Shopoff Realty Investments Acquires Buena Park Site with Plans for Redevelopment
Formerly home to Amway’s SoCal operations, the infill project will bring residential units to Orange County
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Shopoff Realty Investments recently acquired a 13.75-acre site at 5600 Beach Blvd. in Buena Park from Amway for $60 million, the latest in a group of developments set to convert underutilized and aging properties in Orange County into residential housing and apartments. For the Irvine-based developer, the Buena Park site is one of several residential infill developments in various stages of construction. Other projects include Uptown Newport, Magnolia Coast and redevelopment of the Westminster Mall.
Developers have had to deal with rising costs related to higher interest rates but are now facing additional costs related to labor, tariffs and overall market volatility. In addition to those factors, it can be difficult to find large development sites in urban markets where there are few vacant parcels, but opportunities exist and contingencies can help plan for price increases.
“Our business has been hard for a year-and-a-half to two years. If we look at May through the end of the year, we feel really good. This could be my best year ever for the company and for myself personally,” said Bill Shopoff, principal of the firm that he started in 1992.
Converting properties is a multi-year process, but recent progress has led to new acquisitions. Progress at existing developments has made Shopoff confident for 2025 despite a slow start in the first quarter. Overall, Shopoff Realty senior management owns and operates 30 million square feet of commercial property and has entitled more than 41,000 residential lots or units since inception of the firm.
Renderings of the future development at the Amway site.
For the Buena Park site, the company secured the acquisition with $49 million in financing with support from JLL Capital Markets. Site plans are still being developed but will consist of a mix of residential units that will replace two aging industrial buildings that total 370,000 square feet.
Although projects are moving forward, Shopoff paused to reflect on the recent wildfires that devastated Southern California. As a real estate developer, he recognizes that there may be opportunities to assist with rebuilding efforts but has opted not to participate in the recovery until the needs become clearer.
“The first opportunity is to have compassion for people impacted by the fires,” said Shopoff. “Our bigger concern out of the fires is the insurance industry and what happens to insure residential and commercial projects. We don’t have an answer, but it’s impactful,” he said.
The project in Buena Park became available when nutritional supplement manufacturer Amway decided to shutter its Southern California operations and consolidate at its Michigan headquarters.
It will invest more than $100 million there and create 260 jobs in conjunction with the move, which will happen by the end of 2026. The company signed a short-term lease back as it transitions operations.
“A short-term lease back comes with challenges and benefits. We specialize in corporate transactions and understand the complexities involved,” said Cameron Ghassemi, senior vice president of acquisitions at Shopoff.
That time will allow Shopoff to entitle the property and begin preparations to redevelop it into a residential development while collecting income to offset some of the carrying costs. Initial discussion with city leadership has been positive, especially because this housing development wasn’t included in regional housing needs assessment, and it will help the city meet a statewide goal that mandates cities meet housing needs. One common theme between all of the Shopoff projects is the infill development converts an underutilized commercial property into a residential development. In addition, a key element is the inclusion of affordable housing units. Shopoff expects to deliver approximately 500 affordable units across four projects.
“At this stage in my career, I’m equally proud that 500 families will find housing that couldn’t find housing. It’s important that we do that for our communities and our society,” Shopoff said.
At Magnolia Coast, a 28.9-acre oceanfront land parcel in Huntington Beach that previously housed massive fuel storage tanks, plans include more than 200 single-family homes, as well as a 50-unit apartment complex, a 215-room boutique hotel, and approximately 19,000 square feet of retail space. Affordable housing is a component of the project, and 25 units have been set aside for workers at the hotel. In February, Lionheart Strategic Management LLC provided $60.9 million in financing to move the project forward following approval from the California Coastal Commission.
Meanwhile, construction is ready to begin on Park Palm, the latest element of the firm’s flagship Uptown Newport development. The firm expects to break ground in the latter half of the year on the 60-unit luxury condominium project, which completes the first phase of construction. The entire development is entitled for 1,244 residential units, of which 548 units will be developed in the first phase. Some of those are apartments and some are for-sale housing. Two projects that have been completed include 458 luxury apartments and 30 condos. The condos have a price point ranging from $2 to $5 million and 25 have already been sold. The site also includes a one-acre park that is privately owned but open to the public.
“The future for Southern California and coastal communities in general in populated areas is infill development, whether it’s office, industrial or even school sites,” said Brian Rupp, executive vice president of real estate for Shopoff Realty.
