Del Prado Place: 18 New Condos Above Shops in Dana Point's Lantern District

What Was Built

Del Prado Place is a boutique building: just 18 condos, with 4 one-bedroom and 14 two-bedroom homes. Floor plans run from roughly 1,236 to 1,902 square feet, and the mix includes single-level flats and two-level, townhome-style residences. Most homes have private outdoor space, and the building tops out just under the Town Center's 40-foot height limit.

On the ground floor, roughly 5,000 square feet of commercial space fronts Del Prado Avenue, planned as a mix of retail suites and a restaurant with an outdoor patio. Parking is handled out of sight in a two-level underground garage with 60 stalls, 39 for residents and 21 for retail customers, each behind its own gate, which keeps the street front free of parking lots and garage doors.

Why This Small Building Matters: The Town Center Plan

Del Prado Place is a direct result of the Dana Point Town Center Plan, the city's long-term effort to turn the Lantern District along Del Prado Avenue and Pacific Coast Highway into a pedestrian-friendly downtown, with homes over shops, wider sidewalks, and a reason to park once and walk. The plan took more than a decade to gain real momentum, and buildings like this one are what finally make it visible on the street.

The project was approved unanimously by the Planning Commission in March 2022, with a minor variance for a ground floor 18 inches shorter than the code called for. Some neighbors raised concerns about restaurant noise, while others spoke in support, saying the building matched exactly what the Town Center plan was meant to deliver. Westerre secured $26.8 million in construction financing in 2024, the City Council approved the condominium tract map in September 2025, and the Planning Commission approved the building's sign program in April 2026 as it neared completion.

Each project like this adds residents who walk to dinner and shoppers who walk past storefronts, and that density is what keeps a small downtown alive. If walkability is high on your list, see our guide to factoring walkability into your Orange County home search.

What It Means for Buyers

For buyers, Del Prado Place fills a gap Dana Point has had for years: brand-new, lock-and-leave condos in a walkable setting near the water. It appeals to downsizers leaving larger homes, second-home buyers who want something easy to maintain, and professionals who want coastal living without yard work. The trade-off is space and price per square foot, which run high for the size, but that is what new construction in a walkable coastal downtown costs.

For owners in the surrounding Lantern District, a project like this is good news. Every new mixed-use building brings the Town Center closer to its intended form, and a livelier downtown with active storefronts tends to support values for the homes around it, especially as the harbor rebuild wraps up through 2027.

Del Prado Place is one of several projects reshaping Dana Point. See also the Victoria Boulevard Apartments in Capistrano Beach and the Doheny Ocean Desalination Project.