See where nearly 1,000 new apartments are coming between downtown Durham, Chapel Hill
More housing is planned for a major Durham-Chapel Hill corridor.
Chapel Hill-based developer Beacon Properties Group has sold 6.82 acres at 4802 Durham-Chapel Hill Blvd to AvalonBay Communities for $16.75 million.
Located halfway between downtown Durham and Chapel Hill, along U.S. 15-501, the property is next to New Hope Commons shopping center and across the street from Patterson Place shopping center.
The wooded land is slated for 459 market-rate units, including studios, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments.
It’s the first step in a “multi-phase purchase.” All told, the Avalon Oakridge project calls for up 930 units once complete.
Beacon has a long history of developing office and apartment projects across Chapel Hill and Durham, including several along Farrington Road in Chapel Hill.
In 2018, the company purchased 108 acres along 15-501 for $7.6 million, The N&O previously reported.
Next door, it’s planning a 100,000-square-foot shopping center on the remaining 15-501 fronting parcels. Called Oakridge, plans first submitted in 2019 call for office space and restaurants.
Beacon partner Edward Lammas said AvalonBay’s long-term view as a “holder and operator” of the apartments makes them the “perfect neighbor.”
CBRE|Raleigh executive vice president Chester Allen added: “It was great to get this deal closed,” given the market’s current headwinds.
The rising costs of construction materials, labor and land, and the tightening of bank lending standards, is making it harder to pencil deals.
“Long term, we’ll be okay, but it’s making it difficult in the short-term,” he said.
15-501’s growing corridor
For AvalonBay, which is headquartered in Virginia, it’s the firm’s first project in the Triangle.
“It’s rare to find a development opportunity such as this one,” said Liz Smith, the company’s senior vice president of development. “The site’s accessibility and proximity to I-40 are unmatched.”
AvalonBay’s plans include three, four-story buildings. Each building will have its own garage. Other amenities include pool, outdoor grilling areas, an indoor/outdoor fitness center, multiple courtyards, walking trails along New Hope Creek and a dog run.
AvalonBay filed a site plan with the city of Durham in early June. “We’re currently working through the process,” Smith told The N&O in an email.
Construction is scheduled to begin in 2024, with an anticipated opening in 2026.
This story was originally published October 16, 2023 at 1:20 PM with the headline "See where nearly 1,000 new apartments are coming between downtown Durham, Chapel Hill."
