A Beverly Hills company has purchased a 22-acre site in Allied Gardens for $48.6 million with plans to construct one of the biggest apartment complexes in San Diego County.

Developer G.H. Palmer Associates plans 996 apartments for the site, located on the San Diego River and close to the bustle of Mission Valley — about 1 1/2 miles from the SDCCU Stadium site.

The land was already entitled for the project back in 2012, but it took years to find a buyer. The sale was completed Oct. 18. G.H. Palmer said it will begin grading and land development work in May 2020 with vertical construction beginning in March 2021. It plans for apartments to begin opening in the summer of 2023.

Land purchased by G.H. Palmer is also approved for 37,500 square feet of commercial or office space and 5 acres for neighborhood parks. It will take the place of a towing company and other light industrial businesses.


Kevin Nolen, a Cushman & Wakefield broker who worked on the transaction, said the sale was complex, including four parcels and years of work with neighborhood groups. He said the project is unique in that it will be a dense development but is contrasted by its location on the river and being directly across from the Admiral Baker Golf Course.

“It’s tucked up against the river and you have beautiful views of the golf course and into the hills,” he said. “It will feel urban while you’re in there, but when you walk outside and you’ll get this rural, open space feel to it.”

The sellers of the property were a Texas-based partnership called GG 7600 and Ramona-based Shawnee Properties. The project was previously called “Riverbend” and was approved by the city council in October 2012. According to a City News Service report at the time, some neighbors opposed the project because of traffic concerns, but city council members saw the project as a way to fix up a blighted area.

Steven G. Fink, chief investment officer of G.H. Palmer Associates, said the company had been looking for an opportunity to enter the San Diego market for years.


“The local economy remains strong and we will continue to seek opportunities to expand throughout San Diego,” he said.

Fink said it plans for studios, one bedrooms and two bedrooms at the site. Amenities will include pools, gyms and a business center. He said rent will be market rate and the project does not include any rent-controlled, or subsidized units.

He said the plan for the buildings would be upgraded, but would honor the original concept for the site approved in 2012. Those plans call for three to six-story buildings spread out throughout the site.

G.H. Palmer Associates has been around since 1978 and only operates in Southern California. It maintains around 11,600 apartments and mostly seeks out large projects to develop and own.


The Allied Gardens project will end up being around the fifth-largest apartment complex in San Diego County. Casa Mira View in Mira Mesa has 1,620 apartments; La Jolla Crossroads in University City has 1,500 apartments; The Village Mission Valley has 1,410 apartments; and Costa Verde Village in University City has 1,257 apartments.