Grading begins on San Pedro's long-awaited new Highpark housing development

Two years after the land was cleared, the housing development formerly known as Ponte Vista is finally ready for construction, starting with the grading that began this week on the rambling 61.5-acre dirt site in San Pedro.

Renamed Highpark earlier this year, the development replaces old Navy housing that was demolished in 2014. It originally was hoped that the first new home would be completed by the end of 2015, but the developer, iStar Financial Inc., said complications and the process to obtain grading permits from the city of Los Angeles took much longer than anticipated.

It appears now that the first home will go up in mid- to late 2017, according to developer Idea from a few months ago. A full build-out is expected to take four to five years.

Developers met with Los Angeles City Councilman Joe Buscaino on the property this week to mark the occasion.

Once grading is finished, construction will start with infrastructure elements such as roads, underground utilities and retaining walls.

The ambitious development was first proposed in 2005 by Century City developer Bob Bisno, who paid $125 million to buy the surplus Navy land. His plans to build 2,300 stacked homes drew swift and strong opposition, however, and the plans then underwent a series of revisions through subsequent years under new developers.

Plans currently call for building 676 homes — single-family properties, town houses, flats and condominiums. All of the units will be for sale with no rental units plaed. Included will be 20 acres of public open space and walking paths.

More detailed information about the building mix and schedule are expected to come later this year.

Few projects in the Harbor Area drew as much debate as Ponte Vista did over the past decade as residents were divided in their opinions about its merits — adding much needed housing to the area — and the downside of adding more traffic congestion along Weste Avenue.

The property, which features views of the Vincent Thomas Bridge to the east, lies on the border of Rancho Palos Verdes and San Pedro, south of Palos Verdes Drive North and across from Green Hills Memorial Park.

Advertisement