156 apartments planned near the Rio Hondo in Montebello

A series of small residential buildings located just west of the Rio Hondo channel could be redeveloped with two larger multifamily structures, per an environmental report recently published by the City of Montebello.

The project, currently named the Poplar Avenue Residential Development, is slated for two sites located at 116-138 and 129-133 N. Poplar Avenue. Existing improvements, including apartment buildings and single-family homes totaling 31 residential units, would be razed to clear the way for the construction of two new structures containing a mix of market rate and deed-restricted affordable housing.

The larger of the two sites, a 1.69-acre property located on the east side of the street, would be developed with 140 one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments - including 30 deed-restricted affordable units - above subterranean parking for 298 vehicles. Other features would include a rear yard, a courtyard, a rooftop deck, and a gym.

Across Poplar Avenue, a smaller .28-acre site is poised for the construction of 16 one-, two-, and three-bedroom dwellings - including two affordable units - with at-grade parking for 30 vehicles and a rooftop deck.

GA Engineering is designing both buildings, which would stand three- and four stories and height and feature Mediterranean-style architecture.

Pending approvals by th eCity of Montebello, construction at the larger site is anticipated to take approximately 20 months in total, while the smaller site would take 12 months.

City records list the applicant behind both buildings at the Montebello-based entity Magna & Magna, Inc.