Anyone who doubts that the multifamily development market has fully recovered from the recession need look no farther than the San Fernando Valley, where a spate of high-density, multifamily infill projects are getting underway this summer. Combine a recognized need for new, local housing and the fact that median sales prices for condominiums in the San Fernando Valley hit $350,000 in first quarter – its highest figure since 2008, according to the Southland Regional Association of Realtors – and these projects would seem to be done deals. But it’s not clear that smooth sailing is ahead for all the developers buying up residential lots and aging apartment buildings from Sherman Oaks to Woodland Hills, planning to replace them with condos and townhouses. Empire USA LLC of Santa Monica has two projects pending before the L.A. City Planning Commission, each of which proposes 95 condominium units. The developer plans to claim a “density bonus” on each site, using a city law that allows developers to exceed the maximum density threshold for projects by designating a small portion of the units for low-income buyers. In Sherman Oaks, Empire USA has proposed 95 units on a 43,000-square-foot lot at 15364-70 Weddington St., in a residential neighborhood adjacent to the 405 freeway. Six of the units would be sold at reduced prices for low-income residents; plans for the project call for 160 parking spaces. The developer has owned the property for some time, said consultant Darryl Fisher, of Fisher Associates Inc. in Yorba Linda, who represented Empire at a planning commission hearing last month. “The timing (of groundbreaking) will depend on the economy and when the developer can secure financing,” Fisher said. But approval for the project is pending a city planner’s report. Because the development is more than 50 units, the Planning Department could require the developer to get approval for its site plan – a process that includes architectural review and could take a year or more to complete. Smaller developments need a simpler approval of a written proposal by the Planning Commission that does not consider architectural design. Empire’s second project would put 95 condominiums on the site of the Quakertown Terrace apartments at 5410-5422 Quakertown Ave. in Woodland Hills, just east of Taft High School. The two-building apartment complex currently on the site was built in 1963 and its 52 apartments are rent-controlled, with many elderly tenants in residence. Concerns about their displacement, along with opposition from homeowners in the mostly single-family surrounding neighborhood, raised red flags for the Woodland Hills Warner Center Neighborhood Council. At a planning commission hearing last month, the developer’s proposal was placed on hold at the council’s request until August. Also running into some local opposition is a proposal by KB Home to build a three-story, 58-unit condominium development adjacent to a large nature preserve in Chatsworth. The L.A. residential developer wants to put a 126,000-square-foot condo development on the former home of the West Valley Christian Church and Canyon Vista Preschool at 22001 Nordhoff St. But the proposal got a thumbs-down from the Chatsworth Neighborhood Council this spring due to concerns about density, particularly as it abuts the Chatsworth Nature Preserve. That group’s vote is strictly advisory, however, and the project went to the planning commission for consideration in June. L.A. City Planner Thomas Glick is expected to issue his recommendation on the project sometime this month. Facing less opposition is a smaller project in Valley Village, where Hankey Investment Co. of Los Angeles is building 18 condominiums on adjacent lots at 5247-5253 Vantage Ave. that once held two single-family homes built in 1938. Hankey acquired the 16,274-square-foot parcel by buying the two lots last summer for $885,000 each, according to real estate data provider CoStar Group Inc. The project, initially envisioned as an apartment complex, raised some concerns with neighbors but they were resolved. It has already broken ground, said Camille Zeitouny, the developer’s representative. He expects the condos to be ready for sale in about 18 months. Brokerage Expansion NAI Capital is adding a Victorville office to its 14 Southern California locations. The brokerage, headquartered in Encino, recently got a new chief executive in long-time industrial broker Tim Foutz. In his first major move, Foutz announced the opening of the San Bernardino County office. The brokerage brought on three brokers established in that market, Mehdi Mostaedi, Graeme Carr and Emelie Kwon, to head up the operation at Sunset Business Park. Mostaedi and his team specialize in land sales, advising real estate investors and developers, and have facilitated many large deals, including a 600-acre executive resort, conference center and golf course in Reno, according to NAI. Staff Reporter Karen E. Klein can be reached at (818) 316-3123 or at [email protected].
