Construction has wrapped on a new transit-oriented, attainable housing community in the heart of Tempe, having marked the grand opening on March 15.

The 129-unit multifamily project, Dwell @ 5th and Farmer, is located on a two-acre parcel at the intersection of 5th Street and Farmer Avenue. Dwell Tempe will provide new housing options for residents working in downtown Tempe, Arizona State University and other locations, a press release explained.

The attainable housing units are integrated with two existing creative office buildings and open space, creating a “true mixed-use development.” The Tempe project is the first in what is envisioned to be a series of Dwell developments in the Valley, according to the release.

Dwell is positioned to provide attainable downtown housing where rents are at the highest in the Valley. The new multifamily project includes a number of enticing amenities to create a true urban retreat, including:

• Large, landscaped pedestrian areas and open outdoor space;
• Live/work-oriented amenity rooms for residents, as well as Zoom rooms and private meeting rooms;
• A fitness center and dog-friendly features;
• Resident lounges and rooftop lounge;
• Convenient, walkable access to light rail and streetcar stations.

Kolby Smith of Holualoa Companies said in the release that they are pleased to celebrate the opening of this new community at a great site just adjacent to downtown Tempe.

“This is an ideal location for attainable urban living and we are excited to make the Dwell community a reality in Tempe,” Smith said. “We look forward to expanding the concept across the Valley to increase the availability of attainable housing on a larger scale.”

Tempe Mayor Corey Woods said in the release that the city recognizes the critical link between development, business, housing and community, and Dwell will “greatly” help the city in bringing about more workforce housing in the downtown area.

 “This project will allow residents to easily commute by mass transit or even walk to work and its location will encourage shopping and dining at local businesses in the area. I am thrilled to see this project come to life,” Woods said.

Conceived to be a combination of flexible workspace and apartments for urban professionals, Dwell is designed to address the increasing housing accessibility challenge in urban locations without sacrificing quality while capitalizing on the increasing availability of hybrid/remote work, the release stated. 

Each of the units is designed to accommodate work from home, full-time or part-time, with either a separate office, or an alcove for a desk, or a millwork built-in desk.

Rents are kept lower by developing underutilized commercial properties to reduce land and parking costs, and by using the urban environment itself as an amenity and replacing expensive and noisy pool/party decks with quieter and casual collaborative areas that are much less costly to pass along to residents, the release added.

Tempe is adding more than a million square feet of office and commercial space and hundreds of hotel rooms within a half mile of the site. 

Steve Betts, managing director of development for Holualoa Companies, said in the release that Dwell will contribute to the need for housing to support Tempe’s growing workforce downtown.

“Tempe is one of the most dynamic job markets in the Valley, and this project provides a critical new resource for housing to support its growth,” Betts said. “As these Dwell communities expand to have a Valley-wide presence, they will be an important step forward in creating more housing options in the region.”