Developers Zero In on Lathrop's Residential/Commercial Building Boom

By Robert Carlsen

The small city of Lathrop, located just south of Stockton along I-5, is going to get a lot bigger thanks to a city council-approved plan to build 6,790 housing units.

Roseville-based Richland Planned Communities was the latest developer to be given a green light; other developers, including TCN Properties, Pacific Union Homes and River Islands, have similar projects in the works with the city.

Including the Richland project, the City of Lathrop has approved approximately 20,000 new housing units and 9 million sq. ft. of new office/commercial space entitlements during the past two years, according to Bruce Coleman, the city's community development director.

Coleman added that the development boom is a reaction to the growing demand of San Francisco Bay Area residents looking for affordable housing.

Lathrop, which was incorporated July 1, 1989, has a population of 11,000. One of the city's attractions is its 500-acre Crossroads Commerce Center, located at the intersection of I-5 and State Route 120, which includes facilities for Daimler Chrysler, Longs Drugs, Home Depot and Fuel Total Systems (an affiliate of Toyota).

Richland Planned Communities' project is the mainstay of the Central Lathrop Specific Plan, which will include homes, apartments, condos, schools, businesses and parks on 1,521 acres west of the city along the San Joaquin River.

Coleman said construction on the project could begin in 2006.

Richland's plan features about 5,100 single-family homes and 450 apartments and condos. It also includes a site for a Main Street-type commercial/mixed-use area, a neighborhood commercial area, a residential/mixed use area that could accommodate shops at street level with high density residential dwellings above. Land located between I-5 and Golden Valley Parkway, Coleman said, would be designated for up to 4 million square feet of office and commercial uses. The project also includes the site for Lathrop High School and three K-8 schools, a large community park and other parks.

The city council has already approved the EIR, general plan amendment and zoning code amendment, Coleman said.

The other major projects in the city include River Islands at Lathrop, a "new town" development of 11,000 residential units, a 350-acre business park and 250,000 sq. ft. of retail space; Danville-based Pacific Union Homes, a 1,700-unit residential and commercial site called Mossdale Landing; and Western Pacific homes, a 450-unit residential and commercial project.