BuilderGeek

EDIT: Decided not to be snarky.

Pretty sad when your naming contest originated here, much less picked the winner from the "unlucky" pile...

What do you expect for a grand prize of $29.70?

I often go to Hermann Park to relax in the golf course across the street from Mosaic.

Seriously, it's a half mile to Miller, the zoo, reflection pool...and that's if you cut across the golf course.

I heard they are now renting unsold units. Can anyone confirm? Can't make the buyers too happy.

For those who drive by, how's this comin along? Still just a big hole in the ground?

Drove by today and they are actually starting to go above ground now. Looks like the first floor is going in.

Did the Woodlands one flop too?

From my info The Woodlands, Dallas and Memorial projects are all dead. And they've all been removed from their Web site.

Interesting news...anyone have access to the whole article?

Denver Pavilions shops for buyer

The Denver Pavilions is for sale. The 350,000 square feet of retail/entertainment tenant mix, located on two blocks of the 16th Street Mall, could have a new owner within 90 days, said Pavilions co-owner Bill Denton of Entertainment Development Group Inc. (EDG) in Los Angeles.

"It will be an institutional buyer," Denton said. "With the state of the U.S. dollar, it might be an overseas buyer."

DEAD - Condo project flops as seniors fail to buy in

http://houston.bizjournals.com/houston/sto.../31/story5.html

They do sell small quantities of food and coffee at a Walgreens. And medicine on top of that! Perhaps a Walgreens would've been preferable? In fact, screw all restaurants and coffee shops. Walgreens is all we need from now on, sayeth BuilderGeek.

I know you're trying for a reaction/to be funny, but I would have LOVED Walgreen's to put up an urban store on this corner. It would have had to be two stories to fit, but it would be up to the street and walkable...and have been a very interesting design with underground parking. The best thing is that they would have closed the Walgreen's across the street, allowing for redevelopment of the HUGE (by the area's standards) lot they have over there and extending Highland Village. Great idea Niche!

Even in this alternate universe CVS would probably have bought the Walgreens property.

Is a bank a use for "less people"? What does that mean, exactly, anyway?

"Less people" is the opposite of "more people."

People who use Wachovia bank < People who drink coffee

People who use Wachovia bank < People who eat

Hope that 'splains it.

While I hate to see a bank go up on that corner, I have to ask, what ELSE were we expecting to go up on a small corner lot surrounding by the Central Market parking lot? A "mini mixed-use" development? Given the available footprint there, a single building is all that is going to fit, and given the choice between a bank, gas station, or CVS I would take the bank. I am SOOOO anti-CVS that I would probably have accepted with glee a used car dealership, ala the ones on Washington.

A coffee house? A flower shop? A restaurant? A dry cleaner? SOMETHING to enhance and expand the Highland Village area, which is already a mixed-use area...and to provide a use for MORE people, rather than LESS people. Until Houston starts to understand we have to be MORE intelligent about density we're going to keep seeing CVS and banks all over the place. They ruined the area around Post in Midtown with this kind of thinking.

Other than that I have no opinion.

same with Newsweek...

This is ~probably~ just the zoned version of Time and Newsweek. You don't have to buy national to get into those publications.

I spoke with the old owner of the property and he said it is going to be a bank. What a waste. We needed 3 banks on that corner...along with a Chase and a Bank of Houston less than a block away.

At least I could get gas, an oil change, and an inspection at the Shell station previously. Having banked with Wachovia in the past, I know I won't get any use out of the property now. And yes, it's all about me.

n/m

The Web site on the above sign is dead and their location listing on the main site doesn't have Woodlands or Memorial Villages listed anymore. Anyone heard about cancellations? One might assume they're a no-go...

http://www.thesterlingseniorresidences.com/locat.aspx

Snapped some pics a couple of weeks ago when I went by. Making progress, but still a lot of vacant land.

Hopefully the developer will add 10 or 15 stories, just for spite.

Whenever I see this type of reaction I always hope they cancel the project...

...and put in a junkyard or a landfill instead. Or maybe a hazardous waste incinerator. Or a cement plant. Or a paper mill.

Then they'll be begging for that high rise. >

I was driving by the Museum Place site and they were putting up a sign for "Venue Museum District." Grayco Web site still shows the Museum Place name but now http://www.venuemuseumdistrict.com points to their site. Name change?

I had my camera with me...

Took me a while to find this topic...shouldn't this be in "going up?"

Grapevine News:

I hear that McD's on Post Oak is selling off part of its land for a hirise and will stay in place.

If i'm wrong, sorry.

Pretty sure it's real.

If they're staying in place McDonalds is going to have to build a parking garage for their patrons. Have you been over there during lunch hour?

Still subjective.

Agreed. H&M is much easier to shop than anything I've been to here.

Oh yeah. That's subjective too.

15-story tower on Mid Lane

Highland Tower

Correction: Not on Mid Lane

Per the story:

"Highland Tower, a 15-story 99-unit condominium building, at the northeast corner of Bancroft Lane and Bettis Drive.

A sales office will open Sept. 15 at 4410 Westheimer on the corner of the property being developed by Fort Worth-based Trademark Property Co.

"Trademark has let us use their corner for our sales and marketing until they begin construction of a high-end retail center," says Derek Darnell, vice president of Pelican Builders Inc. "

The "high-end retail center" is High Street, which will be at Westheimer at Mid Lane. Can we separate this thread so the confusion stops.

Great photo! Thanks for posting. Looks a lot like that sunset in that rendering they put out, but this time in real life!

Thanks for the info Steve. So it looks like 271 under contract, 30% investor which makes it approximately 190 non-investor units sold. Sounds like some pretty good traction. Even if the investors bail out due to the credit crunch they will still have a minimum of 190 residents in the first tower (190 sold, most one bedrooms, assuming one person per condo - bad assumption but this is worst case). Mortgage woes have been hitting the sub-$180K borrowers mostly. Let's hope it doesn't have an effect when they go to close and this thing really takes off!

Believe me they wish to make a VERY good impression. The Empire and Manhattan Projects are a totally different animal compared to the Turnberry.

Agreed. This is a different audience than Empire or Manhattan, nothing much like it other than what Orion tried to do, and those of you who saw the sales center there know what they did. We saw how that worked out so hopefully since Turnberry is a more stable backer this project it will not turn out the same way.

"Welcome to our trailer. Give us $8 million."

Not so much.

Thanks for the welcome! Jimmy, the sales consultant at the Mosaic, updates me about once a month on the pricing (See July 19 Penthouse Pricing for the Mosaic and July 15 Regular Mosaic Pricing) I'll try to make it out this weekend for the hardhat tour, but I believe my fiance and I have a wedding to attend. If it's in the afternoon I'll try to shoot by and snap some photos.

Welcome to the board! Perhaps when you talk to Jimmy you can ask him to clarify if they have 218 sales or 218 reservations and if they are "sales" is the 5% refundable that is mentioned on your fact sheets? Also are the buyers investors or actual residents? Thanks!

Don't remember this being posted, but here are some picks on flickr of their topping out party for the tower. It's mostly people shots but you can see the construction and the views in the background.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/37257335@N00/...57600066274655/