By Carl Rotenberg crotenberg@21st-centurymedia.com

The Conshohocken Planning Commission reviewed the plans March 11 and recommended approval with several conditions.

Council members Edward Phipps, Robert Stokley, James Griffin and Anita Barton voted for the preliminary plan. Council member Karen Tutino and council President Paul McConnell voted against the plan. Councilman Matt Ryan was absent.

The 6.5-story building proposed by ONeill Properties Group of Upper Merion will be located 65 feet from the Fayette Street Bridge on the upstream side. The building will have five stories of apartments over two stories of parking garage on a 3.25-acre parcel. With the lowest level of parking dug into the ground, the building will be 6.5 stories high.

The meeting lasted less than 15 minutes. Before council approved the preliminary site plan, council unanimously rejected a March 28 compromise proposal by J. Brian ONeill, the chairman of OPG, to grant full construction approvals for both the 51 Washington St. plan and a proposal for 615 apartments at 401 Washington St. in four, four-story buildings over a single level of parking.

ONeill said, We have before council two of right plans and we would like to discuss the compromise we gave you on Friday.

The compromise said OPG would pay a general impact fee of $1,165 per residential dwelling unit, a total of $361,150, for 51 Washington St. and $1,000 for each unit, a total of $615,000, for 401 Washington St.

Riverfront land on the bank of the Schuylkill River would be dedicated to the borough for public access to the riverfront areas on both projects. An observation area or platform would be built by OPG on the riverfront if borough officials agreed to exclude additional impervious coverage from zoning calculations and waived any requirement to obtain conditional use as these will be borough amenities.

OPG agreed to pay for the boroughs global traffic study, capped at $35,000, as long as the payment satisfied the requirement for any traffic study and all off-site traffic improvements needed for future development at 401 Washington St., 51 Washington St. and the balance of development at Millenium Block A.

The compromise proposal required council to grant all zoning, conditional use and final land development approvals for both 51 Washington St. and 401 Washington St. The Conshohocken Zoning Hearing Board is an independent body and cannot take direction from council. Continued...

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Conshohocken Borough Council approves preliminary site plan for 310-unit apartment building

These are good times for U.S. landlords. For many tenants, not so much.

With demand for apartments surging, rents are projected to rise for a fifth straight year. Even a pickup in apartment construction is unlikely to provide much relief anytime soon.

That bodes well for building owners and their investors. Yet the landlord-friendly trends will likely further strain the finances of many renters.

A 6 percent rise in apartment rents between 2000 and 2012 has been exacerbated by a 13 percent drop in income among renters nationally over the same period, according to a report from Apartment List, a rental housing website, which used inflation-adjusted figures.

"That's what we call the affordability gap," says John Kobs, Apartment List's chief executive. "I don't see that improving in the near future."

Demand for rental housing has grown as the U.S. economy has strengthened since the end of the Great Recession nearly five years ago. Steady job growth has made it possible for more people to move out on their own and rent their own apartments. Yet rising home prices are preventing many from buying.

A combination of rising rents and sluggish pay gains will likely continue to weigh on the U.S. economy, which relies primarily on consumer spending.

The trend is straining the finances of tenants like Michael Strane.

The geologist recently decided to move from Pasadena, California, to the L.A. suburb of Whittier, where asking rents jumped an average of nearly 14 percent last year, according to real estate data provider Zillow.

The location of Strane's new apartment cut his two-hour commute to work in half. But he'll be paying $1,045 a month, $200 more than he paid before.

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Apartment Rents Rise on Growing Demand

New York City (PRWEB) April 02, 2014

M&T Bank has closed on a $10.3 million loan to provide the largest piece of the financing for Monadnock Development LLC to construct My Micro NY, the first of its kind in New York City.

Construction on the citys first fully micro-unit apartment building, creating 55 micro apartments from modules prefabricated by Capsys Corporation at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, has begun. The micro-units, being installed on the site of an old surface parking lot on the northeast corner of East 27th Street and Mt. Carmel Place near Bellevue Park South, are expected to be available in 2015.

Modular construction is cost efficient and we believe these micro-units will fill a need in the Manhattan market. As one of New York Citys more experienced commercial real estate lenders, weve thoroughly reviewed the business case for this project and are very comfortable providing the financial support, said M&T Bank Regional President Peter DArcy.

Additional financing for the $16.6 million project will come through developer equity and a secondary loan through the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development. The My Micro NY project will contain an affordable housing component, with 40 percent of the units in the 9-story building being offered at below market rates.

Micro apartments are small by typical apartment standards between 260 and 350 feet but they are designed to optimize space and maximize the sense of openness. The projects nearly 10-foot ceilings, 8-foot windows and built-in storage will help to create the effect of a larger unit. The buildings ground floor will include 678-square-feet of retail space.

Its exciting to pioneer this new housing type in association with the City and our partners, including M&T, said Nick Lembo, President of Monadnock Development. Its an ideal application for modular construction, and were proud to use this innovative approach to offer another affordable option to New Yorkers looking for housing that fits their lifestyles.

Monadnock Development LLC is currently co-developing Hunters Point South in Long Island City, Compass Residences in the Bronx, and 1 John Street in Brooklyn Bridge Park. Monadnock was the developer selected by New York City following the highly competitive adAPT NYC RFP process for its My Micro NY proposal.

About M&T Bank Founded in 1856, M&T Bank Corp. is one of the 20 largest U.S. commercial bank holding companies, with more than 700 branch offices and 1,500 ATMs in New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, Virginia, West Virginia and Washington, D.C.

Equal Housing Lender. 2014 M&T Bank. Member FDIC.

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M&T Bank Finances First My Micro NY Project

Posted: Wednesday, April 2, 2014 10:08 am

Work begins on new WSC apartment building Eric Killelea Williston Herald |

Construction on a second apartment building at Williston State College is underway.

Managed by Dakota Commercial & Development Co., Phase II is an $11 million project consisting of four stories and 80,000 square feet with 74 units.

Additionally, 13,000 square feet of space will provide 41 underground parking stalls and 8,000 square feet will be available for commercial use.

A WSC press release said $3 million of the total cost was garnered through the Housing Incentive Fund, provided by the North Dakota Housing Finance Agency. Half of the units in the second building will be dedicated to housing essential service workers, while the other half will be available at market rate.

WSC President Raymond Nadolny said there are current conversations between Dakota Commercial and WSC in regard to the market rate units as the college continues its searches for ways to meet student housing needs.

The college plans on using some of these units for student housing, Nadolny said. Its very similar to what one sees at other major universities.

Dakota Commercial is not yet searching for tenants or taking information from those hoping to occupy the residential units. However, its seeking businesses interested in filling the commercial space, which will be online in the winter season.

More information about available residential units will be announced to the public as the project nears completion in December 2014.

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Work begins on new WSC apartment building

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NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) Tenants in Rego Park, Queens were living in fear Wednesday that part of their apartment could collapse.

As CBS 2s Vanessa Murdock reported, massive cracks appeared in the walls in the building at 94-01 64th Rd. in Queens. And they said they know who is to blame.

You have to understand the whole wall is moving, said Mike Santoro of Samson Management LLC. Its not just one area. Its the entire wall.

It was an unsettling sight in the basement of the building, with the huge cracks in the foundation.

This wall is about a foot three inches deep, and you can actually see daylight right through it, Santoro said.

Santoro said the company excavating the site next door, Booth Holdings LLC of Fresh Meadows, Queens, is to blame. He said the company cut corners, and now the entire wing of the apartment building is unlivable.

Every morning about 6 or 7 in the morning, youd hear pounding, and it would shake our building the whole time, said resident Martin Lee.

Lee had lived in the building for nearly 20 years, but now he does not. He was evacuated because the walls of his apartment were cracking and the floor was falling away.

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Tenants, Management Worry Cracks In Queens Building Could Lead To Collapse

Construction worker rescued in Houston Apartment fire
Construction worker rescued in Houston Apartment fire.

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Construction worker rescued in Houston Apartment fire - Video

AIG Houston fire: dramatic rescue of construction worker from blaze
A construction worker is rescued from a giant fire at AIG campus in Houston, Texas, on Tuesday. The amateur footage, filmed by onlooker Karen Jones, shows a ...

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AIG Houston fire: dramatic rescue of construction worker from blaze - Video

Fire Building in Texas Houston
A construction worker is rescued from a giant fire at AIG campus in Houston, Texas, on Tuesday. The amateur footage, filmed by onlooker Karen Jones, shows a ...

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Fire Building in Texas Houston - Video

Dan Gross/The Gazette

Firefighters continue to hose down hot spots on the roof of a new unoccupied apartment building on Upper Rock Circle in Rockville after an early morning fire on Tuesday, .

A massive fire at an apartment complex in Rockville has all but destroyed the building that was expected to open in just three weeks.

Smoke billowed and small fires continued to burn at the building called Gable Upper Rock off of Upper Rock Circle near Shady Grove Road and Choke Cherry Road Tuesday morning. No one was injured in the three-alarm blaze that was reported by a security company at about 4:15 a.m. Tuesday, according to Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services spokesman Pete Piringer.

The building, called Building G, that included 150 apartment units and an underground garage, was about 90 percent completed, Piringer said.

I would imagine the whole building is a total loss, he said adding there was about 20 feet of water in the underground garage. It is my thinking they will knock the whole thing down and start again.

Water from firefighter hoses poured out of newly constructed balconies as small hot spots still smouldered. Piringer said the fire appears to have started in the roof area and investigators are expected to examine the utility area and HVAC system located there.

The building is deemed unsafe and firefighters have created a collapse zone around its perimeter, according to Piringer.

The building was part of a second phase of the community and was unoccupied, according to Gigi Giannoni, Gables vice president, marketing & public relations. Giannoni could not provide information on the number of units that had already been rented and were waiting for completion to set a move-in date. One-bedroom apartments at the other buildings in the complex rent for about $1,600 a month, according to the companys website

Residents living in two other buildings on the property were forced to shelter in place and had their utilities turned off as a precaution, Piringer said. Residents could not access their cars parked in the garage on the property.

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Massive fire destroys apartment building under construction in Rockville -- Gazette.Net

Montgomery County Fire and Rescue responded to the fire on Shady Grove Road Tuesday morning. (Courtesy Montgomery County Fire and Rescue)

WTOP's Nick Iannelli reports.

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WASHINGTON -- A massive fire gutted an apartment building in a dense area of Rockville Tuesday morning.

A large three-alarm fire broke out at Gables Upper Rock Apartments, located at 70 Upper Rock Circle in Rockville at about 4:15 a.m. The fire closed Shady Grove Road between I-270 and Md. 355 for several hours.

The road reopened in both directions by 10:15 a.m.

The apartment building is under construction, according to Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Spokesman Pete Piringer. The 150-unit apartment building was nearly complete, but no one was living there yet.

Crews controlled the fire by about 6:45 a.m. and no injuries have been reported, Piringer says. Some flames and smoke were visible from nearby I-270 for most of the Tuesday morning commute.

Piringer says when firefighters arrived at the apartment building early Tuesday, they found heavy fire coming from the upper floors of the four-to-five story building. About 200 firefighters responded to the fire, Piringer says.

The fire's cause is not yet known. Investigators are on the scene.

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Massive fire engulfs, damages Montgomery County apartment building (Video)