GROUND-BREAKING was held Tuesday for Phase II of the Brookhurst Place project. Tossing the dirt are Garden Grove city councilmembers, City Manager Lisa Kim and developer Ronnie Lam (OC Tribune photo).

Long-timers may remember the land at the northwest corner of Garden Grove Boulevard and Brookhurst Street as the home of the Smith Ford and Brookhurst Dodge car dealerships.

Today’s motorists driving by may think of it as just one big empty lot.

Soon, it will rise as Phase II of the Brookhurst Place development which will bring a mix of housing, commercial and retail space, a hotel and more to the 14-acre site.

On Tuesday, the ground-breaking was held for Phase II with city officials and Ronnie Lam, CEO and president of Kam Sang, the developer.

Mayor Pro Tem George Britegam said, “It comes during a great time for our city, when we are dynamically re-energizing ourselves, to coin a phrase from our mayor, ‘Re-imagining Garden Grove’.”

Phase II will consist of up to 462 apartment homes (60 of which are “affordable housing”), 58 for-sale condominiums, 200,000 square feet of commercial and retail space, a 100-key hotel, an urban trail and a public park. When finished it will be the largest mixed-use development in Garden Grove.

Phase I, completed in 2018, consisted of 180 new apartments, a pool and clubhouse.