A rendering of the planned project at 600 Decatur St. (City documents)
With one project approaching the finish line on Decatur Street in Manchester, a pair of prolific local developers are planning another new building across the street.
WVS Cos. and Fountainhead Real Estate Development are planning to build a six-story apartment building at 600 Decatur St. The 167 units would rise catty-corner from The Box, a seven-story apartment building the duo is wrapping up at 501 Decatur St.
Tom Papa
Fountainhead and WVS bought the 1-acre site at 600 Decatur St. in late 2021 for $2 million and have been using it as a staging and support area for The Box.
The parcel, which houses a derelict warehouse, will soon be freed up as construction on The Box enters the home stretch. Fountainhead’s Tom Papa said they’re aiming to have residents move into The Box in April. The new building, he said, would be The Box’s de facto second phase.
“Things change as the world turns, but the idea is to treat them like they’re sister properties,” Papa said. “We’re trying to introduce something into the design aesthetic (of the new building) that relates to The Box.”
Plans show that in addition to the 167 apartments, the building would include 3,700 square feet of commercial space. Of the building’s apartments, 118 would have one bedroom and 49 would have two bedrooms. Amenities would include a pool deck, balconies, a 175-space parking garage and 44-spot bicycle storage locker.
Walter Parks Architects is handling design work and Timmons Group is the engineer.
The Box, which has been in the works since 2020, is nearing completion at 501 Decatur St. (Mike Platania photo)
Papa said it’s unclear when they’ll break ground, partially because of the various other projects Fountainhead and WVS have in the pipeline in Manchester.
Among those is the redevelopment of the Plant Zero complex off Hull Street. The Plant Zero building was vacated late last year and Papa said they’re getting ready to demolish the structure, which was one of the neighborhood’s earlier historic tax credit rehabs.
“We’re going to knock the building down and clear the site, and we’d like to roll right into construction, but we just are not quite there yet on making the numbers work,” Papa said of Plant Zero. “We’re pretty risk-averse. What we’d look for is at least a construction loan and a mini (permanent loan). … It’s not an unusual process. It’s a little more challenging because interest rates are up and construction costs are up. Every project we’ve done has had this sort of molting phase.”
Fountainhead and WVS also are planning second and third phases of South Falls, their 14-story apartment tower overlooking the river at 111 Hull St. The second phase would be of similar size to South Falls I and rise just to the west of it.
Papa said they’re seeking a 40-year loan from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to help finance South Falls II, something they don’t do for most of their developments. But the size and height of the project are partly the reason.
“These 12- and 14-story buildings are the most expensive per-unit construction type for residential in the Richmond area. When you do that, you really need a longer repayment period, and you can justify it because you have a 100-year building, as opposed to a 50-year building,” Papa said.
The third phase of South Falls would be a 10-story condo tower with 20 units, but Papa said that’s even further down their to-do list. Last year WVS and Fountainhead began soliciting for a buyer or co-developer to help them take on the project. That hasn’t changed, Papa said, and even if they don’t find a suitor, they’ll eventually build South Falls III themselves.
“We’d still like somebody to come and either joint-venture it with us and do it so we don’t have to think about it, or we’ll just wait. It’s such a good site, such a nice opportunity that we’re just letting it sit there,” Papa said. “We’ll eventually build it, I just don’t know when.”
A rendering of the planned project at 600 Decatur St. (City documents)
With one project approaching the finish line on Decatur Street in Manchester, a pair of prolific local developers are planning another new building across the street.
WVS Cos. and Fountainhead Real Estate Development are planning to build a six-story apartment building at 600 Decatur St. The 167 units would rise catty-corner from The Box, a seven-story apartment building the duo is wrapping up at 501 Decatur St.
Tom Papa
Fountainhead and WVS bought the 1-acre site at 600 Decatur St. in late 2021 for $2 million and have been using it as a staging and support area for The Box.
The parcel, which houses a derelict warehouse, will soon be freed up as construction on The Box enters the home stretch. Fountainhead’s Tom Papa said they’re aiming to have residents move into The Box in April. The new building, he said, would be The Box’s de facto second phase.
“Things change as the world turns, but the idea is to treat them like they’re sister properties,” Papa said. “We’re trying to introduce something into the design aesthetic (of the new building) that relates to The Box.”
Plans show that in addition to the 167 apartments, the building would include 3,700 square feet of commercial space. Of the building’s apartments, 118 would have one bedroom and 49 would have two bedrooms. Amenities would include a pool deck, balconies, a 175-space parking garage and 44-spot bicycle storage locker.
Walter Parks Architects is handling design work and Timmons Group is the engineer.
The Box, which has been in the works since 2020, is nearing completion at 501 Decatur St. (Mike Platania photo)
Papa said it’s unclear when they’ll break ground, partially because of the various other projects Fountainhead and WVS have in the pipeline in Manchester.
Among those is the redevelopment of the Plant Zero complex off Hull Street. The Plant Zero building was vacated late last year and Papa said they’re getting ready to demolish the structure, which was one of the neighborhood’s earlier historic tax credit rehabs.
“We’re going to knock the building down and clear the site, and we’d like to roll right into construction, but we just are not quite there yet on making the numbers work,” Papa said of Plant Zero. “We’re pretty risk-averse. What we’d look for is at least a construction loan and a mini (permanent loan). … It’s not an unusual process. It’s a little more challenging because interest rates are up and construction costs are up. Every project we’ve done has had this sort of molting phase.”
Fountainhead and WVS also are planning second and third phases of South Falls, their 14-story apartment tower overlooking the river at 111 Hull St. The second phase would be of similar size to South Falls I and rise just to the west of it.
Papa said they’re seeking a 40-year loan from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to help finance South Falls II, something they don’t do for most of their developments. But the size and height of the project are partly the reason.
“These 12- and 14-story buildings are the most expensive per-unit construction type for residential in the Richmond area. When you do that, you really need a longer repayment period, and you can justify it because you have a 100-year building, as opposed to a 50-year building,” Papa said.
The third phase of South Falls would be a 10-story condo tower with 20 units, but Papa said that’s even further down their to-do list. Last year WVS and Fountainhead began soliciting for a buyer or co-developer to help them take on the project. That hasn’t changed, Papa said, and even if they don’t find a suitor, they’ll eventually build South Falls III themselves.
“We’d still like somebody to come and either joint-venture it with us and do it so we don’t have to think about it, or we’ll just wait. It’s such a good site, such a nice opportunity that we’re just letting it sit there,” Papa said. “We’ll eventually build it, I just don’t know when.”
There’s so much going along and east of Hull Street right now. Thalhimer, Lynx, Property Results,Castle, City, Fountainhead/WVS, and Blackwood all have something underway, and I know of at least one other that hasn’t been introduced publicly. That area will be all-new all the way to the Maury Street interchange. It’s all pretty exciting. There’s go to be increased demand for a full service grocer, right? More restaurants and entertainment venues, too? In 2018, I said here that Hull Street would look like a canyon within five years, but the pandemic set things back a little. I look forward to… Read more »
Adding urban grocery stores is a perennial talking point but they really don’t want to build them anywhere except where there is high density of affluent families. They’ll build 10 more in the exurbs before they open one in Manchester.
Smaller and smaller retail spaces are going in too. Note neither of these two fountainhead projects mention retail. Population numbers getting close but with raising rates, low yields, potential for high loss (theft), I think if one comes it will be after rates come down and we might not have any space left in Manchester. Of course then they will probably level the rest of Art Works
Definitely one of the better Fountainhead projects to go up in Southside! As modern multi-family goes, it looks unique and has compelling details and respect for the street, in terms of its massing and setbacks made possible by the amenity deck! Good work y’all.
Whoa there! What are you saying? You do realize that this is a Walter Parks design, right?
?
ANOTHER BORING, UGLY OVER PRICED PIECE OF CRAP IN MANCHESTER. WHY NOT BUILD A PARK??????? OH WAIT…THAT DOES NOT MAKE ANYONE ANY MONEY…AND THAT IS WHAT ALL OF THIS IS ABOUT….$$$$$
Why don’t you build a park?
Whats a 50 year building?
An ICF/concrete building is a 100+ year building. Maybe light gauge steel is 50, as opposed to these kindling wood monstrosities that will be leaky, mold-infested blight in 20.
Chesterfield county board of supervisors needs to be replaced with someone that stands up for the citizens of this county, and not for themselves. This is no longer a county by the city. And with a city comes crime and everything else. Every day that I see what is going on in this county, I realize That the board of supervisors is intentionally destroying this county and should be replaced. If not impeached. I think everyone has a pretty good idea or what is going on.
When you get comments like those from Brendan Westfall, it’s pretty obvious who was born here and who was not. That’s the type of individuals consuming this county. And they still don’t get it.
This article says zero about Chesterfield and without Richmond, Chesterfield would not exist.