Upscale apartment buildings opening in Arts District, Symphony Park

A developer from Nashville is betting big on Las Vegas with more upscale apartment buildings as landlords across Southern Nevada increasingly compete for tenants.

Southern Land Co. expects to have the first move-ins next month at both its new rental project in the Arts District and its new mid-rise complex in Symphony Park, said Yetta Tropper, president of multifamily operations.

She also said that its new tower in Symphony Park — the first residential high-rise to open in Las Vegas in more than 15 years — will follow slightly behind with new residents.

All told, the firm is opening nearly 900 units total with these projects and banking on renters who want a more urban lifestyle in Las Vegas, a heavily suburban market packed with cookie-cutter housing tracts and garden-style apartment complexes, usually with no commercial services within close walking distance.

Tropper said in a recent interview that there is plenty of demand to live in a walkable, urban core, and that its new buildings are in vibrant areas of the city.

‘Conviction in the local market’

Overall, landlords have been offering months of free rent or other perks to sign tenants in Southern Nevada following a surge in apartment construction in recent years.

Tropper attributed these increased concessions to the waves of new rental properties opening around the same time. Plus, as she described it, Las Vegas isn’t the only high-growth market where landlords are offering deals to get renters.

“But I think the fact that we’ve all agreed to build here shows conviction in the local market,” she said.

Southern Land’s 337-unit project in the Arts District, called Gemma, is at the intersection of California Avenue and Third Street.

It consists of three seven-story buildings and features ground-floor retail and restaurant space. The amenities include a two-story fitness center, pool and spa, co-working space, library, and rooftop deck, according to the developer’s website.

Activity ramps up

A dozen or so years ago, Las Vegas’ Arts District was a quiet place. It had furniture stores, second-hand clothing shops and other tenants, but also vacant storefronts, empty lots and thin foot traffic.

But in recent years, a surge of new eateries, coffee shops and retailers opened in the area, drawing more people there to eat, drink and shop. Amid the increased popularity, landlords also have charged higher rents, and developers started building some big housing projects in the area.

For instance, Chicago developer Cedar Street Companies built The Myles, a 310-unit complex at the corner of Commerce Street and Imperial Avenue.

It boasts a golf simulator, sauna, cold plunge, pool deck and other amenities, and the first move-ins are scheduled for June, said Cedar Street director Griffin Epping.

Symphony Park

Meanwhile, the former railyard known as Symphony Park, located along Grand Central Parkway at Bonneville Avenue, is home to The Smith Center for the Performing Arts, Discovery Children’s Museum and the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health.

It also has upscale apartment complexes, including one built by Southern Land several years ago, called Auric; a hotel that opened last year; and more housing.

Southern Land’s new buildings there consist of a five-story, 275-unit complex called Bria and a 22-story, 272-unit tower called Capella.

Karla Cavazos, executive vice president of development for Southern Land, said that Symphony Park is a cultural center near the heart of downtown, and she noted the high-rise will have food-and-beverage options.

According to the developer’s website, Capella includes around 16,250 square feet of commercial space.

Towering housing

Capella also marks a return to high-rise living in Las Vegas.

Locally, the last residential high-rise to open was the Veer Towers condo complex, which debuted in 2010 on the Las Vegas Strip and was a product of the mid-2000s bubble.

Southern Nevada was in the throes of high-rise mania during the easy-money-fueled real estate boom of two decades ago. But since the market crashed, real estate sources have said that developers couldn’t command high-enough rental rates in Las Vegas to cover the costs of these expensive projects.

Tropper, of Southern Land, said this has now changed. She said rental rates in Capella aren’t finalized but will likely hover around $3 per square foot, if not higher.

She also contends there is enough demand in the Las Vegas area — which has a population of about 2.4 million — to fill the building.

“We’ll find that discerning renter … to make this project work,” she said.