Modular affordable housing breaks at 1342 Berkeley Street in Santa Monica

Construction is set to begin later this month for the latest affordable housing development from Community Corp. of Santa Monica.

Groundbreaking ceremony for Berkeley StationGary Leonard

Berkeley Station, named for its location at 1342 Berkeley Street in Santa Monica, will consist of a four-story building featuring 13 one-bedroom apartments without on-site parking. Of that total, five apartments are to be set aside for transition aged youth (between the ages of 18 and 24) earning up to 50 percent of the area median income level, with the remaining eight apartments reserved for families earning up to 30 percent of the area median income.

Brooks + Scarpa is designing the project, which is being built using the kit of parts developed for its NEST Toolkit. The 11,000-square-foot building is to be composed of prefabricated modular units and clad in cement panels. The modular units would be arranged to provide outdoor space for residents on upper levels, while also leaving space for a community garden at street level.

The City of Santa Monica has previously approved roughly $10 million in funding for the project.

“Berkeley Station is an exciting, innovative project and represents two firsts for us – our first development specifically for vulnerable youth, as well as our first modular development built in a factory,” said Tara Barauskas, executive director of Community Corporation in a news release. “This is a great example of the type of housing that needs to be built to help alleviate Santa Monica’s affordable housing crisis.”

Detail of Berkeley StationBrooks + Scarpa