Developers Aim for Off-Campus Living Near FIU
August 25, 2017By: Ismael Rodriguez
Global City Development is exclusively targeting college student by building 492 new condos across the street from Florida International University’s main campus.
The Miami-based developer is partnering with Toronto’s Podium Development and Reichmann International to create a 20-floor luxury tower designed by Arquitectonica and dubbed University Bridge Residences, which will offer units ranging between $190,000 and $600,000.
“These buildings are typically owned by insurance companies and real estate investment trusts,” Global City’s principal Brian Pearl told the press. “This is a new trend. We think parents who want their kids to be in the best location near FIU will want to buy. We also think it will be attractive for investors who want to rent to students.”
University Bridge Residences will sit at 740 Southwest 109th Avenue, which is currently occupied by a 66-unit apartment complex built in 1983. College Suites Associates LLC purchased the property for $16.6 million last year, according to property records.
Cervera Real Estate, which exclusively handles the sales and marketing for University Bridge Residences, released a press release that unveiled the floor plans for the project, which range between 317 square feet to 1,634 square feet, featuring studios and units with up to four bedrooms, as well as three- to four-bedroom townhouses.
The press release also mentioned amenities, which will include a pool and sundeck, a fitness room, a game room, indoor lounge and rooftop that features a sunset terrace with dining areas, a yoga lawn and performance stage.
“College students haven’t had a lot of time to accumulate stuff so they don’t need big spaces,” Pearl told the press. “They also don’t need much parking. We have a designed a special drop-off location to make it easier to use ridesharing services like Uber and Lyft.”
And since the building is meant for student housing, University Bridge will incorporate study areas on each residential floor, conference rooms, Internet access to FIU and an outdoor video screen. Global City is also using 7,000 square feet on the ground floor to supply a variety of retail stores or restaurants for FIU students.
The project is currently scheduled for completion by the start of the 2020-2021 academic year.