DBN Development Expands Esplanade

SAN JACINTO, CA-DBN Development of Laguna Hills has acquired a parcel of land across the street from its $20-million San Jacinto Esplanade retail project, with plans to build a second phase of the development. The company's new development site is nine acres, which was part of a 19-acre tract that DBN bought recently before selling off the remaining 10 acres. The new phase of the development will be called Esplanade West and will be adjacent to DBN's soon-to-be-built San Jacinto Esplanade at the corner of Esplanade and Sanderson avenues. The two projects together will form a "gateway retail intersection" of nearly 200,000 sf of retail and dining establishments, says Steve Delson, president of DBN. The project will span both sides of Sanderson Avenue on the north side of Esplanade Avenue. Among the factors driving the DBN development is the growth of residential units in the area, according to Walter Pagel of Grubb & Ellis, the project's leasing agent along with Vanessa Brown. He points out that 20,000 new housing units are slated for construction within the shopping center's trade area. Phase I of San Jacinto Esplanade, on the east side of Sanderson Avenue, will include a supermarket, a Walgreens drug store and shop space accommodating tenants such as Starbuck's, Quizno's and Red Brick Pizza. Construction for Phase I is scheduled to begin late this year, with the center slated to open in the summer of 2006. Construction of West Esplanade is planned to begin in late 2006. The San Jacinto Esplanade project, situated on the San Jacinto and Hemet boundary, is designed to serve residents of both cities and has been financed initially with funding provided by Karen McGuire at the Marshall Group and BankFirst. It is approximately a half mile from the new Taquitz High School and Middle School, which is scheduled to open in 2007, and Rancho Viejo Middle School, currently under construction.