Hundreds of new apartments are coming to south Palo Alto. Acclaim Companies is scheduled to break ground Tuesday, Aug. 11, on a 368-unit, seven-story building at 3150 El Camino Real, according to The Registry SF.

It's one of the largest housing projects to break ground in the city in recent years.

The complex will rise on a 2.5-acre site between Hansen Way and Page Mill Road that formerly housed The Fish Market restaurant and a McDonald's. Acclaim consolidated five parcels on the 3100 block to assemble the land. Stanford University's Board of Trustees is the property owner.

Of the 368 units, 74 will be deed-restricted as affordable to households earning between 50% and 80% of the area median income. Acclaim Founder & Managing Partner Mark Johnson called that commitment "one of the largest BMR contributions in Palo Alto's history" at the May 28, 2025 City Council meeting, where he also credited the city's El Camino Real Housing Focus Zone with making the project feasible.

The unit mix skews toward one-bedrooms: 231 one-bedrooms, 97 two-bedrooms, 28 three-bedrooms and 12 studios. A two-story underground garage will serve the building, though the exact parking count remains unclear. Palo Alto Online reported 455 stalls when the city approved the project in July 2025; a more recent SF YIMBY report lists 382 car spaces and 410 bicycle spaces. Studio T Square is the project architect.

The city approved the project July 11, 2025, after Planning Director Jonathan Lait sent a formal approval letter to Acclaim. No appeal was filed. The project advanced through Palo Alto's streamlined housing process, requiring only an Architectural Review Board study session rather than a full City Council vote.

The building sits about a mile from the California Avenue Caltrain station, placing future residents within walking distance of transit and the California Avenue business district.

It won't be alone on the corridor for long. The City Council approved a separate 321-unit apartment building at 3606 El Camino Real in April 2026, roughly a quarter-mile south. Together, the two projects would add nearly 700 units to the Barron Park stretch of El Camino as Palo Alto works toward a state-mandated goal of 6,086 new housing units by 2031.

Construction timelines beyond the Aug. 11 groundbreaking have not been publicly disclosed. No completion date or expected occupancy year has been announced.