West Village

The West Village is a $250 million, 200 acre UC Davis community housing development for students, faculty, staff, and their families (475 new houses for faculty and staff, with housing for 3,000 students). The two-phase project is under construction just west of 113 off of Hutchison Drive and south of Russell, where the 113 Orchard used to be.

According to the project's website, "The goal of this mixed-use neighborhood is to provide affordable and conveniently located housing for approximately 3,000 upper-division undergraduate and graduate students, and 500 faculty, staff and their families. It will also provide a variety of facilities and amenities for the campus and the community." The planned development contains all of the following features:

• neighborhood land use
  

• a diversity of housing types
  

• mixed-use center
  

• central and integrated transit green
  

• community education center
  

• recreation fields and facilities
  

• elementary school/neighborhood park
  

• open space/drainage network
  

• bicycle and pedestrian network
  

• integrated circulation network
  

• public safety station (yay for the safety station!)

The West Village Master Plan was approved by the UC Regents in November, 2003. Land use map of Phase 1 can be viewed here.

The West Davis Neighbors organization sued to stop the project. After the suit was thrown out of court the first time, the group appealed in 2005 with the same result.

In November 2006, the Regents moved forward and approved the West Village Implementation Plan.

In August 2008, UC Davis and its development partner, West Village Community Partnership LLC (developers from San Francisco and Denver), signed a ground lease for the project, clearing the way for the design and construction phase of West Village. ¹

Groundbreaking for the project took place in August, 2009, amid some fanfare.

• UC Davis News Service article August 10^th, 2009
  

• Aggie article about Annexation April 10^th, 2007
  

• Aggie editorial April 12^th, 2007
  

• Aggie article March 7^th, 2008

Roundabout for West Village, November 2009, looking West on Hutchison

Roundabout for West Village, November 2009, looking North from Hutchison

This article is in need of a Photo. To add an image to this page, click "Edit" then click the "Files" button.

• 1UC Davis News & Information "University, Developer Sign Ground Lease for West Village" 2008-09-05

Comments:

Note: You must be logged in to add comments

2005-07-05 02:09:14   This was the project that had somebody shoving somebody else at a public meeting at Emerson Junior High School. —NickSchmalenberger

2008-05-30 00:33:32   I can't seem to find a projected date of completion: does this mean that it's too early to tell, or is it just that they don't want anyone to know? —JoePomidor

2008-05-30 01:48:57   From a 12/19/2007 UC Davis News Service article: "The university is proceeding with plans to build 343 single-family homes and town homes for faculty and staff, and apartment housing for up to 1,980 students in phase one of its West Village development. Groundbreaking for the site, which is west of Highway 113 between Hutchison Drive and Russell Boulevard, is planned for 2008, and the first occupancy could be in late 2009." That sounds extremely optimistic to me, but this is the most recent update I can find online.

—JeremyOgul

2008-05-30 13:29:33   If this project is like any of the other University construction projects, it's about 2-3 years off on its completion date. —JamesSchwab

2009-08-06 21:27:54   From http://westvillage.ucdavis.edu:

When will the new homes be finished?

We anticipate that model homes will be completed in late 2011 or early 2012.

Mr Schwab was right on it seems.

—ARWENNHOLD

2009-08-06 21:35:43   If I had a decent camera I'd take some pictures of the construction. The roundabouts on Hutchinson are well under construction. Its worth a look for someone with a good camera and some free time. —ARWENNHOLD