Building multifamily residences above shops and businesses has been known to revitalize downtown areas, so Chicago-based developer General Growth Properties is trying a suburban version in Natick, Mass.
The Nouvelle at Natick will feature 215 luxury condominiums built atop the 30-year-old, redeveloping Natick Mall, which also will be home to Massachusetts' first-ever Nordstrom department store as well as a Neiman Marcus, luxury boutiques, specialty stores, and four sit-down restaurants.
Aaron Bartels, the senior director of residential development at General Growth Properties, says this full-scale mall renovation is among the first of its kind. “This is bringing urban development into the suburbs,” Bartels adds. “People are looking for the services and lifestyles that go with this type of thing. It's the convenience of retail out your back door without going outside.”
But if residents do want to venture outside the contemporary-styled housing, they have tennis courts and a 2,000-square-foot roof garden at their disposal.
Shauna Gillies-Smith, design principal at Martha Schwartz in Cambridge, Mass., says her company designed the landscape architecture for the mall itself before being asked to design the roof garden.
In these roof garden plans, designers considered the residents, who Bartels says are largely empty-nesters who want a city-like lifestyle without leaving the suburbs. “These are people who are moving primarily from a place where they have yards, so the question is, ‘How do you get the feeling of having your own backyard?'” Gillies-Smith says.
The answer for Nouvelle at Natick was a combination of elements, including drought-resistant plants such as sedum, alternative patterns of river rock, and incorporating the mall's existing skylights. Not only does that make the large garden feel more intimate, but also it saves money on landscaping a large area, she adds.
The renovated mall is set to open in September 2007. First closings on the condominiums, which will range in price from $400,000 to more than $1.4 million, are scheduled for spring 2008.
- Marquette Cos. is developing Front Street Lofts as part of a comprehensive revitalization of downtown Lemont, Ill. The project will include four five-story buildings with 82 loft residences, 24,000 square feet of retail space, and a 262-car parking structure. The studios and one-, two-, and three-bedroom units will feature balconies or terraces, stained concrete or hardwood floors, stainless steel kitchen appliances, and maple cabinetry. The project is located in walking distance of planned retail shops and the Lemont Metra station. The first move-ins are scheduled for this fall.
- Hannah Real Estate Investors is developing Eastside Commons, a 112-unit luxury condo community in Stamford, Conn., with 15,000 square feet of ground level commercial/retail space. The one-, two-, and three-bedroom units will feature island kitchens with granite countertops, hardwood floors, washers and dryers, and walk-in closets. Amenities will include a club room, a fitness center, and a landscaped courtyard over a covered parking garage. Ten percent of the units will be priced for middle-income workers.
- The Related Group is developing Oasis on the Bay, a 475-unit condominium at the edge of Miami's Biscayne Bay. The one-, two-, and three-bedroom units will feature balconies, Italian cabinetry and stainless steel appliances in the kitchens, and wireless smart-screen touch pads with access to the building's amenities and services. Amenities will include a waterfront café, two pools, a theater with stadium seating, a parking garage, and a food emporium.
- The Dinerstein Cos. is developing The Millennium, a 309-unit urban-infill apartment community in Houston. The one- and two-bedroom units will feature granite countertops and black and stainless steel appliances in the kitchens, computer desks, track lighting, and 42” plasma TVs in all first- and fourth-floor apartments. Amenities will include a 6,700-square-foot clubhouse with a demonstration kitchen, Internet café, and fitness center; an outdoor pool and spa; and an outdoor entertaining kitchen with lounge areas. Meeks + Partners is designing the community.
- Trillium Residential has opened Trillium Deer Valley, a 360-unit luxury rental community in Phoenix. The community of one-, two-, and three-bedroom units features a two-story great room with a 32-seat cinema, sports bar with a billiards table, wellness center, and conference facility. An on-site concierge offers a range of resident services.
- JBG/E Street Residential, a member of the JBG Cos., has opened The Artisan Condominium in Washington, D.C., which was built by Clark Construction. The 160-unit building features studios and one-, two-, and three-bedroom units with maple cabinets, granite countertops, stainless steel appliances, and bamboo floors in the foyers and living areas. Amenities include a rooftop deck, fitness center, and underground parking. The building incorporates the historical facades of three existing buildings, and the developer preserved an alley through which John Wilkes Booth fled after assassinating President Lincoln.
- The nonprofit group Project for Pride in Living has opened Midtown Exchange Condos on the Greenway, a 57-unit mixed-income condo development that is part of the Sears redevelopment project in Minneapolis. The units, which range in size from 624 square feet to 1,478 square feet, are priced from $89,500 to $261,900. More than a quarter of the units are reserved for buyers with incomes at or below 80 percent of the area median.
- Simpson Housing Solutions is developing North Avenue Apartments, an 80-unit affordable family rental community in Sacramento, Calif. The two-and three-bedroom units will be set aside for households earning 30 percent to 60 percent of Sacramento County's are a median income. Amenities will include a community room, outdoor recreation area with a basketball court, computer center, and fitness center, plus a variety of on-site resident services and activities.
- VTP Partners, a partnership among The Plaza Cos., Vestar Development Co., and Trillium Residential, is developing a 60-acre, mixed-use community at Arizona State University's West Campus. Vestar will develop 300,000 square feet of retail; The Plaza Cos. will develop 125,000 square feet of office space and 130,000 square feet of senior housing; and Trillium will develop 500,000 square feet of multifamily residential.
- Boca Development has opened Marquee Park Place, a 232-unit luxury high-rise apartment community in Irvine, Calif. The project features two concrete-and-glass 18-story towers with four two-story townhomes located in the middle. The two-bedroom units feature wood cabinetry, stainless steel appliances, Kohler fixtures and faucets, fireplaces, and storage lockers. Amenities include a business center, social room, billiards room, and an outdoor plaza with a pool and barbecue area.
Village Green Residential Properties and The Ackerberg Group are developing Lake Calhoun City Apartments, a 158-unit community in Minneapolis. The soft-loft style units, which include a mix of apartments and townhomes and offer 43 unique floor plans, will feature 9- to 18-foot ceilings, hardwood floors, washers and dryers, and granite kitchen islands. Amenities will include three outdoor gathering areas, wireless hot spots throughout the property, and business and fitness centers. The project is expected to open this summer. —Listings compiled by Rachel Z. Azoff