Progress Student Living Developing Student Housing Near UNC-Wilmington

By Jeffrey Steele, Contributing Writer

Myrtle Beach, S.C.—Construction is underway on Progress910, a 528-bedroom, 168-unit luxury student housing community situated near the campus of the University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW).

With a location at 316 Marlboro St. in Wilmington, Progress910 will be made up of three four-story structures, and will be situated about one mile west of the main entrance to the UNCW campus. This is the third student housing development from Progress Student Living, a real estate development company established by principals from the San Francisco real estate investment, brokerage and advisory firm HighBridge Properties and the Myrtle Beach, S.C., general contractor and developer Progress Builders.

Progress910 is slated to be completed next summer. Leasing is underway for the fall 2014 semester at UNCW. Asset Campus Housing will serve as property manager.

“With Progress910, we are developing the only resort-style community in Wilmington that is designed with UNCW students in mind,” Michael Allard, principal with Progress Student Living, tells MHN. “There is really nothing else like it in the area, and no other land suitable for this type of development this close to campus.”

The fully furnished apartments will be offered in two- to four-bedroom floor plans. They will be equipped with 40-inch, flat screen televisions, high-speed Internet connectivity, full-size walk-in closets, stainless-steel kitchen appliances, full-size washers and dryers, sound-insulated walls, private patios or balconies and wood-style flooring in all rooms.

“We worked with city staff to amend a local ordinance that prohibited more than three unrelated parties from living in a single dwelling,” Allard recalls. “Overcoming that barrier was essential to optimizing the project with four-bedroom/four-bathroom configurations. There were many stakeholders involved in launching the project, and satisfying all of them was challenging. We are fortunate to have worked with local attorney and Realtor Jonathan Washburn, whose insight and ability to facilitate solutions to whatever challenge arose also was key to getting the project off the ground.”

Residents will be able to relax between classes at an outdoor, resort-style pool with poolside cabanas, or work out at a 24-hour, state-of-the-art fitness center.

Other amenities will include a shaded, outdoor patio with barbecue grills, oversized outdoor fire pits, lighted sand volleyball court, activity room with fireplace, lounge areas, billiards and ping pong tables, and secluded cybercafé and study lounge.

Occupancy at Progress910 is expected to benefit from the continued growth of UNCW enrollment, which this academic year experienced a 6 percent increase over the 2012-13 year. Currently, 14,100 undergraduate and graduate students are enrolled at the university. UNCW was recently ranked among the top 15 universities in the South, and as the sixth-best public university in the region by U.S.News and World Report.

“UNCW students are going to love this place,” Allard says. “They will enjoy all the benefits of a newly-built, resort-style student housing community, and they will be able to walk, bike, drive or take a bus to the campus.”