Former Hotel Opens as The Block at Sterling Heights Apartment Community

The Block at Sterling Heights, a new apartment community located at 34911 Van Dyke Ave. (at 15 Mile Road) in Sterling Heights, has officially opened its doors.
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Apartment interior
Residents of The Block can choose between six studio and one-bedroom floor plans, ranging between 315 and 825 square feet. // Photo courtesy of The Block

The Block at Sterling Heights, a new apartment community located at 34911 Van Dyke Ave. (at 15 Mile Road) in Sterling Heights, has officially opened its doors.

The property, which previously was the Wyndham Gardens Sterling Heights hotel and the Sterling Inn Banquet and Conference Center, now features 213 studio and one-bedroom apartments with modern amenities.

The multi-million-dollar construction project to convert the former hotel into modern rental housing began in July 2022.

Several months into construction, the developer, Repvblik, made a pivotal decision to demolish a sprawling section of the building, which used to contain the Loon River Café and the banquet and conference center, to free up more than three acres of street-facing land for future development.

According to the developer, the re-envisioned project “modernizes and beautifies the streetscape, which under the previous hotel operation had become an eyesore in recent years, and also increases and improves the housing options for Sterling Heights residents.”

“The Block at Sterling Heights is in response to a shortage of housing in Michigan in general, and especially reasonably priced housing,” says Colin Hooper, managing director of Repvblik. “This project was a heavy undertaking, but it was worthwhile since it simultaneously fixed a problem property and created sorely needed housing. It really is a significant improvement to the area.”

The apartment community is being managed by PK Housing and Management in Meridian Charter Township, east of Lansing.

Residents of The Block can choose between six studio and one-bedroom floor plans, ranging between 315 and 825 square feet. Each residence is equipped with stainless-steel appliances, vinyl plank flooring, and window coverings. Rents for most apartments range from $795 to $1,300 per month, with large loft apartments renting for $1,500 per month.

A “significant” number of the apartments will be reserved for those making between 60 percent and 120 percent of the median area income.

“The Block has apartments for all income levels,” Hooper adds. “However, many people in the middle-income brackets can’t find housing at all. They can afford it, but they can’t find it because there’s not enough of it.”

The apartment community offers a host of amenities, including a fitness center, recreational green space, a laundry facility on every floor, a secure mail room, a resident lounge, and 24-hour emergency maintenance. Additional future amenities likely will include an outdoor dog park and bike parking.

The development is located near businesses and schools such as M-Tec (Macomb Community College), Dana Corp., Stellantis’ Sterling Heights Assembly, the General Motors Corp. Tech Center, and Walmart.

The Block will host an open house for prospective tenants on Feb. 10. More details will be posted on the property’s Instagram and Facebook page in the coming weeks.

For more information, visit theblockatsterlingheights.com.