Taylor Yard Transit Village on the Los Angeles River Celebrates Milestones

Developer McCormack Baron Salazar Inc. in partnership with the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro), and New Economics for Women on May 7 held a celebration to commemorate multiple milestones achieved in the development of the multi-phase Taylor Yard Transit Village.  The celebration marks the grand opening for the first two phases of the development and a groundbreaking for a third phase that will include 108 affordable apartments for seniors and 8,300 square feet of retail space. The completed projects already provide 155 affordable apartments for families.

Taylor Yard Transit Village is a walkable, multi-use, mixed-income, and mixed-generational community, designed to be inclusive for residents at all stages of life and levels of income.  When complete, the 16-acre community will provide 400 new homes, 25,000 square feet of retail space and over 1½ acres of green space on Metro-owned land designed with community walking trails, public art and native landscaping that complements the site’s proximity to the Los Angeles River.

“When we talk about a community for ‘everyone,’ this is what we are talking about,” explained Dan Falcon, senior vice president of McCormack Baron Salazar.  “The site plan incorporates new urbanist principals, which means it is walkable, safe, and feels like a traditional neighborhood.  It also includes universal site design with access for people of all abilities and transit access for non-drivers and people who choose not to drive. The site is LEED-ND certified and the two completed affordable rental buildings are being certified Gold Level under LEED for Homes, which help residents live healthier, save money and conserve resources. Every detail of this community was thought through to be inclusive and holistic.”

The first two phases, known as the Taylor Yard Apartments and Rio Vista Apartments, provide 155 new apartment homes affordable for families earning at or less than 60 percent of the area median income.  The 100 percent affordable senior building, when completed in the summer of 2016, will provide 108 affordable 1 and 2 bedroom apartments reserved for senior citizens ages 62 and older.  All three phases are being developed by McCormack Baron Salazar in partnership with New Economics for Women.  Project partner, LA Urban Homes, is currently constructing 41 homes, known as RiverPark, and will be developing an additional 54 units in a subsequent phase. These market-rate homes are within the Taylor Yard Village master plan and are designed to complement the affordable rental community.

The site and design of Taylor Yard Transit Village is transit-accessible with connections to the regional transportation network through Metro’s Rapid and local bus service.  The development is the result of a successful public-private partnership between Metro and McCormack Baron Salazar.

The developments are the latest product of Metro’s Joint Development Program, which seeks to provide appropriate transit-oriented development adjacent to transit stations and corridors in an effort to reduce auto use and congestion.  This program has, over the years, been instrumental in bringing billions of dollars in development activity as well as much-needed affordable housing to Los Angeles County.

“One of the main goals of this development is to promote increased transit ridership by creating a strong, mixed-use node around transit investments,” said Metro Board Member Jacquelyn Dupont-Walker.  “Metro is now working on numerous transit-oriented developments along its transit network.  These projects are revitalizing communities with much needed housing, retail and other commercial opportunities."

New Economics for Women serves both as a lender and a partner in the long-term management of the project with McCormack Baron Management. “We are proud to work as a community-based nonprofit economic development organization with such capable partners in a model affordable housing development,” remarked Magdalena Cervantes, executive director of New Economics for Women. “We are delighted to offer our programs and classes to our newest resident families and seniors in fulfillment of our commitment to help stabilize, protect and grow their economic assets over time.”

The three rental phases and site-wide infrastructure represent over $100 million in investment. Financing for the $15 million infrastructure was provided by the State of California Department of Housing & Community Development (HCD) Infill Infrastructure Grant Program and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Neighborhood Stabilization Program II (NSPII) funds through grantee New Economics for Women. The multi-family and senior housing is financed by public investment from the City of Los Angeles Housing & Community Investment Department (HCIDLA), the State of California HCD Transit Oriented Development Program, NSPII funds from New Economics for Women and allocations of Federal Low Income Housing Tax Credits by the State of California Tax Credit Allocation Committee (TCAC). Private financing and investment is provided by JPMorgan Chase Bank and JP Morgan, Enterprise Community Investment, Inc., and Hudson Housing Capital.

“At Enterprise, we are committed to ending housing insecurity, which means no more homelessness and no more families paying more than half of their income on housing,” said Jeff Schaffer, vice president and Southern California market leader, Enterprise Community Partners. “This new community brings us closer to that goal, and provides a vision for sustainable, equitable development along the L.A. River, including housing for people at all income levels.”

Taylor Yard Apartments has $21.1 million in total development costs, Rio Vista Apartments $29.7 million in total development costs and Taylor Yard Senior Housing has $33.9 million in total development costs.