Developers involved with converting Orange County’s two big former military bases into commercial projects finally look likely to put the remnants of the last downturn behind them.
FivePoint Communities expects to begin more development in and around Orange County Great Park in Irvine following last month’s agreement with the city over housing entitlements.
Expect to see groundwork begin for a variety of housing, commercial and park projects next year at the former El Toro Marine Base.
The other former base redevelopment project stymied by the last recession—Tustin Legacy—will have its share of projects moving forward in 2014, aided in part by the recent opening of the expanded Tustin Ranch Road.
Apartments, homes and retail projects are under way in Tustin, with local companies Standard Pacific Corp., Irvine Company and others involved in the developments.
Elsewhere in the county, the Baker Ranch housing project in Lake Forest will soon open, adding another big new-home community to OC’s improving housing market alongside big projects still ramping up in Rancho Mission Viejo and Irvine.
• PERSON TO WATCH: DOUG HOLTE
The head of the office properties division for Orange County’s dominant landlord has plenty of decisions to make in 2014 regarding existing properties, as well as buildings in the pipeline for Irvine Co.
The company has been pushing up rents at many of its higher-end offices in the Irvine Spectrum, the airport area and Newport Center as the local economy slowly but steadily improves and vacancies in the company’s portfolio decline.
That’s expected to continue next year, although there are a few potential monkey wrenches that could slow its aggressiveness on rents, particularly if chipmaker Broadcom Corp. opts to relocate from the landlord’s offices at University Research Park.
Irvine Co. also has its share of potential office projects that could start in OC if market conditions warrant. Industry watchers say another office tower might soon be in the works in the Spectrum, among other developments.
• COMPANY TO WATCH: THE NEW HOME CO.
The performance and decisions of Aliso Viejo-based New Home Co. should provide plenty of clues about the strength of the national housing market and Orange County’s demand for high-end homes in 2014.
The company’s planned $172.5 million initial public offering has been in limbo since the middle of the year, amid rising interest rates and Wall Street concerns over the health of homebuilding in the U.S.
Expect New Home Co. to be among several builders that go public if market conditions improve in 2014.
In OC, the company is building homes at the new Orchard Hills community in Irvine, which is opening for sales next year and will be among the city’s higher-end projects.
And in Newport Center, it will open that area’s first new housing project in more than 20 years—Meridian, next to the Newport Beach Marriott Hotel & Spa. Prices there are expected to start at about $1.5 million.
PREDICTION:
Irvine Co. gets monthly rents in excess of $7 per square foot for top floors space in its under-construction 520 Newport Center office tower, setting a new benchmark.
