NEWS
Downtown area expands further
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by Aubre Andrus
Friday, February 4, 2005
Mirroring construction projects throughout the city and campus, work continues on the Capitol Square. The square is currently undergoing a number of changes to include high-rise buildings for condominium developments and office spaces, according to Susan Schmitz, president of Downtown Madison, Inc.
Todd McGrath, CEO of McGrath Associates, said it is clear there is a market for condominiums in the downtown area.
According to McGrath, the need for housing is visible because of the constant presence of construction cranes on the square and the large number of buildings built in the past few years.
“It’s a lifestyle — people are considering to live longer terms [in the downtown area],” McGrath said.
McGrath added retirement, the university connection, and the “beautiful geography of the Isthmus” are appealing for people in need of housing.
McGrath Associates’ condominium project, Nolen Shores, will be completed this spring and will overlook the lake and the Capitol. The units will sell for $300,000 to several hundred thousand dollars, and include 10-foot ceilings and private terraces.
Other areas under construction include the Marina Condominiums on Wilson Street, which are being built by the architectural firm Kenton Peters and Associates.
Kenton Peters, owner of the firm, said the condominiums will open in May and half are already sold.
Stone House Developments, located on the second block of King Street, has worked on providing affordable housing options for potential renters, according to Schmitz.
The common trend for new buildings is to utilize first floor retail space with condominiums above, she added.
Paul Muench of Urban Land Interests, a real estate development firm, said for many years there were only a few condominiums in the downtown area.
“The market for people buying condos downtown is extremely strong,” Muench said. “Because so few condominiums were developed before eight years ago, there is still pent-up demand.”
Urban Land Interests is building a nine-story building on the corner of Main Street and Pickney Street. The building will also include a small retail space on the first floor with 135,000 square feet of office space in the upper eight floors.
The architecture firm constructing the building, Valerio Dewalt Train Associates from Chicago, is a well-know national firm and has won a number of awards, according to Muench.
“The building is really a beautiful building,” Muench said. “It’s a modern, clear, glass building, a very sleek, modern building that we are really excited about.”
According to Muench, it is a common belief there is a high vacancy rate downtown, but the occupancy rate on Capitol Square is healthy.
Urban Land Interests owns a number of office buildings around the Capitol Square that are all at full occupancy.
Muench said it takes a year to 14 months to construct more office space, so after taking inventory, the firm had to get a head start and supply more space for their tenants.
“We have a number of office tenants on Capitol Square that are growing and if they don’t have space, they will leave the square and go to the suburbs.”
