316 Acres in San Rafael Hills : Plans Revised for Subdivision

Developers of what would be the largest housing subdivision in Glendale’s history said this week that they want to build more single-family houses than originally planned, but fewer town houses and duplexes.

Developers also said they expect to finish the project in 2 1/2 years instead of the 5 to 15 years originally estimated for construction.

Homes by Polygon, a Costa Mesa-based developer, in December purchased interest in the 316-acre Hensler-MacDonald tract in the San Rafael Hills west of Glendale Community College. The company plans for almost half of the 572 newly proposed units to be developed as single-family homes costing up to $340,000 each.

Earlier plans provided for a mixture of 140 town houses, 312 duplexes and 136 single-family houses clustered on 137 acres.

After years of study, the Glendale City Council last April tentatively approved a proposed 588-unit subdivision of mixed town houses, duplexes and single-family houses. The project was described as offering “affordable housing,” with prices starting at $150,000.

But the plans fizzled late last year when owners of the property announced that the project had become too costly and risky to pursue.

The new proposal calls for construction of 271 single-family houses ranging in size from 2,000 to 3,100 square feet, 171 duplexes and 130 two- and four-unit town houses on a site covering 143 acres. The remainder of the site--more than 170 acres--would be dedicated to the city as open space.

Price Range

Prices of the homes would range from $150,000 for a 1,350-square-foot town house--the smallest unit proposed--to $340,000 for a large view home.

Polygon representatives said they expect to present detailed plans for the project to city officials next week.

During a two-hour study session before the City Council on Tuesday, representatives of Polygon and its consultants presented the most complete plans ever proposed for subdividing the chaparral-covered parcel west of Mountain Street between the Glendale Freeway and Chevy Chase Drive.

Architectural drawings depicting elegant town houses, duplexes and expansive single-family houses nestled in cul-de-sac neighborhoods with a bird’s-eye view of the city drew favorable comments from city officials who have wrestled with opposition to development of the hillside site for more than 20 years.

‘Very Handsome Plans’

“Those are very handsome plans,” said Councilman John F. Day after viewing a series of slides depicting the architectural designs proposed for the community.

A key factor in the new proposal calls for the city to approve a tax-exempt bond issue to pay for public improvements such as streets, sewers and flood-control channels, estimated to cost $29 million. Individual properties in the development would be assessed about $40,000 each for the improvements, developers said.

Traffic from each of six proposed neighborhoods in the development would be funneled onto Mountain Street, to be extended from its current terminus at the Glendale Freeway to San Rafael Avenue in Chevy Chase Canyon.

Developers said they hope to obtain final city approval of the project in May and to complete grading of the project a year after approval.