A Madison developer and architect presented their plans for two new student apartment complexes that, if approved by city and neighborhood councils, will be erected on North Bassett Street.
At a meeting on Wednesday night, developer Scott Faust, along with Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, and architect Randy Bruce, described the early phases of a plan to build two new apartment buildings on the parcel of land outlined by West Johnson, North Bassett and West Dayton Street.
The buildings would displace an office building, the Inez apartment complex and a house.
The building slated to be raised on West Johnson Street is set to be 12 stories high and made up of 155 mixed efficiency units, meaning that one, two, three and four bedroom units will be available. The building on West Dayton will be three stories high, consisting of 42 mixed efficiency units.
Current plans show the U-shaped three story building forming a courtyard area between itself and the 12-story complex. Bruce described the plaza as an ideal area for bicycle parking.
Bruce said mopeds would be kept away from the street front sides of the buildings, with parking available underground in the ratio of one parking slot per seven bedrooms of the complex. There will be 48 parking spaces under the three-story structure to accommodate the 42 units.
The builders are currently confronted with zoning restrictions on the heights of the buildings.
“This proposal is a bit unorthodox, a little different than most of the proposals we see, because the city is in the midst of re-writing its zoning code, a code that hasn’t been touched since the 1960’s,” Verveer said.
The current code would prohibit the builders from building their three-story complex any higher than it is now.
Developers are hoping to overcome this restriction with the Nov. 15 release of the “Downtown Plan,” a re-modeling of downtown Madison’s zoning codes and development plans.
“It’s a little premature for us to say,” Bruce said. “The current downtown design codes are very specific; we’re maxed at three stories, and that’s all we’re allowed.”
Regardless of how the city’s zoning is revised, the builders said they are optimistic that they can break ground during the summer of 2012.
Verveer commented that the Downtown Plan had called for a public park to be created on the parcel of land in question, citing the high density of buildings and population in the area of the site as a prime reason for a park to be built.
Still, the planning staff is moving away from this idea, as plans for the apartment complexes have gradually solidified, he said.
While the builders maintain faith in their timetable, Verveer said the process of reviewing the Downtown Plan alone could take several months.
Bruce said that the new apartment complexes would be assets to students’ residential options.
“There’s definitely a focus on students here. … [The buildings] will certainly be nice and new, with full amenities. They should be very welcoming to the students,” he said.
