76-unit DeSales Flats project near completion

In recent years East Walnut Hills has been transformed by the DeSales Plaza developments.  The newest addition to this transformation, Desales Flats, will bring 76 new apartment units to the neighborhood in an environmentally sustainable way.

DeSales Flats is being developed by Cincinnati-based Towne Properties with designs being drawn up by CR Architecture + Design.  The project is one of Towne Properties' first LEED projects and was incentivised by Cincinnati's LEED tax breaks according to the LEED accredited team from CR Architecture + Design.

"Almost every project is working towards LEED certification now," says Shannon Duffy, housing design group director for CR Architecture + Design.  At DeSales Flats many of the LEED approaches are being taken during construction which will compliment amenities like covered bicycle parking once the project is complete.

Project developers note that DeSales is located on some of the city's best bicycle routes and that with its location near the University of Cincinnati, Xavier University and several neighborhood business districts, bicycling just seems to make a lot of sense for future residents here.

One bedroom units will range from 700 to 890 square feet, while two bedroom units will range from 980 to 1,360 square feet , with prices averaging about $1 per square-foot.  Every unit will have its own outdoor space as well with balconies on upper-level units and terraces on ground-floor units.

The project is moving along now and will finish in a rolling fashion.  The first of three, three-story buildings will be complete at the end of October, with the final building coming online at the beginning of 2010.

Project developers note that neighborhood residents really pushed for additional residential in this phase of the larger project.  Earlier phases have been extremely popular and identified an untapped market for this kind of residential offering.

Writer: Randy A. Simes
Photography by Scott Beseler
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