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Post 510: Multifamily At 510 Richmond Ave.


talltexan83

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Fascinating.

I guess they still have to buy up all the other properties first, eh? On the corner of Jackson and Colquitt, is that supposed to be some open space for parking? Greenspace?

apartment complex that is not selling. parking is in the center, surrounded by the apartments

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I agree that it would be nice, but the density isn't quite there yet. If they added a some retail and encouraged a couple of businesses to RELOCATE there it might do, but as it is, I don't really see it happening. The Demo isn't quite there yet.

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I agree that it would be nice, but it isn't density isn't quite there yet. If they added a some retail and encouraged a couple of businesses to RELOCATE there it might do, but as it is, I don't really see it happening. The Demo isn't quite there yet.

I really don't think it has to do with density. Retail is popping up all over Midtown but nearly all of it is in the form of a strip mall.

Until the Midtown District gets together and prohibits new strip mall development, developers will continue to do what they do best; provide cheap retail spaces with ample surface parking usually facing the curb. Unfortunately, consumers can't really boycott these places (like CVS, BW3, etc...) because there aren't enough alternatives.

I hate to say it, but it might already be too late for much of Midtown. About 10 years ago, there was a really perfect opportunity to create an urban hood on the coming rail line. If planning had been set in place, Midtown could now be a place with blocks full of aparment buildings with ground floor retail, wide sidewalks with cafe tables, garages in place of surface parking, blocks of townhomes with alleys to take the garages off the streets and pocket parks to serve the inhabitants.

Instead, it's a mixed bag of some nice urban planning projects, some horrible gated/garden-style apartments, blocks of townhomes with garages and driveways ruining any future sidewalk activity, empty lots being sat on by greedy flippers, and a rising number of strip malls and pad sites complete with drive-thru lanes. Really, the only thing differentiating Midtown from anyplace else in Houston is the downtown backdrop.

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Does anybody think the city might ever adopt zoning?

I know everybody in here will freak out when I mention the word, but zoning works for just about every other city in the world. Why couldn't it work for Houston?

Wouldn't that solve a lot of the problems Kinkiad just mentioned about Midtown?

Or how about just zoning certian districts (like midtown) while letting other areas such as the outer loop develop without any regulations.

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  • 1 month later...

http://chron.com/disp/story.mpl/nb/heights/news/5207518.html

Bart French, Post Properties developer, said it's still premature for details, since the proposal is still before the city's planning department to determine the amount of setback footage from the street, but he said that if it's approved, construction could begin in late 2008.

It would be similar to "that property in Midtown that everybody likes

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I'm pretty happy to hear that they want to build it "Midtown Square style", especially since it's pretty close to where I live and I could ride the Metro out there!! But late 2008 seems so far away... I guess it will be worth the wait if it's going to be more than just another apartment complex.

By the way, which complex are they talking about tearing down in that article?

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I went by that midtown square. I liked it a lot. If this is anything like that, it'll be a very nice addition.

While I'm not necessarily a fan of the current rail plan, at least there should be plenty of density along the Richmond corridor to support both it and any businesses adversely affected...
We've got the TOD w/o the Transit. Nice!
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I think Metro is deciding on the final alignment of the University Line next week.

I guess even if things changed drastically (and they won't), this location is close enough to Wheeler Station as it is to be transit oriented anyways. I'm pretty sure it's closer to a metro station than Midtown Square.

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So if he says this is going to be like Midtown Square, will this have street level retail?

Midtown Square is such a great example of how well mixed use developments can do in this city. It is an extremely popular two blocks of land. Anyone looking to live in an urban lifestyle in this city wants to live there.

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So if he says this is going to be like Midtown Square, will this have street level retail?

Midtown Square is such a great example of how well mixed use developments can do in this city. It is an extremely popular two blocks of land. Anyone looking to live in an urban lifestyle in this city wants to live there.

Maybe. The article says he couldn't release much detail.

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I had a coffee at midtown square today and it's amazing how much activity there is on those two blocks or so. I can't see any reason why it wouldn't work on Richmond near Wheeler Station, but i really wish developers could create some sort of sense of consistency rather than spacing these mixed use developments so much. If only West Ave and Post Midtown and Richmond Landing would all be on adjacent blocks! I guess that isn't possible though since there isn't really enough unused space, and somebody is bound to buy a lot adjacent to any mixed used development and build a strip mall or a CVS.

Does anybody know who owns the empty space in Midtown close to Midtown Square? Are they thinking of expanding or is it owned by somebody else. I recall seeing a few vacant lots west of Midtown Square.

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I had a coffee at midtown square today and it's amazing how much activity there is on those two blocks or so. I can't see any reason why it wouldn't work on Richmond near Wheeler Station, but i really wish developers could create some sort of sense of consistency rather than spacing these mixed use developments so much. If only West Ave and Post Midtown and Richmond Landing would all be on adjacent blocks! I guess that isn't possible though since there isn't really enough unused space, and somebody is bound to buy a lot adjacent to any mixed used development and build a strip mall or a CVS.

Does anybody know who owns the empty space in Midtown close to Midtown Square? Are they thinking of expanding or is it owned by somebody else. I recall seeing a few vacant lots west of Midtown Square.

Those empty blocks west of Midtown Square seem like prime pieces of land. One of them has that new midrise going up.

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  • 1 month later...
Looks like they are starting some prepwork or something. They blocked off the views on what's going on and I saw some heavy equipment and at least one storage container on the site.

I also saw several construction workers on the property. One was measure the perimeter of the property.

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Did the developer buy that whole block, because the renderings look a little big for just that old apartment lot. Not to mention one of the renderings show a view from Colquitt.

See: http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&...c=addr&om=0

the developer bought the block with the exception of the apartments on the corner of jack and colquitt. they're tearing down everything beginning with the northeast corner of the block and finishing with the southwest buildings-- something to do with the leases of the halfway houses on the corner of jack and richmond not being up until sometime in 2008.

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they're tearing down everything beginning with the northeast corner of the block and finishing with the southwest buildings-- something to do with the leases of the halfway houses on the corner of jack and richmond not being up until sometime in 2008.

Huh, that's odd. In Texas, a landlord can give a tenant 30 days to relocate from one unit to another within the same complex, and if another unit isn't being made available, the tenant only gets 60 days to remove themselves completely. ...must be a PR play, or something.

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Huh, that's odd. In Texas, a landlord can give a tenant 30 days to relocate from one unit to another within the same complex, and if another unit isn't being made available, the tenant only gets 60 days to remove themselves completely. ...must be a PR play, or something.

I'm certainly not an expert in landlord-tenant law, but where in the property code does it say that a landlord can arbitrarily terminate a lease and evict a tenant with just sixty-day's notice?

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The properties which currently have buildings standing are:

4202 Garrott (The Palmer), circa 1935 red brick four-plex - nice terra-cotta detail over the doorway.

4208 Garrott Similar to 4202, Tudor details

515 - 517 Colquitt 1950's frame garden apartments

519 - 523 Colquitt Franklin Court apartments, red brick circa 1926 (HCAD)

527 Colquitt Single family house, red brick

4205 Jack (not being demolished)

4211 Jack brick apartments, sister building to

526 Richmond

512 Richmond frame bungalow

Interestingly, the Garrett properties are listed as being owned by Ed Wulfe.

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Is this the former site of the Skyline Apartments (Crack House)?

Do you mean Skylane? There are still two of them just north of here ( on W. Alabama).

Not sure what the name of the apartments demolished on this site about 10-15 years ago.

Maybe they want to salvage as much as the material as possible for recycling. There is a pretty good business in that alone.

Noticed that 4208 Garrott is undergoing asbestos abatement prior to its demolition, so the same may be true for the Colquitt property (especially since much of the wood is termite-ridden).

Hope they're able to salvage the bricks from the older structures - much more attractive than those currently available, IMO.

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