The Village, an apartment complex opening across the street from the Irvine Spectrum Center, was designed to make residents think of Italy, Spain and South Beach, Fla.
The 1,550-unit complex also includes smaller flourishes from as far away as Vietnam.
But for the signature piece of the apartment complex, developer The Irvine Company went just an hour or so north.
“In the heart of The Village, we have a 40-year-old Moreton Bay fig tree from the San Fernando Valley,” said Robert Goto, vice president of landscape architecture for the Irvine Co. “It took months to find one of that size and beauty.”
Goto hopes that the tree will resonate with residents, just like a Moreton Bay fig tree became an icon in Santa Barbara. That city’s fig tree is the largest of its kind in the country.
For the Irvine Co., lofty plans are part of the business.
Small details stand out in The Village. Lighting fixtures on building sides were brought in from Italy, as were about a dozen trash bins. Dozens of ornate flower pots, five feet tall, line the interior garden. Those were imported from Vietnam.
Gardens that line the side of the interior of the apartment buildings were designed to allow better access for emergency workers in the case of a fire. But they still look decorative.
And the palm trees that line the main street are all exactly the same height,something the Irvine Co. strives for, Goto said.
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Rendering of The Village: flower pots imported from Vietnam |
Trees help define the spatial layout of a neighborhood, Goto said. They create an overhead canopy of green foliage, reduce the scale of the buildings and create a pedestrian or human feel, he said.
The Irvine Co. uses plants with fragrance, such as star jasmine, and color, such as azaleas, lily of the Nile and day lilies, to give character to its properties.
Goto said the company also places fountains of different styles in courtyards to give a sense of identity,and to create a soothing background environment, he said.
The company’s landscaping strategy is critical, Goto said. As with the Irvine Co.’s office and retail developments, many of the company’s apartment properties are upscale, long-term investments.
Along with The Village, larger complexes owned by the company in OC include the 1,442-unit Villa Siena, which runs along Jamboree Road in Irvine, and the 1,052-unit Newport Bluffs on MacArthur Boulevard in Newport Beach.
Meticulously designed property entrances lined by trees, open park space, saltwater pools, gardens and alcoves, and hidden, underground parking are part of many Irvine Co. complexes.
“The reality is people notice landscaping before they see these buildings,” Goto said.
Flourishes like the fig tree give “residents a sense of pride, and place,” he said. “Landscaping does that.”
The Irvine Co. uses 100 types of trees and plants. Plants include birds of paradise, pink India Hawthorn plants and bougainvilleas. Trees include sycamores, oaks, redwoods, palms and Canary Island pines.
Focus From Above
Developers who hold properties for only a few years have fewer financial incentives to make grand landscaping investments.
The Irvine Co. develops and keeps apartments on its books. It doesn’t plan to turn its apartments into condominiums, despite a recent spate of condo conversions amid the booming housing market in Orange County, said Max Gardner, president of the Irvine Co.’s apartment division.
In the long run, investing in landscaping is profitable.
“Over time, buildings depreciate, but the value of the landscaping can increase,” Gardner said.
The company constantly is doing major landscape renovation work. Projects are revisited about six times a year, with an eye on making changes when necessary, Goto said.
Its high-end 520-unit Promontory Point complex in Newport Beach received a good chunk of the $95 million the Irvine Co. spent on upgrading its apartments a few years ago.
Promontory Point, built in the 1970s, has an average rent of $2,700 per month, with some apartments going for more than $4,000 per month.
Amenities at the complex reflect the prices,a yacht at the nearby harbor recently was chartered for a resident excursion, for example.
“The level of quality we provide comes from above,” Goto said.
Irvine Co. chairman and owner Donald Bren “has a personal interest in the quality of the properties, and it shows,” he said.
The Irvine Co.’s apartment division employs two in-house landscape architects,a rarity for all but the largest apartment management companies.
The company also employs a tree consultant, whose job is to search the country for unusual and hard-to-find trees and plants.
Most apartment owners tend to go with outside contractors. A number of high-profile landscape architectural companies are in OC.
Newport Beach-based Lifescapes International Inc., led by Chief Executive Donald Brinkerhoff, has grown its name by building themed environments in Las Vegas.
Lifescapes recently designed the 20 acres of gardens that are part of the Wynn Las Vegas resort.
Closer to home, the company worked on the Watermarke apartment and condo complex in Irvine. The project was developed by Irvine-based Sares-Regis Group. It opened in 2004.
In Newport Beach, land planning and landscape design firm SWA Group has worked at Fashion Island and Newport Coast.
SWA principal David Berkson is the landscape architect for The Plaza-Irvine, twin 15-story condo towers being developed on Jamboree Road by Opus West Corp. and Geoffrey H. Edmunds & Associates Inc.
Village Opens Doors
Meanwhile, the Village is the first housing development within walking distance of the Irvine Spectrum mall. It’s also close to two office towers that the Irvine Co. is planning to build along the San Diego (I-405) Freeway.
The apartments are being marketed to Irvine-based employees, particularly those who work in the Spectrum area.
The city of Irvine suggested adding apartments to the Spectrum complex. It worked with the Irvine Co. about three years ago to get the land rezoned for high-density residential, Irvine Co.’s Gardner said.
One of the four districts at the project, Italian-influenced Cambria, opened this month.
A second district, Mirador, will have more of a Spanish-themed look. It’s set to open by June. The other two parts of the complex, Serena and Delrey, will follow.
Rents at The Village run from $1,395 for studios to $3,100 for two-bedroom apartments. The company is aiming to lease about 30 to 40 apartments per month while The Village is in its early stages, Gardner said.
Even while construction moves ahead on other parts of the complex, a recent tour of Cambria shows a property nearing completion,both for the apartments and the landscaping.
There was about two years of design work performed even before development started, Goto said.
The plan is to make the property’s landscape look mature at the time of its opening, Goto said.
The company’s landscaping is designed to be as good as, or better than, any property run by a homeowners’ association, Goto said.
