Wandermere Glen Investors LLC, of Spokane, has started development of a $4.5 million apartment complex in the Wandermere area north of Spokane.

The planned 48-unit apartment project, named Wandermere Glen, is going up on a nearly 2-acre site at 11826 N. Mayfair, just south of the Wandermere Shopping Center. Jeff Johnson, president of Spokane-based Black Commercial Inc. and a partner in Wandermere Glen Investors, says the complex is expected to be finished by July.

In addition to Johnson, the investor group includes Jeff McCloskey, owner of Colbert-based McCloskey Construction Inc., and others.

McCloskey Construction is the contractor on the project, and Bernardo|Wills Architect PC, of Spokane, designed the complex, Johnson says.

The investor group has hired Black Commercial as the project developer and as the property manager to handle leasing once the complex is ready for tenants, he says.

Johnson says the complex will include 12 one-bedroom and 36 two-bedroom apartments. The one-bedroom units will be 764 square feet in size and are expected to rent for $850 a month. The two-bedroom apartments will range in size from 984 square feet to 1,145 square feet, with rents that likely will range from $985 a month to $1,150 a month.

Living unit amenities will include nine-foot ceilings, large windows, and large decks, Johnson says. He adds that the project is geared toward empty nesters and professionals.

The complex is to have 24 garages and 16 carports, as well as outside storage space for each unit.

"We've seen the demand for quality, smaller apartment complexes," Johnson says. "We believe that's a niche in the marketplace for tenants who want a larger unit with a higher level of finish."

Additionally, Johnson says he and McCloskey recently purchased a 2.4-acre site at the west end of Cheney and plan to develop an apartment project there in 2015. He says the property is on West First Street, next to Salnave Park. He adds that Bernardo|Wills Architect has done preliminary design work for a similar 48-unit apartment complex at that site.