As an intern in Madison, Wisconsin, Grace Hong lived in a windowless campus apartment without air conditioning. When the native of the Philippines moved to Ann Arbor to enroll in the U-M’s Global MBA program, she says, it was time for a change. A fellow GMBA student recommended Zaragon Place—a new loft-style high rise on East University that’s a five-minute walk to the business school. Between the location and the amenities—including key-card security, forty-two inch plasma TVs and wireless Internet in every apartment, and a 24/7 high-end fitness center—Hong was sold.
“The kids talk, and they know the best places to live on campus,” says Ashlie Merritt, leasing and property manager at Zaragon Place. “And the parents know their kids will be taken care of here.” The modern lobby gleams with a silver-tiled “Z” emblazoned on the floor and huge poster-sized pictures of residents that Merritt says are changed regularly. Zaragon won’t say anything about current rents, but last year, leases in the two-, four-, and six-bedroom units were advertised at $1,000–$1,350 per person. Yet Zaragon Place has been fully leased each fall since it opened in 2009, and the developers are so happy that they’re already building Zaragon Place 2 across the Diag on William.
The ten-story Sterling 411 Lofts on Washington also opened in 2009. It’s not quite as convenient as Zaragon—it’s all of three blocks to the Diag—so it’s not quite as expensive. Prices range from $660 to $1,525 per person, plus a utility and amenity fee, for its one-, two-, three-, and four-bedroom units. Residents can opt for upgrades, too, for an additional price. For Jimmy Adams, a junior in U-M’s Residential College, the $35 per month upgrade to the top floor is worth it.
“My room faces east, so I wake up to the sunrise each morning with these amazing floor-to-ceiling windows,” he says. He’s lived in the other extreme, too, coming from a “dingy, garden-level” apartment. “There’s really no comparison to this place. Plus, my mom was sold on the security.” In addition to a key-card system, 411 has a nightly security guard in the front lobby.
The 411 Lofts feature a “sky lounge” on the top floor with a study area and computers, a pool table, vending machines, fitness center, and a sweeping view of Ann Arbor—the U-M stadium is in the distance and the Google building is right across the street. U-M pre-med senior Ryan King says he hangs out there all the time. “Everything’s in the building that you need. I really don’t have to leave except to go to class,” he says.
Although Zaragon Place doesn’t have a common room for residents, Hong says the shared living space in each apartment, with its granite-countertop island and living room, lends itself to community living. “We have study sessions right here and share dinners together,” she says.
But if residents at either apartment building don’t feel like cooking, carryout is just steps away: Zaragon Place’s street-level tenants are Revive, a small café, and Replenish, a grocery. At 411 Lofts, Subway is available on the ground level and Babo: A Market by Sava plans to open in the fall of 2011. The grocery store will offer a wine and espresso bar, deli, bakery, and produce. Residents will even be able to order breakfast to their rooms on Sunday mornings.
