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A local office building spanning more than 92,000 square feet could be torn down and converted into a housing development.
The building on 12.4 acres just south of the Joint Forces Training Base Los Alamitos was bought by national homebuilder Lennar Corp. for $65.2 million last month, according to CoStar data. Lennar bought the 92,302-square-foot property from Ladera Ranch-based MW Investment Group.
Lennar’s exact plans for the property at 4665 Lampson Ave. have not been confirmed or finalized, but documents available through the city of Los Alamitos show the office building site has been targeted for residential redevelopment.
The Los Alamitos City Council approved an environmental impact report for 4665 Lampson Ave. on Nov. 18, 2024.
A site plan that was considered during that meeting showed the existing 92,302-square-foot office building and parking lot would be demolished and replaced with 246 residential units.
The housing mix would include 55 single-family houses and 114 townhomes across 18 buildings. About 77 apartment units would be built within three buildings, restricted to lower income tenants.
The developer would also build 577 parking spaces—475 of them reserved for the single-family residences and townhomes and 102 for the apartment complex.
Lennar’s Presence in Orange County
Lennar is a publicly traded company founded in 1954 with its Orange County office in Irvine. It is the No. 1 ranked homebuilder on the Business Journal’s list. The Miami-based homebuilder sold 936 homes within Orange County in 2024.
The Lennar website shows dozens of houses available for sale in Orange County, including 65 residences at the Great Park Neighborhoods in Irvine and ranging from the low $700,000s to about $2.7 million.
Lennar-built houses are also listed in Anaheim, Rancho Mission Viejo and Yorba Linda.
Lennar’s presence in Orange County was influenced by Emile Haddad, the homebuilder’s former Chief Investment Officer who became the chairman and CEO of FivePoint Holdings LLC.
The residential real estate company’s current vision calls for more than 10,000 housing units to be built in Irvine’s Great Park Neighborhoods.
John Lavender is Lennar’s division president for California, overseeing 250 employees in Orange County.
Former Government Property
The building at 4665 Lampson Ave. was once owned by the federal government. In 2021, the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) sold the property, via auction, to MW Investment Group for $26.5 million—about 40% less than what Lennar paid for the property.
Poplar Plaza, as 4665 Lampson Ave. was called when the federal government owned it, was built in 1971 and is surrounded by the Navy Golf Course, Old Ranch Country Club and single-family residential homes. The office building, per CoStar, once featured tenants like the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Comfort Institute.
The building, according to GSA, was most recently occupied by West Ed, a nonprofit research organization.