By Jorge Casuso
March 31, 2026 -- Santa Monica on Friday unveiled its first modular affordable apartment building, which broke ground two years ago and cost more than $870,000 per unit to construct.
The four-story prefab building on a City owned in-fill site at 1342 Berkeley Street will offer 13 one-bedroom units of 100 percent affordable housing for low-income families and at-risk youth.
The City supported the Berkeley Station project with an $11.32 million Housing Trust Fund construction loan to Community Corporation and 13 project-based vouchers from the Santa Monica Housing Authority.
The building, designed by the local architecture firm Brooks + Scarpa, was built by Plant Prefab at the company's high-tech factory in Tejon Ranch and installed on the narrow infill lot over three days.
"The state has identified factory-built housing as a priority solution to the state’s affordable housing crisis and is now pursuing policies to speed up the process and remove obstacles unique to modular construction," City officials said.
Santa Monica Mayor Caroline Torosis called Berkeley Station "proof that Santa Monica can take on the housing crisis with urgency and results.”
“We are cutting through delays and embracing new approaches like modular construction to deliver affordable homes faster and more efficiently," Torosis said in a statement.
"For the young adults and families moving in, this means stability, opportunity and the ability to stay rooted in the community they call home. This is the work of making sure Santa Monica remains a city where working people can build a future.”
The development includes five units occupied by households earning no more than 60 percent of Los Angeles County area median income (AMI), according to the conditions of the construction loan.
The other eight units are targeted for youth between the ages of 18 and 24 earning no more than 30 percent of the County's AMI.
St. Joseph Center will provide on-site case management and supportive services for young adult residents enrolled in its Santa Monica Youth Resource Team program.
The team "works with at-risk youth, ages 16-24 to assist with basic needs, housing, mental health, and educational/vocational services," according to the non-profit's website.
Dr. Ryan J. Smith, president and CEO of St. Joseph Center, said the program will provide "the services needed to not only secure housing, but to sustain it and build long-term pathways to economic mobility.”
The Berkeley Station development -- which was designed to meet LEED Gold standards -- includes solar panels and Energy Star appliances. It also has a community garden, laundry facilities, a rooftop deck and a community room, City officials said.
Brooks + Scarpa incorporated the firm’s NEST Toolkit "designed to help address the region’s housing shortage," which won a $1 million grant from the L.A. County Housing Innovation Challenge.
The Challenge -- offered by the LA County Homeless Initiative to combat and prevent homelessness -- invites proposals for "creative, scalable low-cost" housing solutions.
“This building has been such an exciting innovation for us,” said Community Corp. Executive Director Tara Barauskas. “What started as our first-ever modular development is now 13 real homes for low-income families and young adults in need of support.
"Cutting this ribbon today means Santa Monica has a new model for what efficient and smarter affordable housing can look like," Barauskas said.