Pardee Homes
Encyclopedia
Pardee Homes is a residential real-estate company founded in 1921 by George Pardee Sr. He was joined by his three sons in the Los Angeles
housing boom after World War II
. They began building in southern Nevada
in 1952, selling affordable homes to veterans for $1.00 down. Together they pioneered the "planned community
" concept in Las Vegas.
Pardee became a wholly owned subsidiary
of Weyerhaeuser
Corporation in 1969, one of 5 such Weyerhaeuser divisions. Their headquarters
are located in Los Angeles, California
. Other office
s include San Diego, CA
, Corona, CA
, Valencia, CA
, and Las Vegas, Nevada
. There was also a short lived office in Livermore, California
that was closed immediately after their Livermore development attempt was abruptly halted. The company is currently developing new housing tracts
throughout Southern California
and Southern Nevada
.
Pardee has an 80-year history of charitable giving woven into its corporate culture dating back to when George Pardee founded the company. In 2005, Pardee donated more than $1.2 million to causes such as homelessness, education, medical research, Little League, and many other community projects. HomeAid America, which provides transitional housing to foster children, and families in need, and The Shade Tree, which shelters abused women and children, are examples of charities that Pardee Homes consistently supports.
Perhaps the best example of their adept ability to publicize occurred in 2005. A popular American television show at the time was called Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
. By donating large amounts of money and resources to produce various episodes, a national audience was introduced to a happy and helpful Pardee Homes.
The 2005 "Livermore Trails" project was their most visible failure to date. It would have been located on rangeland
north of Livermore. Weyerhaeuser acquired the land in an options transaction with Shea Homes which itself, had not been able to develop the parcels after many years of trying.
With history working against them, Weyerhaeuser chose Pardee to undertake the formidable task of creating a new community where so many developers had already given up. Pardee president Michael McGee sent vice president, Carlene Matchniff, to set up and run a new Livermore office.
The chosen area was not ideal for a housing tract for many reasons. Although Pardee could have easily developed on more appropriate parcels in Livermore as other developers do, Weyerhaeuser was determined to build on less expensive land that they already owned. It was too far away from Livermore, and the automobile traffic would have worsened the existing horrible freeway congestion. Complicating matters more, it was outside Livermore's UGB
which forced a citywide vote in order to build.
The community fought their proposal to an embarrassing defeat, 28% to 72%. Pardee closed their Livermore office the next day and never returned.
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
housing boom after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. They began building in southern Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
in 1952, selling affordable homes to veterans for $1.00 down. Together they pioneered the "planned community
Planned community
A planned community, or planned city, is any community that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed in a previously undeveloped area. This contrasts with settlements that evolve in a more ad hoc fashion. Land use conflicts are less frequent in planned communities since...
" concept in Las Vegas.
Pardee became a wholly owned subsidiary
Subsidiary
A subsidiary company, subsidiary, or daughter company is a company that is completely or partly owned and wholly controlled by another company that owns more than half of the subsidiary's stock. The subsidiary can be a company, corporation, or limited liability company. In some cases it is a...
of Weyerhaeuser
Weyerhaeuser
Weyerhaeuser is one of the largest pulp and paper companies in the world. It is the world's largest private sector owner of softwood timberland; and the second largest owner of United States timberland, behind Plum Creek Timber...
Corporation in 1969, one of 5 such Weyerhaeuser divisions. Their headquarters
Headquarters
Headquarters denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. In the United States, the corporate headquarters represents the entity at the center or the top of a corporation taking full responsibility managing all business activities...
are located in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
. Other office
Office
An office is generally a room or other area in which people work, but may also denote a position within an organization with specific duties attached to it ; the latter is in fact an earlier usage, office as place originally referring to the location of one's duty. When used as an adjective, the...
s include San Diego, CA
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
, Corona, CA
Corona, California
Corona is a city in Riverside County, California, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 152,374, up from 124,966 at the 2000 census...
, Valencia, CA
Valencia, California
Valencia is an affluent planned community located in the City of Santa Clarita, California and Los Angeles County, California, U.S. in the northwestern corner of the Santa Clarita Valley, adjacent to Interstate 5. In 1987, it was one of the four unincorporated communities that merged to create the...
, and Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
. There was also a short lived office in Livermore, California
Livermore, California
Livermore is a city in Alameda County. The population as of 2010 was 80,968. Livermore is located on the eastern edge of California's San Francisco Bay Area....
that was closed immediately after their Livermore development attempt was abruptly halted. The company is currently developing new housing tracts
Subdivision (land)
Subdivision is the act of dividing land into pieces that are easier to sell or otherwise develop, usually via a plat. The former single piece as a whole is then known in the United States as a subdivision...
throughout Southern California
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
and Southern Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
.
Awards and recognition
Industry awards include:- 2011 Eliant Customer Service Experience
- 2010 JD Power Home Builder Customer Satisfaction Study JD Power
- 2010 JD Power New Home Quality Study JD Power
- 2006 Energy StarEnergy StarEnergy Star is an international standard for energy efficient consumer products originated in the United States of America. It was first created as a United States government program during the early 1990s, but Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Taiwan and the European Union have also adopted...
Partner of the Year for Sustained Excellence - United States Environmental Protection AgencyUnited States Environmental Protection AgencyThe U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is an agency of the federal government of the United States charged with protecting human health and the environment, by writing and enforcing regulations based on laws passed by Congress... - 2006 Outstanding Philanthropy by a Homebuilding Company—Hearthstone BUILDER
- 2003 America’s Best Builder – Builder Magazine
Business practices
Pardee is successful and respected in the development business, and employs a wide variety of techniques to help it succeed in the marketplace. They make excellent use of available resources to achieve their goals. Such resources can include incentives, monetary donations, savvy marketing, and general upbeat publicity that portrays them as a well-meaning home provider. The resulting success rate of projects has made Pardee a positive contributor to Weyerhaeuser's financial health.Pardee has an 80-year history of charitable giving woven into its corporate culture dating back to when George Pardee founded the company. In 2005, Pardee donated more than $1.2 million to causes such as homelessness, education, medical research, Little League, and many other community projects. HomeAid America, which provides transitional housing to foster children, and families in need, and The Shade Tree, which shelters abused women and children, are examples of charities that Pardee Homes consistently supports.
Perhaps the best example of their adept ability to publicize occurred in 2005. A popular American television show at the time was called Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
Extreme Makeover
Extreme Makeover is a television program from ABC in which individuals volunteered to receive an extensive makeover in Hollywood. The show was created by television producer Howard Schultz. It first aired as a television special. It began airing in 2002 on Thursday nights at 8pm. A total of 55...
. By donating large amounts of money and resources to produce various episodes, a national audience was introduced to a happy and helpful Pardee Homes.
The 2005 "Livermore Trails" project was their most visible failure to date. It would have been located on rangeland
Rangeland
Rangelands are vast natural landscapes in the form of grasslands, shrublands, woodlands, wetlands, and deserts. Types of rangelands include tallgrass and shortgrass prairies, desert grasslands and shrublands, woodlands, savannas, chaparrals, steppes, and tundras...
north of Livermore. Weyerhaeuser acquired the land in an options transaction with Shea Homes which itself, had not been able to develop the parcels after many years of trying.
With history working against them, Weyerhaeuser chose Pardee to undertake the formidable task of creating a new community where so many developers had already given up. Pardee president Michael McGee sent vice president, Carlene Matchniff, to set up and run a new Livermore office.
The chosen area was not ideal for a housing tract for many reasons. Although Pardee could have easily developed on more appropriate parcels in Livermore as other developers do, Weyerhaeuser was determined to build on less expensive land that they already owned. It was too far away from Livermore, and the automobile traffic would have worsened the existing horrible freeway congestion. Complicating matters more, it was outside Livermore's UGB
Urban growth boundary
An urban growth boundary, or UGB, is a regional boundary, set in an attempt to control urban sprawl by mandating that the area inside the boundary be used for higher density urban development and the area outside be used for lower density development.An urban growth boundary circumscribes an...
which forced a citywide vote in order to build.
The community fought their proposal to an embarrassing defeat, 28% to 72%. Pardee closed their Livermore office the next day and never returned.