Inside Riverside: What’s Happening Now at Wilton’s Newest Apartment Complex [PHOTOS]

Two members of the GOOD Morning Wilton team recently toured Riverside Wilton, the new 174-unit apartment complex at 141 Danbury Rd., the former site of the Melissa and Doug corporate offices.

GMW got an inside look at the property that has garnered so much attention —

• hailed by some as the first large development to signal progress toward Wilton’s housing diversity goals in the 2019 Plan of Conservation and Development (POCD) and an example of grand list growth achieved through redeveloping underperforming commercial properties
• criticized by others who believe the development’s size and design are out of character in Wilton’s suburban setting and will burden the Town‘s schools, municipal resources and traffic

GMW‘s tour happened to be move-in day for Peter Dee, who said he left Darien to be close to his son’s family in Wilton. Dee spends part of the year in Florida, but said Riverside Wilton was the first and only place he looked for an apartment locally.

“I saw this and said there’s no reason to look further. Look at this!” Dee exclaimed, gesturing around the lounge area where he was seated, with an adjacent open kitchen, and a view to the courtyard and pool area.

Occupancy

Dee wasn’t the only new resident GMW observed — somewhat to our surprise, given that parts of the building are still under construction. We saw a man in the fitness center; a woman in a co-working space; a father of three current Wilton High School students unloading belongings in the garage who said he’d recently sold their Wilton home and was downsizing; and a couple sunbathing by the pool, among others — reflecting a wide range of life stages. (Very wide indeed, judging by the sound of a baby inside one unit.)

In fact, 15% of the units are already occupied, after some units were ready for occupancy on June 1. The final phase of construction is expected to be completed by Aug. 15, according to Riverside’s Community Manager Darnell Faulk.

Riverside was 32% leased as of last week (July 11). Faulk said she expects the building will be fully leased soon — with the goal of having it fully occupied before winter.

Fifteen of the 174 units are three-bedroom units, including four that have additional loft space. (That’s the complex’s largest floor model, at roughly 1,800 sq.ft.)

Faulk said those larger units were quickly “snatched up” — partly because of the limited number of three-bedroom units, coupled with the fact that they were finished first.

“We started pre-leasing March 15 and I’d say by March 17, [the] three-bedrooms were gone,” Faulk said, adding that the largest corner unit had rented to former Wilton residents who’d downsized and relocated to an apartment in Norwalk but wanted to be back in Wilton.

GMW asked about the profile of renters to date. Faulk did not discuss specific demographic details, but emphasized “a mix” that included families, couples, downsizers and empy-nesters.

It remains to be seen how many school-aged children will be in the complex when it is fully leased.

“We have [families] but they’re more in the three-bed[room units]. In the two-bedrooms, we do have couples that have children, there’s just not as many,” Faulk said.

“There’s a lot of couples that are downsizing,” Faulk continued. “We have a lot of empty-nesters. A lot of people put their homes on the market, but they wanted to stay in the zip code, so a lot of people that are still local Wilton residents — and that’s nice to hear.”

“I have some people coming in from New York City, some people coming in from neighboring towns like Fairfield, some from Stamford, a couple from Ridgefield… so they’re local [from] the area, but they’re just looking for a new town,” she said.

“[We] have a lot of residents that are work-from-home, we have some that are hybrid, and we have some that travel all throughout the [area] or commuting into Stamford [or] New York.”

When Faulk did not bring up ASML, GMW did. Faulk said Riverside’s representatives “have not been successful” yet in engaging with ASML’s human resources or relocation staff, but would welcome any interested ASML employees.

The Rent

Market-price rents at Riverside start at $2,930 per month, with additional fees for optional items such as parking and pets.

• 1-bedroom units: $2,930-$3,650
• 2-bedroom units: $3,615- $5,130
• 3-bedroom units: $5,000- $5,840.

There are 18 units — 10% of the building’s total inventory — designated as “affordable” i.e., for renters whose income is restricted to 80% or less of the area mean income.

• 4 affordable 1-bedroom units: $2,558 
• 13 affordable 2-bedroom units: $3,099
• 1 affordable 3-bedroom unit: $3,604 

“Luxury” and “A Sense of Home”

Anyone visiting the property would probably agree the property’s amenities are plentiful. GMW saw a well-equipped fitness center; a yoga and spin cycle room; work-related areas such as conference rooms and other work spaces; a secure package delivery room; an outdoor courtyard with pool, lounge furniture, sundeck, fire pits, gas grills and lush planters; a “sky lounge” on the building’s top floor with treetop and views of Norwalk River; and other well-appointed common spaces.

Faulk pointed out the attention to details — from the refrigerator in the package delivery room for groceries, to a 24/7 coffee station and a pet spa, just to name a few.

Riverside’s website and marketing materials emphasize the upscale feel, replete with descriptors like “luxury,” “state of the art,” and “resort-style.”

Faulk believes the quality of the facilities and “a sense of home” will differentiate Riverside from other options in the rental market.

“Anyone can have the ‘product’. It depends on the quality of the product and the sense of home,” Faulk said. “There’s some communities where [residents] just feel like a number… so that’s what really makes me separate myself from other community managers, because you get that sense of home. I think that’s going to separate us, to not only have the product amazing, but you have the service and the attention.”

“That kind of speaks for itself, to make people want to be here,” she added.

Faulk indicated she was aware that some Wilton residents have concerns about the development, and invited residents to visit.

“We just hope that everyone can come and take a look and see for themselves,” she said. “We just want [you] to see it’s so nice and ultimately a good thing.”

“Open House Saturdays” are expected to begin July 27. Brokers and other interested parties may contact the office to schedule a tour during office hours.