A recent transaction involving more than 10 acres of land on Miramar Road newly zoned for housing signals that big change is on the horizon for a major industrial hub.
In January, three limited liability companies associated with San Diego-based real estate company Pacifica Companies purchased the parcels at 8990 to 8998 Miramar Road and 8996 Miramar Road for $30.6 million, property records show.
The real estate in question, sandwiched between Camino Ruiz on the west and Clayton Drive on the east, is currently home to the Miramar Landing shopping center, a three-story office building and a surface parking lot with more than 550 spaces.
The site was rezoned in early 2023 to allow for housing following the adoption of the new Mira Mesa Community Plan, which created a regulatory framework for a large, pedestrian-friendly urban village just west of I-15 along Miramar Road.
Pacifica Companies did not respond to requests to comment for this story.
Founded in 1978, Pacifica Companies is a privately held real estate company that owns, operates and invests in multi-family housing, senior housing, office, retail and hotel properties across the country.
In San Diego, Pacifica owns the La Valencia Hotel on Prospect Street. It is also the developer behind the Amara Bay condo, hotel and office project in the works for the Chula Vista Bayfront.
Pacifica’s Miramar Landing purchase suggests a desire to bring to fruition, in part, San Diego’s vision for a walkable neighborhood in an area the new community plan refers to as the Miramar Gateway.
The property is zoned CC-3-8, which is defined as a community commercial zone intended for high-density, mixed-use development with up to one dwelling unit for each 600 square feet of lot area.
A marketing brochure prepared by brokerage Cushman & Wakefield states that the new zoning for the 10.3-acre site, which does not include the adjacent medical office buildings facing Activity Road, allows for up to 1,000 residential units, 129,859 square feet of retail, and 39,106 square feet of office space.
The change would be a marked shift for the Miramar area, which is one of the city’s largest industrial and manufacturing areas and does not have housing.
Pacifica’s apparent interest in introducing housing to the area does not appear to be singular.
In November, real estate developer Hammer Ventures purchased a five-building portfolio on nine acres of land at Activity Road and Padgett Street. The parcels are just east of Miramar Landing and are also zoned for housing.
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