In January, Hubbell Realty Co. started moving tenants into Cityville on 9th, a residential and commercial project on former Pittsburgh-Des Moines Steel Co. land on the west side of Southwest Ninth Street and just a few blocks south of Martin Luther King Jr. Parkway.

If the site seemed a little remote when it was announced several years ago, people think differently today. The company has filled 33 of the 111 apartments completed during phase one of the project. Hubbell marketers consider those first tenants the real pioneers of the development. When all is said and done, there will be 339 apartments.

Hubbell has taken a different tack on this project. The company has determined that the millennials, who appear to be the first generation drawn to the comple,x prefer a minimalist approach to living. The largest two-bedroom apartment is a tad over 1,100 square feet; the smallest of what Hubbell calls “micro” apartments is about 480 square feet. On the other hand, views to the north are of the downtown skyline, and in the summertime, you can look out of an east-facing apartment and watch the fireworks at Principal Park. Peer into the center of the development, and you’ll see a dog park and large courtyard.

Cy Fox, Hubbell’s leasing specialist, said the dog park is a key component and signals a transition that Hubbell will make at some of its other multifamily projects that in the past have not allowed pets.

There is plenty of room to roam. Residents can entertain guests in a first-floor community space that includes a coffee bar, cinema room, fitness center and foosball table, to name a few amenities. You can have a lot of friends over. At least 70 people attended this week’s Downtown DIG (Development Insights Group) meeting at Cityville, and there was plenty of spill-over space available during the meeting.

A key part of the development is 12,000 square feet of retail space that fronts Southwest Ninth and is drawing interest. The final phase of the project will include an additional 12,000 square feet of retail.

Colleen Johnson, a vice president with CBRE|Hubbell Commercial, said negotiations are underway with four tenants. The real draw for retailers will be when more “heads” are occupying Cityville apartments.

However, those retailers also can draw from Hubbell’s RiverPoint Business Park and the company will benefit from Sherman Associates Inc.’s eventual build-out of its property just north of Cityville, part of it on land purchased from Hubbell.

“Residential begets retail,” Johnson said.

Sherman and Hubbell should benefit from being neighbors.

“We’re really in this together,” said Tina Mowry Hadden, Hubbell’s marketing director.