For being such a large project, the Village Solars apartments in the town of Lansing tend to slip by unnoticed. Work on Phase 2 is wrapping up, and work has already begun on Phase 3, with what looks like excavation work for the foundation of Building “I”. A rolling stone gathers no moss, I guess. “I” will be an 18-unit apartment building similar in design to Building “G/H”, the building in the fourth photo, and currently the largest individual apartment building in the complex.
Building “D” is essentially complete and has been available for occupancy since May. Building “G/H”, which is just finishing up any remaining interior finishes and exterior trim, will be ready for occupancy this month. Building “E”, which is still attaching exterior trim and finishes, as well as interior work, will be ready for its tenants by about July 15th. If past work is any indicator, “I” will be ready for occupancy sometime next spring. No word on Phase 2A and Building “F”, but it’s a good bet 18-unit Building “J”, the other half of Phase 3, will commence excavation once “G/H” and/or “E” are complete.
With the completion of Phase 2 this summer, The Village Solars additions will have resulted in 77 new housing units since they began construction in 2014. Rents on the units are ranging from $850+/month for a one-bedroom, $1235+/month for a 2-bedroom and $1600-$1650/month for a 3-bedroom unit.
Ithacating in Cornell Heights 
This is a quite impressive project. If I recall correctly there’s suppose to be about 300 units when done. Seems like the city/county need about 10 more projects this size to make a dent in the housing market.
Yes, but hopefully not all in the suburbs! It’s worth noting that for all of the debate Lansing has over its town center plans, this project is quietly doing what they aren’t – building housing and increasing the tax base. The approved phases alone (totaling 174 units) will likely be worth in the ballpark of $30 million. The whole ~306-320 unit build-out would pay nearly as much in taxes as the power plant.
I agree that Ithaca itself needs a couple of thousand new units. So discouraging to see the comments on the Voice articles about Maplewood and Trebloc proposals. Is it me or do people just refuse to understand that more units will eventually bring down housing costs? smh
Honestly, it’s a mix. There some people that think it’s just developers driving the costs up – I was speaking with George McGonigal (1st Ward Councilman) at the Voice birthday party last night, and he was drawing parallels to Pleasant Rowland’s impact on the village of Aurora in the early 2000s. But, he missed one crucial difference – Rowland’s actions led to gentrification of Aurora, whereas in Ithaca’s case, developers are reacting to Ithaca’s increasing affluence and gentrification, created by increasing numbers of students, wealthy retirees and the growing economy/workforce (in other words, groups moving there regardless of the new and shiny). X led to Y in 2000s Aurora, X follows Y in 2010s Ithaca.
As for the naysayers to development, I think it boils down to three groups – the crowd who are amenable to change but worry about physical/social character preservation, the ones who just don’t like any kind of change period, and lastly, the self-serving individuals who have made it their mission to try and maximize the value of their own properties, because if they can keep prices on an upward spiral and make an extra $100k on the sale in a couple of years, why wouldn’t they try?
I think two of the three groups you described could be difficult swaying to “see the light”, and act in the interest of the city/county. Affordable housing will always be a sore point as long as the supply is too tight to allow the supply/demand system to work.