With one high-rise nearly complete in New Rochelle and another set to break ground in White Plains, it”™s safe to say AvalonBay Communities Inc. sees Westchester as a prime market.
AvalonBay, the third-largest apartment landlord in the nation, also has properties in Bronxville, Elmsford and Mamaroneck.
“We”™re really interested in southern Westchester; we”™ve invested a lot of money in New Rochelle and another $150 million in White Plains,” said Stephanie Cuba, development director with AvalonBay.
The company”™s newest high-rise in New Rochelle, Avalon on the Sound East, is scheduled to open in late May. The 588-unit building is across the street from Avalon on the Sound, which has 472 units. The building in White Plains, on Barker Avenue, will have 14 stories and 348 units when completed.
Cuba said AvalonBay will have model apartments ready for the new building to start showing within a few weeks. She said the building has “a handful” of rental commitments.
“That will pick up once people can see what the actual apartments look like,” she said. “We”™ve been getting a lot of interest.”
AvalonBay typically looks to build in areas where there is easy access to public transportation, and both its New Rochelle buildings fit that bill being next to a Metro-North train station.
“We are 30 minutes from the city, from Grand Central, it”™s very convenient,” Cuba said. “Being very close to transit and a lot of employment is what we focus on. (New Rochelle) is close to New York and White Plains which are both large employment centers.”
Cuba said much of the interest in the New Rochelle buildings has come from people in northern Westchester and those from other areas of the country who want to be close to Manhattan, but don”™t want to pay New York prices for a smaller apartment.
“For people looking to move to the city or moving to the area, these apartments are very big, spacewise,” she said.Â
Another common feature of AvalonBay”™s apartment buildings is a retail component on the ground floor.
Cuba said the developer has been in talks “with a number of retailers” about moving into the new building, which could feature between three and five retail shops. Generally, AvalonBay looks for retail tenants that could benefit its residents and would fit into a downtown atmosphere, such as restaurants, food stores or wine shops.
Avalon on the Sound East will also have a “rooftop community room,” Cuba said, with features such as pool tables, lounge areas and a game room. The building will also have a fitness center for residents only.
The property in White Plains will also have townhouses in addition to apartments. That building should be completed and open for renting sometime in mid-2009, Cuba said.
“We”™re just about starting the construction project in White Plains. We should be in the ground in the next month.”
