Norwalk Transit Village takes a step forward

Plans to redevelop the former site of the Southern Youth Correctional Reception Center and Clinic continue to inch forward, with the publication of a new draft environmental impact report for the project by the City of Norwalk.

The roughly 32-acre property at 13200 Bloomfield Avenue is being reimagined as the Norwalk Transit Village under a proposed specific plan. The project calls for razing all existing buildings on the property,  clearing the way for the construction of multiple mid-rise buildings and green space.

Per the environmental impact report, the specific plan divides the site into eight planning areas. This would include a new neighborhood commercial center, accounting for roughly three acres of the complex, which would be developed with approximately 66,600 square feet of commercial uses near Bloomfield Avenue, as well as a 150-room hotel. Residential blocks would account for the bulk of the project area, with up to 770 residential units permitted in a mix of apartments and townhomes. Each residential block would also be permitted to feature up to 3,500 square feet of ground-floor commercial uses, as well as up to 13,500 square feet of "quasi-civic" uses like childcare and community services space.

In addition to new development, the project would include roughly 3.6 acres of new public and private open space, including a 1.56-acre central park, and 2.06 acres of linear parks.

The specific plan would require that roughly 40 percent of the proposed housing be set aside for low- and very low-income households. Based on the total 770 homes permitted, that would amount to 308 units reserved for below market rate rents.

When we last heard from the project in 2022, Perkins&Will was leading the master plan process, which calls for subdividing the site with new streets and pedestrian trails, and would permit buildings up to five stories in height.

Following the approval of the project, which requires a general plan amendment, a zone change, and a development agreement, work on the Norwalk Transit Village could be completed in a single phase concluding by 2030.

The project, which sits not far from the Norwalk/Santa Fe Springs Metrolink Station, could eventually be served by a proposed eastward extension of Metro's Green (C) Line from its current terminus in the median of the I-105 Freeway to reach the aforementioned regional rail hub.

The Transit Village is one of two large developments now under consideration by Norwalk officials, joining Primestor's proposed redevelopment of a portion of the city's Civic Center.

Follow us on social media: 

Twitter / Facebook / LinkedIn / Threads / Instagram

• Norwalk (Urbanize LA)