Following the demolition of the former Vons store on the corner of Lincoln and Broadway, construction is underway for the new development slated to take its place.
The new project is a 280-unit apartment complex, 30 percent of which will apparently be reserved for low and middle-income households. The space will incorporate a new 53,500 square feet Vons superstore on the ground floor with 1,500 square feet of outdoor dining space plus an additional 34,000 square feet of retail, restaurant and fitness use. It also includes two subterranean levels to accommodate 354 vehicle parking spaces and 523 spaces for bicycles.
An approximate comparison would be the Trader Joe’s at 500 Broadway, with its underground car park access on 5th Street, between Broadway and Colorado Ave. However, the former Vons site had no underground space, so this new development will require extensive excavation. And this in turn will almost certainly require the constant removal of unwanted material off site and the transportation of necessary construction equipment on site, more than likely resulting in some disruption to local businesses.
Hector Padilla, general manager of Bay Cities Italian Deli is no stranger to the chaos caused by large building developments. "There’s an increase in traffic even now because they’re working on this side of the building [1550 Lincoln Blvd]," he said.
The extremely popular delicatessen is located almost opposite the nearly-completed NMS Lincoln Blvd apartments, which itself has been under construction for more than two years and could be considered a representation of what to expect from the 710 Broadway project.
Photographs: Related California/Scott Snowden
"Over maybe the past year, or year and a half, the roads would close around here and it was mayhem then. So yeah, to be honest, we’ve been there and done that already," Padilla said.
The redevelopment is being carried out in partnership by Albertsons and Related California, a real estate firm that develops multi-family residential and mixed-use projects. Past Related projects in Santa Monica include the Waverly at 1705 Ocean Ave, Ocean Ave South at 1725 Ocean Ave and the Seychelle at 1755 Ocean Ave.