Amstar, a Denver-based real estate development firm, hascontracted with the Morgan Group Inc., which will oversee theconstruction of the facility. The infill development site is partof the redevelopment of an old rice storage facility and grainsilos.

The apartment facility, slated to be under construction thisfall, will consist of three- and four-story apartment buildings anda central parking garage. Apartment developers have been activewith new developments around Downtown Houston in recent years.

"The Downtown Houston multifamily market provides the type ofopportunity we have been pursuing on a national basis in moresupply-constrained markets," says K. Brad Broyhill, Amstar'smultifamily properties executive director. "Given the limitedavailability of sites, high barriers to entry near Downtown and thelarge demand for housing inside Loop 610, this submarket providesthe type of characteristics we invest in nationally. Therevitalization of Downtown and the growing CBD labor pool provide avery attractive market for this property."