Construction has begun on a new 8-story apartment building at the former parking lot on the southwest corner of 49th and Spruce. The building will include 150 residential units from the first through seventh floors and a roof deck on the eighth floor. The project also includes 41 parking spaces and 63 bicycle spaces on the ground floor. 

The project developers are Hillel Tsarfati and Kfir Binnfeld, who teamed up with the Orens Brothers to redevelop the nearby Croydon building. The owners of the parking lot at 49th and Spruce, they first proposed an apartment building in that location in 2016. The initial plan included nine floors with 160 residential units and ground-floor retail, but a special zoning variance was required due to the building’s proposed height and some other features. The plan included mostly 1-bedroom apartments, with rents 15 to 20 percent below market rate, similar to Croydon.

The developers obtained the zoning permit for the new plan in October 2019 and the construction permit in December, according to the City’s Department of Licenses & Inspections.