Lennar slows down 2 O.C. projects: The company has halted sales at Irvine’s Central Park West and postponed construction of A-Town
Wednesday, November 7th, 2007
By JEFF COLLINS and SARAH TULLY
The Orange County Register
Lennar Corp. is slowing development of two major projects in Irvine and Anaheim, holding some homes back from the market until conditions and prices improve, a company official said Tuesday.
The Miami-based company, which has about two dozen developments in Orange County, will halt sales of 259 low-rise condos in its Central Park West development in Irvine, said Emile Haddad, Lennar’s chief investment officer.
The company will take orders on the 240 high-rise units there, but won’t offer discounts to encourage sales, he said. Construction will continue on the project along I-405, with homes being completed between January through November of next year.
In addition, plans to start construction on the A-Town Metro and A-Town Stadium projects in Anaheim’s Platinum Triangle have been put on hold, he said.
The company had completed the infrastructure in the A-Town Metro project, west of Angel Stadium, and had planned to start construction in January on 2,681 homes in up to 11 high-rise towers.
The size of the A-Town Stadium project – where Lennar had envisioned a shop-and-restaurant alley leading north to Angel Stadium and a Times Square-style screen – also has been downsized to 878 lofts, condos and flats in structures that include two high-rises up to 25 stories high. At one point, three towers and 1,132 homes were planned there.
The delays – in place at least until next spring, and possibly extended after that – are to reduce the number of unsold homes being added to an already sluggish housing market, Haddad said. The company wants to hold out for prices it envisioned for the projects, he said. The delays could stay in place until 2009 if the market doesn’t improve.
“I know people are characterizing this as if we’re shutting down. We’re not,” Haddad said. “We just don’t want to engage in steep discounting.”
Haddad said the company also is considering the conversion of A-Town Stadium condos into apartments, or it could sell the project to an apartment developer.
Haddad noted that the company can hold projects back from the market because A-Town and Central Park West, as well as the Great Park in Irvine, have partnerships with investors who are willing to wait for a better market. The Great Park development is progressing as planned, he said.
“It’s hard for me to imagine that they’d leave newly built buildings unoccupied,” Irvine Councilman Larry Agran said when told about the delay. He doubted, however, the slowdown will affect development of the business district.
Anaheim Planning Director Sheri Vander Dussen, also said the delay won’t greatly hurt the Platinum Triangle, noting that other projects in the area are moving forward.
“We’d love to see A-Town under construction and successful,” Vander Dussen said. “But we understand that in the market, they need more time to bring the project on line.”
Lennar in Driver’s Seat, Becomes First Southland Developer to Launch Full Bus Wrap Campaigns
Tuesday, July 31st, 2007
PR Newswire news
IRVINE, Calif., and TUSTIN, Calif., July 31 — Orange County residents who happen to be walking, biking, or driving down State College Boulevard, Bristol Street or Jamboree Road will notice a few OCTA buses just got more colorful. Thanks to Lennar LEN, a new bus wrap advertising campaign provides a 360 degree glimpse into two Orange County masterplans, Villages of Columbus in Tustin and Irvine, and Central Park West in Irvine. The Villages of Columbus bus can now be seen rolling along Route 57, from the Brea Mall to Fashion Island. The bus for Central Park West officially follows the same route. According to Jann Rowe, Vice President of Marketing for Lennar’s Orange County land division, Lennar is the first Southern California developer to wrap two entire city buses.
“While bus advertising has been around since the mid 1990s, we’ve forged new territory with our full bus wraps,” she said. “They’re like traveling three-dimensional billboards. No matter what direction you’re traveling in, you’ll experience our brand in a way that’s memorable.”
James Klein + Associates, an Irvine-based firm that has designed more than 50 bus wrap advertisements since 1993, created the Lennar bus wrap ads in collaboration with Weston|Mason Marketing and MC Squared. The ultimate goal for both campaigns is to drive people to the community websites. Lennar has already seen a lot of success with the Villages of Columbus wrap. Since recent studies indicate that one vehicle wrap can generate between 30,000 and 70,000 impressions each day, it’s easy to understand why.
“It’s a great way for us to get the word out about Villages of Columbus and Central Park West, and maintain a visible presence in a community that has become increasingly dependent on public transportation,” said Rowe.
Orange County’s transportation system is one of the fastest growing in the nation. According to the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) website, the OC buses and rails served nearly 70 million transit rides last year. Route 57, which runs from Brea to Newport Beach, serves an average of 17,890 passengers per weekday, 11,679 passengers on Saturday, and 9,352 passengers on Sunday.
“What is especially remarkable about these bus wraps is the fact that a builder of Lennar’s stature has become more alert about public transportation,” said James Klein, principal of James Klein + Associates. “Wrapping buses has opened the doors to a unique partnership with OCTA, and it’s a not so subtle way of saying they support public transit.”
Rowe believes that’s an especially important message to communicate in the face of rising gas prices and increased concerns about congestion, air quality, and the environment.
“As a developer, we’re always looking for ways to integrate living, working, retail establishments and cultural activities with access to transportation and freeways,” said Rowe. “Villages of Columbus and Central Park West are perfect examples of our commitment to addressing the need for high density housing communities in Orange County that also pay attention to transit.”
Villages of Columbus, one of Orange County’s top-selling masterplans, encompasses over 230 acres on portions of the former Tustin Marine Corps Air Station in Irvine and Tustin. Developed by Lennar and William Lyon Homes, Villages of Columbus is ultimately planned to offer up to 2,000 homes in two villages-Columbus Grove and Columbus Square. For more information about Villages of Columbus, visit http://www.villagesofcolumbus.com.
At the crossroads of business and pleasure sits Central Park West (CPW) by Lennar-Irvine’s first urban master-planned community, located in the heart of the Irvine Business Complex, with 43 acres of private enjoyment among the city’s most premium surroundings. Central Park West offers nine distinct addresses with an architectural style palette comprised of Classical, Art Deco, and Modern designs and a total of 1,380 residences, including an assortment of stylishly appointed minimalist flats, soft lofts, townhomes, and high-rise towers. For more information about Central Park West, visit http://www.cpwliving.com.
About Lennar — Lennar Corporation is headquartered in Miami, Florida and is one of the nation’s leading builders. The Lennar family has welcomed over 500,000 homebuyers to new homes throughout the United States since 1954. For more than 50 years now, they have built a reputation for offering exceptional craftsmanship and unparalleled customer care-a reputation that led Lennar to the top of Fortune magazine’s list of America’s most admired homebuilders. Further information about Lennar can be obtained by logging onto http://www.lennar.com.
Central Park West Home Store to open Saturday
Tuesday, February 6th, 2007
Brian Martinez
Irvine World News
Lennar Corp. will open a Home Store at the CPW Living Studio on Saturday to debut three new neighborhoods in the urban-style Central Park West housing development at Jamboree Road and Michelson Drive.
The enclaves to be previewed are: Granville, a collection of contemporary lofts; Maxfield, a modern low- rise neighborhood of lofts and town homes; and Chelsea, a brownstone- inspired town home neighborhood.
Home shoppers can learn about the homes preparing to open for sale soon, use interactive kiosks, view a community video or walk through the model home for Intergulf Development Group’s Astoria high-rises, where homes are on pre-sale.
Central Park West design studio opens; Sales studio includes a model of a tower condo.
Friday, December 8th, 2006
By SONYA SMITH
IRVINE WORLD NEWS
The Central Park West design studio opens Saturday to explain to potential residents how it plans to “bring east coast living to the west coast.”
The almost 43-acre project is the largest proposed so far in the Irvine Business Complex. It plans to not just build a condo tower, shops or offices – but merge those into one community area.
No, it won’t be built by the Saturday “grand opening” – but clues to the finished project will be open to people in a design studio. The 2500 Michelson Drive, Suite 100, includes a two-bedroom, two-bath condo proposed for the two towers being built by Astoria.
Jimmy Milford, sales manager for the Astoria towers, described some of the condo amenities:
•Outside-facing walls are all windows.
•An electronics package that includes window shades, TVs and DVDs, lighting, digital library and satellite radio. All this can be controlled from most rooms and by phone.
•The priciest condos – up to $2.9 million – are on the highest floor with private outdoor terraces on the roof.
•Access to lockers in the towers’ wine cellar, where wines can be stored at various temperatures.
Milford said the condos are designed for those wanting to live near their jobs in the Irvine Business Complex. He said that 62 percent of those on the interest list already live in Irvine.
GET WALKING AND START LIVING A HEALTHIER LIFESTYLE AT CENTRAL PARK WEST IN IRVINE
ORANGE COUNTY, CA—February 2010 —One of the most popular New Year’s resolutions this year is to get in shape and be healthy. To keep that resolution requires a lifestyle change and Central Park West in Irvine offers the perfect urban environment to help you reach those goals.
The first urban master planned community in Irvine, Central Park West offers a fusion of residences, retail, fine dining and community parks. This community highlights the best that city living has to offer while also including the advantages of a pedestrian-focused village with tranquil parks and walking paseos, providing buyers with ideal opportunities to get moving.
You can also benefit from balanced living at Central Park West. Over half of the community is devoted to recreational sanctuaries including four lush parks, a 2.2-acre Central Park with a resort-style clubhouse, state-of-the-art health and fitness center, exercise/yoga studio, junior-Olympic-size saline pool and spa. Still in development, the community will also include three neighborhood parks with tot lots, barbeque areas and basketball courts.
Urban living is central to everything, which means you are only steps away to popular retailers such as Starbucks, Sports Chalet, Mother’s Market and trendy restaurants. And only minutes away are Irvine’s Business District, John Wayne Airport, theaters and shopping malls. Within Central Park West there is a future proposed retail center, featuring a mix of dining, shopping and personal services that is planned to be built near the corner of Jamboree and Michelson. Walkable neighborhoods such as Central Park West can benefit your health by encouraging more walking and less driving.
Lennar, in partnership with Intergulf Development Group, is now selling Astoria, the newly completed high-rise towers. Several premiere residences are available for immediate move-in ranging from approximately 1,119 to 3,007 square feet of living space, one to three bedrooms, and are priced from the low $400,000’s. For a limited time, Lennar’s preferred lender, UAMC of CA is offering special financing on floors seven through ten. Many of the homes offer panoramic city views and are filled with sophisticated features including stainless steel appliances, slab granite countertops, spacious bathrooms with large spa tubs and stacked washers and dryers in select locations.
Master planned by Lennar, Central Park West encompasses 43-acres and is slated to include a total of six enclaves showcasing lofts, townhomes, flats and hi-rise condominiums.