These homespaces are in the perfect location for a commute in any direction, and big enough to work from home. They’re perfect for the person who wants to live in the sunshine, and enjoy onsite amenities like a gym, theatre room, and private courtyard for relaxing with friends and neighbors. They’re created for someone who wants more interior space, and more light from huge windows, and lower purchase prices, and low HOAs.

They’re having a brunch this Saturday. Stop by for some waffles and espresso and take a look around 4/10 between 11-2pm. Financially, they have new homes available to purchase now, move in in 30 days, FHA financing terms, and the opportunity for first time homebuyers to take advantage of both the State and Federal Tax incentives if they get into contract by 4/30, and close by June 30.

This is too good to let pass you by!! Contact me if you have any questions: joshua@climbsf.com

Breathe in these amazing views!

Featured Boston Townhome $485,000
Don’t miss soaring ceilings and stunning downtown Oakland views from your new home in Emeryville. This 2bd/2ba Boston Townhome has approximately 1,500 square feet of homespace featuring a flex space/den and Ipe wood deck!

Vue46 also features 1, 2, and 3-bedroom Homespaces from the mid-$300,000′s.
* Soaring ceilings
* Spacious floor plans
* Stunning Views

Expand your horizons with instant access to Emeryville and the greater Bay Area!\
46th Street & Adeline in Emeryville
Stop by today to see for yourself all the space, amenities and value that Vue46 offers. There’s more room to Breathe!

Converting old factory buildings into lofts is common in Emeryville, a practice that makes for some interesting, one-of-a-kind places to live.

Among them is Vue46, a new condominium project straddling the Oakland/Emeryville border at 46th and Adeline streets. In 1924, the building was the headquarters for Aluminum Cooking Materials, whose WearEver cookware products are still on the market today, though as part of a French firm.

Now this former manufacturing plant is becoming home to locals in need of starter housing and was awarded the Adaptive Reuse Project of 2008 by Builder & Developer magazine. A collection of artifacts from the building’s past, including original 1920s blueprints and retro advertising artwork, will be on display as part of the common area finishes.

This old WearEver house has been wearing well, and morphed nicely into a second life as one-, two- and three-bedroom condos, townhomes and lofts. Vue46 prices start at just under $300,000, significantly less than projected in 2007 when the homes were pre-marketed with prices starting in the $500,000s, according to material on its Web site.

Views haven’t been discounted, however. Even though it’s just five stories high, thanks to its location in a low-rise neighborhood of mainly single-family homes, most units capture a classic Bay Area panorama: the Oakland/Berkeley hills, Oakland city lights, the Bay Bridge, San Francisco, the Golden Gate and the Marin Headlands.

The floor plans are dubbed New York Flats, London Lofts and Boston Townhouses. Homes start on the second floor with secure indoor and some gated outdoor parking on the ground floor. There are also spots to lock a bike and plenty of hookups for electric cars.

Originally named the 46th Street Lofts, the property added three stories and created 180-degree views from the top floor, providing sufficient cause for a name change. The approved project also involves approximately 3,000 square feet of ground-floor retail/commercial space, including a proposed corner cafe at 46th and Adeline.

Vue46 is a project of Levin Menzies & Associates of Walnut Creek, Kwan Henmi Architects of San Francisco and Barry Swenson Builders of San Jose.

Amenities include a fitness center; media room with big-screen TV and surround sound; controlled access lobby and a courtyard garden on the second floor. Among the available upgrades are wood floors rather than the standard carpet in the living/dining area and washer-dryer and storage unit options.

One-, two- and three-bedroom New York Flats range from approximately 885 to 1,985 square feet on a single level with 10- to 11-foot ceilings. They vary in price from $299,000 to $529,000. Some have private patios on the courtyard level.

All London Lofts have west-facing decks and are one-bedroom plus den floor plans. They range from approximately 1,254 to 1,316 square feet and from $479,000 to $485,000. London Lofts have second-floor bedrooms on an open mezzanine level that overlook the two-story living area below.

The Boston Townhouses are two-story homes with a fully enclosed second-level master suite and a second-level “flex space” open to the living area below. These one-, two- and three-bedroom homes are priced from $489,000 to $610,000 and are available with up to 2,390 square feet of living space. Some have decks with an additional 900 square feet of outdoor space.

The Boston two-bedroom, den plus two-bath – No. 505 – measures about 1,688 square feet. It is entered via a spacious foyer with a large coat closet on the right and the second bath with tub on the left. The second bedroom with double-door entry has a commodious walk-in closet.

The L-shape kitchen, equipped with GE Profile stainless steel appliances plus microwave and Venetian Gold slab countertops with 6-inch backsplash, overlooks the living/dining area. With its enviable corner location and east and south views, it is flooded with light from nearly 16-foot-high windows at the front of the unit.

Open stair risers in sustainably harvested ipe wood lead up to the second-floor “flexspace” that could be used as a den or home office. There’s also enough room below the open stairs for a desk or an entertainment center. The washer-dryer hookups are upstairs, adjacent to the master suite.

The master bedroom is entered through the flex-room with the large walk-in closet to the left. In front of it sits the master bath with dual, counter-mounted vessel sinks and glossy white subway tiles and shower surround.

Monthly homeowner dues range from $354 to $535 and cover water service, trash service, liability insurance, reserve fund and upkeep and maintenance of the property’s amenities. Each home comes with at least one secure parking space. Some of the two- and three-bedroom condos come with two.

The area might appear to be dicey at night, but the secure parking and increasing number of housing and retail developments portend a busier neighborhood in the near future. The property is within a 10-minute walk of the MacArthur BART Station and plenty of local and commuter bus services.

Vue46 has 12 below-market-rate units. But if you qualify as a low- to moderate-income buyer, don’t delay, because half already have been sold.
Vue46

Address: 1001 46th St., Emeryville
Developer: Levin Menzies & Associates
Architect: Kwan Henmi
Prices:

* Junior 1 bedrooms start at $299,000 for 885 square feet.
* 1 bedrooms start at $395,000 for 1100-1200 square feet.
* 2 bedrooms range from low $400s to $529,000.
* 3 bedrooms start at $549,000 for 2100 square feet.

Square feet range: 885-2400 square feet (some with an additional 900 square feet of outdoor space)
Parking: one or two underground spaces
Monthly homeowner dues: $354-$535/ month
Walkability: 80 out of 100, “very walkable” (walkscore.com)

EMERYVILLE, CA-The acquisition of five adjacent parcels totaling three acres clears the way for some type of mixed-use development that includes street-level retail.

     The project involves the demolition of two existing industrial buildings and the construction of for-purchase residential condominium units. The entire site contained a paint manufacturing plant and is located in both the City of Emeryville and the City of Oakland, with 44% of the total 39,000 square feet located in the City of Emeryville. The project includes 31 units in each city, for a total of 62 residential units and 84 off-street parking spaces provided in a partially submerged garage. The project is being built following “green building” principles using recycled building materials and local/regional materials. It also maximizes the use of energy/water efficient technologies, such as collecting water runoff for use in landscape irrigation and providing wiring in the parking garage to accommodate electric motor vehicles. The project will comply with Emeryville”s affordable housing goal by providing six affordable housing units, all located within Emeryville. The project will open in 2005. courtesy City of Emeryville

From the high $500,000’s. This unique collection of urban condominiums located on the Oakland and Emeryville border, has two spacious floorplans ranging from 1,544-1,623 sq. ft. Enclosed 2 bedrooms with truly functional home office space or optional 3 bedroom. Attached 2-car garage with interior access. Close to BART, freeways and downtown Oakland and Emeryville.

Valerie Fahey, Special to The Chronicle

Sunday, March 19, 2006

It seems as if every week a new condo project sprouts along the border of Oakland and Emeryville, the little town that has parlayed a prime location into a bustling retail, residential and commercial hub. Artisan Walk, a 72-unit townhouse community built by the Olson Co., straddles the Oakland-Emeryville border. The homes at 66th and Vallejo streets are located one block from the shops of San Pablo Avenue and within walking distance of Emeryville”s retail and entertainment district. The development is within four blocks of three bus lines and the Emery-Go-Round, a free shuttle that connects the complex to the MacArthur BART station and nearby employers, such as Pixar. In light bridge traffic, San Francisco”s Financial District is 15 minutes away. Built on the former site of a 55-gallon-drum recycling plant, this infill project places 66 units in Oakland and the remaining six in Emeryville. To meet Emeryville”s affordable-housing ordinance, all six units are earmarked for low- or moderate-income home buyers. The townhomes are built in clusters of three to five units with plenty of open space behind and between them. Ground floor units have stoops, while each upper-story corner unit has a front-facing area with a balcony. Depending on the unit”s location, the views may be of the bay and Golden Gate Bridge or the Berkeley hills. The view for a few of the first-floor units is mainly of San Pablo Avenue or 66th Street. The three-story project features good-size condos — from 1,544 to 1,623 square feet — with two bedrooms, two bathrooms and lots of options. Plan One has a first-floor den or home office with an option to convert it into a third bedroom with a third bath and walk-in closet. It starts at $610,000. The starting price for the third floor, 1,544 square-foot Plan Two unit with two bedrooms and two baths — and a two-car tandem garage — is $589,990. The gussied-up Plan Two show model, with upgraded flooring and Shaker-style maple kitchen cabinets, is $630,000. Plan Two also has an option, for $30,000, to turn the three stacked hall closets adjacent to the stairwell landings into an elevator. Even if the initial home buyer doesn”t choose this convenience, the potential elevator shaft is built in and can be converted for future owners, a nice plus for schlepping groceries, carrying little ones or providing mobility for seniors. The entry is through a covered porch to a wood-floored entry. One of the three closets on the landings, if the elevator option isn”t chosen, sits to left. Access to the two-car tandem garage is down the hall. Up two flights of stairs and straight ahead is a great room with corner floor-to-ceiling windows and a door that leads out to a small balcony. Future homeowners relaxing in the open-plan kitchen-cum-living space can open the windows and glass door and enjoy the bay breezes in the heart of their home. The U-shaped kitchen with the ubiquitous granite countertops and stainless steel appliances has a snack counter and double sink overlooking the dining/living space. The openness of the great room makes the area appear quite spacious. The master bedroom is located down the hallway, behind the living room. The master suite has a large walk-in closet with enough room for two drawer-style chests. The roomy master bath has dual sinks set in granite countertops, with a separate shower stall and toilet closet but no tub. The master bedroom is comfortably sized to accommodate a queen- or king-sized bed. Light fills the room from three windows. To the right of the hallway sits a laundry closet, smack dab between the two bedrooms and two bathrooms. The second bath also sports double sinks set in tile with a separate toilet closet and a shower/tub combination. Access to another set of stairs, a fire code must for third-floor units, is off the second bedroom. Both plans feature high-speed cable wiring throughout the home. If all those amenities don”t sound sweet enough, the builder is dangling a few incentives that are worth noting. The Olson Co. is paying up to $10,000 for closing costs (on select first-floor units). They will also pay the city transfer tax, which is $15 per $1,000, when home buyers secure a mortgage with their preferred lender.

John King, Chronicle Urban Design Writer

Friday, June 3, 2005

In the life-shaping realms of urban planning and sustainable growth, the Bay Area is a storehouse filled with smart innovations. But the larger picture shows something else: a region that is sprawling with no end in sight. Though new housing in older cities near the bay offers the sort of dense urban growth that planners say is vital for a region”s long-term health, single-family homes in far greater numbers continue rising on former farmland on the region”s edge — and beyond, since at least 165,000 workers now commute into the Bay Area each day. A major reason for the sprawl is that the Bay Area has no regional government with the power to steer growth to certain locations, or to make sure that new housing goes near existing jobs. Instead, the Bay Area”s future is shaped by nine counties and 101 municipalities — some that fight development, and some that welcome it. “The people paid to implement plans aren”t paid to imagine the future of the entire region. Their job is to look at their own community,” says Victoria Eisen, who worked from 1999 to 2002 on a regional sustainability plan for the Association of Bay Area Governments, which monitors local development. The effort to transform growth is at the heart of this week”s World Environment Day Conference in San Francisco. The conference includes mayors signing a “Green Cities Declaration” that promotes “truly sustainable urban centers.” The declaration includes a call for government efforts to place jobs, housing and recreation within close distance of each other. This approach is already on view in Emeryville, a 1.2-square-mile bayside city next to Oakland where high-density housing has reclaimed empty industrial land. In 1999, Emeryville had 2,000 housing units; by 2007, city officials say that number will double. The next project to hit the market is Green City Lofts, which fits 62 condominiums onto less than an acre of land where a paint factory once stood. The complex sits one block from the shops of San Pablo Avenue and a free shuttle that connects the MacArthur BART station to such large employers as Pixar Animation Studio. But as the name indicates, Green City Lofts isn”t just selling location. There”s fly ash in the foundation to reduce the use of Portland cement, a generator of greenhouse gases. The interior paints don”t give off irritating gases. Kitchen cupboard doors are made of compressed wheat. “More and more, green construction does not mean hay bales and clunky looks,” says first-time developer Martin Samuels. Another example of the change is City Limits, a 92-unit townhouse complex on 2.5 acres developed by Pulte Homes, a national firm beginning to explore infill development. But Pulte also is sticking to the suburban housing tracts that have defined American residential growth since World War II; its largest Bay Area project is Rose Garden in Brentwood, a once-rural city that”s a 48-mile drive east from Emeryville and more than an hour”s commute from most East Bay job centers. So what does Rose Garden offer, besides 512 houses spread across 104 acres tucked behind sound walls? “You”ve got neighborhood parks, pool amenities, good schools and a brand- new home with space around it,” says Steve Kalmbach, president of Pulte”s Bay Area division. “The Bay Area does attract a type of person who”s more drawn to urban living — but at the end of the day, single-family homes are what the majority of families prefer.” Brentwood-style sprawl is more common in the Bay Area than is Emeryville”s focused rejuvenation. While Emeryville has added 1,400 residents since 2000, Brentwood”s population grew from 23,302 to 40,912, according to figures compiled by the California Department of Finance. Similarly, eastern Alameda County”s Dublin and Livermore increased their combined population to 120,654 — a jump of 17,000. This sort of outward migration is what Bay Area planners and politicians have battled at least since 1962, when the pamphlet “California: Going, Going . ..” held up Bay Area “slurbs” as an example of the evils spawned by the state”s “disastrous lack of coordinated land planning and development.” The solution, critics have argued, is a new layer of Bay Area-wide government that would allow growth in certain areas and keep it away from others. But regionalization efforts have been blocked by local governments fearing a loss of control. The most recent effort, dubbed Bay Vision 2020, petered out in 1992. Instead, people honed the art of blocking development proposals near their homes with techniques ranging from growth moratoriums to local taxes that raised money to buy new parkland. While the landscape as a result has distinctive bands of open hillside, census figures indicate that 165,000 people in 2000 commuted to the Bay Area from beyond the nine counties, a number that since then surely has increased. A recent study by the Texas Transportation Institute found that local commuters spend 72 hours each year stalled in traffic — the second-worst figure for any region in the nation. Despite all this, some planners are optimistic that the Bay Area can learn to grow in smarter ways. In 2002, the Association of Bay Area Governments oversaw a “regional livability footprint project” that included three years of public meetings. It mapped out a strategy to contain most future growth within existing communities. In this scenario, two-thirds of all new Bay Area housing in the next 20 years would be in multiunit buildings. The amount of land consumed by growth would fall from 83,000 acres — one projected figure — to 16,000 acres. “We tried to play on what”s special about each community — what people value,” such as compact hamlets surrounded by farmland in Sonoma, said Eisen, who now is a partner in the Berkeley planning firm Eisen/Letunic. “Development could actually improve what makes those places unique.” There are no controls to make this happen, only incentives to lure cities to try something new. For instance, the Metropolitan Transportation Commission offers grants to projects built near mass transit lines: This year, it will distribute $9 million to projects that contain at least 30 units per acre and are located within one-third mile of a transit stop. “We have no land use authority, but we have money and an ability to provide financial incentives,” says James Corliss, a senior planner for MTC. “We have an opportunity right now to define new growth patterns for the suburbs. I”m an optimist.” Other observers aren”t so sure. “There are lots of nifty examples now of high-density housing, but I”m not sure they”re evidence that things have really changed” in terms of growth patterns, says Paul Fassinger, the Association of Bay Area Governments” research director for the past decade. “I take my kids out to soccer in Livermore or Dublin, and you see limitless numbers of single-family homes,” comments Fassinger. “The American pattern of development is there. And it seems to grow in front of your eyes.”

Susan Fornoff, Chronicle Staff Writer

Sunday, March 20, 2005

San Francisco young-urban-professional renters on the hunt for a first home should prepare to be smitten at first sight of Pulte Homes” new 92- townhouse development on the Oakland-Emeryville border. City Limits — tucked into an up-and-coming, several-block corridor between San Pablo Avenue and Interstate 80 with Pixar, Citron, the Bay Street Mall and, perhaps most important to City Limits buyers, Ikea — catches the eye with its industrial, South of Market feel, then seduces with its prices, starting in the mid-$500,000s. In case that”s not enough to entice commitment, Pulte threw in the ultimate San Francisco renter fantasy: a one- or two-car garage on the ground floor of each home. “We opened with 10 homes and sold out the first week,” said sales associate Karen Kong. “First-time home buyers, several of them from San Francisco.” The city and just about everywhere else in the Bay Area are easy commutes via the Emery Go-round, a free shuttle that stops at 66th and Hollis, a couple of blocks from City Limits, and takes riders to the MacArthur BART station. Of the two models (there will be others as additional phases are completed and sold), the one that seemed most pleasant to come home to is the B plan, which is priced in the mid-$600,000s. The B model is one of only three floor plans among the eight that have room for just one car — plus ample storage — in its garage. The plans range from only 1,033 square feet of living space in the D (two bedrooms, 1 1/2 baths, two-car garage) to 1,426 square feet in the two C plans (two bedrooms, 2 1/2 baths, study and two-car garage on the ground floor). The 1,371-square-foot B model uses the leftover ground floor space as a study. One could imagine telecommuters and consultants setting up shop here as well, because the windows and door — framed in black steel in keeping with that industrial motif — open right onto the street. Then it”s 16 steps up. Remember, this is a place for the first-time buyer (translation: sturdy-jointed and light-traveling), not the achy and encumbered empty nester. First stop is the half bath (the expression “powder room” not being in keeping with the aforementioned motif) and open living space. The Pulte folks are making it easy on the deer-in-the-headlights new homeowner by selecting the cabinets, flooring, countertops and other finishes, and they”ve done well. The cabinets are maple with some glass doors, appliances (GE Profile) are all stainless steel, main living space floor is bamboo and kitchen counters/islands are granite slab. The bathrooms have granite surrounds and countertops, stainless steel sinks and urban style sheet flooring, and the bedrooms are carpeted in neutral tones. With steel beams and lots of big, steel-framed windows, the decor keeps step with our industrial motif, yet paint colors (yellows, greens) keep out the factory feel. In the B model, the kitchen is an unusual layout, all along one long wall. The opposite wall is empty, and there”s perhaps just enough room for a narrow table or some other piece of furniture here. The back wall has a big window, the front of the kitchen a low, two-seat counter. The floor plan says the dining room is adjacent and the living room next to that, but really it”s one space and could be furnished in a variety of ways. We saw a setup with living room in the middle and dining table at the front, which seemed to work well if there”s a television involved, especially because the front of the space has large windows front and side. Every unit has at least a small deck, in this case one with room for a couple of chairs and plants. Some plans show two decks or a larger deck. Sometimes they”re on the third floor, which is another 16 steps up. Both bedrooms in the B model have bathrooms, but the larger bedroom”s bathroom had only a shower, though the space seemed big enough to have a tub. The smaller bedroom had the tub/shower combination. Closet space can”t compare to the walk-in, dance-in, skateboard-in sizes to be found in Tracy and Brentwood, but remember, there”s storage space in the garage. The sleeping floor seemed well insulated and quiet, but oversize windows bring in lots of light as well of views of the neighbors and warehouse across the street, so the new owners are going to have to go shopping for shades, blinds or drapes. Which is where the proximity of Ikea becomes a perk. Other modern furniture-makers — Crate and Barrel or West Elm, for instance — might also want to think about setting up shop in the neighborhood. Starbucks already has staked its claim to a corner. That, of course, raises the question of what the young, urban professionals who formerly rented in San Francisco will do with their evenings while living at City Limits. Until the rest of the neighborhood catches up, this might be the time they”ll have to get the car out of the garage.