Great Park Neighborhood Homeowners, how do you like it?

[davidchase]

I'm buying a 1 1/2 year old home in Beacon Park with my wife and 9 month son.  Wondering what the people who live in the Great Park Neighborhoods feel about the community.  What do you like the best and what is the most annoying thing about living here?  I'd love your feedback.  Thanks in advance.

 

[Burn That Belly]

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[Burn That Belly]

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[aquabliss]

I?m certainly not a GPN or FivePoint cheerleader.  I live in Pavilion Park for a few reasons.

Good space between adjacent neighbors
Big side yards (yes 8ft vs 5ft makes a big difference)
Large lot size, good privacy
Streets that have plenty of open spaces in front of my home
No attached homes / Low density
Pavilion Park locale has no TCE issues or areas that needed remediation.
We go 405 N a lot and I can literally take 133 to 405 and be on the 405 about 7 minutes after I leave my driveway, even during busy times.

I honestly don?t think I?d be interested in buying in Beacon Park, Parasol Park, or Cadence Park if I was house hunting right now.  I?d choose EW or OH over current GPN offerings.

I?m not a fan of this deciduous drought tolerant landscape crap.  Irvine Company greenbelts, clubhouses, playgrounds, and common areas are far superior.

All else I like it here, my neighbors are friendly, good diversity (good mix of white/Asian/Indian/Pakistani on my block) which is nice to see.  MR?s are of course annoying but my effective tax rate (now) is less than if I were to re-buy in a TIC hood SFH at current prices.

Anyhow David Chase I think you?ll like it just fine, not that it matters at this point as it seems you?ve already purchased.  Probably some other BP owners can comment on BP specifics.  I have a coworker who lives in BP and he likes the location a lot.  Just hold onto you knickers when you open the envelope with ?Orange County Tax Collector? in the return address area.

 

[jmoney74]

Gotta add in that the GPN homes are better looking in general (not the box look homes). 

 

[irvinehomeowner]

-Tons and tons of traffic and congestion coming soon due to Altair and newer Portola Springs communities building in the east. Sand Canyon Ave. getting worst by the day. 133 Fwy still a toll road.

Isn't this the case for Eastwood, Stonegate, CV, et al?

 

[bones]

-Tons and tons of traffic and congestion coming soon due to Altair and newer Portola Springs communities building in the east. Sand Canyon Ave. getting worst by the day. 133 Fwy still a toll road.

Isn't this the case for Eastwood, Stonegate, CV, et al?

Naaa those people live next to the Jeffrey Open Space expressway.

 

[eyephone]

How about that water theme park and hospital?

Nobody wants to answer, I'll take a stab at it.

Pros:
-Everything you heard in the brochure: water park, skate park, amphitheater, ice rink, parks, food hall (base camp), cultural terrace gardens, golf course, farmers market, balloon ride, laser tag, and nearby Portola High

Cons:
-Super high Mello Roos that technically doesn't expire after 30 years. Probably the highest Mello Roos of all new Irvine communities.

-Remediated land, formly El Toro Marine Base: a former EPA superfund site due to TCE contamination in the ground. You can grow vegetables, but you should not eat it.

-Tons and tons of traffic and congestion coming soon due to Altair and newer Portola Springs communities building in the east. Sand Canyon Ave. getting worst by the day. 133 Fwy still a toll road.

-Great Park land is owned by FivePoint LLC, not TheIrvineCompany. That means Mr. Donald Bren may not give too much damn since he has no interest in that area. When Mr. Bren's interest is at stake (i.e. Irvine Company Apartments), you know he will come out to defend it.

-Big drama recently with the homeless camp across Marine Way road. As long as that land is County-owned SB2 land, it will continue to be a political battle now and/or the future with regards to its use. Homeless problem is not going away.

 

[LongIrvine]

Would echo most of what aquabliss commented. 

Density of homes, few/no apartments (depending on community), k-8 were drivers for me.

I love the desert landscaping, wife hates it. 

 

[Burn That Belly]

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[eyephone]

How is the water theme park a pro?
Potentially more traffic, driving on the road with a lot of teenagers (that?s says it all)

Few more pros and a couple more cons:

Pros:
-New cancer facility
-Wild Rivers is coming back next year
-You get a brand new orange bike

Cons:
-More and more and more homes getting built. Density will explode, means more traffic within the neighborhood. Means that tiny pocket park/pool would be maximized. Some folks complain some of the equipment at the parks are missing already!

-Some homes in Beacon Park may be too close to the 133 fwy. According to UCLA/LA times study, freeway pollution travels much further than believed:
http://www.latimes.com/local/califo...ution-what-you-can-do-20171230-htmlstory.htmlhttp://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-freeway-pollution-advisory-20171227-story.htmlhttp://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/air-pollution-from-freeway-extends-93857

Last, but not least. I finish it up with quotes from our friends many years ago. And I'm holding their words to it:

I would pass on the house if you have a choice. There are many different studies that show that living by a freeway is not healthy. Plus you have to consider the noise from the freeway.

I agree with you that studies are often flawed but I usually consider the source.  UCLA is pretty darn reputable.  The question then falls to how much affect those particles have on individuals.  A similar debate is being held as to those beach fire pits. 

Environmental health researchers from UCLA, the University of Southern California and the California Air Resources Board have found that during the hours before sunrise, freeway air pollution extends much further than previously thought.

Air pollutants from Interstate 10 in Santa Monica extend as far as 2,500 meters ? more than 1.5 miles ? downwind, based on recent measurements from a research team headed by Dr. Arthur Winer, a professor of environmental health sciences at the UCLA School of Public Health. This distance is 10 times greater than previously measured daytime pollutant impacts from roadways and has significant exposure implications, since most people are in their homes during the hours before sunrise and outdoor pollutants penetrate into indoor environments.

http://newsroom.ucla.edu/portal/ucla/air-pollution-from-freeway-extends-93857.aspx

 

[Burn That Belly]

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[jmoney74]

Con. The roads are open so everyone is driving through GP to commute. 

Also you don't know what they plan on building. Constantly being threatened. Shelter. Cemetery. What's next? 

 

[Burn That Belly]

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[eyephone]

How does this add value?
Potentially (maybe or maybe not): Loud music with other mentioned below

How is the water theme park a pro?
Potentially more traffic, driving on the road with a lot of teenagers (that?s says it all)

Pro is the slightly better resale value. How much? I don't know like 0.0888% more?

Con: oh yeah, hella traffic on the weekends.  Best to avoid going down Ridge Valley towards Marine Way for sure. Ridge Valley already sucks anyways. Two lane poc road. Slow ass drivers, and I can't punch it in my pushrod v8.

 

[Burn That Belly]

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[eyephone]

Noise: from theme park (if any), music bumping from the car

Anytime something benefits the kids, they (parents) think it adds value. (*ahem* compressed-Village)

So then they go ballistics on the asking price when it comes time to flip.

Noise? TCE?  What noise, what TCE?

Priced to sell! $1,888,888

How does this add value?
Potentially (maybe or maybe not): Loud music with other mentioned below

How is the water theme park a pro?
Potentially more traffic, driving on the road with a lot of teenagers (that?s says it all)

Pro is the slightly better resale value. How much? I don't know like 0.0888% more?

Con: oh yeah, hella traffic on the weekends.  Best to avoid going down Ridge Valley towards Marine Way for sure. Ridge Valley already sucks anyways. Two lane poc road. Slow ass drivers, and I can't punch it in my pushrod v8.

 

[Burn That Belly]

x

 

[eyephone]

A salesperson once told me noise is subjective. Everybody has different pain tolerances vs money. Otherwise, homes backing freeways would never sell.

Sales people will say anything to get the sale.

 

[Burn That Belly]

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