What was once an empty department store in the heart of downtown Santa Maria is now at the center of a multi-million dollar transformation. On Thursday, the City of Santa Maria and The Vernon Group broke ground on the Heritage Walk Lofts, marking the first major project in a long-term downtown revitalization plan.
The 104-unit loft-style apartment complex will repurpose the old Mervyn’s/Fallas building at the Santa Maria Town Center West. For Brett Vernon, president of The Vernon Group, it’s the beginning of something bigger.
“We won the RFP for downtown, which is, we had a proposal to redevelop four parcels here. This is lot one. Lot two is across the street. Lot three is across the street by Bank of America, and lot four is right over here,” Vernon said.
“We started investing in private real estate around to build a better sense of place. And so we bought this, this old Mervyn’s, which was a Fallas at the time. We bought it from them.”
Vernon estimates the cost of the project to be around $35 million.
“We’re looking at about $20 million in construction, and the rest is kind of financing and carrying costs,” he said. “We have raised, it’s been about 5 or $6 million of equity that we’ve invested in this project alone.”
The city has partnered with The Vernon Group through a mix of private ownership and city-owned parcels. According to Chenin Dow, Santa Maria’s Community Development Director, this is part of a multi-year effort to reimagine the downtown core.
“This is the culmination of a many years long effort by the City of Santa Maria to initiate downtown revitalization for our community. This is going to be the first new project,” Dow said.
Dow said the city began seeking developers in 2019. By 2021, The Vernon Group had won the request for proposals.
“Back in 2019, the city issued an RFP for a developer to partner with us to revitalize the downtown area. And the Vernon Group was the successful winner. That was awarded in 2021,” Dow said. “Since then, we have been working together to advance these projects.”
Dow emphasized the importance of supporting small businesses throughout construction.
“We encourage people to follow the downtown revitalization, and while we’re under construction, come and frequent our downtown businesses,” she said.
Among those small businesses is Tere Paredes, co-owner of a restaurant near the site. Paredes said she initially feared her business would be displaced, until she met with the developers.
“The funny thing is I met them at a chamber board meeting. I asked, ‘well, what’s going to happen to the parking lot for this business there?’ And they said, ‘gone’. And I was like, ‘what?’” Paredes said.
“We did have a sit-down meeting here at the restaurant. Got to know them on a different level and realizing that the actual construction is only temporary and our future, along with theirs, looks a lot brighter.”
She said she’s hopeful that the project will address ongoing safety and vacancy issues downtown.
“We’re just so excited to have them here. We’re so excited to see the change that is so desperately needed in our area,” she said. “You have the homelessness, you have burglaries, you have all the things that we’ve been facing nonstop for the past like five years. So I think this is going to be a very positive change for us.”
Santa Maria Mayor Alice Patino echoed the sentiment, saying the project aligns with long-held community visions for a walkable, vibrant downtown.
“We have had focus groups for years and years and years, people coming together to see what they wanted Santa Maria to look like and over the years it hasn’t changed that much,” Patino said.
“People still want the same thing for downtown. They want a place where they can come, a place that is pedestrian friendly. They can ride their bikes, they can walk, they can meet people, places to sit, maybe have a sandwich, a drink or whatever. So this is what we want for downtown Santa Maria.”
Patino also noted that affordability remains a top concern and that a mix of market-rate and deed-restricted units will be part of the broader downtown plan.
“Across the street is going to be affordable apartments. There will be a mixture downtown of what we have,” she said.
“We have housing for seniors on the south end of town, but part of these apartments will be for seniors also. So it’ll be a mixture of all age groups.”
The Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce has been involved in downtown revitalization efforts for several years. Michael Boyer, the Chamber’s CEO, said the work dates back to 2018.
“The Chamber has been working with the Vernon Group and the city for many years around this project,” Boyer said.
“We’re really hoping to bring lots of people living downtown. So essentially this will turn into more of a walking district, with restaurants and commercial space, retail space, you know, as well as a hotel here once the development is complete.”
Boyer said the investment across all planned buildings downtown will total more than $300 million.
“We believe that that’s a giant step forward to remake what downtown Santa Maria is into maybe what it used to be, when there were walking streets and lots of shops in the old town of Santa Maria,” he said.
As for what’s next, Vernon says construction is expected to take about 20 months.
“We’re optimistic right now. We’re hoping to finish it in 20 months. So if we do that, you know, we should be taking tenants in in 20 months,” he said.
He added that the lofts are being designed to bring a modern, urban aesthetic to Santa Maria.
“They’re all loft-style apartments, we’re really kind of modeling it after what you would see in like a New York-style loft,” Vernon said.
“Ultimately, we’re going to have 104 units where 104 families can live here.”
