Attorneys Tom and Julie Cerio believe densely built South Warren Street is the next step in downtown living.
“I think everything is coming this way,” Julie Cerio said.
The couple is nearly finished building two apartments at 443 S. Warren St. with balconies overlooking the Onondaga County Courthouse and Columbus Circle.
They bought the former Quartier Printing building for $125,000 in May 2013. Finishing touches are under way, and the apartments will be ready for lease by the end of September.
“Everything is new. Top to bottom new,” said Julie Cerio, Onondaga County economic development director. “We loved the open space and really liked the outdoor space.”
Each 2,800-square-foot apartment takes up a floor of the building. The first floor will be commercial space.
Each apartment has a great room with a balcony, kitchen, pantry, two bedrooms, two full and one half baths, an office and a laundry room with a sink and closet space.
The kitchens have granite counters, stainless steel appliances and a pot-filler faucet over the stovetop. The master bedrooms have walk-in and shoe closets. The full baths have rainfall shower heads and soaker tubs. The two bedrooms have views of South Warren Street, while steps in the great room lead to a balcony. Each apartment comes with two parking spaces in a lot behind the building.
Tom Cerio said he has not decided on rents but already has prospective tenants interested in the apartments.
The couple have done commercial and residential developments before, but this is their first downtown residential project.
Their research of the building’s history didn’t turn up much, they said. It dates from the 1920s, and the interior was rebuilt in the 1960s by the Bank of New York.
The building is around the corner and a few blocks to Tom Cerio’s next project: the former First Baptist Church, also known as Mizpah Tower. He bought the building from the city for $30,000 and hopes to turn it into a mixed-use building with commercial space and luxury apartments.
