East Garrison, California facts for kids

East Garrison is a special kind of neighborhood called a planned community. It's located in Monterey County, California, in an area that isn't officially a city (this is called an unincorporated area). You can find it on Reservation Road, between the towns of Marina and the Salinas River. This area used to be part of Fort Ord, a former military base.

East Garrison is designed with lots of homes and places for people to enjoy. It has many parks, including special ones for dogs. There's also a big sports field at Lincoln Park. Other parks like West Camp Park, McArthur Park, and Arts Park are also part of the community. A local leader, Supervisor Wendy Root Askew, represents East Garrison in the county government.

In 2005, the county approved a plan to build East Garrison. This plan allowed for many homes and businesses to be built. The project also got financial help to build public facilities, provide affordable housing, and fix up old historic buildings.

What's Already Built?

As of early 2023, East Garrison has grown quite a bit. Here's what's already part of the community:

• 994 homes, along with roads and other important services.
  • 808 homes are sold at regular market prices.
  • 65 apartments are set aside for people with very low or low incomes. These are at a place called Manzanita Place.
  • 51 homes are for people with moderate incomes.
  • 70 homes are for people who work in the area.
• A fire station to keep everyone safe.
• 37 acres of parks, open spaces, and trails for everyone to use.
• More affordable apartments are being built and should be ready soon.

Future Plans for East Garrison

There are still more homes and public places planned for East Garrison. These include:

• 341 more homes:
  • 172 homes at market rate.
  • 70 homes for local workers.
  • 33 homes for moderate-income families.
  • 66 apartments for very low and low-income families.
  • Plus, 70 optional smaller homes called ADUs (Accessory Dwelling Units).
• A new library that will also have a small sheriff's office.
• A Town Center, which will be a main area with shops and businesses. The library and sheriff's office will be part of this center.
• A 1-acre park in the Town Center.
• 23 historic buildings will be fixed up and used again.
  • There are plans to turn some of these old buildings into 55,000 square feet of art studios.

In early 2023, the company building East Garrison, Century Communities, asked to make some changes to the plans. These changes include:

• Moving 66 affordable live/work units for artists to a different spot near the Town Center Park.
• Building a new 3-4 story building with these artist units on top and shops on the ground floor.
• Adding more homes (rowhouses) near the Town Center Park.
• Building compact single-family homes where high-density condos were once planned.

East Garrison Entry Sign

Building Progress

The Town Center is a very important part of East Garrison. It needs to have at least 20,000 square feet of shops built by the time 200 homes in the third phase are sold. All 34,000 square feet of shops should be built by 2025. However, building the Town Center has been delayed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Plans to fix up 23 historic buildings for artists haven't started yet either. These buildings are meant to become 100,000 square feet of affordable art studio space. This part of the project will likely begin after the affordable apartment complexes are fully funded.

How East Garrison is Funded

Building and maintaining the roads, parks, and water pipes in East Garrison costs money. This money comes from special fees called "Mello Roos fees." These fees are part of the property taxes that homeowners in East Garrison pay.

There are two main groups that manage these fees:

• The Community Facilities District (CFD) helps pay for the initial construction of things like roads and parks. This group will stop collecting fees around 2036 when its bonds are paid off.
• The Community Services District (CSD) is responsible for taking care of these facilities once they are built. This includes maintaining parks, drainage systems, and even helping pay for the county sheriff's services in East Garrison.

These fees go up a little bit each year. The CFD fees increase by 2% annually, and the CSD fees increase based on the cost of living, but not more than 4%. Some homeowners have chosen to pay off their CFD fees early.

East Garrison also has a Homeowners' Association (HOA). This group helps manage common areas and services for the community. For example, HOA fees help pay for maintaining front yards, private roads, and entry areas. In 2022, typical HOA fees for a single-family home were about $125 per month.

Historic Arts District

East Garrison Historic District (former mess halls on Fort Ord military base)

A special agreement requires 23 historic buildings in East Garrison to be fixed up and turned into a Historic Arts District. Non-profit groups like [Artspace] and [Arts Habitat] are partners in this project. They will help restore these old buildings and manage them as art studios.

The county expects that work on the Historic Arts District can begin once the affordable apartments for artists are being built. The main builder, Century Communities, will make sure this part of the project happens as planned.