ATLANTA (July 30, 2012) – Carter, a leading development, investment and advisory services firm, and Chance Partners, a fully integrated, award-winning real estate firm, today announce plans to develop The Highlands, a $39-million student housing community at the University of Mississippi in Oxford, Miss. Carter will serve as master developer of the new mixed-use development, which will provide approximately 750 beds for Ole Miss students by July 2013. This is the first joint-venture project between the two Atlanta-based development companies.
Regions Bank is providing the construction financing for The Highlands, which will feature a town square with roughly 15,000 square feet of diverse retail, amenity space and a large clubhouse and a mix of flats, townhomes and cottages. Each unit type will offer private bathrooms for every bedroom; gourmet kitchens featuring granite countertops; custom cabinetry and stainless steel appliances; expansive living areas; hardwood-style flooring; and ample closet and storage space. The units will also include full-size washers and dryers, as well as balconies or porches overlooking the town square, pools or manicured grounds.
Carter Senior Vice President, Andy Feinour, believes Oxford is an ideal market for this new prototype. “Based on current and projected record-setting enrollment numbers at Ole Miss, existing market demand, aging inventory, and Oxford’s strong rental and occupancy rates, now is the perfect time -- and Oxford is the perfect market to introduce this unique student housing concept,” Feinour says. “Students in Oxford and many other university markets across the country want a high-quality, amenity-rich place to live, and we’ll deliver that better than it’s ever been done before.”
In addition to the substantial clubhouse, the community will feature accessible retail and amenities, including a coffee shop, three swimming pools, a state-of-the-art fitness center with tanning facilities, a basketball court, carwash and dog wash station, walking and jogging trails, a dog park, bocce ball, horseshoe, sand volleyball, and space for what we hope to be an urban market.
Carter and Chance Partners formed the joint venture out of their shared vision for the student-housing sector, according to Judd Bobilin, president and CEO of Chance Partners. “Our aligned interests and vision will transform a traditionally homogenous sector of the multifamily industry into one of its most progressive,” said Bobilin. “Students at Ole Miss will be the first to experience a truly unique and world-class New Urbanist community that will be celebrated for its creativity and foresight.”
Casey Van Zandt of Campus Advantage, an Austin-based real estate firm specializing in the management and development of student housing in 21 states, says this model will change the way student- housing communities are built. “The conventional apartment building and cluster home communities are obsolete – students want interactive, social places that offer quality housing, on-site retail, superior amenities, unparalleled convenience and exceptional value. The Highlands will provide that unlike any other.” In addition to managing the development of marketing materials, creating an operating plan, and training the site staff, Campus Advantage is providing consulting during the design and development phase of this project on an as-needed basis.
Reese Vanderbilt, a leading design-oriented architectural firm, is the architect. Apex Companies, known to use new building methods with state-of-art technology, is the contractor.
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