The City of Sunnyvale celebrated the official opening of Meridian, a new affordable housing complex at 397 South Mathilda Avenue. The Santa Clara County town worked with Related California to start construction in March 2022. The developer has now finished the site with 90 homes, public amenities, and landscaped open space.
The development has created nearly 125,000 square feet of housing on the 1.4-acre site. Of the 90 units, there are 83 apartments in the 48-foot-tall structure along the Mathilda Avenue thoroughfare and seven two-story townhomes facing Charles Street. Apartment types will vary, with 12 studios, 32 one-bedrooms, 23 two-bedrooms, and 16 three-bedrooms.
Sunnyvale Block 15 site map and landscaping, rendering by Steinberg Hart
The affordable housing will range from 30% to 80% of the Area Median Income, or AMI, with 23 apartments for 30% AMI prioritizing people with intellectual or developmental disabilities. Studio prices will range from $1,515 to $1,827 per month, with three bedrooms costing $2,227 to $3,619 monthly. The resident amenities will include a community room with a kitchen, a computer room, an outdoor courtyard, and underground parking for 93 vehicles.
Steinberg Hart is the project architect, with Spurlock responsible for the landscape design. Steinberg Hart’s description of Meridian emphasizes the site’s role as a gateway between a suburban neighborhood and Downtown Sunnyvale. In a statement, the firm describes that the complex will have “public-facing amenity and open spaces, street-facing townhomes, and porous visual connections into the residential courtyards.” An important distinction is ‘visual’ connects, as the landscaped paseo which runs diagonally from the corner of Mathilda and Iowa Avenue with Charles Street, furnished with outdoor seating, is not publicly accessible.
Sunnyvale Block 15 townhomes view, rendering by Steinberg Hart
Meridian exterior view at dusk, image published by Related
The project timeline for developing Meridian started in late 2015 when the City Council reviewed the site for potential development. Related California was selected for the project in early 2017, and construction started in 2021. With the opening late last month, Meridian took just over eight years to complete.
Residents will be just 12 minutes from the Sunnyvale Caltrain Station on foot, walking by several shopping centers and the multi-block Cityline development. Residents will also be close to the car-free block of historic Murphy Avenue, lined with popular bars, shops, and restaurants.
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“Meridian took just over eight years to complete.”
Unbelievable!
8 years for 23 units. JFC
Our state and country are so screwed…
Rome wasn’t built in a day. /s
We visit that neighborhood regularly for going to Target , eat our favorite restaurant ( Kabul). My wife I were puzzled by the ODD architecture. They look like Barns.
Now , it all makes sense.
It looks nothing Like the rest of the neighborhood.
This is another way to shame people who live in affordable housing.
I understand your concern here, but I can guarantee that living in ‘barn’ shaped homes is a far better option than decommissioned barracks and rows of dilapidated Eastern-Block-style affordable housing projects that litter the peninsula. By the looks of the renderings and pics, the attention to detail for lighting, landscaping and tasteful variety of materials as well as modest hints of modernist design is nice by any standard.
Obviously subjective, but I really love the architecture on these. The simple but traditional shapes along with the bold color combinations have a really unique aesthetic. I especially like the small “cabins” with the full-glass fronts.
I would not be ashamed to live there:) Looks inviting and well designed.