Two of the largest homebuilders in San Diego County are teaming up to complete the final phase of the 300-acre master-planned community of Calavera Hills.

The Corky McMillin Cos. of National City and Del Mar-based Brookfield Homes are under way in Carlsbad for nearly 700 new homes that will complete the hilltop community that started initial planning more than 30 years ago.

At buildout, Calavera Hills will have approximately 2,300 homes and 5,000 residents -- making it one of the oldest and largest master-planned communities in Coastal North County.

In the next three years, five neighborhoods will be built on approximately 300 acres overlooking Lake Calavera and surrounded by the Calavera Nature Preserve. These neighborhoods will include 106 affordable apartments, 252 condominiums and 331 single-family detached homes. Recreational amenities for the final phase will include swimming pools, spas and tot lots.

Now under construction at Calavera Hills is Montara by McMillin Homes, a division of The Corky McMillin Cos. These 102 hilltop homes will feature one- and two-story detached homes ranging from 1,658 square feet to 2,888 square feet.

Three floor plans will offer three to five bedrooms and two and three baths. Pricing for the California Craftsman and Spanish Colonial style homes is expected to start from the $400,000s.

"This is a tremendous opportunity for buyers to find a new home with a view that's just a few minutes from the ocean in Carlsbad," said Rick Jarrett, sales vice president for McMillin Homes.

He said a sales office and model homes will open for Montara by November.

Earlier this summer, Brookfield Homes started grading for 252 condominium homes at Mystic Point. Anticipated to open in January, the two- and three-bedroom floor plans range in size from 1,363 square feet to 1,535 square feet. Prices are expected to start in the low $300,000s.

"The eclectic Spanish-style architecture creates a comfortable street scene accentuated by red-tile roofs," said Carlene Wilkie, vice president of sales and marketing at Brookfield Homes. "And these floor plans speak to a variety of homeowners' needs, from on-the-go professionals to nesting families."

Also starting construction soon by McMillin Homes is Ravinia at Calavera Hills. This neighborhood will comprise 115 detached homes of California Craftsman and Santa Barbara architectural styling.

Four floor plans from 1,643 square feet to 2,712 square feet will offer three, four and five bedrooms and two and three baths. Scheduled to open in January, pricing will start from the $400,000s.

Opening in summer 2004 will be Brookfield's Summerhouse, 114 homes with sweeping backcountry views. These one- and two-story, single-family detached homes will offer four floor plans ranging from 1,672 square feet to 2,808 square feet.

The fifth neighborhood will be Mariposa, 106 affordable apartments that will be built by Chelsea Investment Corp. with a $3.8 million grant from the California Department of Housing and Community Development. These two- and three-bedroom and two-bath garden style apartments will be available in fall of 2004.

Preservation of natural habitat

Nearly 50 percent of the final phase of 300 acres at Calavera Hills will be retained in its natural open space state and gifted to an environmental trust.

This 144 acres will become part of the Calavera Nature Preserve, which is home to 200 different plan and animal species and provides several public-hiking trails.

According to Dale Gleed, vice president of engineering for Brookfield Homes, this minimum-impact development process is very popular because it conserves natural areas for community enhancement and increases homeowners' property values.

Constance Clover, director of government and community relations for The Corky McMillin Cos., talks to Calavera Hills Elementary first-graders about construction site safety. The final phase of 300 acres is now being developed at Calavera Hills in Carlsbad.

"At Calavera Hills, we've clustered the final phase of homes onto half of the site, leaving more of the land as open space in its natural state," Gleed said.

He noted that the master-planned community is uniquely situated on top of the 513-foot Mount Calavera -- a 22 million-year-old mass of volcanic rock -- and along the shores of Lake Calavera. This 520-acre, man-made reservoir boasts year-round fishing from the shoreline or small non-motorized boats.

Another environmentally sensitive construction practice at Calavera Hills is its temporary rock-crushing operations. Up to 1 million tons of will be crushed during the next 10 months and then recycled and used for new roadways and community infrastructure.

Also part of the final phase of Calavera Hills is the completion of portions of College Boulevard and Cannon Road, providing area residents with easy access to Interstate 5 and Highway 78. Grading is under way on these key arteries with roadwork expected to be completed by the summer of 2004, Gleed said.

The 15-year-old master-planned Calavera Hills already has several well-established neighborhoods, as well as a large community park, city recreation center and an award-winning elementary school. Construction is set to begin soon on a middle school adjacent to Calavera Hills Elementary School, which opened its doors in September 2003.

Klassen is a senior account executive at Scribe Communications.