City Place student apartments start leasing as construction continues
Construction is underway at Ann Arbor's City Place apartment project on Fifth Avenue.
Ryan Stanton | AnnArbor.com
The controversial project, which is being built on Fifth Avenue just south of William Street and downtown, started demolition of seven houses in the Germantown neighborhood in November.
The 64,750-square-foot project consists of two identical apartment buildings with a surface parking lot in the middle.
With construction underway, developer Campus Village Communities has begun marketing the apartments for lease. The company has a marketing website, a leasing office at 339 E. Liberty St. in downtown Ann Arbor and a Craigslist ad posted for the apartments.
A six-bedroom, six-bathroom unit ranges in price from $1,000 to $1,200 per bedroom. A six bedroom, shared bathroom unit is $900 per bedroom. The Craigslist ad markets the bedrooms starting at $850.
Among the amenities: in-unit washer and dryer, granite countertops, in-unit game room with a pool table, fully furnished bedrooms, free wireless internet and satellite TV.
With two other student apartment projects - Landmark and Zaragon West - also aiming for a fall 2012 opening, developers are wielding lavish amenities in an attempt to attract tenants.
Landmark, a 14-story, 600 bedroom high-rise located on South University Avenue, has amenities such as tanning beds, a yoga studio, fitness center, movie theater and game room. Prices range from $975 to $1,745 per bedroom.
The 14-story Zaragon West, located on Thompson Street, has 199 bedrooms, with prices ranging from $1,100 to $1,650 per bedroom. Amenities include a fitness center, indoor parking and high-definition TVs.
Both high-rises began signing leases in October, and the developers told AnnArbor.com that units were filling up quickly at the time.
Check out the virtual tour for City Place below. Click here to read the Craigslist ad marketing the apartments.
Lizzy Alfs is a business reporter for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at 734-623-2584 or email her at lizzyalfs@annarbor.com. Follow her on Twitter at http://twitter.com/lizzyalfs.
Comments
pooh bear
Thu, Feb 16, 2012 : 4:37 p.m.
why are you so focused on this one project and not covering the developments at the other big sites like Zaragon II and the project on South University, whatever it's called. Seems like you just love to focus on this particular project for some reason. Is it to rub salt into the wounds? Feels like it. A lot is going on that you are not even covering--like the demolition of the Old Professional Building on E. Washington, for example. Scaffolding has been up for weeks and not a peep from your reporters. Really, do you only cover the controversial?
John Alan
Sun, Feb 12, 2012 : 7:10 p.m.
This project will fail. Same as north campus housing..... hardly anyone wants to stay up there and everyone moves to central campus to be around activities......... this will follow that trend. The good thing is that the city assessor's office will have a feast and will get a good income from the developer/owner every year for property tax..... so after all it will be very good thing for someone.... If they are going by right, then all these are nothing but going through the motion to check the requirement checklist for keeping the neighbors in the loop. So no reason to get excited.... just seat back and see what happens...
Fat Bill
Sat, Feb 11, 2012 : 6:14 a.m.
Density is a good thing; mass transit works better; people burn less fossil fuel when they are closer to work, and farmland continues to produce food for our ever increasing populace
Veracity
Sat, Feb 11, 2012 : 5:36 a.m.
Six strangers sharing very little space will not make many lessees happy, especially at the inflated lease pricing. The whole concept is ill-conceived and will not succeed financially. If City Council and DDA receive any TIF payments they will not be for long.
pooh bear
Fri, Feb 10, 2012 : 4:43 p.m.
Thank you Alex and Betsy De Parry. I hope you are enjoying you retirement in Florida.
zanzerbar
Fri, Feb 10, 2012 : 8:50 p.m.
@ pooh: Don't tell me if you were nearing retirement, and the University, a developer or anyone for that matter, made you a offer for your property several times its worth, you wouldn't jump on it?
a2miguy
Fri, Feb 10, 2012 : 4:28 p.m.
Why would you pay $1000-$1800 per month for a BEDROOM, when for the same price or less you can select almost any 2 BR apartment in the area and have the whole thing to yourself? I live in a 2 BR duplex in a quiet neighborhood just blocks from downtown, for $925. Is living right on campus that much of a premium?
Emma B
Fri, Feb 10, 2012 : 3:30 p.m.
The game room is on the 2nd floor with most of the bedrooms?! As a student who was actually, well, studious-- you would not be able to sell me on that layout.
Ken
Fri, Feb 10, 2012 : 3:14 p.m.
Woah!! Fifth Ave. never looked so ............large??!! Maybe it's time to go to Grad School! Beats the @#$* out of West Quad!
Brad
Fri, Feb 10, 2012 : 1:58 p.m.
They should have an Oktoberfest in the fall - it would be the first one in "Germantown" ever.
Marvin Face
Fri, Feb 10, 2012 : 5:52 p.m.
for zags, it's also William. Not Williams
hut hut
Fri, Feb 10, 2012 : 2:38 p.m.
That would be Washington St for the geographically impaired.
zags
Fri, Feb 10, 2012 : 2:06 p.m.
There is an Oktoberfest every fall in Ann Arbor. Usually on Williams street sponsored by either The Grizzly Peak or Arbor Brewing.
Ignatz
Fri, Feb 10, 2012 : 1:55 p.m.
If anyone reading this leases a unit not yet built, then give me a call. I'm building a bridge I want to sell.
xmo
Fri, Feb 10, 2012 : 1:53 p.m.
The city is increasing it's property tax revenue, increasing housing and that's all I read about is people whining! Ann Arbor is becoming more diverse, bigger and better! Enjoy!
Veracity
Sat, Feb 11, 2012 : 5:31 a.m.
I agree with B2Pilot. We will see how many of these expensive leases are signed. Please note that these are shared apartments which may be shared by six strangers. Can you imagine any problems with that arrangement? Four six people the living spaces are very small. Six individuals sharing a refrigerator and cooking facilities should take a lot of coordination. I give the development two years before it goes bankrupt.
B2Pilot
Fri, Feb 10, 2012 : 5:19 p.m.
the city does not get tax revenue when they fall into bankruptcy- the market is way over saturated the Univeristy is the draw and they are not allowing in more students. When will the city actually bring a business to the area??? You have to ask why the city is unable to attract business's downtown other than restraunts and coffee shops which cater to the University students?
Jon Saalberg
Fri, Feb 10, 2012 : 1:27 p.m.
They need digs such as these to go with the BMWs, Range Rovers, Lexi, and similar vehicles they drive - wouldn't do to park them in ordinary student residences.
B2Pilot
Fri, Feb 10, 2012 : 1:10 p.m.
This is what happens when we have a real estate agent as mayor- buy up land OUTSIDE of the city and raise rents inside the city
Michigan Reader
Sat, Feb 11, 2012 : 1:44 a.m.
The mayor doesn't have anything to do with rents in the city.
PersonX
Fri, Feb 10, 2012 : 12:53 p.m.
Birds are chirping, spring is in the air, the skies are light blue, and the Mediterranean sun washes over a lovely suburban landscape … (cheesy music ruins it a bit, but it may scare off the crows). Truth in advertising! Looking at this video, you would never know that you are in a residential neighborhood, and a violated one at that. The video somehow manages to wash out the buildings that crowd the two buildings on three sides; there is no lovely sky behind these architectural horrors, but the overwhelmed old houses on Hamilton Place, and they are bookended by houses on both sides on Fifth. Country living at its finest! They sure look good, but wait until they are finished and you drive by and see them in context. Maybe some creative person can redo the opening of this video to show what it will really look like.
Mike D.
Fri, Feb 10, 2012 : 5:51 p.m.
"Violated" neighborhood? Oh, the hyperbole!
15crown00
Fri, Feb 10, 2012 : 12:26 p.m.
I want to know how the kids will pay for those digs?
Krystal Marie
Fri, Feb 10, 2012 : 3:35 p.m.
Mommy and daddy will just continue to funnel money through that umbilical cord-- the same way they pay for everything else.
doglover
Fri, Feb 10, 2012 : 1:03 p.m.
Their parents will pay, but what a comedown when they graduate and have to support themselves at a decidedly lower standard of living. One of the best things about crummy student housing is the way it starts introducing privileged kids to the real world. This isn't it.