Construction for a new apartment complex near NSU, Toscana, will begin in January and take 18 months to complete.
The 350-unit complex will be built on Davie Road Extension, where the mobile home Palma Nova was. Andy Burnham, chief operating officer of CC Residential, said the City of Davie approved the plan for Toscana because it was compatible with the master plan of giving the city a more college-like feel.
“Toscana will be built to create a social environment for the residents,” said Burnham. “It is a market rate [rent based on Davie market] facility open to the public. It will have a mix of college students, small families and married couples with no kids.”
However, Aarika Camp, director of Residential Life and Housing, said Toscana will only be available to upperclassmen since only students with 48 or more credits hours can live off campus unless they reside within Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties.
Camp said, “We’re still committed to finding the best housing options for students whether that’s on campus
or off.”
Toscana will have common areas with a fully functional fitness center, business center, cyber café, swimming pool, heated spa, outdoor kitchen, putting green and a
dog park.
Burnham said the complex was designed to be flexible for students.
“We added a business center [to the property] and our club house will have free WIFI. The apartments will have security alarms, which students tend to like. We’ve created it to cater to students,” said Burnham.
The business center will have computers, a copier and a fax machine for residents to conduct business and the cyber café will be a social room with a coffee bar and sitting areas for residents to congregate and socialize.
The average cost for living at Toscana will be $1,500 per month.
Camp said students should weigh their options when deciding whether to live on or off campus. She said the benefits of living on campus are convenience, cost, a support system and the level of care.
“It is said that if you live on campus, you are more involved and get more out of your college experience. When most people live off campus, when they’re home, they’re home. They don’t really get to know their neighbors. In the residence halls, you’re part of a community,” said Camp. “If an apartment complex focuses on students’ needs, then it’s a good opportunity. They have to put the students first and that’s what we do.”
