Norfolk, Va. – The S.L. Nusbaum multifamily development team of Wendell Franklin, Taylor Franklin, Tom Johnston, and Steve Cooper plan to build a $39 million luxury apartment community at the foot of the Granby Street Bridge.

The River House Apartments will have 220 one-, two-, and three-bedroom units with rents ranging from $1,000 to $1,600 per month. Most of the apartments will have water views of the Lafayette River. The community will boast an infinity pool and a 3,000 square foot clubhouse with a panoramic view of the river from the second floor fitness room. A public walkway will be built along the waterfront.

The architect is Cox, Kleiwer & Associates, and the builder is Marlyn Development. Both firms are headquartered in Virginia Beach, Va. Construction will begin in February 2008 with an expected opening in the fall of 2008.

Currently celebrating its 100th anniversary, S.L. Nusbaum Realty Co. manages, develops, and brokers shopping centers, apartments, and office/industrial properties in Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, and Florida. With offices in Norfolk and Richmond, Virginia, it is one of the largest commercial real estate firms in Virginia; managing more than 7.8 million square feet of retail space, over 18,000 apartment units, and two million square feet of office and industrial properties.

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Norfolk, Va. – S.L. Nusbaum Realty Co. and the city of Norfolk unveiled plans today for a $150 million, 22-story office tower, retail and residential community that marks one of the most significant downtown developments since MacArthur Center and the first mixed-use development planned along the new light rail corridor.

Set on Monticello Avenue on the current site of the Monticello parking garage and surface lot, the new Wachovia Center will include 250,000 square feet of modern, Class A office space, 50,000 square feet of retail shopping, 175 rental apartments and 1,950 parking spaces in two garages. The site is adjacent to MacArthur Center, Scope and Chrysler Hall.

Norfolk Mayor Paul Fraim said the project would deliver a multitude of benefits. "This project enables Norfolk to maintain its position as the pre-eminent business center in the region," said Fraim. "Our low vacancy rate is indicative of the significant demand for new Class A office space."

In addition to Wachovia, other tenants will include S.L. Nusbaum Realty Co., one of the Southeast’s largest commercial real estate firms, and Goodman & Company, Virginia’s largest independent certified public accounting firm.

"We are delighted that this project will be home to several of Norfolk's oldest and most prestigious businesses who desire to make a larger investment for the future of their companies in Norfolk," Fraim said.

Wachovia, the nation’s fourth largest bank holding company, will relocate its Eastern Virginia regional headquarters to the new Wachovia Center.

"The Wachovia Center illustrates our commitment to Norfolk in a very visible way," said Jeff Dyckman, Eastern Virginia regional president for Wachovia Bank, N.A. "We’re pleased that Wachovia can continue to invest in the economic development of this vibrant and growing community."

S.L. Nusbaum Chairman Alan Nusbaum said the Wachovia Center, which is 53% pre-leased, will be constructed on one of the few remaining plots of vacant land available downtown. He said the development will continue the northward progression of downtown’s renaissance while serving as a catalyst for new development in that portion of the downtown area.

"We’re excited about the project," Nusbaum said. "We truly believe the office tower at the Wachovia Center will be the finest building in Hampton Roads and the region’s premier business address for decades to come."

"This project is the type of higher density mixed-use development that the city seeks. Over the next ten years, the city should generate $58 million in direct tax and parking revenues, as well as another $2.7 million in indirect revenues from purchases made by employees and residents," said Roderick S. Woolard, director of development for the city of Norfolk.

With 1,950 parking spaces in two garages, the Wachovia Center will add 850 new parking spaces downtown. The added parking will be a boon to Scope, Chrysler Hall, and the restaurants and nightclubs thriving along Granby Street.

And while much of the residential housing constructed downtown in recent years has come in the form of town homes and condominiums, the Wachovia Center will satisfy a growing and unmet demand for modern rental apartments.

"There is strong demand for quality rental housing downtown and the 175 apartment homes at the Wachovia Center will go a long way toward satisfying it," said Wendell C. Franklin, S.L. Nusbaum senior vice president of multifamily development and acquisitions.

The Wachovia Center will begin construction in the spring of 2008 and open in the summer of 2010.

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