GREATER LAFAYETTE | General Developments

[deja vu]

I figured it was time to start a thread for the largest metro in west-central Indiana, because why not? The Greater Lafayette metro region is home to about 225,000 people (2021 estimate) and is anchored by two principal cities. Lafayette serves as the largest city and the county seat of Tippecanoe County, while West Lafayette may be most notable as the home of Purdue University. The metro is a hub for automotive manufacturing and related equipment manufacturing. There are some pretty good cultural attractions in the area too. Greater Lafayette is slightly too far away to be considered part of the Indianapolis metro, and it is geographically shy of the generally defined "Northern Indiana" region. See those separate threads for projects in those areas.

Lafayette - Tippecanoe County
Population: 71,200 (2023)

Source: Expedia

West Lafayette - Tippecanoe County
Population: 44,800 (2023)

Source: Nikos Frazier | Journal & Courier

[deja vu]

*NOTE: This rundown will be continually updated as projects are added to the thread. Suggestions for u/c or recently-completed projects are welcome*

Unless noted otherwise, all projects for each location are arranged first by status, then by cost, if known (most to least expensive).

Status Order:

• construction (listed first)
• approved / proposed (listed second)
• completed (listed third)
• demolished / destroyed (listed fourth)
• canceled (listed last)

LAFAYETTE RUNDOWN

LAFAYETTE COMPLETED 2022

The Ellsworth (~ $20 million)
475 South St.

Source: Rebar Development

LAFAYETTE COMPLETED 2020

Pullman Station (~ $11 million)
500 South St.

Source: KJC Architecture








































...

WEST LAFAYETTE RUNDOWN

WEST LAFAYETTE CONSTRUCTION

Purdue Hillenbrand Residence Hall South ($149 Million)
(general location)

Source: LinkedIn | MSKTD & Associates

WEST LAFAYETTE COMPLETED 2024

VERVE West Lafayette (~ $70 million?)
143 W. Wood St.

Source: Verve West Lafayette

WEST LAFAYETTE COMPLETED 2020

Muinzer Development
300 W. State St.

Source: Facebook | Kierra Michael

WEST LAFAYETTE COMPLETED 2019

HUB on Campus ($100 million)
111 S Salisbury St.

Source: apartments.com

RISE on Chauncey ($65 million)
100 S Chauncey Ave.

Source: Knock Rentals

Hi Vine Apartments (~ $32 million?)
302 Vine St.

Source: apartments.com

WEST LAFAYETTE COMPLETED 2018

Campus Edge on Pierce ($54 million)
134 Pierce St.

Source: Nikos Frazier | Journal & Courier

WEST LAFAYETTE COMPLETED 2015

Granite Student Living (~ $30 million?)
225 Northwestern Ave.

Source: Granite Student Living

[deja vu]

West Lafayette -

The first project I though of posting is a new residence hall, currently u/c at Purdue University. Dubbed "Purdue Hillenbrand Residence Hall South" the 8-story structure is rising in the midst of the university's primary residential dormitory area, directly south of the existing Hillenbrand Residence Hall. The 250,000+ SF structure will feature ~900 pod-style beds. The project will also expand and renovate the existing dining area, increasing its capacity from 500 to 800 seats. Construction started in March 2024 and is scheduled to wrap up in June 2026. This will be a big one to keep an eye on - it has a price tag of ~$149 million. You can monitor its progress at the live construction camera, here. Below is an architect's rendering, followed by some current construction photos, posted today on LinkedIn -


Source: LinkedIn | MSKTD & Associates










Source: LinkedIn | Gavin Wanstreet (F.A. Wilhelm Construction Co.)

[deja vu]

West Lafayette -

Between 2019 and 2024, this single block near Purdue University underwent an incredible transformation (just look around on Google and use the timeline slider). Away went the gas station, the church, some single-family detached homes, and a few outdated low-rise apartment structures, replaced with towering "luxury" high-rise student housing, all built by mega real estate development companies geared towards student housing.

Upon its opening in 2019, RISE on Chauncey (100 S Chauncey Ave.) became the tallest tower in the city. At 16 stories / 167-ft / 458,000 SF, it cost $65 million and provides 283 apartments with 675 beds -


Source: Knock Rentals

Adjacent to this, HUB on Campus - also opened in 2019 at 111 S Salisbury St. - came in as the new 2nd tallest at 11 stories. It has 228 units / ~ 600 beds, and the estimated cost is $100 million -


Source: apartments.com

The newest addition - VERVE West Lafayette - opened just in time for the fall 2024 semester at 143 W. Wood St. While it is the squattest of the three (at just 7 stories), it filled the remaining 1/2 block. So at 400,000+ SF, what it lacks in height is made up for in floor area. And with 235 units / 751 beds, it actually houses the most students of all three buildings. I could not readily find reliable construction cost data, but based on the square footage and average unit price of similar projects in 2024, I'd estimate this to be around $70 million -


Source: Verve West Lafayette

[deja vu]

West Lafayette -

It's worth mentioning that one block away from all of this stands another 10-story student apartment project that opened in 2018 (at 134 Pierce St.) for $54 million. In 2019 it was sold by original developer / owner Core Spaces and Up Campus Properties when their new, aforementioned HUB development opened one block away.

The buyer - American Campus Communities - was a company that has been trying to get in on the student housing rental scene in West Lafayette. They rebranded it to Campus Edge on Pierce -


Source: Nikos Frazier | Journal & Courier

[GR John]

Thanks for starting this thread. Lafayette is definitely an overlooked small town, with a great little downtown.

[deja vu]

Originally Posted by GR John

Thanks for starting this thread. Lafayette is definitely an overlooked small town, with a great little downtown.

You are welcome, and agreed! I definitely find myself drawn more to small to mid-size metro areas. They are more familiar to me, having lived in similar-size metro areas myself, for much of my life. And they are not quite as overwhelming to keep up with, development-wise. Being based in Michigan, I won't know all of the nuanced development details, but I'm hoping that if this thread gains some traction, then others can help fill-in the gaps. Indiana in general seems to have pretty sparse coverage on SSP, and too many parallels to my home state to not be interested -

Sticking with the student housing theme, here's a few more fairly recent ones, from West Lafayette - all within walking distance of the main campus -

Muinzer Management opened a mixed-use building at 300 W. State St. in 2020. The 5-story development features a small-format Target on the ground floor, with student apartments above -


Source: Facebook | Kierra Michael

One block away from this, Hi Vine Apartments (302 Vine St.) opened in 2019. The 5-story mixed-use development features 73 1 and 2-befroom units -


Source: apartments.com

Kitty-corner from this, Granite Student Living built a 5-story mixed-use development at 225 Northwestern Avenue. opened just a few years prior in 2015 -


Source: Granite Student Living

[ethereal_reality]

.
Thanks for the thread on Lafayette, deja vu.
I've lived in both Lafayette and West Lafayette.

.

[Dariusb]

Some nice projects in the Lafayette area. Always great to see smaller cities getting some shine.

[deja vu]

Originally Posted by ethereal_reality

.
Thanks for the thread on Lafayette, deja vu.
I've lived in both Lafayette and West Lafayette.

.

You're welcome! When did you live there? If you have any insights to share, please do!

Originally Posted by Dariusb

Some nice projects in the Lafayette area. Always great to see smaller cities getting some shine.

Absolutely. I like learning about development in the smaller cities.

[deja vu]

Much of the new development that is popping up in both cities is part of a conscious plan by officials to grow the urban metro population by providing enticing new (densified) housing. Shifting now from "West" to Lafayette proper, where hundreds of units have popped up since the pandemic started -

Lafayette -

The Ellsworth opened in fall 2022 at the southwest corner of 5th and South streets. This 5-story mixed use project brought 97 apartment units to the downtown area at a cost of around $20 million -


Source: Rebar Development

Direct kitty-corner from this is Pullman Station, another 5-story mixed-use apartment development that opened in fall 2020. It has ~ 76 units and cost ~ $11 million to build -


Source: KJC Architecture

[deja vu]

West Lafayette -

Purdue Hillenbrand Residence Hall South has progressed to the fifth level -






Source: LinkedIn | Gavin Wanstreet