UI planning to pair with firm to build apartments
The gist of the story is that rather than replace Hawkeye Court apartments themselves, the UI will contract with a private firm to demolish, rebuild, and operate an apartment complex to open the fall of 2014.
(UI Facilities Management photo)
The agreement with Balfour Beatty Campus Solutions, based in Dallas, Texas, would include a 444 bed 227 unit project at the current Hawkeye Court site, is to be approved by the Board of Regents on Wednesday. A second phase, not yet ready for approval, would construct an additional 350 beds on the Hawkeye Dr. site. Terms of the agreement include UI leasing the current site for $1.00, and that Balfour would have a 41 year lease with a 10 year extension option.
From the article:
"Rent for apartments in the proposed development hasn’t yet been
established, and Rocklin said he didn’t want to speculate about whether
the $650 to $750 per month range was accurate. If UI were to continue to
own Hawkeye Court apartments, which opened in 1968, rent would need to
increase by at least $200 per month to cover the estimated $10 million
in necessary maintenance over the next 10 years, he said.
'So although the rents will be higher than we currently have at Hawkeye Court, they’ll be similar to the market in the area and provide tremendously better accommodations than we’re currently able to provide,' Rocklin said."
It will be interesting to see what kind of pressure these additional units will have on the rental prices in University Heights. One would suspect that having a large increase in competing "student" housing would be felt first in non-owner occupied units at Grandview. But given the rise of single family homes that have switched from owner occupied to rental, it may also make a difference throughout U-Heights?
Here's another major issue to ponder: Is this the beginning of a trend in public/private partnerships for UI? If so the University's current presence in, and surrounding, our town future projects could have substantial impact on U-Heights.
'So although the rents will be higher than we currently have at Hawkeye Court, they’ll be similar to the market in the area and provide tremendously better accommodations than we’re currently able to provide,' Rocklin said."
It will be interesting to see what kind of pressure these additional units will have on the rental prices in University Heights. One would suspect that having a large increase in competing "student" housing would be felt first in non-owner occupied units at Grandview. But given the rise of single family homes that have switched from owner occupied to rental, it may also make a difference throughout U-Heights?
Here's another major issue to ponder: Is this the beginning of a trend in public/private partnerships for UI? If so the University's current presence in, and surrounding, our town future projects could have substantial impact on U-Heights.
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