Plan calls for luxury condo complex in Scottsdale

by Edward Gately The Arizona Republic Jul. 1, 2010 01:16 PM

An abandoned apartment complex near Scottsdale Fashion Square could soon give way to a multilevel, luxury condominium complex with street-level retail.

Orchidtree, the 9.87-acre complex, has been sitting vacant on the southeastern corner of Camelback Road and 68th Street for about three years now. The property was purchased last spring by Optima, which is developing the Optima Camelview Village condominium complex, at Scottsdale Road and Rancho Vista Drive.

Optima Sonoran Village would include 493 residential units and 40,000 square feet of commercial, retail and amenity space, for a total of about 726,700 square feet of floor space. Five buildings would be arranged around two courtyards in the center of the property.

Four of the buildings would be seven stories in height, while the fifth building would have five floors on its north side and fewer floors on its south side.

"It's a perfect site to do multifamily housing and we think it's going to be a great addition to the neighborhood and city of Scottsdale," said David Hovey Jr., a vice president with Optima. "We had overwhelming support by the neighbors. I personally talked with many of the neighbors, and it's been a great response."

The Scottsdale City Council, at its Tuesday meeting, will consider zoning changes for the property that would allow the development.

"It basically allows them to use the downtown zoning requirements, which allows more height and density," said Brad Carr, a senior planner with Scottsdale. "It's going to be different in that it's going to be more units and greater height."

The city's Development Review Board and Planning Commission voted to recommend council approval of amended site development standards, site plan and building elevations.

Optima Sonoran Village would have the same "vertically stacked courtyard house concept" as Optima Camelview Village, Hovey said. The last one of 11 buildings at Optima Camelview Village is now under construction and the complex is 91 percent occupied, he said. The last building will be completed within a year.

"The layout of units at Sonoran Village will be slightly different, but it will have the same traditional landscaping and similar plant pallet as you see at Camelview Village," Hovey said.

If the council approves the changes in zoning, Optima plans to start construction on Sonoran Village in 18 months, he said. The project would be completed in three years, he said.

"The timeline is about the same as Camelview, however, Camelview was a little bit slower due to market conditions," he said. "Just like any real-estate developer, the last couple of years have been interesting times, but we're looking forward to starting with Sonoran Village, and we feel like there will be a need for multihousing in downtown Scottsdale."


Plan calls for luxury condo complex in Scottsdale