Loft Living

In a major metropolitan city with endless living choices, finding a great apartment with all of today’s sought-after amenities and conveniences that is still close to work and other desired areas is something of an achievement. For many Dallas newcomers, as well as longtime residents, the search ends with an urban loft.

“Loft living here is kind of Dallas’ answer to New York,” says Alice Murray, owner of Allice Murray Company, a Dallas real estate consulting firm. ” People are leaving their suburban lifestyle and heading downtown where they can leave their apartments to walk to work and easily stop to get a cup of coffee on the way. They can walk around the comer to eat at their favorite restaurants. Everything is right here for them– kind of like New York.”

Dallas’ thriving uptown area serves as the center of Post Properties’ communities. For the past 10 years. Post has developed some of Uptown’s finer urban apartment communities, such as The Gallery of State-Thomas, The Meridian at Slate-Thomas, The Wilson Building, The Worthington of Stale-Thomas, and many others. The idea of developing these urban living communities in the heart of uptown Dallas is to allow residents to fully experience the excitement and convenience il offers.

“Our residents have the opportunity to dine and shop on McKinney Avenue, ride the trolley to work, see beautiful Victorian homes every day on their walk, and just be surrounded by a fabulous mix of architecture and people,” says Arthur Lomenick, senior executive vice-president of Post Properties.

Because of this lifestyle, new professionals relocating to Dallas are beginning to look at Dallas’ uptown and downtown areas first when searching for a place to live. Proximity to work is typically the primary reason, but the idea of living in cutting-edge urban lofts and apartments complete with a perfect blend of signature urban features and modem appointments is a close second.

Some of Post’s apartment communities are converted office, hotel, industrial, and residential structures for new residential use- such as Dallas’ American Beauty Flour Mill and The Wilson Building. Most Post lofts boast features original to the buildings, such as exposed brick walls, spiral ducts on the ceilings, large windows, soaring ceilings, and exposed concrete columns and flooring. Other popular amenities include original Terrazzo and hardwood flooring, whirlpool tubs, marble countertops, large patios, top-of-the-line appliances, and controlled access parking garages.

While the indoor amenities are striking, Lomenick says the best amenity is the uptown area itself.

“When you live Uptown, you get all of the charm and character of living in an old neighborhood, but you get the benefits of modem technology,” Lomenick says. “We call it the new urbanism.”

Another urban loft living experience in downtown Dallas that is quickly gaining attention is the Santa Fe Terminal Urban Lofts, located on Jackson Street. This striking building was orginally home to the Santa Fe Railroad before it became the Army’s 8″1 Serve Enlistment Center in the *4fls and the studios for WFAA radio thereafter. The Santa Fe now accommodates 196 lofts and nine luxury penthouse lofts.

Some of the amenities found in the Santa Fe include high-speed, direct T-l Internet access, a state-of-the-art communications package including satellite TV and upgraded wiring, business and fitness centers, a controlled access garage, a courtesy officer, and a rooftop swimming pool and deck. Lofts feature favorite urban accents such as industrial-style finishes and fixtures, oversized baths, soaring ceilings up to 30-feet, exposed columns and walls, concrete flooring, and 8-foot-tall galvanized metal entry doors.

Steve Canoff, executive vice president of Southwest Properties Group Inc.. lives in a Santa Fe penthouse. He says that although urban living is often associated with a younger population, he is seeing more residents move in who are older business professionals in search of a convenient downtown live/work space.

“I used to live in a high-rise apartment on Turtle Creek before moving here, and making the transition was really easy” Canoff says. “The views are nice, and the architecture is incredible. Everything I need is in the area. I think urban living is more of a lifestyle choice rather than just a place to live.”