ANAHEIM – Construction workers scale the wooden framework of the nearly completed Katella Grand apartment complex like bees making quick work of an oversized hive.
Across the street, the first 400 apartments in the once-stalled A-Town Metro complex will start to crop up from a sprawling dirt lot by December. And, possibly by this time next year, a Chinese company will start construction on Orange County’s tallest residential tower.
“I’m excited, with capital letters!” said Ana Alonso, 45, who has lived in the Park Viridian apartments since they opened seven years ago during the initial construction of the Platinum Triangle.
“These types of neighborhoods are great,” Alonso said. “You can go eat or drink without having to drive. There are a lot of upsides.”
After waiting out the recession, developers will pour an estimated $1.2 billion into construction over the next decade on the Platinum Triangle. Before the recession struck, about $500 million was spent on five housing projects.
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The Platinum Triangle is 820 acres that builders and city planners hope to turn into a vast urban region stretching from the new ARTIC transit hub to the 5 freeway.
Once, no one lived here. When completed, the area could be home to an estimated 28,000 people.
And the building doesn’t end there. The adjoining Resort District has 10 hotels undergoing construction, expansion or development – neighbors to the massively expanding Convention Center and Disneyland, gearing up to add a “Star Wars” land.
Real estate experts say the construction surge concentrated along Katella Avenue and nearby streets boils down to an improving economy, rising demand for housing and the chance to take advantage of the nearby Disney parks, Angel Stadium, Honda Center and three major freeways.
“This is a strategic location … an attractive place to live for young professionals or older couples,” said Mark Boud, founder of Real Estate Economics in San Clemente.
“It won’t be a high-end, luxury area, but it certainly won’t be an area that deteriorates any time soon, because I think Anaheim’s city officials will have high demands for this part of the city,” Boud said.
“If affordable-unit pricing is offered with reasonable homeowner dues, then you’ll see huge crowds.”
Previously an industrial swath, the area was rezoned in 2004 to include high-rise residential towers surrounded by a mix of shops, offices and restaurants.
But only a few low-rise condominium and apartment complexes were built before the recession of 2007 and ’08 put development into a skid.
Some housing units and lots sat empty, and some condos were leased out until developers could sell them at prices they wanted.
“We never thought it would happen overnight, but it’s good that it’s accelerating,” Anaheim Mayor Tom Tait said of the renewed building boom.
“Just look at a map of Orange County, and you’ll see that this location makes the most sense for a large downtown, residential area,” Tait added.
As the economy recovered, some developers have come back with revamped plans.
Lennar’s A-Town Metro, for example, once was going to have 11 high-end condominium towers. While that plan didn’t materialize, in part because demand for luxury condominiums didn’t match home prices and rents, it’s now working on the 400 luxury apartments.
Several others developers shelved earlier ideas and sold their land to others wanting to jump in.
Like Prologis. It purchased 17.6 acres acres of industrial property near Angel Stadium in 1992, long before the Platinum Triangle was even discussed.
Prologis is expected to close a deal within the next several weeks with JPI/TDI Cos., which has submitted preliminary plans for Jefferson Stadium Park, an 826-unit apartment complex with 10,000 square feet of retail.
“Prologis specialized in industrial, so it made sense to sell the land to JPI/TDI Cos., which has more experience with residential projects,” said Louis Tomaselli, senior managing director of JLL, an Irvine financial firm representing Prologis in the sale.
“Overall, I think Platinum Triangle is going to be a success,” Tomaselli said.
“The only thing that took it down and put it in a hole was the worst recession to hit us in a generation.”
The sale would mark the second time that JPI/TDI Cos. swept up a chunk of property from a developer wanting to sell their piece of the Platinum Triangle.
In December, JPI paid $24 million to BEX Portfolio for a 7.6-acre plot near Katella Avenue and State College Boulevard. A month later, JPI/TDI started construction on Jefferson Platinum Triangle, a $119 million complex with 400 apartments scheduled to open next year.
One business that hopes to benefit from the boom along Katella is Zov’s, a Mediterranean-restaurant chain with spots throughout Orange County.
The Anaheim Zov’s location opened last year at Katella and State College, near Angel Stadium, on the bottom floor of a condo complex.
“It’s exciting to see the vision of the Platinum Triangle becoming a reality,” said Armen Karamardian, whose mother, Zov Karamardian, founded the bistros.
“There’s a vibrancy to neighborhoods like these,” he said. “Residents can come home, park their cars and walk down to the restaurant.”
In addition to Zov’s and a handful of nearby fast-food eateries, some residents said they hope to see more restaurants built here.
“There are only a few places to eat right now,” said Nathan Brown, who in March moved from San Francisco to the Avalon Angel Stadium apartment complex.
“I’ve been seeing a lot of construction, and it’s pretty neat,” Brown said while walking his dog, Mason. “I guess we’ll see what happens when it’s done.”
As some developers backed away from high-rise projects during the recession, LT Global Investment still believes a densely concentrated core will thrive in Anaheim.
The Chinese development company purchased land last year and is waiting for city approval to build a $450 million hotel and commercial complex, including a 348-foot-tall condo tower at State College Boulevard and Orangewood Avenue.
Its plans called for a 600-unit tower that would have required some residents and visitors to park at nearby Angel Stadium. The project was scaled down to 340 apartments and condos after Angels officials declined to give up parking access.
“These other folks made decisions based on their own projections and trajectory, but we see it differently,” said Randy Jefferson, project development director for LT Global Investment Platinum Triangle.
“Our parent company in China is not interested in something that we’re going to hold onto for four or five years,” Jefferson said. “They’re looking long term.”
Platinum Triangle could get even bigger than planned.
Jason Ficht, director of planning and urban design at JZMK Partners in Costa Mesa, said he expects a housing development will rise someday on the vast parking lot at Angel Stadium.
Officials from the Angels and the city broke off talks last year for a revised stadium lease, in part because the mayor didn’t want the team to develop the city-owned parking lots, with Anaheim getting only $1 per year in the deal.
“It may be 20 years from now, but someday those lots will be developed,” Ficht said.
“Surface parking doesn’t make sense anymore from a land-value standpoint, so it will definitely happen,” Ficht said about development. “But when, and how fast, will be a function of construction costs and timing more than anything else.”
Staff writer Chris Haire contributed to this report.
Contact the writer: 714-704-3769 or [email protected]
