Aspen Heights will host a grand opening party today from 3-7 p.m. with two, three and four-bedroom model units open to tour.

The event will take place at the Aspen Heights property located at 17358 Hwy 67.

“The units are fully functioning. The bathrooms and the electricity is all up and running, and we have had an interior decorator from our main offices come by,” Lindsey Griffith, Aspen Heights employee, said.

The grand opening party will have free food catered by Retrievers, free drink tickets for Rum Runners and an in-house DJ. Gift cards and a raffle will occur on-site every hour.

Aspen Heights will offer a shuttle to transport students to the property.

“A shuttle will run from University Plaza to the property for students who don’t have cars or transportation, and they can sign up on our Facebook page,” David Hoersten, Aspen Heights employee, said.

Our hope is that people who haven’t seen the site yet will sign up tomorrow for a lease, Hoersten said.

Two hundred and fifty people have signed up for the event through Facebook, although many more are expected to show up.

“We are hoping for a big turnout, but it will be a toss-up,” Hoersten said.

Most people are waiting to sign the lease until after they can see the finished units, Griffith said.

“I am looking forward to seeing where I’m living next year since we really haven’t been able to see an actual model yet,” Abby Henderson, junior middle grades education major and future Aspen Heights resident, said.

“We are almost seventy percent filled up. 750 people have already signed with us,” Hoerston said.

Construction is not finished, but it is almost complete. The property is 65 acres, and construction is expected to be completed by June or July at the latest. Move-in day will be Aug. 3, Griffith said.

The most popular amenity on the property is the 12,000 square foot clubhouse with a full-scale gym, Hoersten said.

“It has free weights, cardio equipment and large TVs, plus we always stock the latest and greatest DVDs in case some of our residents want to work out that way,” Hoersten said.

Hoersten said, “The grand opening party will be a lot of fun and a lot of crazy. We’ve been looking forward to it.”