First Phase Completed in Construction, Maintenance & Management Partnership with the Alabama College of Osteopathic Medicine
East Greenwich, R.I. (July 25, 2013) – Corvias Campus Living, an affiliate of Corvias Group, a privately-owned, vertically-integrated real estate solutions group, announced today the grand opening of its first student housing development, Summerfield Square, at the Alabama College of Osteopathic Medicine (ACOM) in conjunction with the company's one-year anniversary.
Corvias Campus Living launched in July 2012 with the promise to deliver an approach to student housing that no other company was willing to offer.
"The opening of Summerfield Square is a strong showcase for Corvias Campus Living's innovative student housing model," said John Picerne, CEO of Corvias Group. "Most developers erect a building as a quick fix then move on, or own off-campus buildings that siphon away revenue. We work as partners with colleges and universities to create short and long-term strategies supported by customized financing arrangements that invest in on-campus housing as a competitive advantage in recruiting and retaining students."
"Ten months ago, ACOM had no student housing, no ability to provide it, and no one to manage it as a quality of life asset," Picerne added. "The Corvias partnership model allowed the college to finance and create the residences that, with our help, will make the quality of life on their campus attractive to students well into the future."
Through a long-term, sustainable partnership, Corvias Campus Living will be responsible for the management and maintenance of Summerfield Square, as well as the construction, management and maintenance of all future on-campus residences at ACOM. This customized approach will allow the new college to focus on its academic offerings and pursue its mission to address the critical need for primary care physicians to serve the rural and medically underserved areas of Alabama and the surrounding region.
"Through a true partnership solution, Corvias has helped add a tremendous amount of value to our entire campus and residential community. This is more than just a student housing project to ACOM and it is abundantly clear, Corvias feels the same. We are very happy to have chosen Corvias as our housing partner," said Ronald S. Owen, Southeast Alabama Medical Center Chief Executive Officer.
Completed in just 10 months to welcome the inaugural class at ACOM, Phase one of Summerfield Square consists of three 30,864-square-foot residential apartment buildings, 117 bedrooms and a 3,000-square-foot clubhouse. Offering modern contemporary interiors, students are able to live in one or two-bedroom apartments, each with a private bathroom and fully-equipped kitchen.
The energy-efficient units feature modern and convenient amenities, including direct access to ACOM's intranet, washer and dryer connections and private study areas. The design also incorporates outdoor green space, occupancy sensors, recycled materials, low-flow fixtures and high-efficiency mechanical equipment.
"Summerfield Square posed financial, design and construction challenges," said Kurt Ehlers, Managing Director of Corvias Campus Living. "We listened closely to what ACOM needed – significant equity investment, on-campus apartments for a slightly older, graduate student demographic, and an intense construction timeline. Our partnership model overcame all these challenges, and the response has been overwhelmingly positive. We are looking forward to the next phase of development."
Designed specifically to meet the needs of medical students, with amenities that support a balance between their professional and personal lives, the apartments immediately appealed to the incoming class.
Ankita Mahajan, a member of the incoming Class of 2017, commented that "Summerfield Square has provided ACOM students with an advantage unmatched by other medical programs – we get to live surrounded by only our classmates and families just steps away from campus. This establishment will foster an environment of positive collaboration among students while providing us with critical benefits that we could only get by living on campus at Summerfield Square."
Corvias received reservations for 100 percent of the units in just two months. Once completed, the community will feature six apartment buildings that will each have 24 apartments and 39 bedrooms.
Students will enjoy access to a brand new 3,000-square-foot clubhouse that functions primarily as a state-of-the-art fitness center with an outdoor lap pool, an open communal kitchen, and a multi-functional flex space that can be used for aerobics, study areas and meeting rooms. ACOM students will also benefit from the outside common areas where featured amenities include a basketball court, meditation garden, pet area and a playground for families.
About Corvias Group
Corvias is a privately-owned, vertically-integrated real estate solutions group dedicated to building strong communities through partnerships that deliver the highest quality development, construction and management solutions to a range of clients, including the military and higher education. Applying our success as pioneers of real estate development and management for the military, our family of companies, Corvias Military Living and Corvias Campus Living, deliver customer service that exceeds client expectations, and an innovative, comprehensive approach to facility financing, management and construction. We have the ability to forge partnerships that consistently put the interests of our clients first and the flexibility to pursue creative, sustainable long-term solutions to their most difficult challenges. www.corvias.com
About ACOM
ACOM is a comprehensive, four-year osteopathic medical college located in Dothan, Alabama. ACOM, the academic division of the Houston County Health Care Authority, is affiliated with Southeast Alabama Medical Center in Dothan, a 420-bed regional medical center. www.acom.edu