Meeker Development Co

Going independent: California Communities, once one of the largest home builders with headquarters in Orange County, has undergone a transformation. The company, formerly a subsidiary of California Federal Bank, is an independent company: Meeker Development Co., named after President George R. Meeker Jr. The change was made as part of a restructuring by Cal Fed, which will continue to act as a joint partner with Meeker in many of its projects.

With U.S. lenders continuing to shy away from construction projects, a Thousand Oaks-based developer, Meeker Land & Development Co., has turned to a French bank, Banque Sofal, to finance two new residential projects in northwest Oxnard. Banque Sofal is providing $30 million in credit for the twin development of moderately priced houses at Vineyard Avenue and Ventura Road. "We think European financing will become a trend among U.S. developers," said Richard K.

With U.S. lenders continuing to shy away from construction projects, a Thousand Oaks-based developer, Meeker Land & Development Co., has turned to a French bank, Banque Sofal, to finance two new residential projects in northwest Oxnard. Banque Sofal is providing $30 million in credit for the twin development of moderately priced houses at Vineyard Avenue and Ventura Road. "We think European financing will become a trend among U.S. developers," said Richard K.

Going independent: California Communities, once one of the largest home builders with headquarters in Orange County, has undergone a transformation. The company, formerly a subsidiary of California Federal Bank, is an independent company: Meeker Development Co., named after President George R. Meeker Jr. The change was made as part of a restructuring by Cal Fed, which will continue to act as a joint partner with Meeker in many of its projects.

Del Webb Corp., the nation's largest developer of housing for senior citizens, has hired the top executives at the Meeker Cos., a longtime Costa Mesa builder, to help it enter the Southern California housing market. Del Webb, known for large senior housing communities such as the 1,575-acre Sun City development in Palm Springs, with homes marketed to buyers 55 and older, has long been considering a move into the Southland's conventional single-family home market.

Following is an alphabetical listing of the building leaders included in The Times' 19th annual survey, with the rank of each firm. Asterisk indicates a tie in the ranking. Company Name 1989 Rank Acacia Construction Inc. 71 Ahmanson Developments Inc. 87 Akins Development Co. 36 Alamo Homes Inc. 179 Alexander/Catania Development Inc. 121* All Valley Financial Corp. 67 Allred (Douglas) Co. 85 Alpha Construction Co. Inc. 151 A-M Homes 47 American Housing Technologies Inc. 180 Amir Development Co.

Los Angeles County SHERMAN OAKS: La Fontaine, 15 2-3-bedroom condominiums, 2,037-2,521 square feet, $409,000-$530,000; builder, Malik Engineering & Development; immediate move-ins; $187 monthly association fee for pool, spa, recreation room; open weekends 11 a.m.-5 p.m., Mondays through Wednesdays noon-5 p.m. at 14290 Dickens St., south of Ventura Boulevard, east of Beverly Glen Boulevard.

KEY TO RESIDENTIAL BUILDERS ROSTER--The name of each company is followed by its headquarters city and then by its principal officer. Sales figures are given for 1991 and have been confined to residential sales in Kern, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, Santa Barbara and Ventura counties. Sales projections are for anticipated residential sales in the above-mentioned counties for 1992.

Key to Home Builder Roster The name of each company is followed by its headquarters city and then by its principal officer. Sales figures are given for 1989, and have been limited to residential sales in Kern, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego and Ventura counties. Sales projections are for anticipated residential sales in the above-mentioned counties for 1990.

KEY TO RESIDENTIAL BUILDERS ROSTER--The name of each company is followed by its headquarters city and then by its principal officer. Sales figures are given for 1990 and have been confined to residential sales in Kern, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, Santa Barbara and Ventura counties. Sales projections are for anticipated residential sales in the above-mentioned counties for 1991.

Building more houses than its next two closest competitors combined, Kaufman & Broad Home Corp. has claimed the No. 1 spot on The Times' 23rd annual survey of Southern California home builders. The Los Angeles-based developer built 2,642 houses and condos in 1993 and sold all but 348 of them, for a sales volume of $434 million, up an astounding 55% from its 1992 sales volume of $279 million. K&B builds primarily entry-level homes, in a price range of $100,000 to $200,000.