VERTEX provided the Douglas Wilson Companies with an interesting fiscal impact study for its Sweetwater Vistas project in Spring Valley. The 218-unit townhome project will be built on land formerly planned as part of The Pointe, a master-planned community.
The Pointe, which is sited in the unincorporated area of San Diego County, was designed in the early-1980s as a golf course, hotel, and residential community, but the developer could not obtain appropriate equity and financing to complete the project.
In 2014, the Douglas Wilson Companies acquired 52 acres of The Pointe, including 27 acres of permanently dedicated open space.
The County requested that Douglas Wilson Companies prepare a fiscal impact and job generation study that would compare its current proposed project with that of the original plan for The Pointe. They reached out to VERTEX’s Alan Nevin to provide a fiscal impact report.
VERTEX’s study focused on the revenue sources and job formations for a broad range of product types, including the originally proposed 710-room hotel, golf course, equestrian facility, office space, restaurants, and 218-unit townhome project.
The study determined both the project’s economic impact and job creation during and after construction.
As expected, the jobs created by a massive hotel, office space, and golf course far outweighed those of an owner-occupied townhome project.
The most important part of the study, from our standpoint, is that the Douglas Wilson Companies will be providing more than 200 residential units priced in the $400,000+ range, a product type that is appropriate for “workforce housing.” The project also aligns with the County’s Climate Action Plan, the goal of which is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
We congratulate the Douglas Wilson Companies on its unanimous winning effort at both the San Diego Planning Commission and the Board of Supervisors.
This project was completed by Xpera Group, which is now part of The Vertex Companies, LLC.
