Santa Monica has officially cut the ribbon on Berkeley Station, the city’s first modular affordable housing development at 1342 Berkeley Street. The four-story infill project packs in 13 one-bedroom apartments for low-income families and transition-aged youth, with many of the factory-built units craned into place in just days instead of the months a typical build would demand.
The city backed the project with an $11.32 million Housing Trust Fund construction loan and paired the homes with 13 project-based vouchers from the Santa Monica Housing Authority, according to a City of Santa Monica release. Officials and partners gathered for a ribbon-cutting last Friday, and the city notes that St. Joseph Center will provide on-site case management for young adult residents. The announcement also flags the building’s all-electric systems, rooftop solar panels, and a design aimed at LEED Gold standards.
Berkeley Station’s 13 one-bedroom units include five apartments reserved for transition-aged youth ages 18-24 at up to 50 percent of the area median income, and eight apartments for families earning up to 30 percent of AMI, as reported by Urbanize LA. The building skips on-site parking entirely in favor of outdoor space, with terrace decks and a ground-level community garden, plus shared amenities that include laundry facilities, a rooftop deck, and a community room.
Prefab Units Went Up Fast
The apartments were built off-site and then dropped into place on the narrow lot in a tight installation window, with Plant Prefab constructing the modules at its Tejon Ranch factory and lifting them onto the site, according to Plant Prefab. Project partners say the modular approach cut down on on-site disruption and labor time while keeping the structure all-electric and energy efficient. The pieces were arranged to carve out small terraces and a central garden and to squeeze as much usable space as possible from the long, narrow parcel.
Who Will Live Here, and Who Will Run It
Community Corporation of Santa Monica will own and manage Berkeley Station and will team up with St. Joseph Center to provide case management and youth supports, the developer’s project page notes. Community Corporation of Santa Monica has been developing and operating affordable housing in the city for decades, and leaders say the smaller scale at Berkeley Station is meant to support a focused program that helps residents keep their housing and plug into work and education opportunities. Managers expect the project-based vouchers and local referral networks to fill the units with eligible households.
What The City Says This Proves
City officials are casting Berkeley Station as a test case for building housing faster and more cost-effectively on small urban lots. The City of Santa Monica notes that the development used Brooks + Scarpa’s NEST Toolkit, a kit-of-parts modular system that previously won backing through an L.A. County innovation award, and says factory-built housing is a growing policy priority for the state, according to the city release. While advocates acknowledge that a single 13-unit building will not solve the region’s housing shortage, local leaders hope the model can be copied on similar infill sites.
Move-in and placements are already underway through the project-based voucher process and local referral channels, and partners say they will track day-to-day operations and resident support services over the coming months to see whether the modular setup delivers on its promises of speed, cost savings, and tenant stability. Early results are expected to influence whether Santa Monica leans into more factory-built projects as it looks to expand its affordable housing stock.
