One of the most crucial questions in today’s student housing development market is the question of location. A number of prominent companies have made the ability to be walkable to campus a big issue when it comes to a property’s resale value. Other developers, meanwhile, eschew walkable locations in favor of value for tenants. For a time, a big industry trend was amenity-laced properties located a few miles from campus, selling a lifestyle, and typically an oversized pool, in exchange for a slightly longer campus commute. More recently, a countertrend has emerged, with builders catering to students looking to walk across the street to class. “Beachfront property” is often the preferred term for developers of this mindset. Is close proximity still the dominant trend? A group of student housing developers and architects debated the topic during a panel discussion at the 11th annual InterFace Student Housing conference, held in April in Austin, Texas. David Senden, principal of KTGY Group Architecture + Planning, served as moderator and opened with a simple question: What exactly is urban infill, and what is cottage product? Todd Gaines, vice president of development at Austin-based Aspen Heights Partners, answered that his definition of urban infill is …
