420 Church St. | 9-Story Residential

[jrs2]

so, do we know if 520 is a go and if so, for when?

[mcn11]

Looks like some of the ground floor retail is filling up. Snap! Downtown is having their grand opening tonight and have three galleries in the building (I'm about to walk over so I'll try to get some pics). I also noticed that urbanista appears to be moving their office into a live work unit from Thornton park (or they are opening another office). There's also a yoga studio that appears to be open already and a sign for a tea/cupcake cafe. Everything but Snap appears to be in a live/work unit.

[alex]

I went to the Snap!Downtown opening last night at 420, which included a party in the downstairs galleries and on the pool deck on the 4th floor. They also had a few units open for touring. Other than the hideous logo and teal accents, they did a really nice job on the general design and amenities. (And, of course, the Snap build-out was beautiful.)

The thing I heard a lot of people say is that they were surprised at some of the finishes of the units. While all had granite counters, stainless steel appliances, and huge closets, they also had cheap-looking carpet, laminate floors, builder-grade tiles, and some surprisingly cheap bathroom details. Makes you wonder at the longevity of the units as rental apartments. A 1/1 was being advertised at $1,600/month.

After the event we walked up Lake Ave towards the park, passing the Citi Tower construction site, then down Central to grab a drink at Eola Wine Co. Overall, it felt very urban. With the taller, newer construction (Paramount), existing mid-rise (Post), and some of the older buildings and trees, it gave that area a good mix of buildings and a lived-in feeling that you don't normally get with this much new construction. Definitely made me excited to see what retail/restaurants will be in Citi Tower.

Still, I'm a little worried about how similar 520 will look; 420 is already such a long block of sameness. 

[prahaboheme]

I agree to that last point -- 420 falls a bit short in the pedestrian interaction category. 

Hopefully, Citi tower and 520 focus on this aspect of their projects a bit more to help soften the experience.

[alex]

56 minutes ago, prahaboheme said:

I agree to that last point -- 420 falls a bit short in the pedestrian interaction category. 

Hopefully, Citi tower and 520 focus on this aspect of their projects a bit more to help soften the experience.

I will say, they did a great job with the sidewalk and entrances to the live/work units. Lots of glass and decent landscaping (although I would've liked to have seen less palm trees and more shade trees). The sidewalk on the north-east corner is huge, with brick inlays, that would make for some nice outdoor dining. If that's mirrored by 520, it would be a similar look to "Eola Square" over on Eola and Pine (Sonoma/Mucho corner). 

[prahaboheme]

They really need to improve the signage situation for these businesses -- some vertical storefront signs that face the pedestrian should do the trick.

[mcn11]

Yeah that could be a big problem. I walk the dog there almost daily and in order to see the sign, you have to walk to the edge of the sidewalk otherwise you're basically looking straight up at it.

[RedStar25]

Looks like they lit the side of the building up with a green racing strip.

[John Hargrove]

On 1/24/2016 at 10:02 PM, RedStar25 said:

Looks like they lit the side of the building up with a green racing strip.

Saw this the other night. I kinda liked it. Intense color/brightness though. 

[RedStar25]

Seriously, why I cant I delete a post that didn't work?

Edited January 26, 2016 by RedStar25
Wrong post.

[orlandoan79]

I went to the SNAP! opening as well and was quite impressed with the building considering it is a generic apartment complex.  Definitely one of the most expensive rentals in the area.  I am sure it has been speculated before but the quality of the construction leads me to believe it is postured for future conversion to condos.  

Some photos I took of the units while i was there...

The view out of the 3br model unit 

1br unit

1br living room

 

amenities deck on 4th floor, definitely digging that chessboard

[RedStar25]

22 hours ago, orlandoan79 said:

I went to the SNAP! opening as well and was quite impressed with the building considering it is a generic apartment complex.  Definitely one of the most expensive rentals in the area.  I am sure it has been speculated before but the quality of the construction leads me to believe it is postured for future conversion to condos.  

Some photos I took of the units while i was there...

The view out of the 3br model unit 

1br unit

1br living room

 

amenities deck on 4th floor, definitely digging that chessboard

I'm not a huge fan of all the white walls. It's just going to look dirty and nasty in one year. 

[prahaboheme]

^I do hope they take the lessons learned from 420, such as the color choices and the other issues mentioned here, and apply this knowledge to the 520 project (which is a larger building).  No need to repeat these mistakes.

[jrs2]

^^

yeah, they maybe should've had color accent walls on the interior.  maybe the portions where the balconies are facing towards the balconies to break it up a bit.

[GTR]

That pool will be lucky to get a 3 hours of direct sunlight.

[tc01]

I said the samething to myself about the wall. Needs some kinda artistic element added on to the wall. 

[JFW657]

This building exhibits a complete lack of imagination all the way around. 

Big shoe box.

 

[orlandoan79]

On 1/28/2016 at 11:58 AM, GTR said:

That pool will be lucky to get a 3 hours of direct sunlight.

perhaps that is why the pool is heated!  but I agree, not ideal for suntanning.

I'm with everyone that the overall building itself is nothing to look at.  I wasn't expecting much knowing that Jefferson is also the same developer who built all the student housing by UCF.

[jack]

I think that was KUD. 

[RedStar25]

This place looks seriously cheap, while asking $1,600 for a one bedroom apartment. I almost hope it fails. 

Edited February 2, 2016 by RedStar25

[John Hargrove]

5 hours ago, RedStar25 said:

This place looks seriously cheap, while asking $1,600 for a one bedroom apartment. I almost hope it fails. 

It has good bones. The interiors/fixtures might be slightly low budget but overall it felt pretty good in there. I imagine they built the interiors with renters in mind, the building itself with owners in mind. At least, that's what it feels like. 

[popsiclebrandon]

I think they are coming in too high, especially with all the construction going on around them. Once Citi and 520 are built this area should be really nice and more in line with those prices.

[RedStar25]

On 2/2/2016 at 2:38 AM, castorvx said:

It has good bones. The interiors/fixtures might be slightly low budget but overall it felt pretty good in there. I imagine they built the interiors with renters in mind, the building itself with owners in mind. At least, that's what it feels like. 

Good point. 

[orlandoan79]

On 2/2/2016 at 9:05 PM, RedStar25 said:

This place looks seriously cheap, while asking $1,600 for a one bedroom apartment. I almost hope it fails. 

I think it may be close to $1600 for their largest 1br...but it starts around the high $1400 for the 1br's...and I believe they were giving 1 months free rent which should bring it down to a bit closer to the market surrounding.  It's about $1250-$1300 in 101 Eola for a 644sf studio.

[popsiclebrandon]

So the girlfriend was taking forever to get ready last night so I had a lot of time to look around this area. The signs facing the street and not pedestrians is so dumb. You don't know what any of the little shops will be until you are on them. Not going to make them easy to find. Looks like a spin class place and bridal boutique are opening soon. Those make a lot of sense. The yoga class was pretty full when I walked by. Only one of the 3 "retail" units are listed under lease negotiations and it is the back corner which would be the hardest to pull people to.

But then I came across a cupcake bakery opening. This just makes me sad because there is no way that will pass inspection to open in those units. They haven't modified the unit to have the required sinks. These are being leased by residential leasing people who don't know the rules, and while I think if you are going to open something like this you should know, it is not always clear what the rules are. Hope they have realized this and find a commissary kitchen  but if they plan to serve tea like it says they will still need the sinks.

Just makes me sad. The landlord should be making tenants aware of these things.