Well, it finally happened. The three, 3-story units built on the empty lot at Abbott and Muir have entered the housing market — each over $2 million dollars a piece.
The empty lot — used by neighbors for decades as a mini sports field — was coveted by various developers for years as they trooped to the OB Planning Board with their various proposals, only to have their plans shot down for various violations of the OB Community Plan.
Finally, somebody got it “right” and constructed the project – and now has placed two of them on the market.
2158 and 2166 Abbott are each listed as 3-story, 2 bedroom with en-suite bathroom and powder room, 2 car garage, second floor decks and a roof deck with a Jacuzzi. Fortunately or unfortunately, their immediate neighbors will also have a roof deck and Jacuzzi and their proximity will require screens, large plants or some other implements for privacy. One critic of the development cracked that with the roof top decks, “you can climb right onto your neighbor’s unit” or Jacuzzi.
An irony of the development process is that the OB Community Plan and the volunteer board elected to enforce it required developers to include eco-friendly devices, which are now being touted as ” environmentally conscious amenities” such as solar panels and tankless water heaters to include in their “beachside haven that combines contemporary luxury, stunning views, and eco-friendly living.”
Another irony is that their ocean views from the roof are partially blocked by three tall “McMansions” built last decade along West Pt Loma Blvd in violation of OB’s community plan rules.
This development is a prime example of gentrification in Ocean Beach; they’re definitely not affordable and represent opportunities of greed for future short-term vacation rental owners.
Will out-of-town investors scoop them up and turn them into cash-cows? Or will young couples with kids who can bring some stability to the local neighborhood win the lottery and buy them? Or will aging hippies who are now retired make the purchases with dreams of finally living a block from the beach? Or will a non-profit buy them and turn them into homes for the unhoused? Or will Point Loman refugees fleeing the homeless at H-Barracks snap them up?
Time will tell (probably a short time actually). And probably the offspring of the lucky buyers will have to deal with rising ocean waters cascading into their garages.
{ 20 comments… read them below or add one }
They are on the market for $1,700/sq ft. They will 100% be vacation rentals for wealthy tourists.
Frank,
I’m not exactly sure what you’re upset about here. It was an empty lot, someone bought it and built some condos. Yes they’re expensive; imagine how much it cost to buy the land, pay the labor, buy the materials, and get through all the permitting? It wouldn’t make sense to sell them at below market rate because the financiers would just lose money.
Whoever built all those old homes in OB decades ago didn’t do it for free either and I guarantee you that even building a single family home or some beach cottages today would cost an arm and a leg.
Read what Jon says. “They will 100% be vacation rentals for wealthy tourists.” They will help to destroy the neighborhood, Zack, dude. They will cut into the available housing stock for people your age Zack. Yet, your only tears are for the developer. ‘Oh, poor developer! You’ve had to spend sooo much on labor, the lot, the materials, and all those permits, boohoo. So, screw the community! We’re gonna make as much dough as we possibly can by making them vacation rentals.’ Screw everybody else, eh Zack?
What did you want? A development affordable enough Michael Mills could buy? LOL. Zack/ Frank there’s nothing in OB that is anything affordable anymore. Just start taxing the crap out of these rentals.
Zach,
This being anything other than a long term rental for people to actually LIVE in will further contribute to the housing shortage. The fact that you seem to be ok with it being a vacation rental for tourists (despite the fact this is on a previously empty lot) I see as further proof you don’t really belive density will lower housing costs.
I meant Zack.
There is no evidence that density will lower housing prices, especially 2 blocks from the beach.
I never said it would. In fact I’ve been saying the opposite.
It blows my mind when developers spend an insane amount of money to build homes like this in the heart of traditional OB. If the buyer gets a mortgage they’ll be paying $11,000 a month plus $1,666 in property taxes a month. That’s an INSANE price to live in a crowded, apartment heavy, beach bro-centric neighborhood where parties and hooliganism happen 24/7.
I love OB but I moved up the hill a little ways once I turned 30.
Yep, I suppose they may turn into AirBnBs, but even that market’s heyday may have passed. My neighbor across the street did the vacation rental thing until he got tired of the turnover and the damage.
So good luck developers. One thing you your neighboring property owners will be happy about is the increased value of their property value. Not so much the renters.
Turning it into a STVR seems the most likely outcome, whether through AirBnB or another entity. Perhaps even long term rental or some other kind of profit making machine. I just can imagine someone paying that much to live there.
You see if we re-zone then those who already are wealthy enough to own the land and have capital to build will profit directly and build something like STVRs or high-income units. This will trickle down the market until housing is more affordable and the people we supposedly care about in this “crisis” will eventually benefit indirectly. Don’t call it trickle down economics! It’s……well…..it’s…..
Are you looking for the term ‘yellow rain’ perhaps? Just more variations of Reagan’s Trickle Down Theory in action?
Which always looks like yellow rain to anybody without a money-filled umbrella to protect themselves from the powerful & greedy. The US used to have a 90% income tax on the wealthy…until they took over and started to re-make the rules into the 1890s Gilded Age again.
Now millionaires pay less income taxes than their secretaries.
Don’t you just LOVE Capitalist at its finest? Gives you great mayors like…what you have in ‘America’s Finest City.’
As Zappa once sang: watch out where the huskies go…and don’t you eat that yellow snow. And these people will continue pissing on everybody. Because they can. That’s what extreme Capitalism does. It destroys other people’s lives into misery so a very few may profit mightily.
You might think of it as a war, actually. If for no other reason than the anguish and destruction of lives it creates. Class War has been going on a long time in this country…know your history.
sealintheSelkirks
A very funny thing happened on a recent KPBS Roundtable podcast discussing the Housing Action Plan 2.0.
The host, obviously supportive of the policy, referred to it accidentally as “trickle-down economics” then immediately defended the label hand-waving to simple supply/demand in the housing market. Just minutes later, discussing the surprisingly small impact of interest rates on housing prices, the host then explained how the housing market is more complicated than simple supply/demand.
It would be funny if it wasn’t so sad watching supply-side liberals twist themselves into pretzels supporting their “yellow rain” housing policies.
https://www.kpbs.org/podcasts/kpbs-roundtable/a-closer-look-at-san-diegos-housing-action-package-2-0
yep, Seal, I ditto that.
It seems that Fairbanks Ranch & Rancho Santa Fe are ripe for up-zoning and a huge new centralized transit center!
It should have constructed to seven story building with five units on each floor and no on site parking…so we can encourage OB to be a walkable neighborhood and get rid of almost the annoying cars congesting all the streets in Ocean Beach…we need cheap housing and get away from the car centric infurstructure. San Diego needs to grow up
Tony…it’s hard to tell if you’re trolling or being serious.
Just because you build a high rise with no parking doesn’t mean people will give up their cars. They’ll just park in front of your residence and then they’ll be REALLY annoying. Just ask that developer who built an apartment on North Park Way with little in the way of parking. He couldn’t lease any units until he rented monthly parking at the city garage on 30th.
Tony, two questions for you. Where do you live? Where do you want to live? I’ve lived in a southern California beach community since 1973. I do feel privileged for being able to do so, but before that I lived in a much less desirable community, probably in an area where you would not want to live.. It is the only type of place I have ever wanted to live, despite the many tradeoffs and inconveniences living at the beach entails. You want to take that away from me. Why should I let you?
Where do you want to live? How would you feel if I denied it to you? How would you feel if I took your cherished home away from you? This is the real issue to me.
She invited her cats over many times
They loved it
Ran all up and down
We sipped beers
Talked
Left covered in sawdust
Making the best of Marc’s horsehoe pit
Great memories as our block shifts another shaft
On January 5, 1930, Mao Tse-tung published “A Single Spark Can Start A Prairie Fire.” In it he identified the three enemies of the people—the Imperialists, the Warlords and the Landlords. They are with us today. The Imperialists—global capitalism and autocratic governments; the Warlords—the military/industrial/intelligence/surveillance complex; and the Landlords—the rental/credit world. Like the WEF noted in 2016, “You’ll own nothing, and you’ll be happy”.