Builders Buy 3,470 Acres for San Clemente Project

SAN CLEMENTE —  In one of the largest Southern California residential land deals in years, a group of developers on Friday purchased 3,470 acres in San Clemente where they hope to build Talega, a planned community of 5,000 homes, office buildings, retail centers and two golf courses.

The deal underscores the growing confidence in the Orange County housing industry and the increasing developer interest in South County, especially since the San Joaquin Hills toll road opened last year.

“We were attracted by the recovering Southern California market and the economy in general,” said Sam Robinson, a partner at Greenwich, Conn.-based Starwood Capital Group, one of the developers.

Talega Associates--made up of Starwood and home builders Standard Pacific Corp. of Newport Beach and Catellus Residential Group of Irvine--paid $31.1 million for the project.

The previous owner, Arvida/JMB Partners II had purchased the parcel in 1989 at the height of the county’s real estate boom, paying $75 million. In 1991, rising debts and and a sour real estate market forced the partnership to scrap the project after half of the site work was complete.

Ken Agid, an Irvine real estate consultant, said Talega is one of the few large pieces of land still available in Orange County, at a time when population and employment growth are increasing, creating a bigger demand for housing.

“There’s not likely to be a lot of competition [when Talega opens] a couple of years down the road,” said Tim Unger, executive vice president of community development for Catellus.

Its developers plan to begin grading the land and putting in roads this year for community openings in 1999. Standard Pacific and Catellus will build some of the homes, and the rest of the land will be sold to other builders. Home prices are expected to range from $150,000 to $400,000.

The development group said it will likely alter the original Talega plans, adding a seniors-only community near one of its golf courses.

Talega is just one of several communities that will begin construction over the next few years in San Clemente.

City officials say the flurry of development will add millions of dollars to its cash-strapped coffers. But it also is likely to spark community debate about the changing nature of the once-sleepy town. Other projects planned for San Clemente include:

* Forster Ranch, a 934-acre project recently purchased by an Irvine-based partnership of Laing Homes, Institutional Housing Partners and New West Properties. The community could add 1,100 homes to the area in the next few years.

* Plaza Pacifica, a 200-home residential and commercial development near Avenida Pico and Avenida La Pata.

* Marblehead Coastal, a community of 500 homes planned by the Lusk Co. near Avenida Pico and Interstate 5.

Developers say the development rush was spurred in part by the opening of the San Joaquin Hills toll road, which eased commute time to major employment centers in Irvine and Newport Beach, and the proposed extension of the Foothill Transportation Corridor.

“Access to south Orange County has dramatically improved,” said Scott Stowell, president of Standard Pacific’s Orange County division. “We’ve seen prices in San Juan Capistrano jump significantly since the [toll road] opened.”

The Talega land was originally part of the huge ranch controlled by the O’Neill-Moiso family. It was sold in 1985 to a partnership of Southmark Corp. of Texas and planner William Phillips, which later sold it to Arvida/JMB in 1989.

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Building Boom

The recent purchase of Talega, a 3,470-acre ranch in San Clemente, makes four major home developments in the works in San Clemente. Details on the projects:

Talega Valley

Acres: 3,470

Homes: Up to 4,965

*

Plaza Pacifica

Acres: 155

Homes: About 200

*

Marblehead Coastal

Acres: 250

Homes: About 500

*

Forster Ranch

Acres: 934

Homes: More than 1,000

* Sources: Times reports, Standard Pacific

* Researched by JANICE L. JONES / Los Angeles Times