Here we go again. The O.C. Register is reporting that “A 31-story residential tower planned near MainPlace mall would increase traffic on surrounding streets and cast a long shadow over nearby homes, according to a draft review of the project.”
The developer of this tower told me that Santa Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido told him that “we need” this tower. No we don’t!
“The proposed Sky Lofts development…would bring more people into an area already struggling with overcrowded schools, inadequate parks and bottleneck intersections.”
It is already impossible to travel southbound on Main St. during rush hour. Can you imagine how much worse that will be with this dumb tower going up? Moreover, are we not suffering from a water shortage right now? Why build more towers and bring more people into our city? This plan is just crazy!
And why would wealthy people want to buy these luxury condos, when Santa Ana has the WORST school district in Orange County, the highest water prices, and roads from Hell? Not to mention not enough parks and only one public library. The real estate market is also in the dumps. So why would folks want to overpay for these luxury condos when they can buy nicer condos in better areas of Orange County? Do they know a man was beat to death at Santiago Park just a few months ago? Or that Santiago Park has been tagged by graffiti vandals many times over the last few years?
This move will backfire for Pulido and his cabal. Residents of north Santa Ana used to be reliable votes for this crooked bunch. But Pulido and his council puppets have taken in thousands of dollars from developers. Once the people find out that their Councilmen have been bought off by developers, they won’t be very happy about it.
This is bad news in particular for Councilman Carlos “Space Commander” Bustamante. He represents the Park Santiago neighborhood, which is in ward 3. This is the neighborhood that will be affected by the proposed tower. It won’t take much to beat the Space Commander once folks find out how much money he has received from the tower’s developer.
Projects like this are going to bring Pulido and company down…
Art…you keep saying this thing and that thing are bad news for Bustamonte but you have no one to run against him who can beat him. Why don’t you face facts and move on to a Council race you can impact. Carlos’s re-election is a slam dunk!
The residents of this tower should have a dandy view of the men meeting men for manly deeds in Santiago Park. They should change the name of it to Brokeback Park. I hear they are goint to change the name of the road into the park to George Michael Blvd. I wouldn’t take my dog to Santiago Park let alone my kids.
Poster 1,
Do you remember Manute Bol? He played briefly in the NBA. His first attempt at a dunk resulted in the loss of his front teeth, as he slammed his face into the rim.
Perhaps that is what you were referring to when you wrote that the Space Commander’s next campaign will be a slam dunk! God knows his supervisorial race was no “slam dunk.” In fact it was a terrible embarrassment! Face it, the Space Commander is DONE.
Poster 2,
I walk my dog in that park quite often. I have not seen such activities. But I keep my cell phone handy and will be sure to call the SAPD if I come across any such behavior. That stuff should stay in the bedroom, regardless of the genders involved.
Actually Main St is nicely maintained along that stretch. If an out-of-towner just rolls off the freeway to check out the immediate area…score another sale.
Art, are you anti-free market? Let the developers build their towers if they think they will be successful. As long as they are not receiving subsidies from the City of Santa Ana, leave them alone!
This tower is almost an exact replica of the one in the Ren.Specific Plan. That tower will be 25 Stories and will be part of the transit Rail Station. Logan will now be able to sit in their back yards and have that building looming over them!!
I agree with you…who would want to live in our city??!!***
353 units on 27 floors is 13 units per floor. These are going to be very small condo’s.
At a projected cost of 250 million means a sunk cost of 700 thousand per unit.
wow
These condos according to the Register are 1 and two bedrooms targeted for one to two accupants. Probaly under 1,000sq ft. at a cost of $700,000? Could there be a market for this?
I picked up a flyer at the library yesterday about a meeting to up date the cities Housing Element of the General Plan.
Workshop one will be Wednesday 11-28-07 from 6:30pm to 8:30pm at
the Senior Center at 424 W 3rd St.
Workshop two will be Saturday 12-08-07 from 10am to 12 noon at
the Senior Center at 2201 W McFadden Ave.
flyer on general plan meetings
http://www.ci. santa-ana. ca.us/pba/ planning/ documents/ HousingEleflier. pdf
At the main page of planning department a list of the high density projects planned and under construction in various parts of the city.
http://www.ci. santa-ana. ca.us/pba/ planning/ Planning_ Home_Page. asp
I am hearing from sources I deem reliable tha tmajor housing development projects in OC and inland counties have literally hit the wall, with some being abandoned, others being mothballed (including model homes) to be re-marketed next Spring. Layoffs in the industry are occurring, discounts of 25% from original prices still are not producing sales, and people are beginning to state this looks like the worst housing downturn in modern history – much worse than the downturn of the early 90’s. Given this dismal picture, not an appropriate time to be hoping for new development of pricey residential real estate. Even heard one report that some developers are redesigning proposed projects from big “tract mansions” to smaller homes on zero lot line designs to try and reach the entry level market (if there is such a market right now). Fasten seat belts.
JFC, quit hating on the city you live in! You should seriously move out of here and make room for someone with an optimistic view and positive energy for change. Face it buddy, you’re salty and have ceased to be productive. If you worked for me I would have let you go a long time ago. The only way anyone will be able to get this place on the up and up is to make it attractive to the gentrified set. Yes, Art, even professional WHITE guys like me. This is Orange County and this Southern California, people want the safety of seeing a Corner Bakery, a Starbucks, a Cheese Cake Factory, etc. Bummer? Maybe, but so it goes and so goes this market and it’s citizens have spoken and so it demands. I could had my pick of the litter in terms of where to move, I chose here. Why you ask? Because there is potential and are there issues with the leadership and crime? Of course, but any major urban area has it’s challenges with such things. Face it, nothing backfires on those in leadership, at least not a residential building. And regarding your head in the sand about Santiago, wake up and go stand by the northside men’s room on a saturday. My wife and I call the place co*ksucker Park for good reason.
Art, this is my first time seen your dump on the City site. I grew up in Santa Ana and work in the City as well and to hear all this City bashing is to say the least…sad. Sure this City and thousands of others have problems and it would seem the perfect one only exists in your mind.
I will agree that 700k is a lot for an “apartment” / condo but will this bring in residents with higher incomes? Yes! Will that fact alone boost business’s throughout the City? Yes! Could the added property tax’s be used for parks, schools, street repairs etc? Yes!
Let me see if I’ve got this right? You want to keep the getto’s and don’t build any upscaled houses / condo’s, have all the streets repaired with money someone in the City will pull out of their hats. (it’s coming)and heaven forbid do anythinking out side the box to improve the looks, feeling or improve Santa Ana’s image.
It sure seems as though those new houses up off of north Flower are sure selling…starting in the “LOW MILLION DOLLAR” range!!!
Badmouthing is easy…try helping solve some problems
Nobody likes a whiner that accomplishes nada. The “City” (who is also YOU as a commissioner) doesn’t bring projects forward, it is the free market. If you don’t like these projects, speak or send a letter to the Planning Commission who hears it first. If you don’t know the particulars, ask staff. It’s ok to speak against projects you don’t like, but to constantly whine about it while doing little, rubs people the wrong way. As you can tell from your last few blogs, people are turning on you. If you are man with conviction, turn it around, and become a positive force, if not, then stop complaining. Good quality political blogs do not include whiners or “story breakers”, they are people trying to state their position and debate the topic. You rarely even ASK what others think, you live in your own little world –which doesn’t appear to even be Santa Ana in 2007.
#13
These high rise units, targeted behind City Place, will be designed for the empty nesters; folks whose discretionary income is on the downslide. It’s unlikely families will be buying these condos, therefore this development will more than likely not be a burden on the Orange Unified School District. But here’s the kicker, chances are these new homeowners will spend their dollars in Orange and not Santa Ana. Orange has done a spectacular job of building up the area adjacent to the proposed towers and it’s all walker friendly.
Let’s hope the city extracted some park space from this developer.