Villa Cielo Cortaro, a recently built apartment development themed for resident interaction in the Casas Adobes community in Arizona, has received a 2025 CoStar Impact Award for the multifamily development of the year for Tucson.
The winning project, which was chosen by an independent panel of industry professionals within the market, started construction in March 2023 and was completed in August 2024. The apartment complex offers studio, one- and two-bedroom units.
Scottsdale-based Greenlight Communities is the owner and developer of Villa Cielo Cortaro. The firm designed the apartment complex with community engagement in mind, building spaces that encourage resident interaction, including a pool with lounge chairs and cabanas; a Zen garden with hammocks, an outdoor fitness building that includes a game lawn for cornhole; and a citrus grove building with more than a dozen citrus trees and a community garden.
About the project: Villa Cielo Cortaro features 196 units spanning 196,000 square feet across four buildings. The apartment development also offers site amenities such as bicycle storage, a business center, car charging station, pet play area and picnic area.
What the judges said: The developer "increased housing availability and overcame complex assemblage issues to bring the project to fruition," said Executive Vice President Susan Dumon of Sun Corridor.
They made it happen: Senior Partner Robert Lyles of Greenlight Communities.