Sweet Orange

I’m hopeful in that Santa Ana will some day become a true destination city; where new circulation is brought to our streets-where places like Downtown, The Fiesta Marketplace, 4th Street, and the Station District (including the train depot) are ventured to by people all over Southern California.–Ben Dayhoe, Life at the Santiago Street Lofts–The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

I came across a blog that I haven’t seen before, Life at the Santiago Street Lofts–The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. I thought that it had some interesting info on life in Santa Ana, and since I write about development in Orange County, I thought that an excerpt from a recent Santiago Street post was appropriate for reprinting on this blog.

After living in Santa Ana for over three years, it seems as if things are finally happening in the empty lots just West of the Santiago Lofts.

When I first told my friends and family I was moving to Santa Ana, they thought I was crazy. But to me, it made perfect sense because I believe in this city-what it is, what it was, and what it could be.

As of Monday night [August 17], the Related/Griffin team is now one step closer in becoming the master developer for these nearby lots. And after three years of watching other cities evolve while Santa Ana moved at a snail’s pace, I am filled with hope with the thought of what could come to our city.

But at the same time, my hopes are equally met with trepidation and fears.

He goes on to state some of his hopes and fears for the area (one of which can be found at the beginning of this post). Check them out at his blog.  All the Google ad money he gets is donated to Pet Pro Life, a dog rescue program.

Related information:

• The City of Santa Ana: The Station District RFQ
• Santa Ana Downtown National Register District–Wikipedia
• “Santa Ana sees new neighborhood on vacant lots,” The Orange County Register, Doug Irving
• “Santa Ana plan aims for downtown rebirth,”  The Orange County Register, Doug Irving

2007 ARTIST RENDERING OF THE STATION DISTRICT IN SANTA ANA COURTESY THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Yesterday, I listed mostly the points in favor of the mixed-use, urban development in the Irvine Business Complex (IBC). Now here is my criticism of the IBC development. The trade off for a more densely built development has often been lower home prices. However, in the boom years of our recent past, the developers could make more money building these high-end high-rises, and understandably this is what they choose to build.

However, even then that wasn’t the primary type of high-density housing that Orange County needed. And today, even with our reduced housing prices, affordability is still a problem in Orange County. Building housing that is more in harmony with the median Orange County income is what is needed. The trade off for higher density should be lower home prices.

I think it would be interesting to take the IBC’s Astoria design tour put on by the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID), and, in the process, support the Orange County Performing Arts Center. But I suggest that future development objectives be tweaked to provide more affordability. And while I am at it, I will put in a word for keeping residential development on a more human scale, which would be four stories or less.

For a look at urban-living in the IBC from a design point of view, see Cindy McNatt’s “Loft-style living,” or watch this YouTube video.

Also, for more information on the current status of the IBC development and some various opinions on the development, see “Mothballed Condo Project in Irvine, CA,”  the City of Irvine’s IBC home page, “Irvine planners approve design of large-scale office retail project,” and “Irvine considers 6,000 residential units in urban core.”

GRAPHIC COURTESY THE CITY OF IRVINE

I have written about the evolving development of high- and mid-rise living in the Irvine Business Complex (IBC) and have been meaning to write more about this type of development. A recent post by Erica Chavez at the O.C. Register’s Irvine Homes blog has given me the nudge to get around to writing this post. So, before I go any further, thanks to Erica for her interesting post—and the nudge.

The post gives the details and some interesting links for the ongoing design tours that are occurring at the Astoria at Central Park West, one of the new IBC high-rise developments. As Erica points out the tours will continue through May 22, and the proceeds will benefit the Orange County Performing Arts Center. If you are interested in urban living and/or design, check out Erica’s post (Design tour offers sneak preview at Irvine’s newest high-rise).

Now here is where the nudge comes in. Some who left comments on the post had some harsh words about this development. My take is that Orange County is currently urban as well as suburban; however, some have trouble accepting that all development in Orange County is not going to be of the traditional suburban vintage. However, circumstances have changed since our suburban heyday, and our development criteria needs to progress with these changes. Our population has grown, so we don’t have the wide-open spaces of the past for housing developments. In addition, today we have more empty nesters and young professionals who want the advantages of urban living.

However, let me make it clear, I don’t think that suburban homes should be done away with. They should stay a big part of the mix. I just think that circumstances have changed and a need for a more diverse housing mix currently exists.

Tomorrow: my criticism of the IBC development

For more information on the IBC, see “The Housing Numbers for the Irvine Business Complex: Irvine’s Evolving, Mixed-Use Urban Center.”

GRAPHIC COURTESY ASTORIA