Work has started on 11 new million-dollar townhomes in downtown Chattanooga as the center city continues to woo residents even at the higher end of the market.
The three-level, 3,900-square-foot townhomes will go up on Walnut Street between Aquarium Way and Third Street, said Calvin Ball, vice president of Tower Construction Co.
Priced at about $1.1 million each, the townhomes will finish up a development called Walnut Hill Townhomes started more than a decade ago by Urban Renaissance Group. That company, which built 22 similar units on Cherry and Third streets, last year sold a 1-acre parking lot to Tower for $3.2 million that will hold the new housing.
"We feel this is the best location in downtown," said Ball, citing the area's proximity to restaurants and attractions along with its walkability.
The 4-bedroom, 4.5-bath units, three of which have been pre-sold, will have elevators along with two-car garages, Ball said.
"That's really cool," he said about the garages and the demand for parking in the area.
David Wiles, who has purchased one of the planned units, said he and wife Lea Anne wanted to be downtown "in the middle of the action."
"We looked for several months. That just met our needs," said the neurosurgeon who moved to Chattanooga recently from Johnson City, Tennessee.
Carlyn Voges, a broker for Mountain Girls at Keller Williams, said some people who want to live downtown these days are moving from a residence on one of the mountains around Chattanooga.
Also, she said, Chattanooga itself has become "pretty much a destination."
While there has been a lot of new apartments and other housing built and still going up downtown, there's "not too much competition in this product," Voges said.
Charlotte Price, also of Mountain Girls at Keller Williams, said they've had people from outside of the Chattanooga area who are moving to the city, such as Wiles, express interest in the city's core.
"They want to be downtown," she said, citing the proximity of the Walnut Street Bridge, the Tennessee Aquarium, the Hunter Museum and outdoor activities.
Clint Ball, project manager for Tower Construction, said the units will be "high quality."
"It will be a very well built house," he said about the work by Tower, which was started by Calvin and Clint's father, Gary, who serves as its president.
Calvin Ball said the first four or five units should be ready by Christmas. The entire project should be complete within 18 to 24 months, he said.
Dale Mabee of Urban Renaissance said his group had exercised an option to buy the 1-acre parcel from a city panel in 2014 for $850,000.
Mabee said the sale of the land to Ball's group included pre-development planning for the proposed new townhomes along with infrastructure work it had done to improve the land, such as putting in sewers. Also, he said, the group had paid an annual fee for each year the tract was under option.
Contact Mike Pare at mpare@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6318. Follow him on Twitter @MikePareTFP.