Play ball: Herb and Pam Wenig will float from their leased Marina home to their new digs at The Mark in East Village just in time for the Padres’ season. (photo/lambertphoto.com)

Spring training is over and the players have taken the field. It’s buying season in Downtown. Eleven for-sale residential projects are making the cut in ’07, ready for move-ins. Most projects report more than half of their units are spoken for by contract and developers insist the calmer market is to their satisfaction. “This is an overdue correction,” developer Douglas Wilson says of the pause between innings. “We’ve been weeding out the not-ready-for-prime-time buyers.”

Shoppers today plan to live in their purchase, as opposed to previous buyers looking to make an investment or purchasing in fear of being left out. The frenzy is gone and buyers want to walk through model homes instead of visualizing them on paper. “Buyers are kicking the wheels and want to know what they are buying,” says Mary Pampuch, vice president of Lankford & Associates, developer of Smart Corner. They want to see, feel and smell what the unit will be like. Some have been waiting several years, watching their homes be built. Others are moving up from earlier purchases, and still others are new to urban living.

Scheduled for completion this year in those 11 projects are 2,132 units for purchase, reports Russ Valone of MarketPointe Realty. “As these projects finish,” Valone says, “we will see another surge of (buyer) activity.”

Douglas Wilson Co. is putting the finishing touches on 244 condos within The Mark. Prices start in the mid-$400,000s and top out at more than $3 million for the penthouses. Wilson says he couldn’t be more delighted with the project and reports residents will take occupancy in May.

“I’m thrilled in the way it turned out,” he says. “It is a tall, elegant building with a sophisticated skin. The feedback on the look has been fabulous.”

Wilson conducted sales a bit differently from other developers. Already in contract are 130 units. Closing on just these condos within 45 days of completion will be enough to pay off the construction loan. “We haven’t tried to sell anything in two years,” Wilson explains.

Wilson didn’t want to compete in the recent soft market and won’t release additional units until the project opens. “I like our position,” he says. “We’ve never had to readjust our sales prices.”

Eagerly awaiting their move-in are Pam and Herb Wenig. The retired couple has been leasing at Park Place in the Marina District for four years while their condo at The Mark was being built. The Wenigs moved Downtown from the College area, where they resided for 30 years. Pam knew of Doug Wilson from his Park Lofts and Symphony Towers and admired his work. “When The Mark came, I knew I wanted to get in while it was new,” she says.

The couple has visited the site frequently and watched the project go up. “The East Village is coming alive,” Pam says. “It is different from the Marina. It has a new, electric feel to it. Every time we go over there, a new shop is opening. It is ever changing.”

Concept Becomes Reality

At the Icon, sales officials are reporting 164 of 327 units sold at prices ranging from $299,000 to $975,000. “I started with this project in 2001 and it was a dream that is now a reality,” says Richard Garcia, acquisitions manager for Levin Menzies & Associates. “The East Village is truly transforming. The new buzz is about the fitness center with the outdoor pool and of course the (Padres) season opener.”

Garcia says the response from the community has been unbelievable and the whole experience has been “electric.” Icon will hold a formal grand opening April 12. “We are taking our lead from Hollywood,” Garcia says, “With the whole red carpet and unveiling of the art in our courtyard.”

Moving into the Icon as the Padres take the field in Petco Park is the Oliveira family. “All the little accessories, I’ve started (to buy),” says Gretchen Oliveira. “The bigger stuff, I know what I want.” With a 1,200-square-foot unit on the southwest corner of the top floor, she is being careful not to overdo the decorating. “I want to keep the focus on the window and the view,” she says.

Gretchen and her husband, Dominic, live in Scripps Ranch with their young children and a grandfather. This condominium will be the family’s “getaway place.” The unit sold itself, Gretchen says. “The full panoramic view of the Coronado Bridge, the water, the ballpark and the location in Downtown. It offers the whole package, so why not take advantage of it?” She was drawn to the building by its industrial design and colors that make it stand out from other projects in the area. The family plans to stay in the condo during the season and enjoy the excitement of the Gaslamp Quarter, and looks forward to the quiet retreat of the library planned for nearby. “Basically, whenever we have time, we will be using it,” Gretchen says. “It is a well-rounded place.”

Moving On Up East

Arthur and Kristie Rocco’s game plan is to sell their Poway residence and move Downtown permanently after their teenage children leave home plate. (photo/lambertphoto.com)

Selling their weekend getaway at The Grande to move closer to Petco Park are Arthur and Kristie Rocco. The couple and their teenage children live in Poway and are getting ready to personalize a new unit in Icon. “She has everything all lined up,” Arthur says of his wife’s plans for the new place. It faces west and the balcony overlooks the ballpark. “I can see the pitcher’s mound and home plate,” says the avid Padres fan.

Although he and Kristie already have experienced Downtown living, Arthur says the Icon purchase has made things more personal. “They made it seem like the most important thing to the project was the people,” he says of the sales and marketing staff. “Not the location, not the colors. They would listen and take notes.”

“Beehive living” is what Arthur calls Downtown living. “You move in with a bunch of people you don’t know and are sharing areas and sharing rules,” he says. “It’s different; you have to jell.” The family participated in social events at The Grande and looks forward to doing the same at Icon. In about five years, the family home in Poway will be sold and Arthur and Kristie plan to move Downtown permanently. The couple owns a dental lab in Escondido and plans to commute to work. “We look forward to getting rid of some cars and walking everywhere,” he says. “Shrinking down, so to speak.”

Starting Smart

Work will be just a trolley ride away for Jason Joel, who chose a studio at Lankford’s Smart Corner as his first home purchase. (photo/lambertphoto.com)

Jason Joel, 23, has been navigating the Downtown First-Time Homebuyer Program offered through Centre City Development Corp. The recent UCSD graduate says the program is a bit frustrating at times but after he chose to buy a home in Lankford’s Smart Corner, he was relieved to find a sales associate to help him through some of the details. Joel looks forward to the close of escrow and anticipates the nightlife that goes with the neighborhood. “I’m not so happy that it’s a studio, but that’s all I can afford,” Joel says. “I wanted to get into the real estate market and I like that the space is Downtown.” Joel plans to take the trolley to work at Goodrich Aerostructure Group in Chula Vista.

Other Smart Corner buyers are seasoned homeowners, attracted by the 301-unit project’s amenities and its relatively low prices that start at $200,000 and top out in the $900,000s. Most new Downtown residents expect to get rid of belongings before moving into their condominiums, but Deborah Hamilton and Stephen McMackins will downsize to the extreme. The couple is packing belongings from six of their homes around the country in preparation for a summer move into their studio at Smart Corner.

“We have been looking forward to this for about three years,” Hamilton says. The couple purchased their unit when Smart Corner was little more than a concept. They watched the previous building on the site get torn down and become a hole in the ground. This month they will visit again to take measurements.

Hamilton retired several years ago from the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department and moved to Arizona with her husband for his business. The couple maintains six homes as seasonal rentals and plan to retire back to San Diego. They selected Smart Corner for several reasons, including the price.

“The idea of the trolley going through the middle of the building is just the neatest idea,” Hamilton says. “We talk all the time now about jumping on the trolley to go to the store, Mission Valley, Tijuana, just about everywhere.”

Another draw is the rooftop lounge with spa. Hamilton looks forward to watching fireworks and gazing at Christmas lights while relaxing on top of the building. The biggest challenge will be furnishings. She already plans to put in theater seating — chairs with cupholders — and a comfortable Murphy bed. “We will be happy as little clams,” she says, “with just enough space to hang our clothes.”

Bosa Sales

Lisa Coleman looks forward to her ‘own private resort’ when she takes ownership of her 1,600-square-foot condo at The Legend in September. (photo/lambertphoto.com)

Bosa will see a flurry of move-ins with two projects near completion. The Legend has sold 110 of its 178 units at prices ranging from the low $500,000s to high $800,000s. “It’s mostly smaller units left,” says Dennis Serraglio, Bosa director of sales and marketing. “Those with 970 to 1,050 square feet. The larger ones with dens went fast.” Electra will be finished in December or early January 2008 with all 248 condominiums sold.

Lisa Coleman works Downtown for Countrywide Home Loans, providing customers with high-rise financing. The single mother lives in Rancho Bernardo with her teenage son and anticipates his high school graduation so she can relocate full time to her new unit at The Legend when it opens in September. When asked what draws her to Downtown, she replies, “What doesn’t?” She says the vibrant lifestyle is attractive and the convenience of living where she works is a bonus. The ballgames on the weekends and the restaurants at night all are things she looks forward to.

Coleman owns a secondary residence Downtown in Diamond Terrace. That purchase was an investment. The 1,600-square-foot unit at The Legend is personal. She says The Legend is an exciting building and she has had her eye on it for two years because of the location.

“I was at the right place at the right time to get what I wanted,” she says. Her unit on the 19th floor overlooks the ballpark. “I can stand on my patio and watch the game,” says the Padres season ticket holder. Making the project a complete package for her is the security of the building and the attractive common areas. “It’s like my own private resort,” she says.

As projects open, MarketPointe’s Valone predicts available units will sell quickly. Wilson doesn’t expect many of the projects in the planning stages will soon, if ever, be built. At the same time, he’s already pondering his next project. “I’m not leaving any time soon,” he says.