OAKLAND, CA – International award-winning firm KTGY Architecture + Plotting announces that nonprofit developer, manager and advocate of affordable housing EAH Housing and the City of Emeryville celebrated the ground-breaking of a new 86-unit transit-oriented mixed-use residential development, at 3706 San Pablo Avenue in the downtown area of Emeryville, Calif.

The new $64 million multi-family rental community answers the demand for more family-friendly housing near transit and will provide up to four-bedroom apartment homes to households earning 30 to 60 percent of Alameda County’s area median income. Walk Score gave the location a score of 90, calling it a “Walker’s Paradise.” Residents can walk to the MacArthur BART station, which is just 0.7 miles away, or take a bus from the property to BART. Walk Score also called the location “Very Bikeable.”

“We recognize that California, specifically the Bay Area, has been in a housing crisis for a while,” said Mary Murtagh, president and CEO of EAH Housing. “The last new affordable community EAH built in the Emeryville/Oakland area had over 5,000 applications for 100 apartment homes. To get to this point, everyone worked hard. KTGY and EAH Housing are proud that hundreds more people, including children and seniors, will soon have an affordable place to call home at Estrella Vista.”

This project was awarded to EAH in 2012, after undergoing an extensive RFP process with the City of Emeryville. From the beginning, EAH’s goal has been to provide an affordable family development to the community that is indistinguishable in quality from other market-rate communities in the area. KTGY embraced this goal and designed the future residences around a series of outdoor spaces geared to serve families at different life stages, clarified Jessica Musick, associate principal in KTGY’s Oakland office.

Estrella Vista’s design features four main outdoor areas for families living at 3706 San Pablo Avenue. A large central courtyard offers play equipment for children while the Zen Garden and Adult Overlook offer space for young adults and parents to retreat. All courtyards are elevated above street level and provide safe places for families to gather. The new residential community also provides an outdoor sky deck space at the sixth level with views to 37th Street and beyond.

According to Musick, Estrella Vista’s architectural style blends contemporary design with historic references to fit the context. “We wanted to celebrate the special character and history of this city and took our design inspirations from the city’s industrial beginnings and incorporated the use of bricks on the facade,” said Musick.

Since the project is located on a very visible corner, the design makes a strong street presence through signature exterior elements at the corner building. The design also incorporates public art as part of the city development requirements. KTGY is collaborating with local artist Eric Powell to integrate a significant piece of public art into the overall design of the architecture.

The widened San Pablo Boulevard frontage will encourage pedestrian traffic with relief from San Pablo Avenue and allow for additional street landscaping, notes Musick. The new development will also include nearly 7,000 square feet of street-level retail.

Estrella Vista will be environmentally-sensitive and constructed using sustainable building methods. A number of ‘green’ features designed to ensure its long-term energy-efficiency and sustainability will be incorporated including photovoltaic solar panels, a solar water heating system, low-flow plumbing fixtures, recycled materials, energy-efficient appliances and lighting, and water-efficient landscaping. Power for the electric vehicle charging stations will be supplemented by the rooftop photovoltaic solar panels. The community will encourage bicycle usage with bicycle racks at several locations along the property’s commercial frontage.

EAH Housing plans to pursue USGBC’s LEED Gold specification, one of the toughest industry guidelines for sustainable building and maintenance.

Completion is slated for September 2019.

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LEXINGTON, KY – Campus First Student Living and CF Real Estate Services have bought The LEX, a 649 bed student housing project located within walking distance of the University of Kentucky (UK) in Lexington, Kentucky.

“The acquisition of The LEX firmly exhibits our acquisition strategy of acquiring high quality, pedestrian student assets well below replacement cost,” states CF Real Estate Services CEO, Brett Finkelstein.

The LEX is a mid-rise property centrally located near the UK campus and downtown business district in Lexington. The LEX was constructed in 2008 and delivered its first units in 2009. The subject property has a total of 266 units with 649 beds. The LEX offers prime walkability to the university as well as 172 restaurants, bars, and nightlife venues all in close proximity. Additionally, the property has 23,444 square feet of retail space that is available for lease.

Campus First is a boutique style acquisition/development and property management firm that focuses on purpose built student housing. Campus First is a division of parent company, CF Real Estate Services, headquartered in Atlanta, GA. CF Real Estate Services currently owns or manages 25,000 units throughout the Southeast and Texas.

Renovations and value improvements for The LEX are valued at $2.5M, and are scheduled to start prior to the 2018/2019 school year. Property renovations will include the addition of VIP suites that will offer granite countertops, appliances, hardware, and lighting.

Additionally, the scope will include a new re-design of the office space and clubhouse that will feature luxury entertainment areas, private study rooms, shared conference rooms, as well as a new fitness centre and studio.

“We are keen to start renovations on this property as the VIP suites will present students an opportunity for an elevated off-campus living experience that they will not receive elsewhere,” states Christopher Feeley, President of Campus First.

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LOS ANGELES, CA – Turner Impact Capital, one of the nation’s largest social impact investment firms, has launched a dedicated property management company, TI Communities, to provide a full range of professional services for workforce housing communities owned by the Turner Multifamily Impact Fund (TMIF). TI Communities will support TMIF’s mission to drive operational excellence and achieve significant and measurable social and environmental impact.

In addition to overall property management, TI Communities will oversee the delivery of resident-focused enrichment programs that are a hallmark of TMIF communities and implement sustainability initiatives. These programs include education-, healthcare-, and security-related services, such as after-school tutoring, financial literacy courses and health screenings that are tailored to the needs of each community and promote neighborhood stability.

“TI Communities will provide mission-driven property management of the highest caliber to achieve our unique objectives as we continue to scale our housing fund across the country,” said Bobby Turner, Principal and CEO of Turner Impact Capital. “Having a skilled and compassionate team that is equipped to foster life-enriching experiences for our residents is vital to our mission of preserving affordable workforce housing for families and individuals, while at the same time providing strong market-rate returns for our investors.”

TI Communities’ Dallas-based executive team will be led by Christine Schoellhorn, an industry veteran with more than 25 years of management experience. They will be supported by a diverse group of nearly 100 associates located across TMIF’s footprint as well as professional experts in the areas of education, security, healthcare, and environmental sustainability.

“I am thrilled to lead an organization so committed to making a difference in people’s lives,” said Schoellhorn, President of TI Communities. “My talented team and I are focused on making a welcoming and nurturing environment where our residents can truly thrive. This philosophy will continue to drive positive impact for our communities and strong operating performance for our client.”

The Turner Multifamily Impact Fund was launched in 2015 to help address the growing shortage of affordable workforce rental housing in densely-populated, ethnically diverse urban communities throughout the U.S. Residents include community-serving professionals such as teachers, police officers, health care workers, and others who earn too much to qualify for subsidized housing, but not enough to afford higher cost apartments or home ownership in the communities located near their workplaces. The fund currently includes more than 4,000 units in 12 communities located in Texas, Florida, Georgia, Maryland and Nevada, and is on course to grow to approximately 10,000 units in apartment communities totaling $1 billion.

Celebrated actress and philanthropist Eva Longoria and NBA superstar Chris Paul have joined forces with the firm as partners and ambassadors for the Turner Multifamily Impact Fund. In those roles, Longoria and Paul help raise awareness about the critical need for workforce housing in the United States and help ensure that the fund is meeting the needs of residents in urban communities.

Dedicated to generating “profits with a purpose,” Turner Impact Capital is an acknowledged leader and innovator in the growing field of social impact investing – an investment approach that takes into account two goals: generating positive, risk-adjusted financial returns and making purposeful, measurable, and positive social and environmental impact through those investments. Founded in 2014, the firm is on course to surpass $2.5 billion in investment potential to address a multitude of challenges facing urban neighborhoods while delivering superior risk-adjusted returns for its investors.

In addition to multifamily workforce housing, Turner Impact Capital is focused on two complementary investment strategies to help address some of the country’s most pervasive social issues through real estate infrastructure-related solutions. The firm’s targeted education strategy – the Turner-Agassi Charter School Facilities Funds, a partnership with tennis legend Andre Agassi – seeks to meet the growing demand for quality charter school facilities, improving the educational achievement and life outcomes for underserved students. The firm’s healthcare strategy – the Turner Healthcare Facilities Fund – invests in community-serving healthcare facilities to improve access to top-quality medical care to improve healthcare outcomes for residents of underserved communities.

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