Standing at the entrance of the recently opened Dalton Station apartment complex during a ribbon-cutting on Thursday, Feb. 1, project manager Lance Ravenscraft said his hope is “that it’s a good thing for the community.”
Developed and constructed by Cameron Property Co. out of Atlanta and situated downtown at the site of a former Budgetel at 609 S. Thornton Ave., Dalton Station has 132 “micro-apartment” units, each containing two rooms, a bathroom and a kitchen/living area.
Construction on the apartments began in October 2022 and concluded at the end of 2023. The project involved an “almost full-gut renovation” to the former Budgetel, said Ravenscraft.
“We had this vision about 15 months ago to take this asset and turn it into something better than what it was,” he said. “We had originally thought about doing multifamily (housing) here, but it didn’t work out that way. Then we had the idea to put micro-apartments here. It was a lot of work with a lot of surprises, but we got through it and are happy where we are today.”
Each pet-friendly studio apartment has a full-size stainless steel refrigerator and freezer, a built-in microwave, a two-burner induction cooktop, a sink, granite countertops and custom shaker cabinets in the kitchen area, with a walk-in shower, toilet, sink and custom cabinets in the bathroom.
Dalton Station also has a fitness center, a clubroom furnished with a billiards table, coffee station, lounge area, dining tables and desk areas, a conference center, two private office rooms, an outdoor courtyard with grilling stations and a dog park.
The motivation behind the project was simple, Ravenscraft said.
“We wanted to provide nicer, smaller, affordable housing to Dalton,” he said. “That was really the mission.”
Ravenscraft said the apartments cater to “all walks of life.”
“It’s for any age really,” he said. “Young professionals, students, people straight out of college or people coming in and doing stints with Shaw, Mohawk or QCells. It’s meant to be a very high-end, but affordable, apartment.”
Chris Knightly, Cameron Property Co.’s investment associate, said around 24 units have been leased.
“And they range from Mohawk employees that are doing their training program right out of school to teachers in the area,” Knightly said. “We’ve got nurses and people working in the hospital industry just down the road. It’s really just a big mix of folks. It doesn’t cater to one specific demographic.”
The apartment complex has convenient access to shops, entertainment and restaurants in downtown Dalton as well as the Dalton Convention Center, Dalton State College and I-75.
Dalton Station lists three leasing options, including six-month, nine-month and 12-month rates.
Donna Witt, a leasing agent for the apartments, said the monthly rate for a 12-month lease is $895 with an additional $100 for a utility fee, which includes electricity, internet, water/sewer, trash service and pest control service. Cable is not included.
“And then it is $11 monthly as an amenity charge,” Witt said. “That’s for access to the gym, clubroom, office rooms, the conference room and the grill area.”
With utilities and amenities included, the total cost for a 12-month lease is about $1,006 monthly.
“And that is without a pet,” Witt added. “If you have a pet, then you’re going to pay an additional $25 per month.”
For a nine-month lease, the rate is an additional $50 per month, while a six-month lease includes an additional $100 per month.
Witt said a “furniture rental” option is available.
“You could get (an apartment) that would have a bed, a nightstand, a desk and chairs for another $100 additional per month,” Witt said. “For that, we would have to get it ahead of time.”
Dalton Station has three Americans with Disabilities Act-friendly rooms.
Ravenscraft said the location makes it an ideal home for individuals who want to explore the city.
“It’s perfect for someone who’s just looking for a place to be somewhat central to downtown where you can walk to grab a bite or get a cup of coffee,” he said. “Hopefully that will bring a lot of young people here as well.”
Ravenscraft said a key part in developing the micro-apartments included a close relationship with the Dalton-Whitfield County Joint Development Authority (JDA).
Ali Harp, project manager for the JDA, said she and JDA Executive Director Carl Campbell found Ravenscraft “early in the beginning process.”
“We kind of targeted this as something that we wanted to do something with,” Harp said. “I want to say thank you to the city for helping us with this project. JDA did a tax abatement to help make the money work and help make it make sense for the developers. We’re happy that they’re here.”
“We couldn’t have done this without the Joint Development Authority and the tax incentive they gave us,” Ravenscraft said. “If we bought it and we didn’t have that, we would have just left it as a motel. It would’ve been way too costly to do all of this.”
Knightly, who was drawn to the land’s close proximity to downtown, said there were initial plans to demolish the building entirely.
“But working with (Harp and Campbell), we were able to financially engineer the project to be able to deliver these micro-units at a completely different rent level,” he said. “To (have) the tax abatement, it allowed us to put some nice finishing touches like our stainless steel appliances. Stuff you would see in a class A apartment building.”
Ravenscraft said Dalton Station’s location and added amenities make it a better option for people in Dalton looking for smaller housing.
“You can go get a one bedroom at a very old apartment and pay probably the same, maybe a little bit more or a little bit less, but it’s also an old apartment with no amenities and you’re not close to downtown,” he said. “So, besides having to go to work, you can walk to places in the area and see what they have to offer.”