First tenants signal new phase for The Foundry

LOVELAND — The first residential tenants — 11 on Wednesday and another three on Thursday — have moved into the new Patina Flats at the Foundry, the new, multi-block redevelopment project in downtown Loveland.

Apartments, mostly studio and one bedroom units on the Lincoln Street side of the development, became available on Wednesday. Brinkman, the developer, received the certificate of occupancy on Tuesday.

Patina Flats, a five-level apartment complex with underground, secured parking for each unit, has two parts. The Lincoln Avenue side that opened this week has 56 units and 51 percent were pre-leased before they were completed. The Cleveland Avenue side, which has larger units including some three-bedroom units, will open in early October. A total of 99 units are available on Cleveland and to date 26 percent are leased. Brinkman’s target upon completing either side was to pre-lease 30 percent.

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The move-in of first tenants was momentous for Brinkman, according to Jay Hardy, president of the development company. “It’s been 31 months from selection as the developer to first tenants,” he said.

Rents on the Lincoln side range from about $1,000 per month to $1,400 per month, which is about the same as what Brinkman charges in its other downtown project, Gallery Flats, located two blocks north on Lincoln.

The apartments contain modern amenities expected in urban living centers. They include granite countertops, wood floors, a full range of in-unit appliances, fitness center, gathering spaces, patios and balconies.

Hardy said tenants are coming from all over. The first units were rented by people from the area who have jobs or attend school in the region. The development’s largest unit, a three-bedroom apartment on the Cleveland side with two balconies, was leased by a couple from Cleveland, Ohio, who will use it as a second home when they come to Loveland to visit children and grandchildren, Hardy said.

“Three of the four three-bedroom units are leased,” Hardy said. “I wish I had built more of those.”

Opening of the apartments is the first step toward completion of the Foundry development. The parking ramp on the south edge of the development will open in mid-August. When the Cleveland Avenue side of Patina Flats opens in October, the outdoor central plaza will open at the same time, Hardy said.

The movie theater and hotel are slated for completion in April 2019. Public art will be placed or installed over the next several months.

The Foundry does have commercial spaces — about 16,000 square feet of commercial space. Hardy said 60 percent of the commercial space is leased or in letter of intent stage. The first commercial tenant will be announced in the next 45 days, he said.

Most of the commercial space will be occupied by retail-oriented businesses such as food and beverage companies. Hardy expects that a small amount of the space will be used by offices.

Brinkman’s intent in developing the Foundry was to “raise all boats” in the downtown area. Hardy said he expects that other businesses will benefit from the opening of the development and that synergies will become apparent. He cited the craft brewer Crow Hop, which relocated from its location off of Third Street to a higher visibility space on Fourth Street that has customer access from both Fourth and from the Foundry to the south.