A proposed 13-story student housing complex along Johnson Avenue in south Pullman would rise to about 104 feet and accommodate nearly 700 residents, according to plans submitted to the city.
The Moscow-Pullman Daily News first reported California-based Nelson Brothers had sought to develop the site — starting construction as early as October. City officials told the Daily News the facility, dubbed Elevate at Pullman, likely requires a traffic study and may need conditional use permits to proceed.
Design materials released by the city show two adjacent buildings on a now-vacant 5-acre lot along Johnson Avenue, just off of Bishop Boulevard. The facility would include a courtyard and pool. The existing cell tower would also remain.
Developers reported in environmental records that the facility would include 274-292 apartment units with capacity for 685-693 residents. They would also construct a parking garage with 617-715 spaces.
The company estimated the new residents would generate 2,719 vehicle trips per day with the highest traffic volumes at peak commute times (7-9 a.m. and 4-6 p.m.).
Developers acknowledged the new structure would block some views to the north from properties farther south. They also listed additional ambient lighting from windows and the pool deck.
A letter from the project design team also requests several variances, including permission to construct units below the minimum area limits. The city requires 1,000 square feet per dwelling unit. The project would offer 724 feet per dwelling unit.
Pullman Radio News reports the Elevate project marks at least the fourth time in recent years an outside developer has approached the city about expanding student housing.
Nelson Brothers runs Nelson Partners Student Housing, which already manages the Cougar Crest apartments on Merman Drive. You can see a map of their other properties here.
The Better Business Bureau rates the company with an A+, but several customer reviews for the BBB and Facebook complain of a variety of issues.
See additional plans and documents below:
ElevateCondUsePermitApp (Text)
ElevateEnvironmentalChecklist (Text)
ElevateHeightVarienceDesigns (Text)
Please encourage the city to NOT build this huge building. The thought of an additional 2,700+ “vehicle trips” per day on an already difficult corner is going to causer MAJOR traffic issues. For the residents already living in the adjoining areas, that intersection is the ONLY way to get to work – unless you drive almost to Moscow or Colton and double back. Not to mention that those who don’t have a parking space will need to park somewhere – no place on Johnson Road to park and I doubt that the homes, and what business there are around this area, are ready to accommodate the “off street parking”. Noticed that the site plan only has one entrance/exit – aren’t they required to have two for public safety and emergency vehicles? This project, I assume, will be on city water and sewer – what effect is that going to have on existing properties. Are additional city services in place for all of these new building projects?
Let’s also look at the impact for the recreational use of the area – the walking trail that leads to Mary’s Park (which the city is slowly developing) is right across the street and is used by a large number of walkers and riders, as well as the South Fork of the Palouse River, also right across the street.
Perhaps student apartment building growth in Pullman needs to slow down a bit (example being Apartment Land) – what are vacancy rates for existing student apartments? Are there sufficient amenities (shopping) near or easily accessible to all these apartment units or are they having to find a way to get across town to shop? What about affordable housing for local apartment renters? There was some mention in something I read about this that the person felt additional apartments could bring the prices down – don’t see that happening any time soon, it only seems to be driving prices up.
I’m not opposed to growth. I would love to see Pullman grow in a well managed and well thought out way. I absolutely love living in this town and want to continue to live here and watch it mature into a thriving town.