Affordable housing units celebrated
OCEAN PARK A change in atmosphere has been an uplifting experience for Phyllis Grossman.
Grossman was living in an affordable housing complex at 20th Street in the Pico Neighborhood, a situation she felt was “depressing,” when opportunity knocked on the door.
A notification came from Community Corporation of Santa Monica in the summer that a new 44-unit affordable housing development was near completion and she had been selected to be one of the more than three dozen lucky tenants to live in the Ocean Park neighborhood.
“It’s been like I’ve been reborn,”Grossman said on Friday when the CCSM celebrated the grand opening of Pacific Court.
The courtyard of Community Corporation’s new $9 million unveiling was the scene of jubilation as the project’s supporters, residents and neighbors came to celebrate the completion of a 10-yearlong process.
Located at 2209 Main St. at the corner of Pacific Street, the project opened its doors this summer more than two years after it broke ground in April 2005. The development is spread out over five individual buildings consisting of three to four story structures. The buildings include one, two, three and four bedroom units, the latter unique among apartment complexes in Santa Monica.
The development was broken down into various buildings in order to minimize the size of the project, aiming to appease the wishes of several neighbors that came out in opposition early on, objecting to another large-scale complex on a Main Street that was once the scene of small-town Santa Monica.
“We actually did the building across the street over a decade ago and we’re sort of mirroring the architectural style our firm did,” said project architect Brent Eckerman of Frederick Fisher and Partners. “We were creating a gateway at that intersection.”
The centerpiece of the project is a courtyard, tying together all five buildings and its units whose windows all look into the common area. The idea was to provide a space where children could play safely while their parents monitored from their apartments, Eckerman said.
Pacific Court also includes 88 underground parking spots, a technology and library room, and community room where the Boys and Girls Club runs an after-school program. On the ground level are three retail spaces, another element that allows the development to fit in with the commercial theme of Main Street.
The retail spaces remain unfilled but Joan Ling, the executive director of Community Corporation, said the nonprofit organization has been in talks with several companies, including espresso bars, clothing bou-tiques and cosmetics stores. The goal is to retain businesses that would be attractive to the residents and patrons of the Main Street area, she said.
There are still about six units available for qualified applicants, which for a family would be an annual income of about $25,000 to $40,000, Ling said.
Residents say they feel fortunate to live in an area that is not only close to shops and restaurants, but is also just a few blocks from the beach.
“I’m really happy to be in such a nice place,” said Marc Lewis, the on-site manager. “It yields community and yields camaraderie between the tenants.”
Lewis lived for 13 years at the Community Corporation building on Second Street. Now married with two kids, Lewis put in his name for a transfer to Pacific Court in hopes of living in a more family friendly environment with parking.
“For me, going from where I was, it’s like a palace,” said Lewis, who went from a one-bedroom unit on Second Street to a three-bedroom apartment.
Living in Pacific Court has brought Juana Mason and her children closer to the schools they attend. Mason, who moved from Inglewood to Santa Monica in September, said her daughter attends Santa Monica College and her son is a student at Will Rogers Elementary School.
The project dates back to 1997 when CCSM first made an offer to purchase the 60,000-square-foot parcel to the previous owner. An agreement wasn’t finalized until 2001. About 24 workshops were held in relation to the project, conducted by either Community Corporation or neighborhood groups. Several residents raised concerns about the scale of the project, including resident group Friends of Ocean Park.
“Looking at this now, I can see it does fit in with the neighborhood,” said City Councilmember Kevin McKeown at the grand opening. “I do believe low-income people do deserve to live at the beach and this accomplishes that.”
Eckerman recalls several Architectural Review Board meetings where residents lined up along the wall to complain about the project. CCSM subsequently went before the Planning Commission where it was approved, he said.
“It’s been a long process,” he said.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on October 22, 2007. Read the original PDF.