“One of the most significant things about this project is what it means for Edwardsville,” said Mark Hinrichs, president, Impact Strategies, the construction manager on the project.

The project is a step forward toward the goal of making a major university of Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville.

The Edwardsville campus of Southern Illinois University (SIU-E) was founded in 1957 as a commuter campus and remained as such for almost 40 years. Twenty years ago, however, the school began transitioning to a more traditional, residential college model. Undergraduate enrollment has grown significantly and the first campus dormitory was built in 1997.

Other than the dorms recently built on campus, however, there was no student housing available in the Edwardsville community before the Enclave opened this year. “Students were spread out in single family housing and small apt buildings,” Hinrichs said.

At most major colleges, “twenty-five percent of student housing is on campus and owned by the university; another 25 percent is off campus, but was purposely built for students; and the other 50 percent is older, repurposed housing,” said Randy Churchey, CEO of EdR, one of the largest and most successful developers of student housing in the country.

The 3,500 beds in university-owned dorms and student apartments on campus at SIU-E were enough for almost exactly 25 percent of the roughly 14,000 students enrolled at the school, but before the Enclave opened this year, there was no purposefully built student housing off campus.

In part, that reflected the city’s long-term ambivalence to the university.

“Fifty-five years ago, when SIU-E started, Edwardsville didn’t embrace the idea and pushed it to the outskirts of town,” said Jamie Henderson, principal, Henderson Associates Architects, the project architect.

“In the last decade or so, the university has become more integrated with Edwardsville. This student housing is integrating students with the community. The university and the city are working well together these days and this is a nice element to help unify them more,” he said.

Site Challenges

That is not to say that there weren’t any city residents opposed to the $20 million project, but the developer, Corey Wenzel, carefully stayed within the existing zoning restrictions to avoid controversy.

A previous developer had plans for a dense apartment complex on the site, but had tried to change the zoning and get a PUD (planned unit development) designation.

“That required public meetings with neighbors and council approval. It was controversial and faded away. Corey took the same idea, but had us stay within the parameters of the existing zoning so that he was not required to have public meetings and public input,” Henderson said. As for any requirements the city had regarding esthetics, “we addressed them early on,” he added.

The Enclave consists of eight, identical three-story buildings with five apartments on each floor, plus a clubhouse with a pool. Each apartment building has 18,000 square feet of space (6,000 per floor).

“Taming the site to accept development was by far the biggest challenge,” Henderson said.

A deep ravine ran through the middle of the 27-acre site. After the installation of large, deep storm sewers, it was filled with dirt from each side, and retaining walls were still needed on the site. The rear of the site overlooks a wooded fishing area that locals call “the old shale pit.”

“There are retaining walls that exceed a million dollars in cost. One is 800 feet long and 40 feet high,” Hinrichs said.

The overall layout came together quickly, with the number of buildings dictated by the parking. To get the maximum density possible without having to invest in elevators meant the buildings would be three-stories tall.

“We quickly established that we could get 352 beds and parking,” Henderson said, with the beds distributed in two- and three-bedroom units.

Henderson Associates worked with civil engineers Crawford, Murphy & Tilly to organize the buildings and specify grading to make sure water drains and flows appropriately.

“The site lent itself to a center road that meanders up through the development,” Henderson said. All the buildings face the road and parking is tucked behind each building.

Impact Strategies had a $15 million contract for the complete turnkey development of the site and buildings.

Fast, and Then Faster Still

“We broke ground in September (2011), understanding that there was a major amount of site preparation necessary before we could install building foundations. We expected to take six-to-seven weeks to get to the point where we could install the first building pad,” Hinrichs said.

Delays in getting permits, however, pushed the start of the first foundation back into early December.

All of the bedrooms were preleased by January, “so the pressure was really on,” Hinrichs said. It gave a whole new meaning to the term “aggressive schedule.” They had eight apartment buildings, a clubhouse, roads, and parking to complete in seven months.

Luckily, “we had one of the best winters ever to build in,” he said, “so we were off to the races.”

The delay did prompt Impact Strategies to reconsider how to construct the buildings, however. They jettisoned their original plan to stick build each building on site in favor of prefabricating wall panels and roof trusses off site.

“BAM Contracting (the carpentry contractor) worked with us to outsource the entire project to Ozark Structures,” Hinrichs said.

They had the first building done and punched out by the end of April and two more completed in June. Construction of the last building took only 10 weeks from start to finish, and it was turned over to the owner at the end of July.

“The biggest challenge was engineering, building, and testing the retaining wall,” Hinrichs said. They had to get the biggest wall up and back filled before they could start the foundation for the last building.

Rosch Co. built the massive wall.

“We started in March and worked two shifts to haul in thousands of tons of rock to backfill behind the wall. We got done the second week of May. We then started the last building and it was ready to punch out by the end of July,” Hinrichs said.

Not Your Parents’ Apartment

Student housing is different from a traditional apartment building. To start with, they rent beds, not apartments. In a three-bedroom unit, for example, each student pays rent on his or her own bedroom and doesn’t have to worry about filling the other bedrooms. The manager of the apartment complex does that.

Student housing companies typically have “roommate matching” services to fill the bedrooms in each apartment and activity directors to promote socializing among the tenants.

Each bedroom at the Enclave is designed for a bed and a desk and comes with its own bathroom. The shared spaces in the apartment consist of a living room, a kitchen, and a laundry room.

“It is designed to be accommodating to students, durable, and safe,” Henderson said. A lightweight concrete topping was applied to all the floors for fire safety, durability, and sound insulation. Fire sprinklers were installed in all apartments. There are double layers of drywall between apartments and bedrooms, again for fire safety, durability, and sound insulation.

The exterior features stone, brick, and fiber cement siding.

“We considered durability and maintainability in selecting products and finishes,” Henderson said.

“This is not a vinyl development,” Wenzel said, adding that he spent “a lot of money on soundproofing.”

The success of the Enclave “has been way beyond our expectations,” Wenzel said. “We have a huge wait list.”

That instant success has prompted Wenzel and his partners to begin a second student apartment project, the Enclave West, bordering the SIU-E campus at New Poag Road and Northwest University Drive.

“Enclave West will be as close as you can get to the University without actually living on campus,” Wenzel said.

The project will be built in stages until it is twice the size of the Enclave. The first phase of 336 beds is slated to be available for occupancy in August 2013. It will be similar in appearance to the Enclave, but have a “somewhat different layout,” he said. It will consist of four-bedroom and two-bedroom units.

Wenzel is not concerned that declining college enrollments across Illinois could signal a reduction in demand for the kind of housing he is developing.

Enrollment at SIU-E has plateaued at just over 14,000 after increasing almost every year from 10,600 in 1980. That stands in sharp contrast to the enrollment trend at SIU’s main campus in Carbondale. Enrollment there has fallen for eight straight years. At 18,847 it now stands 24 percent below the peak level reached in 1991.

“I look over a 10-year span,” Wenzel said. “SIU-E has done everything right. They’ve grown dramatically, they’re getting students with higher ACT and SAT scores, they’re now Division I in all sports, and they’re building. They have a new art building, and a new science building will be completed soon. And, they are keeping the cost of education affordable. I think there are bright days ahead for that school.”

Wenzel is a graduate of SIU-E himself, as is his father.

“Cities all over the country want universities and the people that come to them. Edwardsville is getting it,” Hinrichs said.

January 3, 2013 | by Peter Downs, Editor

St. Louis Construction News and Review

SIUE students have now moved into the first apartment complex in Edwardsville specifically designed for college students.

Almost 300 students moved into Enclave apartments on Aug. 13, the first day the complex was opened. About 52 more students moved in throughout the first week, bringing the complex to capacity.

Enclave developer Corey Wenzel said the residents have been pleased with their new homes.

“The feedback has been amazing,” Wenzel said. “The students love the units, the grounds and the swimming pool.”

Senior kinesiology major Brendan Corkery, of Edwardsville, was impressed by his new apartment.

“I have a big bedroom, a pretty darn large kitchen and a big washer and dryer room,” Corkery said.

Wenzel said all building construction is complete. Landscaping, sod-laying and trees planting will continue for the next few weeks. Two new bags courts will also be added next week.

Enclave is located less than two miles from campus, near the intersection of Highway 157 and Esic Drive. It is a 120-unit complex with fully furnished two- and three-bedroom apartments that each include a washer and dryer.  The complex has an outdoor swimming pool and a sand volleyball court. The clubhouse is equipped with a fitness center, flat-screen TVs, a pool table and a foosball table.

Sophomore nursing major Kelsey Gabor, of Bolingbrook, said the student-only complex had a lively atmosphere during the first week.

“Last week was crazy. There were groups of people hanging out all over,” Gabor said.

Enclave West, also developed by Wenzel, is scheduled to open in August 2013. It will be located at the intersection of New Poag Road and Northwest University Drive.

According to Wenzel, there have been a few lessons learned that can be applied to his pending Enclave West project.

“We’ll probably expand unit sizes and make the bathrooms a little larger,” Wenzel said. “There were no major mistakes, just minor tweaks here and there.”

According to Wenzel, Madison County issued grading permits last week for the Enclave West site. He anticipates ground breaking on construction soon.

Enclave West will also have fully furnished two- and three-bedroom units. The complex will have an 8,000-square-foot clubhouse with swimming pool, a large quad area for recreation, a fitness center, a sand volleyball court and a putting green.

Pre-leasing for Enclave West is anticipated to begin in October. The price per bedroom is expected to be the same as Enclave — $555-$585 per month — with all utilities included. Like Enclave, Enclave West will lease per bedroom and will provide a roommate locator service.

August 23, 2012 | Roger Starkey

The Alestle

Encouraged by the response to his nearly completed apartment complex near Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, developer Corey Wenzel is embarking on a similar off-campus project to open next year.

Enclave, a 352-bed development, is scheduled to open in time for the start of SIUE classes Aug. 20. Wenzel hopes to open a sister development, Enclave West, in August 2013. Together, the projects will accommodate nearly 700 students. Later phases at Enclave West could push the total count to about 1,000.

Despite a vigorous dorm-building program going back more than 15 years, SIUE has slipped behind student demand for housing. The university anticipates a slight increase this fall from the record 14,235 enrollment last year. Michael Schultz, SIUE’s student housing director, said a few of the university’s 3,600 beds remain open for incoming freshmen but otherwise, “We’re running a little bit of waiting list right now.”

“The tremendous size of Generation Y, combined with economic uncertainty, have pushed enrollment to new heights over the past decade,” said Jim Arbury, the council’s vice president of student housing. “This has put tremendous pressure on universities across the country as they attempt to keep up with the demand for on-campus living, offering a new opportunity for student housing firms.”

Wenzel said he and his development partners examined several schools and college towns before choosing SIUE for their projects.

“SIUE hit on all cylinders,” said Wenzel, 31, who has an MBA and an undergraduate accounting degree from the university.

A growing need for off-campus housing plus receptive university and city officials prompted Wenzel to launch the $20 million Enclave project last year. He said the complex is fully leased and has a waiting list.

Wenzel’s business model: Build two-, three- and four-bedroom apartments with kitchens and a living room. Give each bedroom a private bath and lease bedrooms individually for about $550 monthly. If a student leaves, remaining roommates’ rents are unchanged.

Enclave will lease apartments to students who want to live together and provide a roommate locator service for individuals. The complex will have a swimming pool and a clubhouse with a pool table, flat screen TVs, lounges and a fitness center.

A bigger clubhouse, an outdoor movie theater, a putting green and racquetball courts are planned for Enclave West.

“We’re going to make this one a little bit more of a sports theme,” Wenzel said.

The $20 million Enclave West will have 337 beds. Two later phases costing an additional $10 million could push the Enclave West bed count to more than 700. Wenzel said he completed the purchase of the 17-acre site this month.

Schultz said the two projects are the first private housing developments aimed exclusively at SIUE students. Without the private developments, the university would have to “look a lot more harder” at providing more on-campus housing, he said.

Wenzel said much of the projects’ financial backing is through a family partnership that operates an accounting business in Edwardsville and Belleville. Wenzel’s father, Michael, who began the business, and his wife, Crystal, have degrees from SIUE.

“There are a lot of roots here,” the younger Wenzel said.

He said that student housing projects can be assets to college towns. New complexes with sprinkler systems, up-to-date electronics and modern security are better than old, near-campus houses divided into apartments, Wenzel said.

He added that Enclave and Enclave West apartments will be furnished.

“All students need to bring are their TVs and their personal items.”

June 15, 2012 | Tim Bryant

St. Louis Post Dispatch

A planned $20 million apartment complex will help accommodate growing enrollment at nearby Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.

The Enclave will have 120 two- and three-bedroom units that will house as many as 352 students, beginning with the fall semester next year. The 32-acre site is on the west side of Illinois Route 157 near ESIC Drive.

Corey Wenzel, an Edwardsville accountant who heads a development group called Enclave LLC, said the Enclave will be the first private apartment development in the Edwardsville area designed specifically for university students.

Wenzel said the monthly rental cost will be in the mid-$500s. Apartments will be fully furnished, with wireless Internet, cable TV and utilities included. Each of the private bedrooms will have its own bathroom, and occupants will sign individual leases so that, if one leaves, those remaining won’t face higher costs. Amenities will include a swimming pool and a clubhouse with exercise equipment.

Wenzel calls the development “very high end.” He said the site is bordered by trees and will offer the sort of attractive seclusion suggested by the name of the complex. A Madison County Transit bike trail is nearby.

The Enclave will be about five minutes by car from the central SIUE campus and five minutes from the Edwardsville Crossing shopping center.

Wenzel and his wife are both graduates of SIUE and live in Edwardsville. They say they believe the development will benefit the university and the community.

“It’s a great university and a great town, and something like this will help them both move forward,” he said.

Wenzel said he was told SIUE had to turn away more than 300 requests for student housing this semester. He said SIUE on-campus housing offers about 3,500 beds. Some of those prospective students who could not get campus housing likely went to other schools, he said.

SIUE enrollment has increased for at least four consecutive years, with this fall’s enrollment at a record 14,235. SIUE spokesman Greg Conroy said the university had to turn away 350 requests for on-campus housing.

IMPACT Strategies of Fairview Heights will manage construction of the all-union project, and IMPACT President Mark Hinrichs said it comes at a good time for the company and the region, a time of limited commercial construction activity. He said it is estimated the project will provide as many as 80,000 man-hours of work, with peak employment of 70 to 80 workers.

“It’s a shot in the arm for our company and the local construction trades,” Hinrichs said.

Scott Hanson, Edwardsville’s city planner, said the developers’ plans indicate a quality development.

A previous student housing proposal for the same site met strong resistance from residents of a nearby neighborhood in 2008, but city officials approved the project and the city prevailed when a neighborhood association sued to overturn the decision. The prospective developer, Place Properties, later decided not to pursue the project.

Hanson said that unlike the Place Properties proposal, the Enclave will follow existing city zoning regulations with only three minor variations.

Wenzel said the planned Enclave buildings will likely reduce the number of students living in other city neighborhoods.

Wenzel said the developers have ‘several attractive suitors” but no commitments for the property’s commercial frontage along Route 157.

September 23, 2011 | Terry Hillig

St. Louis Post Dispatch