Work stalled on massive SLO County housing development. What happens now?
Construction on one of San Luis Obispo County’s largest housing developments has been at a standstill for the past four months, and a sudden lack of funding appears to be to blame.
The Vinedo housing development, part of a 1,293-home development known as the Olsen Chandler Ranch, has been under construction since gaining approval in 2020.
But the most recent phase of the Olsen Chandler Ranch project — the Reserve at Vinedo — has proved to be a sticking point for the development as financing issues have effectively halted all construction for the past four months.
Worse, the cutoff in funding from the development’s owners at STG Partners, LLC has cost the local contractors hired to build the latest phase of the project.
Neal Portlock’s construction company was originally hired to assemble a team to frame 230 homes and complete drywall, concrete and roofing services, but since the middle of December, money hasn’t been coming in with 20 units still left unframed, he said.
Of the $8 million framing contract Portlock’s company signed with Vinedo’s owners, $1.3 million is still owed — a cutoff that forced Portlock to lay off 45 people in the Christmas season, he told The Tribune.
Closing that gap will take time and, the longer the delay goes, more and more money.
“There’s already starting to be a mold problem,” Portlock said. “As far as the frames, all those sitting out there in the weather, the wood is going to twist up, and we have to go through and straighten out all those units.”
Future of Viñedo project uncertain
Paso Robles community development director Warren Frace said STG reached out to the city to notify officials of the delay when funding started to run dry in November.
When the city met with STG again in January, the developer was confident that they would be able to secure refinancing by April — but that’s not looking likely now, Frace said.
“They need construction financing to move forward,” Frace said. “Right now, it’s our understanding they still haven’t acquired that.”
The original plan for Planning Area 13 of the project approved under the Olsen Chandler Specific Plan map called for 230 units, though over time this was reshaped into 107 units and 107 accessory dwelling units for a total of 214 homes, Frace said.
Frace said development was progressing “very quickly” in Planning Area 13, finishing 25 units in November. Of the nearly 1,300 homes in the Olson Chandler Ranch master planned community, around 200 are finished and taking on occupants, while another 200 are currently in the permitting and construction phase, he said.
Portlock said he hasn’t seen any movement on the project over the past few months, but said he’s looking forward to getting the project done.
“This stall doesn’t void my contract, unfortunately, so I will be under contract to finish once I get paid up in full, but I won’t finish until I get the other ones repaired and up to standard,” Portlock said. “I don’t want to get down to the end and have them owing me a bunch of money.”
Frace said the city will continue to work with the developer while the funding gap is being resolved.
“We know there’s questions in the community about it — it’s a high profile project right there on Linne Road coming into town,” Frace said. “We did work with the STG group to get the whole property fenced in January, just so that it was secure to minimize any risk of trespass, vandalism, that sort of thing.”
The Tribune reached out to STG Partners LLC for more information on the delays but did not receive a reply as of Tuesday morning.
