CONDOS OPEN
After months of reconstruction following a 2016 arson fire, The Carlisle complex opens
The sounds of clinking champagne glasses were heard Wednesday as the highly anticipated 34-unit condominium complex The Carlisle finally opened. Toasting the end of construction at The Carlisle were Albuquerque’s economic development director, city councilors, business leaders, Nob Hill residents, new condo owners and the development team of Kenny Hinkes and HB Construction.
Hinkes said getting the $10 million project to the finish line was a big challenge considering that an arson fire just before Thanksgiving 2016 brought down the nearly completed building. About a half dozen of the units had already been sold.
After the site was cleared of debris and the insurance claim was settled, Hinkes and his partners, Adam and Jason Harrington, said they were too heavily invested to walk away from the project, which is seen by many as a hallmark of urban revitalization along the Central corridor. The Harringtons’ company, HB Construction, is the general contractor on The Carlisle, located at 3600 Central SE.
“This represented nearly 3½ years of securing funding, planning and design and construction,” said Hinkes. “It took three hours to destroy it,” he said of convicted arsonist David Hickman, who pleaded guilty last year to five counts of arson for fires he set at the Carlisle, a Starbucks coffee shop, Shred-it, Barnes
& Noble and Old Navy. A federal judge sentenced him to 20 years last week.
The new owners started moving in at the end of March, and “are thrilled” with their new abodes and access to the Nob Hill action, Hinkes said.
“At least the story ends on a happy note,” he said.
Twenty-one of the 34 units already have been sold.
Most of the condos open onto a courtyard garden, which boasts trees, flowers, water features and night lighting. Residents also have access to a private rooftop patio where they can enjoy the night sky and city lights as well as underground parking with dedicated spaces and storage facilities.
Touted as luxury residences with highend finishes and features, a one-bedroom one-bath unit is priced at $257,000, with a monthly homeowner’s fee of $250. The most expensive units currently offered are several two-bedroom, two-bathroom residences ranging in price from $357,000 to $384,000. Several penthouse units sold in the mid-$400,000s.
Hinkes expects the rest to go under contract fairly soon.
On the ground floor, Hinkes has leased space to a mortgage lender and a title insurance company.