Former Marion Street Senior Apartments Sold: The Future of the Property
Former Marion Street Senior Apartments Have a New Owner
The once lively Marion Street senior apartments in downtown Columbia have chosen a new owner. The high-rise was the hub of affordable senior housing provided by the Columbia Housing Authority from the year 1975 to 2021. Post its closure, the building suffered extensive damages causing the seniors to move out.
The Cost Dilemma
The housing authority deemed the damages irreparable after estimating a hefty price tag of $16 million for repairs. The estimate was too close to the replacement cost of $20 million. With no particular plans for the property, the high-rise was left abandoned until recently.
New Ownership and their Plans
In January 2023, a developer related to a company known for transforming apartments into hotels became the proud owner of the property. The developer procured the property by paying over $4.8 million. The building is located at 1930 Marion St., and estimates suggest it housed 146 units over 16 floors.
More than 50 units of the building were uninhabitable when Columbia Housing announced the closure of the Marion Street apartments in January 2021. The reasons for this were mainly water and sewage line issues. It took more than two years to relocate the 90 seniors who resided there.
A Potential Conversion into a Hotel?
While downtown Columbia has seen recent developments related to new hotels and similar projects, whether or not the former Marion Street Apartments will follow the same fate is yet to be confirmed. The new owner, Kunal Dave, is the CEO of the Laxmi Hotels Group based in Charlotte.
The group specializes in transforming apartment buildings into hotels, causing many to believe that the dilapidated high-rise may soon turn into a bustling hotel. While no plans have been announced yet, the city is eagerly awaiting more information to materialize the potential future of the property.
New Developments and Future Projects
In the meantime, several other new hotels are becoming operational in downtown Columbia. However, the Marion Street building remains a site of interest for many due to its past and future potential.
Plans for immense changes in downtown Columbia are on the rise, with proposals rolling in for developments such as the construction of a new 100,000-square-foot office building and headquarters. The city is swiftly growing and witnessing significant urban development. The sale of the Marion Street high-rise adds another noteworthy event to this phase of growth and development.
As the city continues to expand and renovate, with new hotels coming online and several projects in the pipeline, the rehab and potential modernization of the Marion Street apartments adds an exciting development to watch. The eventual reveal of the property’s future will indeed be a transformative event for both the neighborhood and its residents.
Stay Tuned for More Updates
Updates on the future plans of the property are highly anticipated. The city and its dwellers are ardent to see what role the former senior apartments will play in the ever-growing skyline and urban development of downtown Columbia.
