Montrose, CO — It’s nearly move-in time for those wanting to call Montrose’s newest river-front residential neighborhood home, as the first of the newly constructed Basecamp Apartments open for occupancy in the Montrose Urban Renewal Authority (MURA) development.
In 2021 the city broke ground on the necessary utilities and roadways to support a 96-unit market-rate Basecamp Apartments located on the southern end of MURA near the Uncompahgre River.
According to Morgan Reynolds of Blueline Equity Partners, a Denver-based real estate company that owns Basecamp, units within building one, located off North 7th Street on the west side of Grand Avenue, are currently available with subsequent buildings nearing completion. Reynolds said those buildings will open for new residents within the next six to eight months.
The ultimate goal, according to Reynolds, is to provide more multifamily housing in Montrose to help ease the housing demand the Montrose community is currently experiencing due to continued growth. Reynolds said Blueline Equity Partners specializes in housing and development opportunities in mountain towns and has projects located in Durango, Crested Butte, Winter Park, Bozeman MT, and other communities.
Once complete, the four buildings comprising the Basecamp Apartments will have 96 one and two-bedroom units complete with parking and common areas located next to the Uncompahgre River. With the city’s seven-mile concrete Uncompahgre Riverway Trail nearby and easy drivable access to downtown, new residents in these units will enjoy easy access to the river along with all the amenities of downtown Montrose, all while enjoying the fast internet speeds of the largest Gig City on the Western Slope.
“We love what Montrose is and what we believe it will become over the next several years. It is the heart of the Western Slope and is a geographic, medical, and transportation hub for the entire region – serving cities like Telluride, Ouray, Gunnison, Crested Butte, and even Grand Junction,” Reynolds said. “It has spectacular recreational assets, great annual weather, a strong school system, and quality retail and hospitality assets.”
This housing asset joins about $50 million in new private investment within MURA in a variety of commercial and residential projects that make up an estimated 200,000 square feet of new construction in this area of town.
In 2021 the City Council voted unanimously to adopt the Envision 2040 Comprehensive Plan to establish a community vision, set goals, and identify opportunities for growth and development throughout the Montrose community.
Within the plan, housing development was one of the top priorities for the city moving forward. With a pair of medical facilities currently under development, along with several manufacturing companies relocating to Montrose, demand for housing has never been higher.
“The City of Montrose has had housing on the top of our priority list for the past few years and, as our recent Housing Needs Assessment Survey preliminary results show, Montrose is in deep need of workforce housing,” Montrose Mayor Dave Frank said. “As such, it is gratifying to see the Basecamp Apartments coming online. The city and MURA recognize that although the apartments being in the URA won't be a big contributor to the TIF repayment, they are nonetheless crucial to the development of the city as a whole.”
“It is truly an exciting time for Montrose. We are seeing growth across a number of industries, creating new and exciting opportunities,” Anthony Russo, who works with Business Development with the City of Montrose, said. “Having this and other housing projects around the community will provide the infrastructure necessary to ensure the growth is sustainable.”
Reynolds said his staff is looking forward to the opportunity to build more housing units to the south of the current Basecamp site. He said more information about those possible developments will be released as they become available.
Find out more about Blueline Equity Partners at www.bluelineequitypartners.com, or call 970-730-2533 for more information about apartment leasing.