Nearly half of the 37 residential units within Alma del Pueblo have been claimed since it was completed last summer — a number the developer of the downtown Santa Barbara project said she’s pleased with.
The first residents of the mixed-use development at 34 W. Victoria St. moved in last June, and the total number sold is estimated at 16, said Marge Cafarelli, president of the Urban Developments real estate investment company in charge of the project.
A busy sales season boosted numbers in late 2014, which is about the time Cafarelli brought on local PR firm JZPR to help get the word out about the units — costing $840,000 to $2.6 million — and the Santa Barbara Public Market, a cornerstone of the project that opened last April.
Seeing some of the units occupied on the second and third stories was a good sign for locals who feared the development would remain empty amid clashes with subcontractors claiming they hadn’t been paid.
Two subcontractors filed lawsuits last fall, and at least one of them has reached a settlement with developer Victoria Street Partners LLC and general contractor Build Group.
Santa Barbara’s Katz-Moses and Calle Construction settled for an undisclosed amount — the suit asked for $55,000 for materials and services — but a second breach of contract suit filed by Wilmington-based plumbing and mechanical contractor AMPAM Parks Mechanical hadn’t yet been resolved this month.
Build Group has filed its own breach of contract suit against Victoria Street Partners LLC, alleging the developer failed to acknowledge extra work that was done and asking for more than $1.2 million for work and to pay subcontractors.
Cafarelli, who said she wasn’t involved with the lawsuits, called the litigation “messy” and noted the subcontractor lawsuits were nearly all resolved.
She showed off some of the units during a tour recently, saying all but one of five multilevel apartments were spoken for and five middle-income units also had been sold.
Residents of the gated community have taken to renting one of the project’s two on-site guest rooms and to enjoying a homeowners lounge and rooftop patio, she said.
“We’ve got people moving in all the time,” Cafarelli said. “It’s primarily local with a few people from out of town.”
Local Riley Ramirez scored one of the middle-income, multilevel units and has been enjoying the one-bedroom apartment with his wife and toddler since September.
Ramirez, who works for Santa Barbara Honda, said he’s seen a lot more neighbor activity the last couple months. A handful have a place as their second home, he said, but some are just fellow, full-time natives enjoying the downtown lifestyle.
“I love it,” said Ramirez, who barbecues on the rooftop. “It’s pretty neat living in the center of town.”
Just a handful of cosmetic touches remain for the project — except for opening yet-to-be named retail and restaurant pieces fronting Victoria Street.
Full of Life Flatbread in Los Alamos was set to be the anchor restaurant last year, but owner Clark Staub said he was forced to pull out of the deal in absence of enough financing.
Cafarelli hoped to announce what would fill the last pieces by the end of January.
“I couldn’t be more pleased,” Cafarelli said. “This is a lifestyle. It’s not just buying a unit. We’re all over the boards with what’s selling, so it’s good. We’re just happy that it’s up and running.”
— Noozhawk staff writer Gina Potthoff can be reached at gpotthoff@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.