What if

Santa Clarita had some new choices for how to live?

More places to gather. More time on the trail.
More kinds of fun.

life was more connected?

And you could leave your car in the garage for days on end.

development and conservation could be mutually supportive?

Letting Santa Clarita grow in healthy new ways.

A dirt path winds through a grassy field at sunset in the Santa Clarita Valley, with a wooden signpost showing directions for hiking, more time, fresh air, local food, and surfing.

Imagine a new center place for Santa Clarita

Where rising uplands see all the way from the river to the future

Sunridge is a plan created by long-time Southern California developer New Urban West for what was once the Whittaker-Bermite property. For years the land has been the undeveloped core of Santa Clarita. Now restored to a healthy condition, it’s ready to fulfill its highest and best purpose. Helping our city address challenges such as the need for greater mobility and housing variety. Creating a new, more connected way for the city to grow. And at the same time, reflecting Santa Clarita’s heritage. Its love of the outdoors. Its emphasis on education. Its commitment to family and community, which has made Santa Clarita such a haven for those seeking a simpler, safer, healthier place to live and work.

Two people ride bicycles on a paved path through the hilly, green landscape of Santa Clarita Valley under a blue sky with scattered clouds.

Aerial illustration of a landscaped recreational area in Santa Clarita Valley, featuring a central swimming pool, surrounding buildings, yellow umbrellas, trees, and walking paths.

Illustration of a town in Santa Clarita Valley with modern apartment buildings, small shops, a street with parked cars, trees, hills in the background, and a light rail train passing by.

A hand-drawn aerial illustration of a planned community in Santa Clarita Valley, featuring buildings, roads, parking areas, green spaces, and a central pond with small boats.

Aerial illustration of a residential neighborhood in Santa Clarita Valley, featuring houses, trees, and people gathered in a central park area with walking paths.

Aerial illustration of a residential neighborhood in Santa Clarita, featuring houses, a central park with pathways, trees, and landscaped green spaces.

Illustrated aerial view of a Santa Clarita Valley park with tennis courts, open fields, playgrounds, walking paths, trees, and nearby residential houses.

Illustration of a tree-lined sidewalk in Santa Clarita Valley, with people walking and biking beside a road; a pedestrian bridge spans the street in the background.

Aerial illustration of a large suburban development in the Santa Clarita Valley, featuring clustered homes, roads, green spaces, and commercial buildings nestled amid hilly terrain.

The plan for Sunridge

This is about creating a new crossroads. A holistic ecosystem of elements that support and energize each other. Town and home. Nature and culture. Trail and train. Sports and entertainment. It’s about honoring what Santa Clarita is. And making room for what Santa Clarita wants to become.

A man sits on a rocky ledge outdoors in Santa Clarita Valley, hugging and kissing a Golden Retriever, with a scenic landscape visible in the background.

A modern passenger train numbered 935 is stopped at a yellow-lined platform under clear skies, with mountains of the Santa Clarita Valley visible in the background.

With the Santa Clarita Metrolink station right on its northern border, Sunridge will be a true transit oriented destination. And crisscrossed by paths and trails that connect to regional trail networks such as the one in Quigley Canyon Open Space, Sunridge will also be a trail oriented destination.

Guiding principles

The foundational concepts and key objectives for the Sunridge community design.

Complete the connection

Make it easier to move through your day

The plan for Sunridge would pull Via Princessa all the way through. And it builds on Santa Clarita’s network of trails, paseos and transit, creating an even more compelling invitation to hike, bike or hop on the Metrolink.

Map showing various color-coded trails, roads, loops, and crossings in a planned development with a legend explaining trail types and features on the right.

Expand the playground

Parks, trails, sports, events and open space access for all

With its scale and topography, Sunridge is the opportunity to add amenities that enrich Santa Clarita. More parks, trails and sports fields. With total open space equaling a full 40% of the plan. And with new kinds of “playgrounds” that kick things up a notch. An upland nature area that opens more of the region’s beautifully rugged terrain to the public. And a wave basin that brings surfing — and a whole new visitor attraction — to Santa Clarita.

A surfer in a wetsuit rides a wave in an artificial pool, water spraying behind him, with a modern building and the warm glow of sunset framing the scene—capturing the vibrant energy of Santa Clarita Valley.

A young boy in a blue shirt and jeans swings high on a playground swing under the clear blue sky of Santa Clarita Valley.

A crowd of people sits outdoors under string lights in Santa Clarita, facing a stage area, with trees and dim lighting creating a festive atmosphere.

Celebrate the uplands

Make the most of this last large-scale piece of ground

The location, size and character of the Sunridge property allows for something special to happen. For example, preserving the highest stretch of the property as public open space. Linking to the existing regional trail network. And giving a view of the whole city to everyone.

People stand and walk along a scenic overlook in the Santa Clarita Valley, observing a landscape of hills, trees, and distant houses under a partly cloudy sky.

Bring community into balance

Create a fresh mix of work, home and destination

The idea is a framework of distinct villages that creates a bit more equilibrium. With both homes and jobs. Sports and entertainment. Great local eateries. And with amazing parks and natural open space blended in. Creating real magnetism — a new sort of Santa Clarita cool that draws everybody from families to empty nesters to college kids — with meaningful experiences that inspire a sense of true belonging. All walkably/bikeably close.

Two older adults sit on a bench by a chain-link fence in Santa Clarita, holding pickleball paddles and laughing together outdoors in the bright sunlight.

An adult couple and a baby are in a kitchen in Santa Clarita. The baby sits in a mixing bowl on the counter while the adults smile and interact with the child. Various kitchen items are visible around them.

A woman stands smiling at an outdoor Santa Clarita farmer's market, holding produce with a reusable bag over her shoulder. White tents and fresh fruits are visible in the background.

Welcome all generations

With a broad variety of homes

This is about being truly open. Accessible and attainable. With a smart and sensitive approach that provides a mix of homes to meet the changing needs of the community and to reflect Santa Clarita’s diverse, multigenerational character.

A woman with glasses smiles and claps her hands while sitting at a table with others outdoors in Santa Clarita, with flowers in the foreground.

A person with long blonde hair and a brown hat stands outdoors at a sunlit Santa Clarita Valley event, surrounded by a crowd sitting on grass.

An adult helps a smiling young child in a yellow dress stand on a skateboard outdoors by a concrete fence in Santa Clarita Valley.

Respect our neighbors

Thoughtfully transition from town to neighborhood

The Sunridge plan will honor bordering areas with a thoughtful approach to buffering and by aligning with the character of each of our neighbors. From the energy of town to the more relaxed and quiet character of living in nature.

People dine and walk beneath string lights at an outdoor restaurant area in Santa Clarita Valley. Tables are filled, and the atmosphere is lively with greenery and decorations overhead.

A group of people of various ages practicing yoga outdoors on grass in Santa Clarita, performing the upward-facing dog pose, with a tree and open field in the background.

Work together

Move forward in public-private partnership

Sunridge isn’t the vision of a single organization. It is the result of a collaborative effort to find fresh answers and create a new and special place for the people of Santa Clarita. For example, it will take a large parcel of City-owned land and create a major new public open space and city sports park. And this is only a fraction of the total land area being devoted to parks and open space.

A young boy in a blue jersey and helmet swings a bat during a Santa Clarita Valley baseball game, with a catcher and spectators visible in the background.

An older woman sits outdoors in a Santa Clarita Valley field, smiling as two children hug and lean on her, with sunlight illuminating the scene.

The design team

At New Urban West, Inc., our passion for innovative and collaborative placemaking is what lets us see the possibilities. We bring over 60 years experience in Southern California, including office, retail, residential and mixed-use communities that demonstrate a thoughtful approach to addressing local and regional needs. And for Sunridge, we’ve engaged a best-of-class team to help us make the most of this opportunity to bring something new and special to Santa Clarita.

Logos of four organizations—Urban Design Associates, KTGY, Dudek, and United Civil—displayed in a row on a black background, representing collaborative projects in the Santa Clarita Valley.