What a 'Culture of Care' Can Create

SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO, CA—Creating communities that are shaped by the people who live there rather than by the developer allows interaction that satisfies residents, Rancho Mission Viejo Co.'s SVP of corporate communications and governmental relations Dan Kelly tells GlobeSt.com. As we recently reported, homebuilders have begun construction on Phase 1 of Esencia, an 890-acre, mixed-density, master-planned development in South Orange County, being developed by Rancho Mission Viejo LLC, with 12 residential products set to open for sale this fall. When completed, the three-phase project will include approximately 1,825 market-rate residences and approximately 730 age-qualified dwellings for buyers 55 and older that address demographics previously unserved by the merchant homebuilders. We spoke exclusively with Kelly about how his firm approaches community development and what its “culture of care” really means.

GlobeSt.com: Tell us about the “culture of care” you promote at your company.

Kelly: Rancho Mission Viejo, the place, has been in the same family for 133 years and it's in its 51^st year in the community-building business. The culture of care concept began with our Sendero and Gavilan communities. We tend to look at what we do here in the community-creation business a little differently. Sometimes it feels like our job is just beginning when the residents arrive. We do everything but build houses—we create the concept behind the communities, the essence of the communities. The culture of care begins when the people arrive.

The first village in Rancho Mission Viejo was Sendero, which opened in June 2013. We focused on setting the stage for Sendero, and there was a lot of emphasis on the public spaces. We introduced El Prado, a social and recreational community. There was a town green surrounded by a number of facilities including a guest house for use by the residents of Sendero and Gavilan, the age-restricted community. This has a commercial kitchen, and guests can throw a party on the outdoor veranda that's completely covered with indoor/outdoor seating and a party garden on the side. People really enjoy the opportunity to go down to the hacienda with a beautiful saltwater pool and massage room, a bar and lounge, a fire pit and outdoor dining area and a bocce court. On the other side is a similar amenity for market rate buyers with an extensive pool and water zone for the kids.

In Sendero, we began to provide opportunities for a mix of generations with a central community spine, El Paseo, which leads people to the other amenities. A lot of it has to do with first creating the physical space. Sendero has the Outpost clubhouse geared toward the Millennial buyer, and it has been a huge success. We didn't decide to go into the bar business lightly—it's an outdoor-oriented facility with big shutters that swing out of the way and a cool room with a big-screen TV and lounge area and a kitchen behind that. It's a hot ticket—if you have a townhome and want to have a big party, it's booked up constantly. Plus, you have the whole rest of the facility to enjoy.

GlobeSt.com: Will this carry over into Esencia?

Kelly: Yes. We put a lot of emphasis into those facilities, and we will do very much the same thing at Esencia. There's a commitment to community farming, and there will be two facilities in Sendero—Sendero Farm and Gavilan Farm. A community farmer will work beside our residents to help them be successful at farming. It's designed to be more communal than individual plots of land, embracing a real desire on behalf of the people to be more locally sourced when it comes to fresh food. I don't think this is a fad—I think it's here to stay.

We put a lot of emphasis on trying to create places, but then the people come and it comes to life.

GlobeSt.com: What does the Esencia development mean for you and your company?

Kelly: Esencia is physically dramatically different from the other communities. It's in the heart of the ranch, and it's a view-oriented hillside facility on a beautiful piece of ground. It's very different from Sendero, which was the gateway, a valley-oriented village. Esencia has coastal views and is on one of the highest elevations of the ranch. It has 35 different neighborhoods, and the age-restricted community is not sequestered behind a gate or wall. There are indications that there are quite a few 55-plus buyers who want to be part of that community. And we will have our first school, a K-8 school called Esencia School. Canyon House will be the recreational facility, and it looks into a beautiful oak canyon. Residents will have the opportunity to hike and wander in the canyon. Hilltop Club, one of the highest and most prominent spots in Esencia, will have a fitness center, exercise room, saltwater pool, cabana and bar. Because it's a central recreational facility, we will automatically have people coming together of different backgrounds, so they separate based on the programming rather than the facilities. People will be self-selected depending on what the fitness and lifelong learning classes are. There will be a mash-up of ages and life stages vs. people dividing—that's a very unique difference.