Ivy Lofts held up with ‘micro’ changes

HOUSTON – A micro-condominium project slated to break ground over the summer on the east side of downtown has been delayed.

The Ivy Lofts development at 2604 Leeland has been pushed back to January but that won’t affect the estimated 2018 completion date, spokesman Jared Anthony said.

Addressing a recent post from real estate site Swamplot, which published "new" renderings, Anthony said the project had "changed dramatically" since those drawings were released.

"We are switching architects. We are moving forward with a completely new design and new architect," Anthony explained. "We’re in the process of making changes to make the right choices for the current shareholders and future residents."

The hotel-condo building will offer two separate lobbies, one for hotel guests and one for the residential tenants.

It’s planned to be a boutique, private-label hotel with an in-house management team. It will offer all of the typical luxury hotel amenities, including a spa, gym and billiard room.

Anthony added that it’s the smaller units that have been a hit, so they’re keeping the micro-condo concept, though the exact size of each floorplan will shift slightly.

Prices will start at the mid-to-high $150,000’s, another recent change.

The original concept for Ivy Lofts, a collection of 300-sf units in a glamorous east-of-downtown building, was originally intended to attract Millennials.

The developers were hoping to sell out the building before groundbreaking in the summer, but they’d didn’t reach their 100-percent sales goal. 

They also attracted investors more than the young professional crowd.