Toll Brothers Apartment Living and designer Mary Cook Associates teamed up to deliver Canvas, a 263-unit, 826-bed, purpose-built student housing community located a half mile east of Arizona State University in Tempe. The development was 100% leased for the 2021-22 academic year and was already 100% leased for the 2022-23 academic year as of spring 2022.
The community offers a mix of live/work, studio, one-, two-, three-, and four-bedroom units as well as ground-floor retail space. The units are fully furnished with fully equipped kitchens, a 55-inch smart TV, and a full-size washer and dryer. Community amenities include an on-site fitness center, an elevated saltwater pool and deck, a pet spa, an esports lounge, an in-house nail bar, a sauna, an innovation lab equipped with computers, and a rooftop oasis.
The Canvas team leveraged the building’s unique shape and developed innovative solutions to meet residents’ needs with high-impact spaces both indoors and outdoors. Color, pattern, and messaging for the project identity all began with the brand positioning logo design and accompanying patterns and messaging. The interiors team creatively applied and integrated those signature elements at a variety of scales in feature locations including the reception floor, mail and package lockers, and on a large scale across exposed concrete columns throughout the amenity and study areas to bring a cohesive element to the spaces and solidify a consistent brand story.
In Canvas’ common areas, an inventive mezzanine offers collaborative pocket spaces for tech-focused majors or for gathering with friends or getting alone time. All study bars, banquets, niches, and booths are fully equipped with plug-ins to support the residents’ tech-centric lifestyles. A state-of-the-art gaming lounge that provides functional seating for both gamers and observers additionally supports the dense digital environment.
