As soon as an architect friend showed him a video of the Ori system, Matt Branagh knew it was just what he was looking for. The fourth-generation Owner/CEO of Branagh Development, Lafayette, Calif., saw that Ori could make his studio apartments feel like junior one-bedroom units—perfect, he said, for the “huge wave of people” coming to Oakland from San Francisco to get more space at lower rental cost in a first-class building.
He leased five Studio Suites and purchased eight Pocket Closets for Maya, his firm’s 47-unit apartment building in Oakland, which opened in March. He’s bundling a $275/month premium into the leases for units with a Studio Suite and $95/month for those with a Pocket Closet.
Branagh said tenant adoption for the Pocket Closet was “really strong.” “People get it,” he said. “It’s a price point that they’re willing to pay for, and it’s unique—their friends don’t have it.” He said some prospective tenants were “a little intimidated” working the robotic keyboard at first, but “once they did it a couple of times, they loved it.”
He said Ori turned his floor plans around in 3-4 days and suggested several options. The manufacturer flew in two technicians from Boston to install the systems. They had to do a work-around for the Pocket Closets because the nonmoving section of the two-part system would have bumped into the apartments’ mini-splits. Even so, “the installation was quicker than expected,” just a few days, he said. Branagh has ordered six more.
For Nova Quincy, a 171-unit mixed-use rental community in Quincy, Mass., 10 miles south of Boston, Jonathan Miller, Vice President of LBC Boston, has ordered 40 Studio Suites. “Our prospective tenants are young professionals looking for value outside Boston but close to transit in a lively downtown center,” said Miller. The MBTA Red Line stop is a seven-minute walk.
Nova Quincy will open in September, but already there’s been “a ton of interest” in the Ori system from prospective tenants “looking for something innovative.”
Studio Suites will be installed in 10 studio apartments and 30 micro-units (330–400 sf). “One of the primary benefits of Ori is your usable square footage is much greater”—about 100–150 sf more, he has calculated—“than what you’re paying for.” LBC Boston will include a $200–250 monthly rental premium for what they’re calling “Ori Smart” Studios.
SEE ALSO: Robotic interiors: How to make a studio apartment feel as big as a one-bedroom unit
Miller said he wants to see how the leasing goes for the Ori-outfitted units, but so far he’s “definitely bullish” on using Studio Suites in future projects in Quincy, Allston, and Brighton, where LBC Boston has permitting for 1,500 apartments.
Related Stories
Modular Building | Jan 26, 2021
Offsite manufacturing startup iBUILT positions itself to reduce commercial developers’ risks
iBUILT plans to double its production capacity this year, and usher in more technology and automation to the delivery process.
Multifamily Housing | Jan 26, 2021
Merriman Anderson/Architects designs affordable housing complex out of shipping containers
The architect partnered with CitySquare Housing on the project.
Multifamily Housing | Jan 20, 2021
Abandoned Miami hospital gets third life as waterfront condo development
The 1920s King Cole Hotel becomes the Ritz-Carlton Residences Miami in the largest residential adaptive reuse project in South Florida.
Multifamily Housing | Jan 19, 2021
$100 million affordable housing development under construction in Santa Clara
KTGY Architecture + Planning is designing the project.
Multifamily Housing | Jan 14, 2021
The Weekly show, Jan 14, 2021: Passive House innovations, and launching a design studio during the pandemic
This week on The Weekly show, BD+C editors speak with AEC industry leaders about innovations in Passive House design, and the challenges of building a design team and opening a new design studio during a pandemic.
Multifamily Housing | Jan 11, 2021
McHugh Construction completes 5th-tallest all-residential building in the U.S.
McHugh Construction Completes Two Chicago Apartment Projects for Fifield Cos. and Crescent Heights, Including NEMA Chicago –Tallest All-Residential Building in Chicago and 5th Tallest in North Americ
Multifamily Housing | Jan 8, 2021
Student housing development in the time of COVID-19
Despite the coronavirus pandemic, many college and university residences were completed in time for classes, live or virtual. Here are 14 of the best.
Multifamily Housing | Dec 29, 2020
Sarah’s Circle supportive housing facility for women completes in Chicago
Perkins+Will designed the project.
Market Data | Dec 29, 2020
Multifamily transactions drop sharply in 2020, according to special report from Yardi Matrix
Sales completions at end of Q3 were down over 41 percent from the same period a year ago.