Little Saigon in Westminster, home to Orange County’s vibrant Vietnamese community, is getting a major facelift.
Approved by city leaders in 2018, Bolsa Row, a mixed-use development on six acres at the southeast corner of the intersection of Bolsa Avenue and Brookhurst Street, is approaching completion of its retail component.
Bolsa Row Terrace — a 26,211 square-foot two-story building that will house retail, five restaurants, an underground parking structure and an outdoor patio space, according to the project website — will complement the nearby 200-unit luxury apartment complex that was completed in 2022.
Tom Gioia, who oversees the sale and lease of retail properties at Bolsa Row Terrace, said he expects it to be open for customers by the end of this year or in early 2025.
“You just don’t know about the weather, you don’t know what might be in the way as far as construction is concerned, just some minor things,” said Gioia, senior vice president of commercial real estate company Lee & Associates in Irvine.
The construction for Bolsa Row Terrace has already begun, with the grading of the site underway. Residents can follow along on a live feed of the progress provided by Irvine-based contractor R.D. Olson Construction.
Once completed, the project will feature architecture with a nod to the past, according to R.D. Olson.
The two-story building is designed to recall the French colonial buildings common in pre-war Vietnam, according to the city. “Broad arcades, storefront windows and sidewalk seating” will aim to create an ambiance reminiscent of Saigon, the former capital of Vietnam, the city website says.
The retail property will also feature a French-style mansard roof and a replica of the Bến Thành Market clock tower, an iconic landmark of Old Vietnam at the heart of Ho Chi Minh City.
Separating the retail from the residential will be Bolsa Row, dubbed Festival Street, a shared vehicle and pedestrian roadway that can host up to…
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