CityView, a premier investment management and development firm focused on urban multifamily real estate in the Western United States, and Red Oak Investments, an urban redevelopment company active in Los Angeles and Orange County, held a naming ceremony Thursday for Baker Block, their new apartment community located at the corner of Baker and Pullman Streets.
The ceremony for Baker Block featured speeches by Mayor Steve Mensinger, Sean Burton, CEO of CityView, Henry Cisneros, Founder and Chairman of CityView and the former Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and Joe Flanagan, Principal and Co-founder of Red Oak Investments.
The attendees were also treated to lunch by the Lime Truck, a popular food truck service.
When completed in mid-2017, Baker Block is expected to feature 240 residential apartments and a six-story above ground parking structure. Planned amenities include a rooftop deck, a fitness center with yoga room, a conference room, a Wi-Fi lounge, a dog park, a dog wash station, a club room with a kitchen, a bike storage and maintenance area, and multiple outdoor spaces with a resort-style pool, BBQ grills and fire pits.
“This is really a cruise ship,” Mayor Mensinger said of the development and its extensive amenities. “But it also means jobs and it means housing and this is where the next generation of Costa Mesa lives. And hopefully they will stay here for life.”
Secretary Cisneros complimented the Costa Mesa city staff and leadership for their hard work in getting this development done.
“We need to keep up with housing of all types,” Cisneros said. “It is immensely foresighted of the leaders of Costa Mesa that they recognize that balance.”
CityView is creating the project along with its development partner, Red Oak Investments. The project sits on a 4.17-acre site previously occupied by an office building. The project is the first of significant scale to be re-zoned for residential use in the area adjacent to the South Bristol Entertainment & Cultural Arts (SoBECA) District, which is commonly known for its low-density office buildings and light manufacturing facilities.
Burton said his company is glad to be in Costa Mesa.
“Orange County is an important market for CityView as it is now entering the redevelopment phase, where obsolete structures are being converted into housing,” said Burton. “These urban infill projects are typically complex, so they are often overlooked by other investors. We are able to overcome these challenges by working with local partners who know the local market better than anyone else. The Red Oak Investments team has been instrumental in bringing Baker Block to fruition, and I thank them for all of their hard work.”
Construction for Baker Block is being led by Johnstone Moyer, Inc., one of the top-10 multifamily builders in California. The building was designed by Architects Orange.
