Colorado Real Estate Journal - September 16, 2015

Alta City House apts. is 78 percent leased

By John Rebchook

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With a prime location at the foot of the 18th Street pedestrian bridge and 100 feet from the new rail station west of Union Station that next year will provide train service to the Denver International Airport, the five-story, 280-unit Alta City House is hard to miss.

Renters, with a growing choice of Class A apartment buildings in the Union Station area, certainly have taken notice.

Several months after having been completed by Wood Partners, the 280-unit Alta City House is 78 percent leased. The community opened in May, although preleasing started earlier.

Rental rates at Alta City House, according to Apartment Insights, an apartment community database by appraiser Cary Bruteig, range from $2.18 to $2.98 per square foot. The building is still classified as being in the lease-up stage.

Monthly rents range from $1,320 to $3,000 per month, according to AI.

Alta City House, at 1801 Chestnut Place, was developed by Wood Partners and Denverbased East West Partners.

East West is the developer of Riverfront Park and, along with Continuum Partners, is a developer of Union Station Neighborhood. USAA Real Estate Co. also is part of the development venture for Alta City House.

Wood Residential Services, Wood Partners’ property management division, is managing the property.

“Alta City House is a highprofile project just west of Union Station, at the hub of the Denver metro area’s light-rail system,” said Tim McEntee, director for Wood Partners’ Rocky Mountains region. “Overall, we’re very pleased with how well it has been received.” McEntee said.

“It’s an exciting, high-profile project, and we really amped up the amenities.” Alta City House is LEED Gold certified by the U.S. Green Building Council.

It includes one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments in a five-story wrap structure with a garage on slightly less than three acres.

One-bedroom units range from 645 to 825 sf; two-bedrooms from 991 to 1,227 sf; and three-bedroom townhomes are 1,300 sf.

The community includes 1.4 parking spaces for every unit, a higher ratio than many comparable nearby communities.

Residents at Alta City House have access to a wine locker, two-story fitness center, cyber café, two-story clubroom, game room, a large roof deck with a year-round outdoor kitchen facility and a striking view of Coors Field.

There are two large outdoor courtyards, one with a large pool area and an outdoor fireplace.

Wood Partners expects the pool and landscaping to be completed by March.

Wood Partners and East West Partners previously collaborated on the highly successful Glass House high-rise condominium tower in Riverfront Park in 2007.

Alta City House is the third apartment community developed by Wood Partners in the Denver area.

Paul T. Bergner Associates was the architect for Alta City House.

Harris Kocher Smith was the civil engineer and Norris Design was the landscape architect.

Other News

The Bascom Group LLC, based in Irvine, California, recently paid $21.6 million for the 157-unit 52nd Marketplace apartment community in Arvada.

The sale price equates to $137,598 per unit and $198.42 per square foot.

The three-building community sits on 4.22 acres at 7797 W. 52nd Ave.

Debt financing was arranged by Brian Eisendrath of CBRE.

Records show Bank of America provided $16 million in financing for the acquisition.

The seller was the Arvada Investment Group LLC, headed by Sheryl and Glenn Cooper, according to public records.

The community was built in two phases, the first in 1974 and the second in 2003.

Some 71 percent of the units are one-bedroom units and 29 percent are two-bedrooms apartments.

Amenities include a clubhouse, fitness center, business center, pool, poolside barbecue area and two laundry facilities.

The community is just eight miles west of downtown Denver and within walking distance to Olde Town Arvada.

“We acquired a well-built, centrally located asset that is ideally positioned in its submarket to benefit from revenue-enhancing capital improvements,” said Paul Zakhary, a director at Bascom.

“Hopefully we can buy a few more like this before the year ends,” he said.

Julie Schoenbachler, a senior vice president of portfolio operations for the Bascom Group, added: “Arvada and the surrounding markets continue to show strong apartment fundamentals and household economic statistics relative to other submarkets. Fifty-Second along with the neighboring properties are all high 90s occupancy with healthy resident analytics.” Allante Properties paid $2.1 million for a 15,000-sf parcel of land at 3885 Tennyson St., where it plans to build a five-story, 81-unit apartment building.

Billy Riesing, an adviser at Pinnacle Real Estate Advisors, represented the seller in the transaction. Jamie Mitchell, a senior adviser at Pinnacle, represented the buyer.

“This piece of land is located on the Tennyson corridor in the heart of the Berkeley neighborhood,” Riesing said.

An unidentified buyer paid $1.46 million, or $97,333 per unit and $144.53 per sf, for the 15-unit Hoyt Apartments at 4385 Hoyt St. in Wheat Ridge.

The property was constructed in 1972. Josh Newell, a senior adviser at Pinnacle Real Estate Advisors LLC, represented both the local buyer and seller in the transaction.

An unidentified buyer paid $700,000, or $100,000 per unit, for a seven-unit apartment building at 3150 Harlan St. in Wheat Ridge.

Matt Lewallan and Kevin Calame, both senior advisers with Pinnacle, represented the buyer and the seller in the transaction.

“The buyer is excited to complete a renovation of the property and add this as a nice asset to (its) portfolio,” Lewallen said.