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The UC Irvine Climate Collaboration has announced the recipients of its inaugural team project grants for 2025–26, supporting five research teams whose work is tackling climate-related challenges in California and beyond.

This year’s selected projects reflect UC Irvine’s leadership in solutions-oriented, interdisciplinary climate research. Each initiative tackles a distinct facet of resilience and adaptation — from wildfire intelligence to early drought detection and multi-benefit natural infrastructure.

“The past year has brought adaptation and resilience to the forefront, with an emphasis on pragmatic responses to the growing economic costs and human impacts of a changing climate here in California, across the U.S., and around the world,” said Brett Sanders, director of the UC Irvine Climate Collaboration and Chancellor’s Professor of Civil & Environmental Engineering and Urban Planning & Public Policy. “Through these projects, we aim to showcase UC Irvine’s capacity for team-based, solutions-driven research while fostering exciting new learning opportunities for students.”

Building resilience in California’s desert futureJim Smith, professor of chemistry; Celia Faiola, associate professor of ecology and evolutionary Bbology; and Alex Guenther, professor of Earth system science

In partnership with the South Coast Air Quality Management District, this team will investigate the accelerating desertification of Southern California, where rising temperatures, prolonged drought, and increasing dust storms threaten ecosystem health, air quality, and community well-being. By studying how desert plants capture carbon, use water, and emit gases under heat stress, the research will explore how strategic management of vegetation could help mitigate these impacts.

Detecting early vegetation drought in CaliforniaAngela Rigden, assistant professor of Earth system science, and Veronica Berrocal, professor of statistics

This project investigates how early signs of plant water stress can be identified using satellite observations, physical models and advanced statistical methods. By combining evapotranspiration measurements with environmental modeling, the team will develop near-real-time, uncertainty-aware maps of vegetation stress across California.

OC-FIRE Model: Localized fire risk mapping for Orange CountySarah Kimball, associate professor in residence of ecology and evolutionary biology, and James Randerson, Ralph J. and Carol M. Cicerone Professor of Earth system science

In partnership with the Orange County Fire Authority and the Orange County Natural Communities Coalition, this project will integrate 20 years of vegetation field data with high-resolution satellite imagery, environmental datasets and fire history records to deliver actionable fire risk maps and tools that directly support community safety, climate resilience, and ecologically sensitive vegetation management.

Pocket park and garden climate solutionsDoug Houston, professor of urban planning and public policy; Jessica Debats Garrison, assistant professor of teaching of urban planning and public policy; Jason Douglas, associate professor of health, society and behavior; and Monica Palta, assistant researcher and cooperative extension specialist

This project will investigate how small-scale green spaces, such as community gardens and pocket parks, influence neighborhood microclimates, air quality, and public health. Focusing on study areas in Irvine, Santa Ana and Southeast Los Angeles, the team will map, monitor, and evaluate these green spaces across diverse social and environmental contexts.

Wildfire intelligence for national securityAmir AghaKouchak, Tirtha Banerjee, Ramin Bostanabad, Efi Foufoula-Georgiou, Mohsen Imani, Richard Matthew, Phu Nguyen, Christopher Olivares, Mohammad Qomi and James Randerson

This large interdisciplinary team is exploring how wildfire behavior can be better understood and anticipated through artificial intelligence, real-time satellite observations and predictive modeling. In collaboration with government agencies such as the U.S. Forest Service and emergency management partners, the team seeks to inform disaster preparedness and resilience planning.

Across these five projects, the Climate Collaboration will create new climate-related learning experiences across many different academic departments for UC Irvine students who are passionate about creating a more sustainable and resilient future for California and the world. Students will develop skills in data analysis, modeling, field work, new AI tools and community-based research. Our emphasis on collaboration will underscore its importance in problem solving and progress towards practical climate solutions.

The inaugural projects were selected through an interdisciplinary review process from among 18 proposals, representing faculty from 15 schools and 21 academic departments. Each project embodies the Climate Collaboration’s mission to bridge disciplines and connect campus research to partners including government agencies, public utilities, businesses and non-governmental organizations.

“Configuring both internal and external collaborations for a project proposal isn’t easy ” Sanders said, “but we are thrilled to see the strength of UC Irvine teams on display here, where projects span six different schools and link to local, state and federal government agencies as well as community groups.”

The Climate Collaboration will host its first symposium in this Winter, where each project team will present its research and engage in dialogue with campus and community members. A second call for proposals is planned for Spring 2026.

The UC Irvine Climate Collaboration serves as a catalyst for cross-disciplinary climate innovation. The initiative connects researchers, students, and external partners to co-develop solutions that address climate change at every scale — from local resilience planning to global sustainability policy.

“Whether it’s connecting with a partner, submitting a proposal, or joining a brainstorming session, we want the Climate Collaboration to be a resource for the entire UC Irvine community,” Sanders said.

For more information, visit climatecollab.uci.edu.

Upon the announcement last year that the city of Irvine would break ground on an arts center called the Cultural Terrace at the Great Park, one news report noted that it is “among the largest metropolitan parks in the United States” and “is larger than San Diego’s Balboa Park and New York City’s Central Park.” Sure, the park encompasses a massive 1,300 acres, but comparing this underdeveloped pipedream to the nation’s pre-eminent public parks is delusional.

The Great Park idea was hatched two-plus decades ago amid grandiose promises. Amid concerns about the county’s plan to build an international airport at the shuttered El Toro Marine base, voters approved Measure W (rezoning the property for a park) in 2002. This Editorial Board dubbed it the Great Pork, given the amount of tax dollars that would be required to build it out.

Indeed, 23 years after the latest public vote and following Irvine’s annexation of the land, the most significant progress has been on the privately owned portions of the old base. The park process, by contrast, has been plagued with high costs, lawsuits and scandals including three critical grand jury reports. Now we have another mess to add to this list.

The Register reported on a lawsuit filed by the contractor hired to clean up the Cultural Terrace site. It alleges the city “understated how much contaminated soil and other environmental wasted needed to be hauled away.” The news report reviewed emails showing “Irvine city staff and consultants acknowledged that key cleanup and abatement work wasn’t clearly spelled out in the bid documents.”

The courts will sort through this complex dispute, but it’s yet another reminder of why it would have been better to sell the land for its highest and best use rather than double down on a boondoggle. By the way, the Cultural Terrace will be home to a children’s museum known as Pretend City backed by a city loan. We hope one day Orange County residents will enjoy something other than a pretend park funded by very real tax dollars.

California real estate giant Irvine Co. is in the midst of a building push in one hotspot for future development statewide: apartments in less-than-traditional spaces.

The Newport Beach-based company, which owns 125 complexes with 65,000 apartments across California, has 3,000 units under construction at three sites in Orange County. There are another 9,000 units in various stages of planning in Orange, San Diego and Santa Clara counties. Irvine Co. would rank 12th among the nation’s top U.S. apartment owners if it participated in the National Multifamily Housing Council scorecards.

Irvine Co.’s construction activity contrasts with a national cooldown in apartment development.

High financing costs, a wobbly economy, flat rents and overbuilding in certain markets nudged many other developers to cancel or delay rental projects. In California, apartment construction – as measured by multifamily permits – is down 25% over the past two years to a pace not seen since 2013-14.

But Irvine Co. owner Donald Bren, the nation’s wealthiest real estate investor, frequently uses unconventional thinking. For example, he restarted home construction in 2009 – well before others had the nerve to build after the real estate market collapsed into the Great Recession.

The 93-year-old’s confidence in making against-the-grain bets stems from a long-term focus as both a developer and owner. Irvine Co. has created a diverse California-centric portfolio of residential, retail, entertainment, recreation and business properties.

Bren is a pioneer in what the industry calls master planned communities, where entire neighborhoods have long-range blueprints for development. Treating real estate as a multidecade investment helps to make real-time economic gyrations seem like a modest detail in the creation of new properties.

“Fulfilling the vision of master planning has been a lifetime dedication and lifetime passion,” Bren said in a statement provided to the Southern California News Group. “I am hopeful the heritage of our stewardship will live on in many new ways.”

With vacant land tricky to find, Irvine Co., like other developers, is busy swapping spaces for offices, warehouses or shopping centers into residential development.

But in 2025, few builders are executing a rental expansion at the Irvine Co.’s pace. Last year’s NMHC developer rankings showed only 13 U.S. companies building more than 3,000 apartments, which is what Irvine Co. is currently constructing.

In Orange County, Irvine Co. has 1,481 apartments under construction on two parcels previously slated for office space near the Irvine Spectrum shopping center. There’s a 313-unit expansion of an existing complex next to the Great Park nearing completion. Plus, 1,858 units are planned for another Spectrum site previously designated for commercial use.

Also, 2,500 apartments are in the works within UC Irvine’s office-oriented Research Park. Roughly 900 units are planned for the mixed-use Newport Center area. Additionally, 1,336 rentals will be built on a rare land purchase by Irvine Co. in Tustin.

Then there’s excess retail space being utilized, too, with 1,261 apartments now pre-leasing at The Market Place shopping center in Irvine.

In the Bay Area, the company recently won approval for 1,792 apartments in the Santa Clara Park project, which would replace offices just a short walk from its Santa Clara Square mixed-use complex.

And in San Diego, 552 apartments are being designed to fit within an existing office campus near the University Town Center.

Period of rethinking

The Irvine Co.’s canvas has changed.

The developer is known for transforming its massive Irvine Ranch land over the past half-century into much of the city of Irvine, regarded as one of the nation’s top places to live.

However, those raw acres are now largely developed. Irvine Co., like many California real estate firms, must get creative in a state that lacks easily developable land in its population centers.

Economic change also compels extra rethinking. Remote work’s popularity casts a shadow on the future of office properties. Online shopping dings the profitability of retail locations. All these challenges intersect with California’s push for more housing.

Irvine Co. adapted by altering its apartment game. Look at The Market Place, a 130-store shopping center just off the 5 Freeway straddling Irvine and Tustin.

A row of shops was demolished to make way for a new apartment complex. The first of those rentals is now being pre-leased.

But a more modest construction effort at the site is an example of Irvine Co.’s commitment to better melding diverse real estate types.

A smaller set of stores directly between the new apartments and the shopping center’s movie theater was torn down and rebuilt, just yards away. Adding 6,200 square feet of turf, bookended by shops, produced a smooth transition between housing and the center’s amenities.

“To create space to blend the retail and the apartments together is the thing we’re most excited about,” Rob Elliot, the company’s senior vice president for planning and design, told me.

An enthusiastic response at the grand opening tells Elliot, “People are hungry for those kinds of spaces.”

Various economic and social pressures mean California’s mixed-use developments must evolve.

Simply dividing land into three walled-off purposes – homes, shops, offices – or slapping retail on the bottom of residential or commercial spaces is out. Integrating properties so folks can easily move between housing, work, and play seems to be the secret sauce.

Irvine Co. insiders view Santa Clara Square as their guidepost to this new phase of mixed-use planning.

The company, with nudges from Santa Clara officials, began acquiring a collection of aging, low-rise business park properties off Highway 101 in 2013.

Over the past decade-plus, buildings have been demolished and transformed into 1,800 apartments, 28 stores and restaurants, and 1.7 million square feet of offices. All that took place inside a 100-acre site, which was a learning curve for Irvine Co., used to large parcels of land.

The project’s spice lies in its walkability. No fences separate the various properties, which are dotted with paths and parks that feature 100 mature trees that were either retained or relocated on the site.

“The street is narrow enough so that it encourages pedestrian movement between the office and the retail and the apartments,” Elliot said.

Curious synergy

Irvine Co. can act differently because it is different.

It’s completely owned by Bren, estimated to be worth around $19 billion. Unlike other real estate firms that are often handcuffed by the short-term demands of Wall Street or bankers, Bren’s singular control allows his company the luxury of patient thinking.

And in a real estate world where most companies are niche specialists – focused on just one slice of the property market – Irvine Co. is a multidisciplinary builder and operator.

This means the planning of mixed-use projects can be managed under one umbrella. Its concentrated competitors can be challenged to work across property types.

But it’s not just the broad portfolio. There is a curious synergy between Irvine Co. customers – employers, shopkeepers, renters or homebuyers.

“Businesses are demanding office campuses connected to retail and housing so they can attract employees back to the office,” Elliot said.

And what merchant doesn’t want more shoppers nearby?

Yet putting housing in business districts is more than juggling assets. The live-work-play neighborhood has consumer appeal, too.

“It’s just a different opportunity,” Elliot said. “There’s quite a group, particularly younger people, looking for that kind of living environment.”

Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at [email protected]

IRVINE, CALIF. — CBRE has directed the sale of Creek Medical Buildings, a three-building medical office property located at 37, 39 and 41 Creek Road in Irvine. The asset traded for $16.2 million. Anthony DeLorenzo, Sammy Cemo, Bryan Johnson and Harry Su of CBRE represented the undisclosed seller in the deal. At the time of sale, the 43,374-square-foot property was fully occupied. The asset was built in 1986.

LAKEWOOD, COLO. — Brixton Capital has acquired Whisper Creek, a garden-style multifamily community at 3505 S. Nelson Circle in Lakewood. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Built in 2002 by Fairfield Residential, Whisper Creek offers 272 apartments featuring nine-foot ceilings and averaging 928 square feet spread across two- and three-story residential buildings. Community amenities include 501 parking spaces with detached garages, a resort-style pool and spa, a 24-hour fitness center, clubhouse, business center, outdoor grilling stations, a pet park and a playground.

Greystar will manage the property. Tony Nargi of JLL Capital Markets secured acquisition financing on behalf of Brixton Capital.

SANTA CLARITA, CALIF. — Hanley Investment Group Real Estate Advisors has brokered the $25 million sale of a two-tenant retail property located in Santa Clarita, roughly 30 miles north of Los Angeles. Situated within Centre Pointe Marketplace, the 83,953-square-foot property is occupied by DICK’S Sporting Goods and Burlington. DICK’S has extended its lease and remodeled its store. Meanwhile, Burlington has acquired the lease previously held by JOANN after its bankruptcy. Sean Cox and Kevin Fryman of Hanley represented the seller and developer, locally based Spirit Properties Ltd., and the buyer, in the transaction.

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FONTANA, CALIF. — JLL Capital Markets, on behalf of of REDA and a commingled fund managed by Clarion Partners, has arranged the sale of 11119 Juniper Avenue, a Class A distribution facility in Fontana. Terms of the transaction were not released. Cencora (formerly AmerisourceBergen Drug Corp.) leases the 436,424-square-foot Class A center on a long-term basis.

Patrick Nally, Makenna Peter and Evan Moran of JLL represented the seller in the deal. Cody Clayton and Patrick Wood of JLL handled leasing of the asset. Bruce Ganong, Peter Thompson and Taylor Gimian of JLL secured acquisition financing for the undisclosed buyer.

DENVER — Newmark has facilitated $83.8 million in financing for The Deveraux, a multifamily community in Denver’s River North (RiNo) neighborhood. The financing was secured through bank lease-up execution on behalf of an undisclosed borrower. Lee Redmond, Nick Schroeder, Courtney Crowder and Jack Kachadurian of Newmark arranged the financing. Delivered in July 2024, The Deveraux features 374 studio, one- and two-bedroom apartments, averaging 732 square feet, and 21,000 square feet of Class A retail space.

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. — Marcus & Millichap has brokered the sale of Tru by Hilton Charleston Ashley Phosphate, a 121-room hotel located at 2475 Prospect Drive in North Charleston. Jack Davis, Chase Dewese, Joce Messinger and Brenden DeLuke of Marcus & Millichap represented the seller in the transaction. The buyer purchased the hotel in a 1031 exchange for an undisclosed price. Both parties requested anonymity.

Built in 2020 on a 2.8-acre site, the Tru by Hilton hotel features EV charging stations, an outdoor pool, fitness center and a business center.