by Andrew Alonzo | aalonzo@claremont-courier.com

Trumark Homes is now the owner of the former La Puerta Intermediate School site. Escrow closed February 21 on the 9.77-acre north Claremont parcel, with a purchase price of $12.25 million, according to Trumark’s Vice President of Community Development Eric Nelson.

“We have completed the purchase of the land and look forward to executing on the shared vision, developed with the City of Claremont, Claremont Unified School District and local residents, by creating a beautiful neighborhood that complements and benefits the entire city,” Nelson wrote in an email.

Trumark has floated at least five proposals for developing the site since 2020. The latest, to build 55 single-family, two-story detached homes, was approved unanimously by the Claremont City Council in November 2024.

CUSD had been looking to sell the land since designating it as surplus property in 2013. Two previous bids, by Brandywine Homes in 2013 and Claremont Lincoln University in 2015, fell through. The district has said it will use dividends from the sale to improve infrastructure at various school sites.

Some residents raised concerns before Tuesday’s council meeting that a single county assessor’s parcel number — used to determine and track property tax payments — was used to label both Trumark’s new acquisition and nearby La Puerta Sports Park. City Manager Adam Pirrie responded:

“The two parcels share a single APN, or assessor’s parcel number, which is creating some confusion in the community with the recording of the sale in L.A. county’s property records,” Pirrie said. “Since there is only one APN, the records make it appear as though both parcels have been sold, which is not the case. Trumark will be recording a final map for the development at which APNs for the development will be assigned by the assessor’s office and county records updated to reflect the correct ownership of the properties.”

Information at claremontca.gov provides further context:

“Trumark’s approved development plans contemplate that Parcel 2 will later be divided into 55 single-family lots, as outlined by the Tentative Tract Map the City Council approved in November of 2024,” reads the website. “Upon completion of the Tentative Tract Map’s conditions, the City Council will be asked to approve a final tract map, and the final map will be recorded. Once the final map is recorded, the County Assessor’s Office will assign new APNs to each of the 55 single-family lots.”