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The blueprints for the Joaquin Village student housing complex in Provo were completed last week and excavation for its underground parking lot could start before July, the developer said.
The complex will be built on the empty lot at 500 North and 500 East -- the former site of Joaquin Elementary. The Municipal Council approved the project in March 2007, but the lot has sat empty since then. President Wayne Ross of ArrowStar Construction said it's taken about two and a half years to get to this point, but all that remains now is an administrative review of the drawings.
"People don't understand the review process that the city goes through," he said. "Really, we're spinning our wheels as fast as we can; but at the same time, it's hard to grind through all of the processes that are necessary."
Ross said the review will involve some small back-and-forth with city planners, but nothing more substantial should change. That sentiment was corroborated by city planner Matt Taylor, who said it's only a matter of tweaking final details.
"We're just tying down loose ends," Taylor said.
The complex is slated to open by summer 2010, Ross said -- in time for students coming in that fall to claim a spot. The first construction steps are the "horizontal," which include underground excavation and laying of concrete for the parking structure. Then follows the "vertical," or the construction of the actual five-story structure that will contain the apartments. Each apartment will house four people in private bedrooms, although layout and square footage will vary, Ross said.
Joaquin Village will include about 690 parking stalls, or enough for about three-fourths of its tenants at any one time. About 590 of those will be underground in the one-level parking garage, Ross said.
The extra cars have been a concern for Joaquin residents, who say the massive structure will only aggravate the neighborhood's parking and traffic problems. But Ross said he's confident the council wouldn't have approved the complex unless those needs were addressed in the plan.
"We complied with all of the requests that were made that were necessary," he said.
Ross said in fact, the village may be a greater boon to the neighborhood than residents realize. With commercial space to include a convenience store and food court, it could bring some much-needed services to the area, he said.
"I think that will be a key thing to help people," he said. "There's not much around there."
The building will house more than 900 Brigham Young University students in five floors. Working with BYU's Off-Campus Housing Office on winning the school's approval has also taken time and design revisions, Ross said. The school has stringent requirements for gender separation and other honor code issues, he said.
"It'll fit BYU's requirements probably better than any project. It's a true apartment complex designed to fit the BYU off-campus housing requirements," he said. "It'll be the premier student housing project in Provo, without a doubt."
• Ace Stryker can be reached at 344-2556 or
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