The student housing tower has been in the works since 2020. (Courtesy Pinecrest)
The tallest building to rise in Monroe Ward in recent years is entering the home stretch.
Parc View at Commonwealth, a 15-story, 168-unit apartment tower at 321 W. Grace St., has been topped off and is scheduled to be completed by next spring.
Chicago-based Pinecrest has been working on the hulking new development for three years. Pinecrest CEO Tyler Perlmutter said starting this project in the early stages of the pandemic made for a hectic first phase.
“I was in Richmond on March 17, 2020, and it felt like the world was coming to an end,” Perlmutter said. “This is a large-scale building, and we were definitely concerned with all of our materials showing up on time.”
Pandemic-induced supply chain issues and rising construction costs actually led Pinecrest to change the framing material of the structure. Parc View was initially planned to be made with a steel frame but Perlmutter said they instead built it with a concrete frame due to cost savings and design efficiencies.
Other than that, Perlmutter said the project has moved along smoothly. Pinecrest bought the property, which had been a parking lot, for $2.5 million in late 2020 and began construction shortly after.
“Luckily, it seems like from a material standpoint a lot of the supply chain issues have worked themselves out, and we’re not really having any issues right now,” he said. “Construction has gone extremely well. We’re on time.”
While it totals 168 units, Parc View will be able to accommodate 500 students, as many of the apartments in the building will have two or more bedrooms. Perlmutter said each unit will be furnished and include a washer and dryer, and that the building’s shared amenities were planned with students in mind.
“I think a lot of the student housing developers have been known for, in the last five to 10 years, lifestyle amenities such as pools, climbing walls, meditation rooms, things like that,” he said. “We’re more focused on educational-based amenities. We have tons of study space and we have study units on almost every other floor. They’re like little conference rooms.”
He added that Parc View also includes an art studio room, something Pinecrest included due to VCU’s prominent arts program. Other amenities include a dog park, rooftop lounge and gym, and the building also has a 1,700-square-foot, ground-floor retail space that JLL’s Gareth Jones and Spotty Robins are marketing for lease.
The 15-story building has risen on what was a parking lot in Monroe Ward. (Mike Platania photo)
Pittsburgh-based Rycon Construction is the project general contractor, and Hickok Cole is the architect. Perlmutter declined to disclose project cost, as he said Pinecrest often sells its buildings. He didn’t share projected rents at Parc View.
Pre-leasing on Parc View recently got underway, and Perlmutter said they’re hoping to have units move-in ready by June 2024.
Also in the pipeline for Pinecrest is a 185-unit, 606-bed student housing tower that it’s planning near Texas A&M University’s campus in College Station, Texas. Perlmutter said the company has an interest in continuing to work in Richmond but has no concrete plans for a future project.
“We definitely want to see how (Parc View) performs,” he said. “It’s hard to find a site that you can get zoned correctly, make the construction costs work, and then get financing for it.”
That stretch of West Grace Street has seen plenty of investment in recent years. Last fall Bank Street Advisors bought a one-time Richmond Camera-anchored building at 211 W. Grace St. for over $3 million, and a block east of Parc View is the former Tiffanie’s Manor adult care facility that Douglas Development is planning to convert into apartments.
The student housing tower has been in the works since 2020. (Courtesy Pinecrest)
The tallest building to rise in Monroe Ward in recent years is entering the home stretch.
Parc View at Commonwealth, a 15-story, 168-unit apartment tower at 321 W. Grace St., has been topped off and is scheduled to be completed by next spring.
Chicago-based Pinecrest has been working on the hulking new development for three years. Pinecrest CEO Tyler Perlmutter said starting this project in the early stages of the pandemic made for a hectic first phase.
“I was in Richmond on March 17, 2020, and it felt like the world was coming to an end,” Perlmutter said. “This is a large-scale building, and we were definitely concerned with all of our materials showing up on time.”
Pandemic-induced supply chain issues and rising construction costs actually led Pinecrest to change the framing material of the structure. Parc View was initially planned to be made with a steel frame but Perlmutter said they instead built it with a concrete frame due to cost savings and design efficiencies.
Other than that, Perlmutter said the project has moved along smoothly. Pinecrest bought the property, which had been a parking lot, for $2.5 million in late 2020 and began construction shortly after.
“Luckily, it seems like from a material standpoint a lot of the supply chain issues have worked themselves out, and we’re not really having any issues right now,” he said. “Construction has gone extremely well. We’re on time.”
While it totals 168 units, Parc View will be able to accommodate 500 students, as many of the apartments in the building will have two or more bedrooms. Perlmutter said each unit will be furnished and include a washer and dryer, and that the building’s shared amenities were planned with students in mind.
“I think a lot of the student housing developers have been known for, in the last five to 10 years, lifestyle amenities such as pools, climbing walls, meditation rooms, things like that,” he said. “We’re more focused on educational-based amenities. We have tons of study space and we have study units on almost every other floor. They’re like little conference rooms.”
He added that Parc View also includes an art studio room, something Pinecrest included due to VCU’s prominent arts program. Other amenities include a dog park, rooftop lounge and gym, and the building also has a 1,700-square-foot, ground-floor retail space that JLL’s Gareth Jones and Spotty Robins are marketing for lease.
The 15-story building has risen on what was a parking lot in Monroe Ward. (Mike Platania photo)
Pittsburgh-based Rycon Construction is the project general contractor, and Hickok Cole is the architect. Perlmutter declined to disclose project cost, as he said Pinecrest often sells its buildings. He didn’t share projected rents at Parc View.
Pre-leasing on Parc View recently got underway, and Perlmutter said they’re hoping to have units move-in ready by June 2024.
Also in the pipeline for Pinecrest is a 185-unit, 606-bed student housing tower that it’s planning near Texas A&M University’s campus in College Station, Texas. Perlmutter said the company has an interest in continuing to work in Richmond but has no concrete plans for a future project.
“We definitely want to see how (Parc View) performs,” he said. “It’s hard to find a site that you can get zoned correctly, make the construction costs work, and then get financing for it.”
That stretch of West Grace Street has seen plenty of investment in recent years. Last fall Bank Street Advisors bought a one-time Richmond Camera-anchored building at 211 W. Grace St. for over $3 million, and a block east of Parc View is the former Tiffanie’s Manor adult care facility that Douglas Development is planning to convert into apartments.
I’m no architect but I know a nice looking building when I see it. This is one of them, and it fits I nicely with that block in Monroe Hill. This is the height that the City needs for the future, and built of the materials needed for the future. The concrete structure deadens sound so much better than wood framing. I hope we see more of it.
I’ve thoroughly enjoyed watching this quality building rise, and I wish we could see more with concrete framing going forward.
Yes, this is looks good. And the scale looks like NYU. There has long been a lot of complaining about VCU, but never from me — to me, investment in VCU from the State has done a LOT to make Richmond what it is becoming and it is becoming something special and almost unique. There has been a trend toward undergraduates wanting an “Urban” undergraduate experience, and with consideration for what one wants, this can be a good decision if one wants a role in society that requires “urban experience” or if you just want to have a lot of… Read more »
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