Apartment Projects Dominate Orange County’s New Landscape: Twelve Then-and-Now Photos
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Nothing says recovery like new construction, and there have been quite a few additions to Orange County, California between 2007 and today. Some of these projects were commenced or completed during the economy’s darker days, but all helped bolster employment in construction, office, medical, transportation and hospitality jobs. In good times and in bad, Orange County’s solid underlying fundamentals—strong economic activity and a population that nearly ties San Diego’s as the second most inhabited county in the state — keep this real estate market fairly active.
In particular, there has been an upsurge in the inventory of Orange County apartments. Rentals accounted for most of the new supply as the job market firmed, but home buying remained difficult. And new apartment construction continues. A steadily rising employment rate and an increase in new household formation pushed new residential building permits to their highest level in 15 years through the third quarter of last year and two-thirds of that was multi-family, the Orange County Register reported in December.
You can see for yourself how different Orange County looks. With the help of Google’s Street View, we have brought you amazing before-and-after images of a number of key Orange County development sites. Simply hold and drag the arrow to see the transformation:
1. The Crossing Apartments – Northeast Anaheim
Year Built: 2009
Sares-Regis built The Crossing Apartments, a 312-unit rental community at 3530 E. La Palma Ave. offering loft, one-bedroom, two-bedroom (some with dens) and townhome units. Amenities include: screening room, health club, clubhouse with fireplace and catering kitchen, business center and subterranean parking. The LEED Gold-certified complex is next to the Metrolink Anaheim Canyon Station and at the intersection of three freeways.
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2. Kaiser Permanente Anaheim Medical Centre – Northeast Anaheim
Year Built: 2012
At 3440 E. La Palma, Kaiser Permanente completed a 262-bed hospital to replace its Lakeview Avenue hospital. The high-tech and energy-efficient facility incorporates 36 emergency room bays, 10 operating rooms, 10 labor and delivery rooms, a heliport, a “healing garden” and parking, as well as two medical office properties. The property is credited with helping bring new uses to the once aerospace-heavy Anaheim Canyon.
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3. Anaheim Regional Transportation Intermodal Center – City Center Orange
Year Built: 2014
The City of Anaheim unveiled “ARTIC”, a 67,000-square-foot transportation hub on the triangle alongside Angel Stadium and the Honda Center. It services train, bus, and taxi passengers as well as bike riders and is the planned southern end of the high-speed rail system that will connect Southern California to the Bay Area around 2030. ARCTIC contains 12,000 square feet of retail and three parking lots.
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4. Sandhu Residence & Conference Center – City Center-Orange
Built in 2009
Chapman University added a 200,000-square-foot dorm and conference center. The largest enclosed structure on campus, Sandhu accommodates 300-plus returning students on one side and contains a conference center with a 500-seat main hall, breakout rooms, a catering facility and guest suites on the other. There is also a food court-style dining facility for students. The building is named for donors Sandy and Harriet Sandhu.
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5. Courtyard Irvine Spectrum – Irvine Spectrum Center
Built in 2014
Courtyard Marriott planted a flag at 7955 Irvine Center Drive. The interior of the 271-room hotel honors the historic Irvine Ranch while offering such high-tech conveniences as media pods in the lobby, in-room smart TVs, and iPhone docking stations. There is also a restaurant, fitness center, outdoor pool with cabanas, a business center with event space, and a putting green.
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6. Centerpointe Apartment Homes – Irvine Spectrum Center
Built in 2015
Within walking distance of the Irvine Spectrum at 7725 Gateway, this brand-new Irvine Apartment Communities residence offers studio, one-bedroom, and two-bedroom apartments—some containing lofts—with open-style floor plans and 10-foot ceilings. The 766-unit property boasts a fitness center with Pilates studio, Cox’ Gigablast Internet™ throughout, a clubhouse, a game room, and a saltwater pool with spa.
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7. The Carlyle – Irvine Business Complex
Built in 2013
Located near the John Wayne Airport, The Carlyle at Colton Plaza rents large two-bedroom/two-bath and three-bedroom/two-bath units (ranging from 1,238 to 1,579 square feet) with balconies and resort-style amenities. Managed by Greystar, the 156-unit property at 18880 Douglas Ave. was planned as a condominium by the original developer. New Pacific Realty purchased the partially-built project in 2009 from the lender who foreclosed on the property.
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8. The Kelvin Apartments – Irvine
Built in 2014
Previously known as Modera Irvine, this newcomer was built by Mill Creek Residential, but is now managed by Equity Residential. Located at 2850 Kelvin Ave., the property offers 194 one- and two-bedroom units with walk-in closets, hardwood floors and quartz countertops. The complex has a club room, a pet park, a pool, cabanas with individual TVs, and a fitness center.
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9. The Park at Irvine Spectrum Center – Irvine Spectrum
Built in 2009
Situated around a 2.4-acre recreational lawn, The Park at Irvine Spectrum is a 1,450-unit rental community with studio, one- and two-bedroom units—some with lofts and dens. Another development of Irvine Apartment Communities, the apartments located at 18000 Spectrum boast granite or CaesarStone countertops, crown molding and in-home washers and dryers. The property also has three saltwater pools, five clubrooms, a screening room, and two fitness centers.
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10. The Strand – City Center Huntington Beach
Built in 2008
Overlooking Huntington Beach Pier, The Strand is a mixed-use development with 97,000 square feet of retail, restaurant and office space and the 157-room Shorebreak Hotel. Last year, L.A.-based CIM, the developer of the four-building complex at 155 5th St., sold the retail portion to Cypress Equities of Dallas and the hotel to DiamondRock Hospitality Co. of Bethesda, MD. Kimpton manages the hotel.
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11. Ayres Hotel Fountain Valley – City Center Fountain Valley
Built 2013
Sitting three miles from Huntington Beach and 10 miles from Disneyland, the all-suite Ayres Hotel Fountain Valley holds 87 king studio suites and 40 two-queen studio suites. The upscale, pet-friendly property features an outdoor lounge with fire pit, a restaurant, a year-round heated pool, and meeting space. Located at 17550 Brookhurst, the property is owned and operated by Ayres Hotel Group.
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12. Hyundai Motor America Headquarters – Fountain Valley
Built in 2013
Hyundai constructed a new $200 million headquarters at 10550 Talbert Ave. Designed by Gensler, the 500,000-square-foot glass-clad structure consists of a six-story tower connected to a one-story technical services facility. The two-story high entrance leads to an open-sky courtyard. The property is the largest investment Hyundai has made on a corporate office building.
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We encourage you and freely grant you permission to reuse, host, or repost the images in this article. When doing so, we only ask that you kindly attribute the authors by linking to RentCafe.com or this page, so that your readers can learn more about this project, the research behind it and its methodology.
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Nadia Balint is a senior creative writer for RENTCafé. She covers news and trends in residential and commercial real estate and their impact on our everyday life, including rental housing, for-sale housing, real estate development, homeownership, market reports, insurance, landlord-tenant laws, personal finance, urban development, economy, sustainability, and social issues. Nadia holds a B.S. in Business Management from Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago. You can connect with Nadia via email.
Nadia’s work and expertise have been quoted by major national and local media outlets, including CNN, CNBC, CBS News, Curbed, The NY Post, The Chicago Tribune, The Denver Post as well as industry publications, such as GlobeSt, Bisnow, Inman News, Multifamily Executive, and The Commercial Real Estate Show. Nadia also wrote for Multi-Housing News, Commercial Property Executive, HubSpot, and more. Prior to entering the real estate industry, Nadia worked in the legal field, where she gained over 10 years of experience in business, corporate, and real estate law.
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