Following years of lawsuits and failed negotiations, the development of a roughly 60-acre ice-plant-laden property on the former Fort Ord, known as Main Gate, is moving forward again, with KB Bakewell Seaside Venture II taking the lead.
KB Bakewell is the development group that built the Seaside Highlands project and is currently developing the 122-acre Campus Town property, next door to Main Gate.
Comparing the Main Gate project – which will include a hotel and a new Monterey County Superior Courthouse – to their other projects in Seaside, the father-and-son team of Danny Bakewell Sr. and Danny Bakewell Jr. outline their vision for the properties.
“Campus Town is more of a housing-driven development,” says Bakewell Jr., company president. “Although it is mixed-use, with retail components and office components as well. This one is similar, but the real driving force is going to be the retail and office space, and the housing will enhance that.”
In June 2025, the City of Seaside put out a nationwide call for a master developer to take on the Main Gate site and four applicants answered the call: Shea Homes, which is building out a commercial and residential project nearby on the former Fort Ord in Marina, Montierre Development, City Ventures and KB Bakewell.
A nine-person committee consisting of the former Fort Ord Reuse Authority director and representatives from the City of Seaside, CSU Monterey Bay and Monterey County Economic Development, recommended that KB Bakewell take on the project.
The Seaside City Council unanimously approved an exclusive negotiating agreement with KB Bakewell on Thursday, Feb. 19. At the meeting, Seaside City Council and community members praised the development team. Councilmember Alex Miller stated that he would’ve liked to see all four proposals presented in a public hearing. Councilmember David Pacheco followed Miller’s comments by saying that KB Bakewell “won the gold medal.”
“We were delighted to say the least,” says Bakewell Sr. “It’s a testimony to the work that we put into it and we understand the importance of that project to the City of Seaside.”
As part of a 2018 legal settlement, Marina Coast Water District – the water utility for the area – agreed to cap the number of new residential groundwater hookups on the former Fort Ord at 6,160.
Watchdog group LandWatch Monterey County notes that Campus Town accounts for all but 10 of those 6,160 connections, and in a letter to Seaside City Council, asserts the need “to find a source of potable water supply that does not require groundwater and that does not violate the settlement agreement between LandWatch, Keep Fort Ord Wild and MCWD.”
The Bakewells say they are confident they will find a viable solution. The pair say they also plan to host a series of public meetings to hear from community members and incorporate their feedback into the project’s ultimate design.
“There’s work to be done and we’re gearing up,” Bakewell Jr. says. “We are excited about the opportunity to bring another first-class development to the citizens of Seaside.”
(1) comment
Why is this project such a secret that the City Council has still refused to even share the selected proposal for the completely redesigned Main Gate development?
This is not about the selection of KB Blakewell. This is about the City of Seaside citing the 2010 Site Specific Plan for Main Gate and then telling the developers to basically change so much of the concept plan that it no longer would be valid per California environmental and development standards. As such, as as noted in appendices to the RFP for the developers, KB Blakewell will be required to not only complete a new EIR they will also need most likely to redo their whole Site Specific Plan. Removing the hotel and conference center and adding a minimum of 300+ residential units is not a minor change. Further as LandWatch pointed there is no water for this project and, in fact, the City of Seaside is already exceeding the allocation of the total 6160 residential (new of remodels) that was approved in the Ft Ord Base Reuse Plan. And also stated in the RFP was a specific exemption from addressing the Lightfighter Ave and 2nd Avenue traffic infrastructure.
Last, what changed for Seaside between March 2024 when their approved Regional Housing Element did NOT include any residential development in Main Gate and August 2025 when Seaside sent out a national request directed proposed developers to plan for at least 300 residential units?
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