The apartment boom in southwestern Connecticut represents more than a youth movement.
While millennial-aged residents account for a large share of the residents moving into the thousands of units that have opened in the area in the past decade, developments such as Building and Land Technology’s Harbor Point in Stamford are attracting an increasingly diverse group of tenants. The trend attests to the evolution of their neighborhoods and foreshadows continued residential growth.
“As the neighborhood becomes more mature, you can just attract more people,” BLT Chief Operating Officer Ted Ferrarone said in an interview Wednesday at Harbor Point’s latest apartment building, the 392-unit NV at 100 Commons Park North. “When we first opened, there weren’t a lot of people in the streets, and there weren’t a lot of apartments and restaurants open. Now, there are people everywhere.”
The influx of residents in their 20s and 30s has powered the growth of new developments. Since 2009, BLT has constructed some 2,700 apartments at Harbor Point. When it is completed, the South End project will include some 4,000 units.
Harbor Point is also growing in popularity with other groups, such as senior citizens.
“At the Beacon (on Harbor Point Road), that’s the first building where we saw a really significant empty-nester population,” Ferrarone said. “We’re seeing a lot of people who wouldn’t typically have lived in apartments who say, ‘We really like the product, we like the neighborhood.’ They’re looking for bigger units, with slightly different amenities.”
“We’re always trying to evolve,” Ferrarone said. “We want to create lots of different products at different price points.”
