Multifamily boom continues with new project that includes prime location, pet amenities

 

By Jenny Agee-Aldridge

A Houston-based developer has plans to build luxury apartments and townhomes in an area bustling with growth.

Hunington Residential Inc. has acquired 7.9 acres off the northwest corner of Barker Cypress and Park Row within the Wolff Cos.’ master-planned community of Ten Oaks with plans to build 382 units. The purchase price was not disclosed.

The property is in a prime location at the west side of the Energy Corridor, bordered by 14,000 acres of protected park land to the north and two hospitals, Texas Children’s and Methodist Hospitals, to the south.

The project includes 28 two- and three-bedroom townhomes, ranging in size from 1,500 to 1,800 square feet, as well as one- and two-bedroom apartments. Rental rates have yet to be set.

Ground will break on the project this fall, with several of the townhome units ready to rent in August 2015.

The complex will include several high-end amenities, said Kate Good, partner and senior vice president of multifamily development and operations for Hunington Residential. She didn’t want to reveal details yet except to say there will be special amenities for pets. Approximately 70 percent of renters are pet owners, she said.

“We’re going to be doing some really cool things zeroing in on the ‘petter renter,’” she said.

Davis Brothers Construction Ltd. is the general contractor for the project, and Steinberg Design Collaborative is the architect. Both are based in Houston.

The Energy Corridor is seeing more multifamily projects. However, most have been apartment units, not townhomes.

Last month, The Finger Cos. opened its new 360-unit Energy Corridor complex, The Grove at Wilcrest. It’s currently 14 percent occupied, and construction is still ongoing.

And more recently, Blackhaw Partners LP purchased 21 contiguous residential lots in the Addicks Dam subdivision for an undisclosed amount to build a 10-acre multifamily project.

Houston’s market for multifamily development is hot, especially in areas where energy companies have a large presence. Rent and occupancy rates are up, and more units are on tap across the region. Suburban areas are picking up steam due to booming office markets in the Energy Corridor and The Woodlands. The West Memorial/Briar Forest area, which caters to workers in the Energy Corridor, had 3,122 units under construction in the first quarter, up from only 822 units in the first quarter of 2013.

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