CLEVELAND — Demolition crews are keeping busy inside the former United Church of Christ office building as a nearly $40 million renovation will turn the building into more than 120 apartments.
Developer Doug Price IV, Vice President at K&D Group, told News 5 the building is slated to house 115 smaller studio and one-bedroom apartments, as well as 8 two-bedroom apartments.
"This building is going to be a little different for us," Price explained. "We see people shifting into the smaller units and more affordable where they can spend less on the apartment and more out on the city."
The building also features about 6,800 square feet in first-floor commercial space.
The studio and one-bedroom units are expected to range from 340 square feet to 600 square feet, with rent starting at around $1,000/month.
Right now, a one-bedroom apartment in Cleveland’s downtown core can cost you anywhere from around $1,000-$2,700 a month.
Price said the emphasis on smaller units is meant to help tackle the demand they're seeing throughout the city.
"We see what rents and what does not rent, and the desire right now for small one-bedroom units is huge," he said.
Price pointed to their recently completed rental units at 55 Public Square, where the one-bedroom units were the quickest to be leased, while two-bedroom apartments took a little longer.
RELATED: More than $80 million worth of renovations wrapping up at 55 Public Square
An April report from Downtown Cleveland Inc. and the Greater Cleveland Partnership points out the downtown core population grew by more than 3,000 from 2010 to 2020. Additionally, it said there is still a need for more rental units, with 94.8% of units in the downtown core occupied.
"Downtown living is in demand," said Audrey Gerlach, Vice President of Economic Development at Downtown Cleveland, Inc. "We have a strong empty nester population, we have a strong young professional population and the one bedroom makes a lot of sense for those key demographics."
The development at 700 Prospect Avenue previously acquired a more than $4 million grant from Ohio's Brownfield Remediation program.
However, the development was unsuccessful in obtaining recently released state tax credits for historic preservation. Price told News 5 they plan to reapply for the next round, and if successful, he hopes to start renovations on this 150,000-square-foot building at the beginning of 2024, with tenants moving in next summer.
"We’re confident these units are going to just fly," Price said.
Data from that downtown report also points out that back in 2010, the most common apartment rental rate in the downtown core was between $500-$1,000/month. By 2020, that number climbed to between $1,000-$1,500/month.
Clay LePard is a special projects reporter at News 5 Cleveland. Follow him on Twitter @ClayLePard or on Facebook Clay LePard News 5.
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