The Cordova

Forty-nine homes, no public hearing

Forty-nine for-sale homes are under construction on a former car dealership on Main Street in Alhambra, ten of them reserved for lower-income buyers. The project needed no Planning Commission hearing at all — it qualified for by-right approval under the city's state-mandated Housing Element.

What's proposed

• 40 three-story townhomes + 9 detached single-family homes, ~1,310–2,344 sq ft each
• 10 of 49 homes (20%) set aside for lower-income households
• 96 private garage spaces + 14 surface guest spaces
• 543 sq ft community room, 12,242 sq ft of open space

How it got here

Because the site is on Alhambra's Sixth Cycle Housing Element inventory with a 20 percent lower-income set-aside already attached, the project didn't need a discretionary Planning Commission hearing — state housing law requires the city to approve a qualifying by-right project administratively. The Community Development Director approved the Tentative Tract Map on August 22, 2024. IHP Capital Partners and Intracorp Homes announced their joint venture on the site in April 2025, with WHA credited for site planning and design. Site work was underway by then, with vertical construction starting in late October 2025.

What this means if you live nearby

A Housing Element by-right site skips the public hearing process entirely — if your property sits on Alhambra's inventory of these sites, a similarly sized project could move from application to construction without ever appearing on a commission agenda. Expect an active construction zone at Main and Granada through at least late 2026.