By Carole Hawkins, [email protected]
Jacksonville isn’t especially known for its modern edgy urban look.
But that’s what’s coming with a $40 million apartment complex known as Brooklyn Riverside, now under construction behind Brooklyn’s Fresh Market shopping center.
With square industrial lines and metal trim, it’s a design that fully embraces a city lifestyle.
“It’s an opportunity to have a more urban environment than what you get from Downtown’s conversion apartments,” said Brian Oates of Pollack Shores Real Estate Group, the project’s developer.
The target market is young professionals working in the Downtown and Riverside area, he said.
The project is one of four developments underway or in the planning stages within blocks of each other in the area of the Interstate 10-Interstate 95 interchange portending a Downtown renaissance.
220 Riverside, an upscale mixed-use apartment complex with a connecting events venue, Unity Plaza, has long been the headline act in Brooklyn.
Just north of that, a shopping center anchored by Fresh Market promises some trendy retail. And a few blocks on the other side of the interstate is the planned Beacon Riverside, Jacksonville’s first luxury high-rise apartment in a decade.
The 310-unit Brooklyn Riverside apartment complex rounding out the quadrille is a bit lesser known.
Its developer, Pollack Shores, is an Atlanta multifamily developer/investor that focuses on urban infill projects in the Southeast.
Oates says demographics show young professionals want to be closer to Downtown.
“We think there’s an opportunity for more high-end apartments for those people,” he said.
The property’s original developer was Atlanta-based Pope & Land Enterprises Inc., which acquires and improves mixed-use property. The company spent about two years buying up residential parcels for the project, Oates said. Pollack Shores got involved after the area had been rezoned.
Urban chic living is what Brooklyn Riverside delivers.
Its designers pushed its seven buildings to the exterior of the site, so it looks more like a city block, unlike suburban-style apartments, which typically surround central buildings with parking space.
Inside, Brooklyn Riverside’s one- and two-bedroom apartments will feature European high-gloss cabinets, vinyl plank flooring and granite or quartz countertops.
The fourth floor will feature such amenities as a clubhouse and fitness center that offer views of the river and Downtown.
The rent structure is still being decided, Oates said, but will be in the range of $1,000 to $1,500 for the 650- to 1,300-square-foot apartments.
Pollack Shores expects to deliver the first unit between Thanksgiving and Christmas and complete the entire project in the first quarter of 2015.
By Carole Hawkins
Sometimes in business, plans pivot. Bryan Weber describes the adjustments to Beacon Riverside as more of an intentional pause.
Since closing last summer on property for the luxury high-rise condominium tower in Riverside, developers have tweaked the design from its original 56 units to 45.
That threw the project’s timeline off from early projections, which had construction beginning in January.
Initial site work has begun, but Weber anticipates it will take the balance of this year to put 50 percent of the units under contract, the number needed to obtain construction financing.
NAI Hallmark Partners Inc. is developing Beacon Riverside through its affiliate HP 500 LLC.
Located on the St. Johns River between Lomax Street and Bishopgate Lane, the $55 million project will be the first luxury high-rise condominium built in Northeast Florida in nearly a decade.
Early feedback from focus groups showed buyers were interested in Beacon Riverside’s largest floor plans, not the smaller 1,700-square-foot ones, Hallmark principal Weber said. Those units were removed in the updated design.
“People will be selling big homes. They didn’t want to drop down to 1,700 square feet,” Weber said.
Beacon Riverside’s floor plans now range from 2,400 to 5,000 square feet. Prices begin in the upper $700,000s, with penthouse plans topping $2 million.
The draw for Beacon Riverside lies in its private and luxurious lifestyle.
Each unit is built with front-to-back views that show off both the river and the city. The tower’s dual elevator design means residents will share an elevator with only one neighbor on all floors. Interior materials will include TOTO plumbing fixtures and a choice of either quartz or granite countertops. Amenities include full-time concierge service and an efficiency suite for overnight guests.
The project targets wealthy empty-nesters who want a lifestyle similar to the one they had as homeowners, but without the hassles of property maintenance.
That apparently means the same amount of space.
Ten years ago as the head of Flagship Communities LLC, Weber led the development of Jacksonville’s last luxury condo high-rise, Villa Riva. The turnover rate of those units has been very low, he said. Jacksonville wants another Villa Riva.
A condo complex sounds risky, given the market cliff condos fell from six years ago. Today, Jacksonville struggles to build more than 100 new condo units a year, compared to 1,000 and 2,000 during the early 2000s housing boom.
But since 2010, the number of condo sales has recovered at the same rate as overall housing. Moreover, condo prices have rebounded at twice the rate of other types of construction. That bodes well for Beacon Riverside.
The price point of luxury construction could be a problem, though.
Statistics from the Northeast Florida Association of Realtors shows during the recovery in Jacksonville increases in the number of homes sales have been strongest in the $200,000-$500,000 price range. The weakest category has been homes priced at $1 million and above. Prices at Beacon Riverside average $1 million.
Nicole Dana, Realtor for Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Florida Network Realty, the project’s sales agent, said the luxury buyers are there, but the kind of home they want hasn’t been on the market.
Dana for years represented condo properties at other high-rise towers before coming to Beacon Riverside.
Berkshire Hathaway was brought on in July because they understand the project’s vision, Weber said. Also Hallmark can utilize the real estate agency’s large network to get Beacon Riverside’s message out on a more efficient timeline.
So far, three of the six penthouses have been put under contract.
Based on inquiries and reservations, the team expects to have 12 units under contract by September.