Unicorp’s $100M super luxury apartments will go to ‘next level’
More details have emerged on Unicorp National Developments’ $100 million The Luxe at Dr. Phillips apartments — including some of the thinking behind the 200-unit project that will rise adjacent the developer’s $1 billion-plus O-Town West mixed-use project.
Riley Whittall, a development associate with the firm and daughter of Unicorp President Chuck Whittall, said she has several friends in the Miami area, through whom she has become familiar with the market’s high-end, luxury offerings. “With Central Florida’s growth, we thought something like that would do well in this market,” Riley Whittall said.
Chuck Whittall revealed further details on the project to Orlando Business Journal, including that its timeline has moved up from what previously was expected and that a general contractor has yet to be selected.
Why this matters: Given The Luxe at Dr. Phillips’ anticipated price tag of $100 million, the project’s opportunities for contractors and subcontractors will be highly sought after. Additionally, Unicorp’s plan to introduce a higher caliber of luxury apartment product to the market could set the stage for similar projects to follow.
Chuck Whittall said The Luxe will break ground this year, which is a significant change given his previous read on the landscape for construction costs in 2023.
“We’re seeing a little softening in the market — not a big softening, just a little softening — and so we’ve accelerated our timelines a little bit,” Chuck Whittall said. “We had planned to start about six or eight projects in January of next year and we’re pushing now to start those in August or September of this year.”
Chuck Whittall further detailed what will set the project apart from the Orlando market’s existing apartment inventory, which skews heavily toward luxury apartments.
“The luxury apartments here, they’re all kind of common — and we’ve built tons of that type of apartment,” Chuck Whittall said, noting the thousands of units his own firm has in different stages of development. “We’re all doing granite countertops, nice appliances, vinyl wood floors and tile in the bathrooms.
“We’re going to the next level on this.”
Examples of the differentiation Unicorp hopes to achieve with The Luxe include units with real hardwood floors, marble tile in the bathrooms, upgraded ceiling and door heights, larger windows and wine coolers in the kitchens, among other luxury touches.
Additionally, Unicorp has brought Lifescapes International to the project as its landscape architect.
The Newport Beach, California-based firm brings experience to the project that includes work on Las Vegas’ Bellagio Hotel & Casino and Wynn Las Vegas — experience Whittall hopes will bring a more resort-like aesthetic to the project, which is to include cabanas and other high-end outdoor amenities.
The Luxe also will feature 18 townhome-style villas for rent alongside 182 apartments.
Per a site plan, the apartments will occupy one large building, with the townhome-style units broken up into three rows. A four-story, 209-space parking garage also is planned for the 7.8-acre property at 11010 S. Apopka Vineland Road.
Other firms involved include the Orlando office of Kimley-Horn as the project’s engineer, and Maitland-based Slocum Platts Architects.
Kerina Wildwood Inc., an entity related to Orlando-based Marcent Group, owns the land and Chuck Whittall indicated the group will remain involved with the project as a joint venture.
Meanwhile, the super luxury units at The Luxe also figure to be bigger than typical units — which would fit with another emerging trend in Central Florida.
According to a report by RentCafe, renters in Orlando have 91 more square feet of apartment space than the average American renter, with new apartments consisting of 978 square feet on average. That’s a 23-square-foot increase, or 2%, in space compared to 10 years ago. The average size of all Orlando apartments is 955 square feet.