Limoneira Names Master Planned Partner

VENTURA, CA—Limoneira Co. has entered into a joint venture with the Lewis Group of Cos. to develop Santa Paula Gateway, a 500-acre master planned development that will bring 1,500 single-family homes to the Ventura County market. The Lewis Group of Cos. will pay $20 million for a 50% interest in the development. Limoneira has received a $2 million deposit and will receive the additional $18 million once the agreement closes in November 2015.

“We vetted 37 interested parties to be a real estate development partner for Limoneira,” Harold Edwards, president and CEO of Limoneira, tells GlobeSt.com. “We whittled the list down from 37 to four to two, and then landed on the Lewis Group because of the unbelievably excellent work that they have done in California and Nevada in master planned community development projects. They have successfully created a greater sense of community and a greater sense of value by developing a master plan in areas where the general real estate value surrounding the master plan have been somewhat challenged.”

The Lewis Group is a leading residential real estate investment company that has developed similar projects throughout Southern California. Both companies are committed to making Santa Paula Gateway a neighborhood where residents can grow and the community can come together. The development will include the first elementary school built in the city since 1961, as well as retail shops and other amenities integral to creating a prosperous and livable city.

In addition to the amenity set and facilities, Santa Paula Gateway will have housing options for all demographics. The community will feature a broad range of homes priced from $300,000 to $750,000. “The Lewis Group is an expert in creating aspirational neighborhoods. When they go out and lay the lots out, you are going to have as much as maybe five different builders building different product type for different segments of the market,” adds Edwards. “So, you might have a first time buyer right around the corner from a move-up buyer, and so on and so forth. The idea there is that you can capture a family for the entire lifetime of that family as they start at a level. We have seen examples of that throughout California, but the Lewis examples are really interesting. They have created tremendous value through their master planning.”

Limoneira started the entitlement process of this 500-acre land site back in 2004. It has just obtained entitlements, and is now going through permitting and approvals processes. Grading on the project will begin in late 2016, and the land lots will be ready for development in 2017. This project represents 25% of the homes that will be developed in the Ventura market over the next 25 years.