Newport Beach’s Irvine Company plans to start building and selling homes in south Irvine near Laguna Canyon this spring.
The planned Laguna Altura gated community is off Laguna Canyon Road near the San Diego (I-405) Freeway, in the hills overlooking the Irvine Spectrum.
The homes are set to be the first in several years developed by Irvine Co. outside its Woodbury, Stonegate and Portola Springs projects near the former El Toro Marine base in northern Irvine.
Groundwork on Laguna Altura, previously known as Laguna Crossings, has been under way for some time.
Plans
Before sending out marketing materials last week, the developer had been noncommittal about a timeframe for homes in the area.
Materials distributed by Irvine Co. now show the project opening this spring, with four neighborhoods planned.
Homes are set to run from about $600,000 to more than $1 million, according to the company’s marketing materials.
The homes are being built by Irvine Pacific LP, the developer’s recently revamped homebuilding division.
Irvine Pacific is headed up by Dan Young, president of Irvine Co.’s community development division, which plans and oversees building of homes, parks and shopping centers on company land.
Irvine Co. has been the busiest housing developer here in the past year or so, with about 1,200 homes sold at its recent Irvine projects.
Company Land
The company has had the advantage of owning land to build on, which has made it one of the few to put up homes amid a still sluggish housing market.
Irvine Co. started developing homes at the projects last year, first paying builders to put up homes under what it called its executive builder program.
Last summer, the company revived its Irvine Pacific homebuilding unit, which last built homes on Irvine Co. land some 20 years ago.
