Less than a year after opening its first apartment building, the Zaragon company is looking to expand its business by building a new high-rise next to the original Cottage Inn Pizza on East William Street.

Owners of the original Zaragon Place — located on East University Avenue — intend to construct a similar apartment complex at the corner of East William and Thompson Streets, according to a public notice sent last week by the Zaragon company to residents living within 1,000 feet of the new site.

Zaragon Place 2 will offer students another opportunity to lease apartments near Central Campus following the “very successful” first year of Zaragon Place, Zaragon President and University alum Richard Perlman said in an interview.

“The location is perfect. It’s a block from the Diag, very close to Central Campus,” Perlman said. “ZP1 and ZP2 are approximately the same distance from the Diag. One is from the South U. side of town. One is from the State Street side of town.”

Perlman said the location and quality of the apartments will be attractive not only to University students but also University employees and other Ann Arbor locals.

Perlman said he couldn’t comment on the price range for what ZP2’s apartments might be, but he said ZP2 will act as the “sister building” to ZP1, adding that the design of the building will be very similar to the existing Zaragon Place.

The current Zaragon Place is 10 stories high with 66 apartments and can house up to 248 residents. The average price tag of a Zaragon Place lease is currently about $1,000 per month per person.

According to the public notice, ZP2 will be 14 stories high with 99 apartment units. Perlman said the building will be able to house between 200 and 350 residents.

Similar to Zaragon Place, ZP2 will also feature retail space on the ground floor, on-site parking and an in-house gym.

However, before construction on ZP2 can start, the city’s zoning ordinance requires Zaragon to submit a petition for construction.

“The petition has not been submitted,” said Alexis DiLeo, city planner of Ann Arbor’s Planning and Development Services. “One of the requirements before submitting (a petition) is to invite citizens to discuss petitions and see what kind of feedback they have.”

Zaragon will host its Citizen Participation Public Meeting on Monday from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. in the Michigan Union to discuss building Zaragon Place 2.

According to the public notice, after the public meeting Zaragon can submit a petition for construction to be reviewed by the Planning Commission and the Ann Arbor City Council — a process that is expected to last through mid-August.

But after all the proper approvals are given, it could still take two years to build Zaragon Place 2, Perlman said.

“The construction will take between 18 and 24 months,” Perlman said.

Bill Res, a manager of Cottage Inn, said he supports the new construction project to take place next door to the pizzeria.

“In general, there’s no concern,” Res said. “If anything, it’ll bring in more business.”

Res added that the new construction will also rid the area of an eyesore.

“It will get rid of the mess we have right next to us,” Res said. “(It’s) not much to look at right now.”

Business graduate student Renee Lau, a current resident of Zaragon Place, said she doesn’t think the quality of the loft-style apartments at Zaragon Place is worth the price.

“I can hear everything going on in the rooms around me. It’s expensive. I’m kind of surprised,” Lau said.

Lau said the quality doesn’t really justify the price, adding that not all the bedrooms in her apartment even have windows. However, she said the location of Zaragon Place is extremely convenient.

Business School junior Ben Ryan, who also lives in Zaragon, said he was mainly attracted to the apartment because of its location.

“(The location is) very convenient for business students,” Ryan said.