Developers of urban mixed-use projects must answer the question
of how to distribute complementary land uses throughout a
project. Residential, retail, commercial and other uses can
reside on a single parcel, or they can exist on separate
adjacent parcels in close proximity to each other. Both
alternatives must contend with California's subdivision and
condominium laws in order to establish separate ownership interests
for purposes of sale and financing.
A horizontal mixed-use project is one in which a variety of
different uses — residential, retail, office, hospitality,
entertainment — are constructed on separate adjacent parcels.
Each building has a separate land use and each building can be sold
and financed separately because it exists on a separate legal
parcel. The project is considered mixed-use because different
land uses are established immediately next to each other in a
mixed-use district or perhaps in a town center. The
subdivision of horizontal
