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Jun 27
2009
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Brand New Amenities- What might they be?Posted by James Martin in Untagged |
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I was flying back from Kentucky having been out there consulting on a couple of properties and got to thinking about fresh ideas for community amenities. What got me thinking was that they were tearing out the old tennis courts. Tennis courts once were a huge draw. Now, not so much. Here, no one was really using them and they needed extensive work. The decision was there was not ROI for tennis courts.
A lot of thought and effort goes into creating amenities that will be pleasing to residents and something that will really keep them at our communities. Right now business centers, work out facilities, spas, event rooms for watching film or sports in groups with bars and kitchens are all popular depending on the community.
But I started thinking what is on the horizon? What could be done with this huge space that was being dug up. I starting thinking that a community garden might be a real resident pleaser. Urban Gardens are ALL the rage this summer as environmentalism and local food come the fore in what people are thinking about. A community garden spot. The more I thought about it the more it seemed like a real cost effective way to get people feeling like their community really was home. It would be easy to do, put in some water, measure out some
plots, maybe even have a community tool shed. Neighborhood gardens in the inner cities and new urbanist developments are hugely popular all across America. Why not in an apartment community? It's dirt cheap!
Another huge thing I see everywhere and especially popular with younger people but catching on with all demographics is the WiFi hot spots. They are at coffee houses, bookstores, record stores, even McDonalds. The idea is not so much the opportunity to use your computer, people can do that at home. The real draw seems to be being able to congrugate with other people. Interestingly enough actually interrelating with those people does no seem to be too important. It seems more like just having other people around is comfortable and pleasing. Let's not get into the question of sitting around with people you have nothing to do with in order to communicate with people somewhere else. That's not for me to understand.
But here is an idea that could really easily be carried back to our communities.
Clubhouse are already set up for this but making them more of a Al Fresco situation would really be a selling feature. Maybe poolside. But the group WiFi locale is definitely a phenomenon. Why not put it to use to make gathering at "home" an amenity.
There are doubtless others. How about a community dog park? Here is a concept that is also Huge in the inner city and in New Ubanist commuities. It takes pet friendly to a whole new level and makes a community really distinctive. Because it not only is pet friendly, it is owner friendly as well whith is even more important.
We need to start thinking about not what traditional amenities have been but what our residents are looking for outside of their community. Bringing some of that home is a good way to insure tenent loyalty.