Reuben Brothers announced an alliance with Joby Aviation to establish an air taxi vertiport at Park Elm Residences at Century Plaza, South Tower in Century City, Los Angeles. The vertiport will utilize the building’s existing helipad to accommodate operations and charging for Joby’s all-electric, vertical take-off and landing (“eVTOL”) aircraft, which is both quiet and has zero operating emissions.
Joby is in the final stages of certifying its revolutionary aircraft for commercial operations and last month completed a set of piloted demonstration flights across the San Francisco Bay Area. With one of the world’s most recognizable skylines as a backdrop, the company showcased its operational readiness, demonstrating that air taxis are not just a concept, but making rapid progress towards becoming a commercial reality.
“Park Elm Residences at Century Plaza is expected to become the first residential development in Los Angeles to offer an in-house air taxi service integrated into residents’ lifestyles. Owners will be able to book a Joby air taxi on demand, for flights within the greater Los Angeles area, turning drives that can exceed two hours into flights as short as five minutes.”
In addition to the vertiport, Joby plans to build a dedicated passenger lounge, drawing on its experience operating Blade lounges around the world. Blade, a division of Joby, and the leading urban air mobility company in the world, currently operates nine passenger lounges in the New York area and across the South of France. This newly planned lounge will be Joby’s first in a residential building.
“At Park Elm Residences, we’re redefining luxury living. Direct access to Joby air taxi service is a truly unique amenity that elevates the resident experience today and points to a future where expanded vertiport access across Los Angeles transforms everyday convenience,” said Jordana Yechiel, Director of Residential Design for Reuben Brothers.
“Given its Century City location, Park Elm Residences at Century Plaza, South Tower is ideally positioned to anchor a broader Los Angeles vertiport network,” said Rob Wiesenthal, CEO of Joby’s Blade Air Mobility division. “We expect this network to completely reshape how residents move through the city, beginning with airport trips.”
Joby and Reuben Brothers is jointly seeking all necessary local, state, and federal approvals required to launch the service. Joby will be responsible for the vertiport and lounge build-out, as well as operations, flight arrangements, and the passenger experience. Reuben Brothers will integrate Joby’s air taxi service into the amenity offerings for all Park Elm residents.
Joby has partnered with Delta Air Lines and Uber and was recently selected as a partner in multiple winning applications under the White House-backed eVTOL Integration Pilot Program (eIPP). Through the program, Joby has the opportunity to begin early operations this year in 12 states, marking a major milestone for the U.S. air taxi industry with the potential to significantly accelerate Joby’s path to commercial service.
