Duarte Apartments Next To L Line Station Break Ground
Light rail commuters might see some dust Thursday next to the Duarte/City of Hope train station as work has begun on a project where, over the next two years, more than 300 residential units will take shape.
MBK Rental Living and joint venture partner Haseko Corp. broke ground Wednesday on a transit-oriented development in Duarte, adjacent to the eastward-expanding Gold (L) Line light rail.
The development is within walking distance of the City of Hope cancer treatment center.
“In addition to being one of the primary health care hubs in the region, Duarte continues to benefit from migration into neighborhoods along the 210 corridor. We’re continuing to invest in the future of Southern California with the goal of providing much needed housing,” MBK Rental Living President Craig Jones said in a statement.
The five-story Esperanza at Duarte Station will bring 344 apartments and a 7.5-story parking structure to the 4.3-acre site. Apartments will run from studio to three-bedroom floor plans and range from 514 to 1,090 SF. Residents will have access to amenities including a rooftop gym, a pool and spa, a coworking space and a dog park.
Target residents at the project range from students and professionals to employees of City of Hope, developers said. Esperanza at Duarte Station is expected to be complete in 2023.
The development’s groundbreaking comes as questions about public transportation’s post-coronavirus rebound remain unanswered. The idea that building more housing near public transportation would help boost ridership and keep cars off the streets has driven development along light rail lines that crisscross LA and the county, but ridership numbers, which were dropping prior to the coronavirus pandemic, cratered during the public health crisis. (Traffic also dropped off, but it has already returned.)
The L Line, which runs roughly parallel to the 210 Freeway, ends in Azusa now, near Citrus College, but an extension east — with new stations in Glendora, San Dimas, La Verne and Pomona — is underway. The extension is ultimately expected to go as far east as Montclair. Major construction on the Glendora-to-Pomona section is expected to be complete in 2025.
Construction financing for Esperanza at Duarte Station was provided by Principal Real Estate Investors. R.D. Olson Construction is building the multifamily project, which was designed by Architects Orange, PBA Structural Engineers and MJS Landscape.
