Pasadera Golf Resort | Monterey
Grant identified the 560-acre Laguna Seca ranch in Monterey County as having truly great potential for development as a golf club and high-end residential community. A purchase transaction was negotiated with the Bishop and McIntosh families, with acquisition and development financing secured through a joint venture with VMS Properties of Chicago. Grant led a team of outstanding professional consultants to secure all of the required entitlements, including a general plan amendment, rezoning, vesting tentative subdivision map, use permit, architectural and site plan approval, and completion of two full environmental impact reports (EIRs). During the five years it took to obtain the necessary approvals from the County, both VMS and its successor, Banyan Funds, suffered huge financial reversals and were unable to build the project. Nonetheless, once entitled, the property was sold for more than twice its original purchase price, and the new owner achieved great success selling out the 250-home community that surrounded the only Jack Nicklaus Signature golf course on the Monterey Peninsula.
Los Esteros Energy Center | San Jose
One of Grant’s most unique entitlement challenges involved the rezoning of agricultural land in North San Jose to permit the construction of a 188-megawatt critical energy facility for peak demand power generation. The plant uses natural gas turbines in a highly efficient combined cycle, wherein the exhaust heat from the turbines is captured to create steam, which, in turn, drives a steam generator. Permits for such a facility required approvals from both city and state agencies. The plant was built by Calpine.
Foundry Commons | San Jose
On several occasions, Grant has recognized and captured opportunities to create value through rezoning industrial land to permit high-density residential development. Foundry Commons, at Virginia and 6th Streets in San Jose, is one example. The 5-acre site occupies a full city block and was previously the location of an older warehouse building. Initially, it appeared the highest and best use might be a data center because of the proximity to both the fiberoptic backbone and a PG&E substation. When the market for data center space experienced a downturn, we focused our attention on residential use of the property and secured a rezoning approval to permit 170 apartment units. Previously, Grant had been successful in obtaining approvals to convert industrial land to residential for “Avalon Silicon Valley” in Sunnyvale (700 units) and “South Beach Marina Apartments” in San Francisco (414 units).
1700 Fairgrounds Drive | Vallejo
This recent example of a smaller development project includes 47 affordable apartments on a site of less than one acre in Vallejo. Grant worked with the architect to design a building with a contemporary aesthetic that could employ factory-built modules as an alternative to field construction. It was important to win support for the project by trustees of the neighboring Church of Christ even though the apartment project would block views of the church itself. The process of planning approval for the property took less than 8 months following the guidelines of California’s SB-35 legislation.