HOMESTEAD HAPPENINGS
HOMESTEAD U EXPANDS!
Homestead U acquires a new community, SkyGarden, a recently built, 309-bed mid-rise building located on the historic Charleston peninsula, serving students at College of Charleston, Medical University of South Carolina Charleston School of Law. The property offers residents unparalleled, luxury building amenities and benefits from its premier location between Meeting and King Streets along the booming Upper King Street corridor. SkyGarden is 100% pre-leased for the 2021/2022 academic year.
"Recent acquisition of these three properties reflects our confidence in student housing, and the collective team remains committed to further growth," commented Seamus Brennan, Director of Capital Markets for Homestead U. "Further, we are optimistic that our student residents' academic year experiences will soon look and feel more 'normal' than those of recent, mitigating consumer uncertainty. We expect to achieve strong performance in this sector over the long term," he concluded.
Champ Chain Winner: Ashley Gall
Please join us in congratulating the May Champ Chain Winner, the team member who went above and beyond to deliver on our mission statement of providing the best resident life experience possible: Ashley Gall, our Business Administrator over the Live South Green portfolio in beautiful Athens OH!
"Ashley has been instrumental in my ability to travel for due diligence and onboarding of new sites. She has handled her BA role and has adapted very well to interim Community Manager when I am gone. She has executed training sessions with other BAs and has become an important support person for other teammates across the portfolio. She even traveled to Arizona to support NorthPointe during the transition and sale. Of all my team members, she has shown the most growth; I would love to see her recognized for her contributions to our team in Athens and across our portfolio." - Nominated by Donna Stage, Community Manager.
Thank you, Ashley, for your commitment to the company and how you support your teammates across the organization! Our mission statement is also to provide the best employee experience, and it's leaders like you that make this happen and bring our culture to life. I echo Donna in saying we are all so proud of your growth and appreciative of all you do!
Employee Spotlight: Kaitlyn Key
Name: Kaitlyn Key aka The Boog aka Stacey Boone
Job Title: Leasing and Marketing Director
Community: 2818 and Parkway
How long have you been with Homestead? Accumulatively 7 years
What were you doing before Homestead? Probably nothing good haha. I was a farm hand and in college.
Where are you originally from? Lubbock, Texas
What are your hobbies? Hunting, tailgating, cycling, skiing and music.
What would you most likely tell your 13 year old self? You cant tip cows.
If you could have coffee with three people, dead or alive, who would it be?
Mike Leach, Bob Knight and Guy Purington (And no talking about Entrata)
Who is the most famous person you have ever met? Barack Obama or Neal McCoy
What's your dream vacation? Heliskiing in Switzerland
What is one THING you can't live without? My dog, JuJu on that Beat
What is your proudest moment at Homestead? Hitting 100% pre lease 3 years in a row at The Ranch.
CAPTAIN JOHN’S HEALTH TIP: TAKE CARE OF YOUR MENTAL HEALTH
When stress got to be too much for TED Fellow Sangu Delle, he had to confront his own deep prejudice: that men shouldn't take care of their mental health. In a personal talk, Delle shares how he learned to handle anxiety in a society that's uncomfortable with emotions. As he says: "Being honest about how we feel doesn't make us weak — it makes us human."
Notable Anniversaries- June
Tammy Lusk, University Village, 24 years
John Baylous, Georgetown , 9 years
Guy Purington, Home Office, 8 years
Shannon Latsko, Home Office, 7 years
Cory Ratai, Home Office, 6 years
Isaac Greenwood, Helix, 5 years
Brenda White, University Village, 3 years
John Janning, Home Office, 2 years
Anne Smith, Home Office, 1 year
Naomi Opritza, University Village, 1 year
Daniel Holt, Pavilion, 1 year
Perry Eldredge, River Park, 1 year
Michael Cucchiara, University Village, 1 year
Tyler Devol, River Park, 1 year
Laura Targac, College Station, 1 year
McKenzie McGonigal, The Valley, 1 year
HOMESTEAD U EXPANDS!
Homestead U acquired two student assets, Parkway and 2818 Student Apartments, at Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas. This acquisition brings an additional 1,100 plus beds to the student portfolio and brings the total to 3 assets in the College Station market.
Both communities are going through significant upgrades in the units and amenity spaces. To raise awareness in the market, 2818 and Parkway went through a branding facelift. Eve Detter, Lead Graphic Designer for Homestead Companies, oversaw the project and brought on a new yet similar identity. "With the addition of Parkway and 2818, it was an exciting opportunity to leverage our existing Cottage brand to increase brand equity in College Station. By co-branding all three properties, we're able to build upon our solid and well-recognized presence to expand our reach in the student housing market."
The Homestead team also welcomes Jeremy Beck. Jeremy comes with years of experience in the student housing space and has a proven record of increasing NOI in distressed markets.
Construction Roundup
Homestead Construction provided these cool views from the 4th Street project in Italian Village. This site will feature a 66 unit complex with first-floor parking and retail, and the team expects the project to be completed in late Spring 2022.
John Janning, Project Engineer for Homestead Construction, is overseeing the Skydeck addition to Harlow on Main in Downtown Columbus. Late May/early June is when the project will be complete, and a Skydeck Launch Party will come following two weeks from the soft opening.
Harlow Skydeck is well underway with the arrival of all its materials in the next two weeks. The project is 1/4 complete, and all prep work and staging have been completed. Homestead Construction will begin setting all concrete columns for the wooden pergolas and is expected to continue to go vertical next week to install the metal railings, columns, and stairway. "One of the greatest challenges of this project is also its greatest strength; with the collaboration of both the Homestead Development Team and Construction team, designing the Harlow Skydeck from mere renderings and concept to developing a solidified plan on paper has been a great learning experience and challenge. Learning the sequence of construction and how items are put together has been a true eye-opener. This project has allowed our construction team to grow in skill and confidence, allowing the successful planning and coordination between Homestead Companies on all levels.", said John Janning.
Champ Chain Winner: Theo Carter
"Theo prides himself on efficiency and making our residents, staff members, and vendors happy. Theo lives onsite and has earned the nickname "Uncle Theo" from the residents and employees, as he feels like a part of everyone's family. I see Theo doing things like jumping residents' car batteries, carrying groceries, giving daily treats to our resident pups...there is nothing asked of him that Theo isn't willing to help with. Theo is our chef at resident events and stays to help clean up at the end of every social event. Last month we did a "Cheers and Beers" event for St. Patrick's Day, and Theo cooked all the food for our event. Many of our reviews praise him and his staff for their work; Theo is my right hand, a great friend and teammate, and he is the HU Champ! " - Nominated by Rebekah Wolford and Mitch Waranch at The Pavilion.
Thank you, Theo, for your dedication to our mission statement and for bringing so much joy to our residents and our team! We appreciate you!!
Honorable mentions to the other April nominees below:
April Champ Chain Nominees
Alicia Pae, River Gate
Felipe Juarez, The Cottages
Frank Ransom, Helix
Jeremy Orta, The Cottages
Jordyn Kitko, The Valley
Keara Lynn, The Cottages
Naiya Patel, The View
Neka Smith, The Cottages
Riley Kelly, The View
Tinesha Smith, The Cottages
Tyler Devol, River Gate
Who will our May Champ be? What are YOU going to do today to provide the best resident life experience possible?
Employee Spotlight: Robert Banks
Job Title: Talent Acquisition Specialist
Community: Home Office
How long have you been with Homestead? 11 months and 18 days
What were you doing before Homestead? Working for Washington Prime Group as a Junior Recruiter and much more!
Where are you originally from? Columbus, OH
What are your hobbies? Working out, cooking, exploring cities (pre-pandemic), gaming
What would you most likely tell your 13 year old self?
Get out and make things happen!
If you could have coffee with three people, dead or alive, who would it be?
Dwayne Johnson (The Rock), Paul Walker, and Barack Obama
Who is the most famous person you have ever met?
Shaq
What's your dream vacation?
New Zealand
What is one THING you can't live without? Family
What is your proudest moment at Homestead? Recruiting top candidates! I'm making a positive impact in the person's life. I love to see them achieving their goals and the company's goals.