San Francisco multifamily investor enters KC market

San Francisco-based real estate investment firm Hamilton Zanze (HZ)  has acquired the 272-unit Metcalf Village Apartments in Overland Park, announcing plans to rebrand the complex at 16201 Travis St. as Boulders at Overland Park Apartments. 

"This community represented a great opportunity to buy new, stabilized product below replacement cost thanks to robust local market momentum," said David Nelson, HZ managing director of acquisitions.

Built in 2017, the 261,000-square foot community attracted the west coast investment firm in part because of its location in the nationally ranked Blue Valley School District. 

"Overland Park has been a target market for our acquisitions team, and we are excited to have found a perfect acquisition to fit our criteria," Nelson added. "We look forward to further growing our presence in Kansas in the years to come."

Boulders at Overland Park will offer a mix of one-, two-, and three-bedroom units well-suited for both single and family occupancy. HZ plans to upgrade the property's landscape and lighting. 

Property management responsibilities will be transitioned to Mission Rock Residential, a Denver-based affiliate company of HZ. The purchase closed February 28. For more information, click here.  

Will Mathews, Bob Galamba, and Gabe Tovar of the Colliers East Region Group facilitated the transaction. The community was sold by JA Murphy Group and purchased by Hamilton Zanze.

Since 2001, Hamilton Zanze has acquired over $3.3 billion in multifamily assets in 14 states across the U.S. The company currently owns and operates 83 properties with over 19,000 units. 

West Bottoms’ first micro apartment project moves forward

A Cleveland-based developer has secured $52 million in financing for its West Bottoms Flats multifamily project, clearing another hurdle in its effort to redevelop five historic warehouse buildings into so-called micro apartments.

The $66 million redevelopment includes 265 one-room apartments plus structured parking and more than 5,000 square feet of commercial space. Grandbridge Real Estate Capital LLC and Brown Gibbons Lang & Co. LLC facilitated the finance package on behalf of MCM Co. Inc.

With an average footprint of about 600 square feet, micro apartments-or microflats- are considered the next frontier in multifamily housing. Designed to appeal to Millennials, the units are self-contained living spaces that include a kitchenette, sitting space, sleeping space, and bathroom. With completion targeted for 2020, West Bottoms Flats apartments are expected to rent for between $1,000 and $1,200 a month.

“The target market is young professionals who desire smaller units at a lower price point in a heavily dense, urban community with strong neighborhood amenities and connectivity,” said Doug Bates, Grandbridge vice president for the Kansas City market. “The concept is relatively new to Kansas City, but other Midwestern cities have a seen a great deal of deliveries and success with this concept.”

Situated on 2.4 acres between Ninth Street and St. Louis Avenue, Hickory and Wyoming streets, West Bottoms Flats is the first historic multifamily project in the West Bottoms neighborhood just west of Downtown Kansas City and the first metro-area project for MCM Co. Inc.

“Given its linkages to and the strong demand drivers in the neighboring River Market, Downtown, and Crossroads markets, the West Bottoms is well positioned to be the up and coming urban lifestyle community in Kansas City,” Bates added.

The financing package includes more than $24 million in federal and state historic tax credits equity secured through partners Enhanced Capital and Historic Equity Inc., as well as a $31.85 million senior construction loan and $20 million historic tax credit bridge loan. Project lenders include Kansas City-based Blue Ridge Bank & Trust, Jefferson City-based Hawthorn Bank, and Ohio-based Huntington National Bank.

A variety of incentives and abatements were secured through programs administered by the City of Kansas City and Jackson County, Missouri.

Plans advance for South Kansas City upscale multifamily project

The Kansas City Council has approved rezoning of about 50 acres near the Grandview Triangle in the Hickman Mills area, clearing the way for the first new upscale residential project in that pocket of South Kansas City in a generation. 

Construction is expected to begin on the first phase of the River Birch Townhomes project in late summer, with 27 fourplex buildings completed in 2020. At full buildout, development plans call for construction of 204 units in 51 two-story buildings built in two phases. 

The $28 million project is being developed by James Ellis of HC Realty Development Co. and aims to attract young professionals working at Cerner Corporation’s Innovation Campus less than five miles away, as well as Honeywell's campus at I-49 and Missouri Highway 150. 

“There’s a strong need for quality housing in south Kansas City, Missouri,” Ellis said. “With quality employers including Cerner and Honeywell and the proposed redevelopment of the former Bannister Federal Complex, there will be a large influx of young professionals.”

No incentives were requested for the project, which was unanimously approved by the Kansas City Council and the city’s Board of Zoning Appeals. It also has received strong support from the South Kansas City Neighborhood Alliance and the Hickman Mills School District.

The community will offer two- and three-bedroom units for lease starting at about $1,500 per month. Amenities planned for the project include a clubhouse, pool, playground and large amounts of green place. 

Oggi Lofts redevelopment brings 25 market rate units to downtown KC

The former Oggi Modern Furnishings building at 600 Central St. in downtown Kansas City’s former Garment District has found new life as Oggi Lofts, a 25-unit market-rate apartment project.

Ted Murray of Colliers International teamed up with Andy Homoly of Homoly Construction on the $6.7 million redevelopment designed by architecture firm Clockwork Architecture + Design. Rosin Preservation helped secure historic tax credits for conversion of the 110-year old, five-story brick building located on the National Register of Historic Places.

As with any historic redevelopment, Oggi Lofts offered its share of surprises and conundrums.

“Anytime you get into an older building that needs to be gutted, there are always surprises,” said Murray, who pursued the project independent of his role as Co-CEO of Colliers’ Kansas City office. “This project was so different and really created a need for problem solving during the construction process.”

For example, the building’s entire stair tower required full replacement, yet historic preservation standards required that the original hardwood flooring remain. Another hurdle involved successfully obtaining approval from the National Park Service to add windows on the north side of the brick building. But perhaps the biggest challenge involved designing and constructing units around the building’s many columns, which could not be touched in the name of structural integrity.

“We had to conserve space, and Andy (Homoly) and the construction team really thought through how to integrate all the vertical columns into the various units,” Murray told MetroWire Media during a tour of the project.

A hallmark of Oggi Lofts is a rooftop deck with panoramic views of the Missouri River, and Charles B. Wheeler Downtown Airport. The property includes a basement fitness center and dedicated storage units as well as on-street parking and door locks and utilities with smartphone access. With rents between $1,000 to $2,265, each unit includes hardwood flooring, onyx countertops, and washer/dryer.

For Murray, the historic redevelopment was a refreshing departure from his work with Colliers, which involves primarily office, retail and industrial leasing and sales.

“This has been so much fun,” Murray said. “I love downtown and I’m just thrilled with how this turned out. It’s been a labor of love.”

Oggi Modern Furnishings vacated the property in 2007. Tax abatements were approved through Kansas City’s Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority (LCRA).

Launch Development prepares for liftoff of new mixed-use at former Loehmann's site

Construction is wrapping up on the first phase of The Promontory, a $98 million, 291-unit residential-over-retail redevelopment at 91st and Metcalf in Overland Park. Launch Development Inc., in partnership with Jim Harpool and Evergreen Real Estate Services, plans a grand opening this spring.

“One of the big differences between this and any other project we have is that all the residential parking is separate from the retail parking,” Harpool said. “The units are wrapped around three sides of the parking garage, and you can park on the level that you live. So you just walk in and you’re home.”

All the Promontory’s one- and two-bedroom units include high-end finishes, 12-foot ceilings, balconies, and walk-in showers. Common spaces include a clubhouse with demonstration kitchen/bar, multiple flat-screen TVs, ample gathering space, and workstations.

Outdoor living spaces include a swimming pool/deck area and courtyard/green gathering area connected by a breezeway, or “cave,” that can be closed off depending on the weather. The breezeway features a big-screen TV, bar and fireplace. The indoor mezzanine area is home to a yoga studio and fitness center with treadmills overlooking the pool deck.

Harpool, a longtime proponent of Metcalf Avenue redevelopment efforts to the north and south of 95th Street, said the Loehmann’s project was not without challenges. Overland Park stormwater retention requirements added $1.3 million to site prep costs.

“We had to create a 12- to 14-foot high detention basin beneath the parking lot. You can park 17 semis under there,” he added.

The Promontory is part of multifamily redevelopment boomlet taking place between 95th and 80th streets along Metcalf Avenue. The residential projects aim to piggyback off about 1 million square feet of new or redeveloped office space taking shape in the corridor.

“You’re going to have between 800 and 900 units close to Downtown Overland Park opening in 2019,” Harpool said. “Between Tim Barton’s office building, Avenue 82 anchored by BRR Architecture, and Shamrock Industries across the street planning to hire 1,000 people, we have a little hub here.”

KC Wine & Liquors opened a new store at The Promontory in December, and additional leased space is available for retail stores and restaurants. At full buildout, The Promontory will include a total of 490 retail units and more than 150,00 square feet of retail space.

For retail leasing at The Promontory, email Ryan Robertshaw at Ryan@KCEvergreen.com

View a promotional video of The Promontory.

Check out a gallery of The Promontory clubhouse and residences below.