Developers provided additional details at a community meeting Wednesday on a massive proposal that envisions a hotel, housing, office and retail space at the Hill Farms property on Madison's West Side.

Smith Gilbane is looking to turn a 14-acre property adjacent to the under-construction state office building at the Hills Farms location into a collection of mixed-used buildings. The proposal, called "Madison Yards," would have four roads built to divide the land into five blocks.

The project could likely total hundreds of millions of dollars.

The developer intends to submit an application in October to turn the land currently zoned "suburban employment" into a "planned development" zone and hopes to begin construction in late 2018.

The area is bounded by University Avenue to the north, North Segoe Road to the east and Sheboygan Avenue to the south, and it would largely replace a surface parking lot.

The conceptual layout of the Madison Yards development.

Smith Gilbane, a joint venture of Milwaukee-based Summit Smith Development and Providence, Rhode Island-based Gilbane Development Co., is constructing a $150 million, nine-story, 600,000-square-foot office building and a $36 million parking structure for the state.

Once the new building is complete, a roughly 60-year-old state office building at Hill Farms will be demolished, and its land used for the private development.

More than 100 people turned up at Covenant Presbyterian Church to hear about and weigh in on the proposal.

A major concern for attendees was the density and any parking spillover into the surrounding neighborhoods. On the University Avenue side, buildings could reach up to 15 floors.

Sean Roberts, vice president of development for Summit Smith, said the height would be comparable to two nearby 12-story condo buildings off North Segoe Road. Residential buildings on the Sheboygan Avenue side of the development would stand three stories.

"The massing we're going to show is based on the concept now," Roberts said. "None of those projects are fully cooked."

Smith Gilbane also plans to create a 1-acre green space in the center of the Madison Yards project, but several residents criticized the amount of area dedicated to open and green space compared to the overall size of the property.

Others pressed the development team to make strong commitments to sustainable architecture and renewable energy components, such as solar panels.

Roberts said those ideas would be explored, but he noted any finalized designs would go through a separate city approval process if the rezoning is allowed.

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Developer shares details on massive "Madison Yards" proposal at Hill Farms site - Madison.com

As the beginning of the new school year approaches, the first phase of construction work at Waseca Junior Senior High School is wrapping up

Superintendent Tom Lee says the project is right on schedule, and construction work at Hartley Elementary School, the Central Building and Waseca Intermediate School is done.

Work at district buildings has included replacement of old boilers at Hartley along with other renovation work and security upgrades at all buildings. At WIS, for example, the main office has been reconfigured so that there is a clear sightline to the vestibule between the exterior doors and the doors leading into the school.

Phase one of construction at the high school is wrapping up, with just shy of 38,000 square feet renovated.

The new main entrance of the east side of the building will be ready but construction on the new office will continue. It is on schedule to be completein time for the Minnesota Educator Academy in October.

Phase two of construction begins next week. That's constructing classrooms on the west side of the building in old C wing and the northern part of B wing.

Construction on the new performing arts center will also continue into the school year. Lee says the structure should go up rather quickly because it's precast concrete. The goal is to seal it up by Nov. 1 so workers can continue construction on the inside over the course of the winter.

Phase two will be turned over around the holidays, around which time phase three all of A wing and the southern part of B wing will see construction until May.

The rest of the building the girls' locker rooms, the industrial tech and ag areas and the central part of building, including the music rooms all the way down to the new parts of phase one will be renovated next summer.

Students returning at the start of the year will see some new rooms, including seven science classrooms with finished case work, chemically resistant floors, windows to catch natural light and shared prep rooms.

"It's a 2017 science lab instead of a 1972 science lab," Lee said.

Outside the new rooms are breakout spaces, areas included to allow students to conduct classwork in open seating areas.

Among the objectives for the district were to bring in as much natural light as possible and install a balanced HVAC system.

"One of the issues that we had in the building was that you'd go from one room that was very hot to another room that was really cold," Lee said.

The pipe and duct work for the heating, ventilation and air conditioning system has been completed to address that.

Outside of school construction, the district this year is rolling out one-to-one Chromebook devices for all 7-12 grade students.

Waseca School Board earlier this year decided to provide Chromebooks to high school students for free. The district has since developed a responsible use document that says anyone who breaks a device must pay for it.The district will also have device covers for sale.

Over at the Central Building, a new playground for the preschool will be installed by September. The junior high will this year occupy all of the second floor and most of the third floor of the Central Building. They will come back to the high school next year.

The district has added new access sidewalks to the home and visitors stadium bleachers and made the home bleachers handicapped-accessible.

Waseca welcomes over 21 new staff members. A permanent dean of students position was added to the high school, and Waseca High School Assistant Principal Jason Miller will be the full-time junior high principal at the Central Building this school year.

The district has received an Alternative Delivery for Specialized Instructional Services (ADSIS) grant, which is part of a program that provides aid to school districts in an effort to reduce inappropriate referrals to special education. This grant allowed the district to add six new staff positions, three of which the state paid for and the other three paid by the district. Four of the six are behavior intervention specialists.

Reporter Jacob Stark can be reached at 837-5451 or follow him on Twitter @WCNjacob.

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Returning Waseca students will see results of summer work - Southernminn.com

Rather than renovate the 60-year-old state office building that sits on the site Madison Area Technical College has identified as the future home of an expanded South Side campus, officials plan to demolish the facility and build one in its place.

Materials submitted to the colleges district board, which were made public on Wednesday, lay out MATCs plans for the building at Park Street and Badger Road that now houses the Wisconsin Department of Employee Trust Funds.

The department is vacating the building next spring and moving into the new Hill Farms state government offices.

The college wants to construct a 45,000-square-foot facility with classrooms, offices for student services and specialized lab spaces to teach students in nursing, early childhood instruction and a range of science programs, among others.

It would open in fall 2019 at a cost of no more than $13 million, officials said. MATC hopes to expand the building early in the next decade to 75,000 square feet.

One lingering question after MATC leaders announced the South Campus Initiative to cheers from local business and community leaders at a press conference Monday afternoon was whether the college would look to renovate the building or tear it down.

College officials wrote to the district board that, Given the age and condition of the facility and the need for extensive rehabilitation or demolition, the $2.8 million that MATC will pay a developer for the site is essentially the value of the land.

Building a facility will be more cost-effective and better meet MATCs needs, according to the college.

The project has been a years-long effort for MATC President Jack E. Daniels, who says opening an expanded campus to serve South Side residents will help reduce racial disparities by making the colleges services more accessible in a diverse but historically underserved part of Madison.

Donations from the Irwin A. and Robert D. Goodman Foundation, which contributed $10 million, and the American Family Insurance Dreams Foundation, which gave $1.3 million, will cover most of the cost of buying and building the facility.

The college is also looking to raise $3 million in additional funding for the project, and borrow $1.5 million for new construction, according to the board materials.

The district board will vote both on the chosen site for the South Side campus and the plan to demolish the building during a meeting at 5:30 p.m Sept. 6 at MATCs Truax campus.

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MATC plans call for demolishing office building on site of future South Madison campus - Madison.com

Greystar takes out $88M construction loan for downtown Fort Lauderdale project

The city of Fort Lauderdale approved the site for a 25-story, 329-unit apartment tower with ground-floor retail space

ByAmanda Rabines | August 30, 2017 04:30PM

Rendering of 790 East Broward Boulevard Inset:Ashley Heggie

Greystar just scored an $88.1 million construction loan for a high-rise rental tower in downtown Fort Lauderdale, property records show.

Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company provided the financing for the project at790 East Broward Boulevard. Greystar paid $19.5 millionfor the site in May. It encompassesthree separate parcels, including a nearly 26,000-square-foot office building, parking lot and five-lane drive-through teller.

Records show Greystar entity GUGV 790 Broward Property Owning LLC secured the loan.Greystars managing director of finance Ashley Heggie was not immediately available for comment.

The city of Fort Lauderdale recently approved the site for a 25-story, 329-unit apartment tower with 6,871 square feet of ground-floor retail space. Records show the property spans about 1.92 acres.

In a previous interview, Todd Wigfield, senior managing director of Greystar Development and Construction Services said the buildings main tenant, Chase Bank, will move back into the building once its complete. He added that construction was set to begin as soon as Greystar relocates Chase to a new, temporary location.

Apartment and condo buildings have been popping up around the downtown Fort Lauderdale area. Nearby, Related Group is buildingIcon Las Olas, a 455-foot tall condo tower. The Kolter Group is also planning100 Las Olas, a 45-story mixed-use condo tower.

Greystar is a national owner and builder of apartments. It currently operates four luxury apartment communities in Fort Lauderdale, including Blue on Marina Boulevard, The Queue, Solmar on Sixth and Elan 16Forty. The company is the largestoperator of apartments in the United States, managing over 400,000 units in over 150 markets globally, according to its website.

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Greystar takes out $88M construction loan for downtown Fort Lauderdale project - The Real Deal Magazine

By Adam Sennott Cambridge@wickedlocal.com

The demolition phase for a large office, lab and retail space at 399 Binney St. is complete, and construction workers are currently laying concrete foundation, according to Alexandria Real Estate Equities.

The real estate company plans to build a 165,000-square-foot office and lab building, as well as 1,500 square feet of retail space, according to the projects CoUrbanize page. Steel erection is expected to begin in the fall.

The Binney Street development is in the middle of the One Kendall Square buildings. Several business will remain open throughout both projects, including Kendall Square Cinema, Friendly Toast, Flat Top Johnnys, and Cambridge Brewing Company, according to previous reports.

The Binney Street project will include a new plaza with ample outdoor seating and informal gathering spaces leading to the cinema.

Alexandria also plans to rebuild the sidewalks and install trees along Binney Street and Cardinal Medeiros Avenue.

The work will lead to improved visibility at the intersection of Binney Street and Cardinal Medeiros Avenue, Alexandria said.

Binney Street is currently a one-way share road for cars and bicycles, according to the projects website. There is currently two police details Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., on Binney and Cardinal Medeiros Avenue who are tasked with assisting pedestrians cross the streets safely.

Construction is scheduled to be completed at the end of 2018.

The real estate company also bought the seven-building collaborative science and technology complex at One Kendall Square for $725 million in June 2016, according to previous reports.

According to the Boston Business Journal, it was one of the biggest real estate sales of 2016.

The seven buildings currently at One Kendall Square includes 644,771 rentable square feet (RSF), consisting of 48 percent office, 36 percent office/laboratory, and 16 percent retail space.

Currently, the campus is 98 percent occupied, but 55 percent of the leases will expire by 2019.

The campus also includes a seven-level, 1,507 parking space garage.

For updates on this project, visit courbanize.com/projects/399binney/updates.

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Demo complete at 399 Binney St.; construction begins for office, lab, retail - Wicked Local Cambridge

The Mayors Commission on New Government and Judicial Building is getting closer to making a recommendation to Columbus Council on what to do with the 46-year-old structure.

On Wednesday, architects presented members with three conceptual site studies to consider. Later, the group began making plans for a series of forums to seek public input.

Before they put the pictures up, I just want to say, concepts are concepts, Mayor Teresa Tomlinson told the group, as architects prepared to share their PowerPoint slides. They dont necessarily go exactly on the property where theyre located. They dont necessarily look like that. Remember this is not the design committee. Our objective is to get some conceptual proposals to submit to council so that they can consider. And there would be another design committee, or however they want to structure it, in the future.

Tomlinson said the commission plans to have four simultaneous public forums in about 10 to 14 days, which would give the city time to advertise the meetings. At the same time, the commission will be working on a rough draft of the report that will be submitted to council.

And then were off to the races, she said. ... I dont want to make any promises, but I see this getting to council in the Octoberish timeframe.

The conceptual site studies were presented by Tim Jensen, a partner with Hecht Burdeshaw Architects, and Michael Starr, a partner with 2WR. They presented three scenarios for the building:

Scenario 1 - Renovation of the existing tower and wings

Scenario 2 - Renovation of the tower only

Scenario 3 - Total new construction

Starting with Scenario 1, Jensen said renovations to the facility would involve totally gutting the building.

If you imagine the existing structure is there, everything is gone, he explained. So, literally, at the end of the day when the demolition is finished, the sun will shine through, the wind blows through. All you have is structure. Theres no HVAC. Theres no electrical. ... Theres no skin. You would have the ribs that run throughout the building.

... Now, that doesnt quite get us enough space, he said. And so, what we would then do is have an addition that surrounds the tower to make up that space.

Scenario 2 would require significant modification to include a multi-story base added to the existing tower, which would be used for judicial purposes only. The plaza would be removed and a two-level parking deck constructed. Another structure would be built on the site for city administrative offices.

Scenario 3 would involve total new construction. The existing building would be demolished and replaced by two structures a justice center and separate city administrative building. Underground parking would take up the entire southern half of the block.

Starr said Scenario 2 and 3 are common in that they include useable, public green space.

It would rely upon spaces on the north and south side to say, Hey, citizens of Columbus, this is your space, and these are your buildings, he said.

The plans also call for secure entrances for employees and judges, a situation that doesnt exist in the current building, causing safety concerns.

The architects said the cost to renovate the tower and two wings (Scenario 1) would cost about $100,430,602, when demolition, construction and start-date of the project are taken into account. The cost for renovating the tower for judicial purposes and building a new city office building (Scenario 2) would cost $105,417,822. The cost for constructing two new buildings (Scenario 3) would cost $115,506,520.

All three estimates include an increase for time through 2023. They dont include expenses for development of the interior.

The concepts were developed based on 75,000-square-feet for city administrative offices and dont include space for city employees currently located at the annex, the architects said. But they agreed, at the request of commission members, to modify the site plan to include people from the annex, which would require another 27,000-square feet The proposals also include undeveloped space for future growth.

It could be that we could sell the annex building and get some cash for all of this, Tomlinson said.

Kristen Miller Zohn, a local art historian and commission member, asked if the facade and design of the building would be affected in Scenario 1.

Yes and no, said Jensen. Its a new facade. But the intention is we could go back to something thats very similar in nature. ... Today, you have these two columns and what appears to be glass between them, right? So, everything will go away, except for the columns that you see. We would intend to put glass back in between there again, and there would be some other embellishments to the degree that we needed them for functionality.

Zohn then said: So, in none of these scenarios does the original aesthetics of that style of building from 1971 remain intact.

The architects said the amount of space available at the site, code restrictions and the security required for handling prisoners would prohibit the building remaining exactly the same as it is today.

Stay 100 percent completely intact? No. Thats true, Jensen said.

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Government center commission moves closer to council recommendation - Columbus Ledger-Enquirer

The Stark County Auditor's office is temporarily on the third floor of the Stark County Office Building until December. Workers are renovating and reconfiguring the auditor's second-floor offices so the public has one common point of entry, so officials have a large meeting space, to improve security and to get all of the auditor's office staff not in the information technology department on one floor.

CANTON Alan Harold became Stark County Auditor in 2011, and he noticed that several people would wander around his offices often looking confused.

To execute a property transfer, people had to visit three locations in the "little maze we have here," in the auditor's office inside the County Office Building downtown, which stretched from the eastern side of the second floor by the county treasurer's offices, to the south side and to the west side by the commissioners' offices, Harold said. And the auditor's fiscal department was on the third floor. Visitors were often asking for directions to the department they needed.

The auditor's second-floor staff moved up temporarily to the former third-floor offices of the Adult Probation department. The county has hired a contractor to reconfigure and renovate the auditor's second floor offices to establish one public entrance, convert office space into a large meeting space and revamp the office floor layout so Harold's entire staff can be consolidated onto the second floor.

The work is scheduled to be completed by December.

Harold said the office had more than one public point of entry besides the entrance by the reception desk. Any member of the public could pop into most auditor employee's offices with no notice. Harold felt it wasn't very secure. With the employees spread throughout the building, it made efficient communication between staffers more difficult.

In addition, Harold cut his staff by 23 employees. Much of the old layout had empty space. He felt it would be more efficient to consolidate the second-floor staff and the third-floor staff into 14,000 square feet on the second floor and add new security features.

Planning

Last year, Harold and his staff started planning the entire office layout in consultation with the commissioners, who control some of the funding and oversee the building's operations. The cost of the contractor, NL Construction of Canton, ended up being $367,601 after the cost was estimated at $430,000. The architect, Motter and Meadows, cost about $27,000.

About $100,000 of the bill is being funded from money remaining from the auditor's closed Bureau of Motor Vehicles office, which was shuttered in 2014, and about $300,000 is coming from the real estate assessment fund, which is funded by a percentage of property taxes collected.

Harold has 78 employees. Twenty-seven work in the county's information technology department on Fourth Street NE. The remaining employees work in the Stark County Office Building.

The staff moved out of the second-floor offices by July 20 and into the vacated third-floor offices of what was Adult Probation, which moved into the Frank T. Bow building.

Consolidation

Harold will return to his office on the second floor and near him will be stationed staffers who handle business vendor's licenses, dog tags, property tax supervision and Board of Revision appeals.

The eight Fiscal Department staffers, who handle the county payroll for 2,600 county employees and the payment of $220 million a year in bills for the county, will vacate the third floor and move to the second floor, where the appraisers once had their space.

It will be up to the commissioners to reassign the third-floor space to a new tenant.

He said the workers will eventually remove asbestos in a safe manner from the flooring in the 50-year-old building, replace the 25-year-old carpeting and repaint the walls. Angela Blakney, Harold's executive assistant, who's been involved in much of the planning, picked out a light shade of gray for the new carpet. Harold's office will also buy new furniture and frame old county maps to display on the walls.

Reach Repository writer Robert Wang at (330) 580-8327 or robert.wang@cantonrep.com. Twitter: @rwangREP

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Stark Auditor renovates offices to reduce public confusion - Massillon Independent

Most things look better grouped together, junk on your countertops, decorating accessories and even people. It's true, you can throw your keys, wallet and pocket contents on the counter and feel disarray, but if you bunch it together in a bowl a small sense of order comes to life. Our kitchen countertops began getting cluttered with various cooking necessities, especially the go-to spices we use so often. This led me to search out a small tray that could wrangle all the mess and bring some comfort to my overstimulated eyes.

As I looked around, I didn't want to pay the price I saw on many trays, plus none of them matched the dcor I pictured in my head. That's always the point when my DIY wheels start churning and my own solution comes to life. If you have a messy spot or are looking for some simple base dcor pieces try my new favorite trickput some feet on it.

By adding some cute little bun feet, a rusty old baking pan becomes a farmhouse-style tray to house spices. Put some feet on an old roasting pan lid and a large dcor tray is born. Feet do a few things. First, they add height, which is always helpful in decorating. A variation in height, texture and scale are three important ingredients in the recipe of a delicious vignette. Second, feet get metal off your counter surfaces. If a rusty pan or metal tray sits on a surface and gets wet, it can transfer rust onto your counter. Nobody needs a quick solution that leads to a bigger problem. Wooden ball feet are also less likely to scratch a countertop surface than metal. I might know that from experience. Most of all, little feet make a transformation complete by taking the ordinary and elevating it.

Here is how you make a quick and easy footed tray:

1. Gather an old pan, roaster lid or shallow box that fits your space and intended clutter.

2. Spray paint pan or tray if it needs a color change. If you are using a rusty pan you want to seal it with a matte gloss spray paint.

3. Get four wooden drawer pulls or doll heads from the craft store. These have a flat edge to them so they secure nicely to an item.

4. Stain or paint wooden feet to match your dcor.

5. Flip your pan over and attach feet to the bottom of your pan using a strong adhesive glue such as E6000 or Gorilla Glue. Allow to dry completely.

6. Fill with kitchen counter clutter and breathe a sigh of relief!

Home dcor solutions don't have to be fussy or expensive. Chances are you have some old pans in the donate pile at your house that you could put to good use. Trust me on the gathering bit, a unified front fosters peace in all things.

Kim Jones is a Texas A&M graduate and Bryan resident who writes about creative and inexpensive decoration ideas, garage sale makeovers and thrift store finds. She blogs at huntandhost.com and can be reached at huntandhost@gmail.com.

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Customize trays to elminate countertop clutter - Bryan-College Station Eagle

Junior League of Springfield's annual Tour of Kitchens fundraiser shows off some of the most beautiful kitchens in 417-land all for a good cause.

By Jenna Dejong Photos by Brandon Alms

DISCLAIMER: The information in this article was fact checked and accurate at press time, but 417 Magazine cannot guarantee its accuracy indefinitely.

See six gorgeous, thoughtfully designed kitchens in person at the Junior League of Springfields fourth annual Tour of Kitchens. The organization was built on the ideals of serving others in the community through fundraising efforts and volunteering. To fund some of their projects, Junior League has planned a day full of demonstrations and samples that keep mouths watering from start to finish. Guests load onto a shuttle and are whisked away on an escorted tour to six homes in Highland Springs. During their visit, guests can admire the style and architecture of each gorgeous kitchen as local businesses create some of their most loved meals and recipes. Chefs from Metropolitan Farmer,MaMaJeans Natural Market, Shakers Bartending, Barley Wheat & Rye Social House and more are at the ready to cook up crowd favorites or new tasty treats. Guests start the day at 10 a.m. in the parking lot of the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame where a shuttle picks them up and takes them to Highland Springs to begin the tour. At the end of the event, VIP attendees are invited to attend an after party at the Highland Springs Country Club.

The Louth Kitchen (above)

A large kitchen is needed for all of the 18 members of Jim and Suzanne Louths family. The kitchensfloorplanis arranged in such a way that makes hosting and gathering comfortable and functional.The medium blue island acts as a hub for those who are grazing on delicious snacks; the refrigerator is within easy reach, and a pullout microwave is ready for use at just the touch of a button. A large pantry is set to the side and houses a wine cooler and workstation for whipping up a quick batch of cookies. This secret area is key tokeeping the mess out of view from the rest of the kitchen.

The Hicks Kitchen

Combining Kyle Hickss rustic style and Stacy Hickss traditional tastes, the couples kitchen is a room filled with various shades of browns, blacks and grays. The kitchen is set up for the ultimate hostingpast the large island, the room opens into a larger space set up with a cloth sofa, two chairs, a television, a kitchen table and a piano. The area is the perfect setup for mingling and interacting with the host and hostess as they use their indoor grill, ice maker and trash compactor to serve and delight guests with the tastiest of treats.

TheHazelriggKitchen

Chris and JenniferHazelriggs kitchen is organized like a foodies dream. Not quite traditional, but not contemporary either, this transitional kitchen is picturesque in tones of white and gray. Pull-out drawers equipped with reinforcements store heavy dishes within reach, and others are lined with built-in utensil organizers. A large white island with granite countertops offers more space to prepare and serve mouthwatering dishes. To top it off, the appliances in the kitchen were picked with careful consideration and the intent to make cooking and baking feel like an art form.

The Miner Kitchen

Fresh is the first word that comes to homeowner Marta Miner when she looks at her combined kitchen and dining room. Inspired by West Coast homes in Los Angeles, Marta and Jeremy Miner ensured their kitchen and dining room are flooded with natural light from the oversized windows. Their kitchen has a light color scheme complete with white countertops, light gray walls and stainless steel appliances. The kitchen is equipped with two islands, one of which houses a wine cooler. The Viking stove has six burners, and sitting below is a double oven, making cooking and preparing food easy and quick.

TheHerschendKitchen

The first thing you notice in the newly renovated kitchen at Michelle and AustinHerschends home is the eye-catching white-and-gray backsplash. Acting as a focal point, the backsplash is a modern twist that compliments the rest of the houses traditional style. The kitchen itself is spacious and makes for easy interacting. The large islands black countertop was replaced with white marble, and the room was recently updated with small touches like switching light fixtures and door handles. When you walk in, you cant miss the gas oven, breakfast nook and a coffee bar with a wine cooler sitting below.

TheMantalaKitchen

This space owned by Dr. MarceloMantalaand MayLylahChua-Mantalahas the creamy feel of a rustic Italian kitchen. With rich hues of brown, gold and tan, the kitchens color scheme and decor make those who walk through feel as though they are entering a different world. Most of the cabinets have glass doors or no doors at all, and on one side, the wall has a large opening looking into the adjoining room. In the center of it all sits an off-white island with a black granite countertop that offers seating to guests while the host and hostess bustle from either end of the kitchen.

Meet 417 Magazine's 10 Most Beautiful Women. Learn about the local charities that they represent, then see them walk the runway at Indulge on September 14.

Bob Noble's private Rivercliff property offers a secluded space for his invitees, but he's looking to a future when the Finley River views are open to the public.

5 Pound Pup is an extension of 5 Pound Apparel that includes mans best friend and gives back to the community.

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Go Inside Highland Springs' Most Beautiful Kitchens - 417mag

When tenants step into Halifax Lofts, the high, spacious hallways will take them back to the days when hundreds of students were bustling through to get to their classrooms that have now been transformed into modern, stylish lofts.

Those classrooms are the very things that lend the old Halifax Elementary School to being favorable to these types of projects, according to Echelon Resources developer Edwin Gaskin.

Just looking from the outside, one can see how the classrooms provide that type of structure for rooms.

Within the 30 units, there are roughly eight floor plans with most apartments being one bedroom, but there are some with two bedrooms.

With these historic redevelopments, you dont often get cookie cutter because youre working around existing walls or features, said Gaskins.

Inside the rooms are grey, black and brown granite countertops alongside black and silver appliances that Gaskin said were actually voted on by a group who follows them on Facebook.

Some rooms still have a touch of the classroom such as a chalkboard down the side of the living area, and one may spot where lockers used to sit.

One of the rooms is specifically unique, the former cafeteria.

Because these are done as part of the National Parks Service Guidelines, we actually had to preserve this space as open, said Gaskin.

It lends itself to a very unique buyer as the former cafeteria now has an open floor plan for the bedroom, kitchen and living area in a 2,818 square feet studio apartment.

The only rooms it has are the bathroom, laundry area and closet space, and the tenant will have his or her very own stage.

We actually already have a buyer for this unit, said Gaskin. We realize that not all of these rooms appeal to every buyer, but we cater to the young professional. That creates an expectation of both style, fashion and security, and we try to deliver on those fronts.

Each tenant will enter the building using a key-swipe entry, and Gaskin has the capabilities and security cameras to keep an eye on all entrances, common areas and hallways of the facility, even from the convenience of his smartphone.

There are five exterior entrances, and some of the units have their own private entrance.

Outside of the main building are what used to be mobile unit classrooms that are now more private rooms.

Additions have been added to the units, and they have incorporated the historic outside of the former classrooms to the inside of the apartments.

These units are in the ideal location to enjoy the 4.2 acres that Halifax Lofts sits on.

Residents of Halifax Lofts also have ample amount of parking and dumpster service, and these apartments are positioned in a safe, quiet neighborhood that is located minutes from the town of Halifax.

That very neighborhood also has been helpful in the aesthetics of the building that houses various photos of old classmates, basketball teams and Girl Scouts that adorn the hallways.

One of the Girl Scouts in this photo actually donated it, and we have people who come in here and name who the individuals are in the photos, said Gaskin.

Even though the lofts offer a contemporary appeal, the building still lends itself to nostalgia for former classmates, and individuals will have the chance to reminisce at a grand opening this fall.

No date has been set at this time, but Gaskin is aiming for late September, early October.

The town and county have been very good to work with, said Gaskin.

Several of the lofts have been leased, and tenants are expected to begin moving in within the month.

Halifax Lofts is their fifth project with the other closest redevelopment being in Chatham.

Interested individuals may find more information about these pet-friendly lofts with rents that range from $800 to $950 a month on their website, HalifaxLofts.com.

Halifax Lofts also can be found on Facebook, and individuals can receive information by emailing halifaxlofts@gmail.com or calling 434-830-1580.

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At Halifax Lofts, a taste of nostalgia - YourGV.com