Hartford Business Journal

12 Hartford Business Journal • May 21, 2018 • www.HartfordBusiness.com By Gregory Seay gseay@HartfordBusiness.com A fter a day of mind-numb- ing graduate coursework at UConn's School of Busi- ness downtown, John Lundeen looks forward to relaxing in the voluminous com- munity-room space inside Hartford's Spectra on the Plaza. The 190-unit apartment building's common areas and upper-floor com- munity room, outfitted with stools, couches, game tables and flat-screen TVs, offer Lundeen not only a quiet refuge but also serve as an addition to his 580-square-foot, one-bedroom apartment in which he has been a ten- ant for the last two years. "It's brought a lot of enjoyment and value to my lifestyle,'' said Lundeen, 32, a Salisbury native who recently received his MBA degree, of amenities attached to his unit for which he pays more than $1,000 monthly. A week ago, Spectra's owners opened Bar5, a companion to its Spectra Wired Café. Both cover 5,000 square feet, with Bar5 on the lower level and the café above. Spectra isn't alone in adding new perks to attract tenants. Apartment landlords throughout the Hartford region and statewide say they are in a scramble to determine what ten- ants want beyond just four walls to lay their heads. Some landlords worry amenities, along with the costs to in- stall, operate and maintain them, may never be enough. "It's like a nuclear arms race,'' said Hartford landlord Martin J. Kenny, who has built or converted area spaces into hundreds of luxury apartments. "Each time a new project comes on line, there's a game-changer.'' In a market like Hartford, where apartment occupancy and rents, especially among newer properties brimming with the latest safety, conve- nience and energy-saving technologies, is the tightest in a decade, amenities of- fer a way for one landlord to differenti- ate its apartments from another, industry experts say. They also provide justifica- tion for the higher rents typically imposed on newer or refurbished properties. Along with the usual draws like swimming pools, wood floors, gyms/fitness centers and free parking and Wi-Fi, some landlords are raising the marketing stakes and wooing tenants with a raft of new lures, like on-site cafés/restaurants, pet- grooming stations, golf-driving simula- tors, garage parking, communal work spaces or business centers equipped with printers. They, too, are expand- ing their concierge services to include parcel delivery/pickup stations and doorside garbage pickup. Often, these services are priced right into the rents, so tenants typical- ly do not pay extra for them, landlords say. However, some owners are finding that certain amenities can generate revenue beyond rents. "I don't know that there's anything groundbreaking or unique out there,'' said Jeff Ferony, of TRIO Properties, a Glastonbury apartment management and adviser who currently works with landlords like Spectra's owners and others. "The amenities are evolving, that's for sure.'' That mirrors a National Apartment Association (NAA) study of 43 unique amenities, added or upgraded from Jan. 2014 to Sept. 2016, in 100,000 units in 35 states. Clubhouses and common areas for socializing were among the five most-desired ameni- ties, according to NAA's online study. Swimming pools, outdoor kitchens and play areas also had appeal. While in-house gyms and fitness Wooing Tenants Pet stations, cafés, bars — Apartment amenities climb along with occupancy, rents (Left photos, top and bottom) Residents in The Tannery in Glastonbury are shown in the community room. The Tannery and right) An outdoor fireplace, fitness center and community room at Ellington's Deer Valley North Townhomes. HBJ PHOTOS | STEVE LASCHEVER PHOTOS | HBJ FILE

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