PARKVIEW APARTMENTS, SAN MARCOS’ NEWEST WORKFORCE HOUSING
COMMUNITY, SELECTED FOR 2015 GOLD NUGGET GRAND AWARD

Mixed-Use Property Near Transit Services Provides Affordable Rents to Growing Families

SAN MARCOS, CA –ParkView Apartments, a mixed-use development that encompasses 84 affordable family apartments on approximately 4.04 acres in a transit-oriented location, has been selected as a 2015 Gold Nugget Grand Award winner in the category “Affordable Housing Community – under 30 du/acre.” The urban infill property is a key element in the City of San Marcos’ neighborhood revitalization program.

The Gold Nugget Awards recognize builders, architects, landscape architects and land planners/developers who improve communities through exceptional concepts in design, planning and development. In their selection of ParkView for this prestigious design award, the judges wrote, “This affordable multi-family project built in a blighted area was an impressive multi-family product. Built in an urban infill location, it was able to provide a mixed-use, transit-oriented development designated for people living with mental disabilities. It was a thoughtful site design providing multiple tot lots, open plazas, and open/community space that will give residents a place to be active, learn and socialize. The materials, colors and massing of the buildings combine to provide a sophisticated, contemporary look, all while reaching LEED Platinum Certification.”

Completed late last year, ParkView Apartments is a joint venture between C&C Development, the City of San Marcos, Hitzke Development, and Solutions for Change. The urban community encompasses nine three-story buildings that include 6,490 square feet of street front retail space and 1,460 square feet of office and community room space. The two mixed-use commercial buildings front on Autumn Drive to optimize visibility and foot traffic for the commercial tenants. The buildings designed by San Diego-based Foundation for Form Architects are garden-style walkup that complement and enrich the surrounding neighborhoods with a distinctive architectural statement reflecting the urban infill location.

Serving households with incomes between 30% and 60% of area median income (AMI), the residential unit mix consists of one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments designed to accommodate the needs of growing and multigenerational families as well as 14 apartments funded by California’s Mental Health Services Act and designated for people living with mental disabilities. With monthly rents about 40% below market-rate rents for comparable units, the one-bedroom apartments are approximately 545 square feet; two bedroom units are approximately 830 square feet; and the three-bedroom apartments are approximately 1,050 square feet and each apartment has air conditioning and a private deck.

A truly walkable property, ParkView is transit friendly with proximity to bus stops and the North County Transit District and San Marcos Sprinter Station. Its site shares a property line with direct pedestrian access to Buelow Park, San Marcos Elementary, and Connors Park and Sport Field. It is also close to grocery stores, pharmacies, and general retail, as well as the State University San Marcos and San Marcos Civic Center and library.

In keeping with the developers’ commitment to sustainability and healthy living, the new development incorporates sustainable building components and has earned LEED Platinum certification. ParkView exceeds California’s CalGreen’s Title 24 energy efficiency standards by at least 17.5%.

ParkView is professionally landscaped throughout to provide aesthetic value, shade, and to mitigate storm water runoff. The property also features multiple tot lots, open plazas, and approximately 70,000 square feet of open/community space that will give children a place to play and learn, and adults a place to socialize. With a combination of surface and tuck-under parking, ParkView includes 169 parking spaces – 26 spaces for the retail component and 143 spaces for residential use. Of the 143 residential spaces, 36 are covered and 107 are open.

“We are honored to have ParkView Apartments selected as a Gold Nugget Grand Award winner because we believe ParkView Apartments is the gold standard for workforce housing, not just in San Diego County but for the entire State of California,” said Todd Cottle, Principal of C&C Development, which also manages the property.

Community services at ParkView Apartments are provided through Solutions for Change, a non-profit organization based in Vista, CA. Solutions for Change’s vision is to create access to permanent solutions to homelessness and lifestyle issues faced by lower income families by using a hybrid services model. The unique model is based on the concept that all parents being helped by the organization would work, pay rent, attend onsite workshops and classes and be engaged in a dynamic coaching system.