa Monica's Third Street Promenade, the local Ironworkers union picketed the sudden decision to switch to out-of-state labor.

After the building was bought by the East Coast-based Nakash Holdings, the Arizona based Nexus Steel, LLC was subcontracted to complete work on the three-story, 17,550 square-foot building sold by ASB Capital Management and Blatteis & Schnur Inc.

Martin Rodriguez, business agent for Ironworkers Local 433, was upset that the Chicago-based Pepper Construction -- the general contractor for the project -- would hire Nexus Steel as a subcontractor because they don't employ California workers.

“We have a lot of guys out of work here,” said Rodriguez, “and (Pepper) hired out-of-state contractors."

Rodriguez found out about the new arrangement on July 24, the day after the building sold.

“We had an agreement with the regional developer on this job,” he said. “The building was sold. That's what changed the game plan.”

Rodriguez said Nexus doesn't pay workers the average $33 an hour and benefits that a union ironworker in California earns.

“They are able to undercut the competition because the standard of living is much cheaper in Arizona,” he said. “It's about upholding area standards.”

But, Rodriguez said most of the construction on the new building has been finished. “We were down to the last 10 percent of the structure,” he said.

Nexus officials did not return a call for comment and Nakash Holdings, the building's new owner, could not be reached after hours.

In August of 2011, plans for a new, all-glass building on Santa Monica's Promenade sparked international interest as rumors circulated that Apple would be building a new flagship store in the sea side city.

But getting a confirmation whether or not the new building would be an Apple Store was almost impossible.

Calls to Apple's corporate office by The Lookout revealed nothing and even the planner involved on the project, Senior Planner Tony Kim, didn't know who the tenant was going to be.

Even more eyebrows were raised when, in mid-August, the Planning Commission -- which will often spend hours discussing the finer points of a development's impact on the City -- approved the plans for the three-story building without any discussion.

Only City Council Kevin McKeown was able to confirm at the time that the building would be the new Apple Store.

He told The Lookout in August of last year, “Not only is it a new Apple store, it is a stunning flagship presence that indicates the continuing success of the Third Street Promenade.”

In June 2010, the liberal city's City Council voted unanimously to boycott Arizona businesses with a resolution that banned official travel and directed staff not to conduct business with Arizona-based contractors.

The resolution -- intended to protest Arizona's immigration law -- only applies to City business and not private projects like the Apple store.