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California  + San Diego  + Apartments  | 

Otay Mesa Project Lands Approvals After 12 Years in Planning

San Diego planners gave unanimous approval recently to Cornerstone Communities for an Otay Mesa project with 450 townhouses, reported the San Diego Union Tribune. The Candlelight project is located in one of the few undeveloped areas of San Diego County, about a mile from the U.S.-Mexico border. Although the plan had previously been approved, changes to the unit types required a new vote. 

Environmental concerns, and plans for mitigation efforts, have kept the project in the planning stages, off and on, for roughly 12 years. After last Thursday’s vote, Cornerstone anticipates starting work on the site in September, with the first homes opening in late 2025. 

Cornerstone CEO Ure Kretowicz told the Union Tribune he envisions the project as workforce housing because early cost estimates put townhouses in the mid-$500,000 to low $600,000 range. Even the highest-priced models would be below the $802,500 median home price in January. 

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About Paul Bubny

Paul Bubny serves as Senior Content Director for Connect Commercial Real Estate, a role to which he brings 16-plus years’ experience covering the commercial real estate industry and 30-plus years in business-to-business journalism. In this capacity, he oversees daily operations while also reporting on both local/regional markets and national trends, covering individual transactions across all property types, as well as delving into broader subject matter. He produces 7-10 daily news stories per day and works with the Connect team and clients to develop longer-form content, ranging from Q&As to thought-leadership pieces. Prior to joining Connect, Paul was Managing Editor for both Real Estate Forum and GlobeSt.com at American Lawyer Media, where he oversaw operations at both publications while also producing daily news and feature-length articles. His tenure in B2B publishing stretches back into the print era, and he has served as Editor in Chief on four national trade publications. Since 1999, Paul has volunteered as the newsletter editor of passenger rail advocacy groups (one national, one local).

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