The world’s largest operation of student housing complexes now operates two of three such buildings on West Main Street.
On October 9, a business trust connected to the Inland Real Estate Group of Companies of Oak Brook, Illinois, purchased the Flats at West Village for $107 million. Three days prior, the company announced via press release the creation of a strategic relationship with The Scion Group to operate off-campus housing properties.
“This strategic relationship with Inland Investments underscores Scion’s commitment to robust growth and consolidation,” said Clayton Merritt, senior vice president of investments at The Scion Group. “This partnership furthers Scion’s success in executing our business plan with leading institutional investors.”
The Scion Group manages more than 95,000 beds intended for students in 146 countries, including 82 college and university markets across 35 states. That already includes Lark on Main, which last traded hands in April 2017 for $59.5 million.
The Flats at West Village was the first in a series of new apartment buildings constructed on West Main Street in the past dozen years. The site formerly housed a Merchant’s Tire franchise and was developed by Ambling University Group and Riverbend Development.
In December 2012, City Council voted 4-1 to approve a special use permit for additional height and density, and the building opened to its first tenants in August 2014.
The value of the land and the building jumped from $6.77 million in 2014 to $35.6 million a year later. A company then known as Peak Campus Development bought the property in November 2016 for $77.5 million.
Amy Finn, director of brand for the Scion Group, says Charlottesville is the kind of market where the company wants to be located.
“We are drawn to opportunities like this one, to acquire a project below replacement cost, and will make this new location part of our mission to deliver a market-leading resident experience,” Finn says.
Finn says the company is evaluating upgrades to the site but are not yet ready to share specifics. In the near future, a third retail bay will have a tenant for the first time ever.
The 2.24-acre property and the 43,616-square-foot building space has a 2025 assessment of $92.2 million, making the tax bill for this year $903,258.16. The owners of Lark on Main had to pay $587,817.72.
The acquisition comes as two other student apartment buildings are planned for West Main Street. Real estate firm LV Collective has submitted plans for an 11-story tower at 843 W. Main St. with 708 units.
While that height is technically allowed under the city’s new zoning code, the Board of Architectural Review can condition its design approval on a slightly lower height. That’s exactly what the Public Housing Association of Residents wants them to do to limit the impact on Westhaven.
On October 21, the BAR took a second look at a seven-story building planned for 202 Seventh St. LCD Acquisitions, another student housing firm, is proposing to incorporate two individually protected properties into a project it’s calling The Mark. The Charlottesville Low-Income Housing Coalition is asking the BAR what it can do to stop or shrink the project.
Elsewhere in the city, cranes are helping to raise the 12-story Verve at the intersection of Emmet Street and Jefferson Park Avenue, the 231-unit Blume at 2117 Ivy Rd., and a 119-unit student apartment building at 2005 Jefferson Park Ave.
Finn says Scion Group is aware of the new construction.
“While new supply is in development, our communities will remain well-located options that emphasize a solid value, offering a superior resident experience that is our core strategy,” she says.
At the same time, the University of Virginia has recently constructed hundreds of new beds and is planning more on Emmet Street and Ivy Road. A key initiative in UVA’s A Great and Good University Plan is to eventually house all second-year students on Grounds.
Strategy 8.1 of Charlottesville’s 2021 Comprehensive Plan calls for the coordination of student housing goals with UVA and Albemarle County. One of the metrics to gauge outcome is to increase the number of second-year students who live on Grounds.
