ONTARIO >> With 2,000 people expected to be later employed at the large new Meredith International Center industrial park north of the 10 Freeway between Vineyard and Archibald avenues, the city has approved construction on a new 800-unit apartment complex at the southeast corner of the site.
The 21.6 acre Paseos will be built along the north side of Inland Empire Boulevard between the Cucamonga flood control channel on its western side and a small retail center to the east.
Construction is set to begin in late 2016 or early 2017, with the first phase consisting of about 400 units. The market will determine when they become available to rent, Al Boling, Ontario city manager, said.
“We’re pleased that a developer like G.H. Palmer is coming into the city with a high quality, multifamily residential option,” Boling said. “I think the addition of the multifamily housing project will create a live-work, jobs and housing balance that is much needed in the Inland Empire and especially in the city of Ontario. We are known for being a job center and developing new housing in very close proximity to a jobs base like the new industrial center is definitely a positive for our community.”
Darrel Malamut, senior vice president of development at the Beverly Hills-based G.H. Palmer Associates, could not be immediately reached for comment.
The announcement of the apartment project comes with the opening last week of QVC’s 1.1 million-square-foot West Coast distribution center, which is the largest property in the Meredith industrial park. The center is expected to employ 1,000 people by 2020.
“This supports the council’s direction that we maintain a balanced community of jobs and housing,” said Ontario Councilman Alan Wapner. “Literally, we’re going to have close to 1,000 employees at QVC and 800 units right next door, so ideally, the employees will live in the apartments and then walk to work.”
The 800 units will consist of 80 one-bedroom units, 600 two-bedroom units, and 120 three-bedroom units, according to a city planning document. A total of 1,634 parking spaces will be provided, comprised of 1,150 garage structure spaces and 484 surface spaces, according to the planning document.
“It’s the first development to have fully installed parking with parking underneath the units, and we’re hoping that sets the mark for future multifamily residential units that we build,” Wapner said.
Economic Development Director John Andrews said the new project responds to a demand in the marketplace for more housing.
“I think more importantly, it’s going to be located in an area of the city that is approximate to a lot of our job generators, some of our larger employers in the area and nearby access to transit,” Andrews said. “The freeway is nearby.”
Across Inland Empire Boulevard, south of the apartment property, is construction on a Walter’s Audi car dealership on a strip of land just north of the freeway.
“The general plan would allow for that strip of property to allow for other additional auto dealerships, restaurants and perhaps a hotel,”