[Charleston] Univ. of Charleston condominium project

[seicer]

UC plans condos on river: Buildings will hold luxury residences, may start at $600,000

By Jim Balow, Charleston Gazette, September 6, 2007

Two 6-story luxury towers are planned near the corner of 19th Street and Kanawha Blvd. behind Triana Field, just west of University of Charleston's main campus. Members of the Municipal Planning Commission approved preliminary site plans Wednesday, and it is up to the school's Board of Trustees, who could give final approval by September 20. If it is approved, designers with Associated Architects could take several months to finalize drawings before construction starts -- which could be as early as spring 2008.

Phase I calls for one six-story luxury condominium tower, while Phase II calls for a second identical building further upstream. The residential units will occupy the upper five floors, and the first floor will be reserved for an underground 94-space parking garage. Each building would hold 18 units, have at least 2,000 sq. ft. each, and feature a fitness center and other shared facilities. The starting price is around $600,000 and it will not exceed $2 million. All units will have both riverfront and mountainside views, and due to its staggered design, all units will have views up and down the river.

The project is not new. University officials notified the city about a possible condominium project as far back as December 2005. The project has been in planning stages for about three years. At that time, the design called for a single 10-story building, but there was some concern over the height and scale.

The land is currently owned by the University, and is zoned PMC for professional medical campus, which would support this type of development.