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Herrin Lofts At 2205 McKinney St.


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The biggest obstacle is to mixed use for developer's is readily available financing. Lenders on a project like this will want a signficant equity contribution from the developer's plus 30+% of the units presold before they pony up the construction loan. The retail lending world is segmented into the super center, neighborhood center, strip, etc. and will only lend based on demographics and comparables (which largely don't exist in urban infill efforts).

Likewise, some underwriters that do residential lending have very low limits on how much they can lend on retail (remember that the real estate finance world largely lives in silos). The end result is that a developer can't readily assemble the financing for mixed-use and the project goes straight residential.

That dynamic isn't helped when a local (myopic) multi-family developer gets quoted in The Chronicle saying "you have to have 1,500 residents in a development to justify ground floor retail". Lenders, surprisingly, can and do read the paper.

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JGS, interesting explanation about the financing problems for mixed-use. I've heard that before about finance people living in silos.

My question: how do developers accomplish mixed-use projects in other cities? Do they manage to break down the silos over time? Couldn't Houston developers get some out-of-town finance people who don't live in silos? (But I suppose real estate financiers aren't comfortable financing projects outside their own city.)

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  • 4 months later...

Found this:

(PDF) Capital Improvement Plan

Go down to page 12. "Existing sub-standard water; wastewater, storm sewer infrastructure plus deteriorating structures & abandoned rail infrastructure; have hindered efforts for redevelopment & development in the area."

And this is old and it may have been linked already. Downtown Houston Market Analysis

Page 75: "Several projects under development: [...] Herrin Lofts: 45 units." No opening date and it's from October, 2001.

And this site lets you do a search for 'Herrin Lofts' for sale. I'm not sure why. :huh:

Better Network

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So is this still an accurate rendering?

Herrin.jpg

Does anyone have any other info?

These are listed on the Houston Association of Realtors web site (www.har.com). Click on townhouse/condo in area 4. You will see them priced in the low to mid 100's. This developement is by Mir Azizi, the person who started all of the construction in the West End several years ago. He has a less successful on Elgin across from Baldwin Park.

We will have to give him credit for something so close to downtown and priced from the low 100's.

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As lwood said...

This is for you lazy ones who don't want to go to HAR and search. This is the rendering on the MLS:

1394736-1.jpg

Edit: Floorplans, people! Post floorplans when you sell a townhouse/condo/apartment. No one likes to just see some stupid rendering. Half of us could care less. Bring me my square footage and where the garden tub in my master bathroom will be in relation to the window, presently! This Azizi guy has my attention - if I could see a floorplan and some standard features; I'd snatch this thing up in a heartbeat. McKinney and Polk? That's a one minute walking distance to my old building.

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I didn't realize the original plans were so old.

I have been watching the progress with interest since the pricing seems much more competitive than the nearby Live Oak lofts. They are currently increasing the size of the original windows and doing something on the interior with a bulldozer. There is also a big "hole" in the middle of the building on the upper floors, don't know if that is new or existing.

Sort of OT, but I wish the City would do more to encourage development in this area. Once you get past Lofts at the Ballpark, the streets are a complete mess, and I imagine the sewer and other infrastructure is just as bad. I realize there are limited resources to go around, but IMO if anywhere deserves a TIRZ, this is it!

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  • 3 months later...
  • 3 months later...

Noticed this evening that the developer has put up some more details on HAR. Here's a link with some updated pictures. Not loving the continuous balconies (hides too much of that beautiful brick) but at least now I know why they were appearing to gut the interior of the building (see the fountain in one of the pics).

Depending on the interior amenities, the price/sq ft for this particular unit doesn't appear to be out of line with comparable lofts in the area.

http://www.har.com/search/engine/indexdeta...=0&backButton=Y

BTW, HAR added a 'loft' option when searching for properties--and wow, I have never seen so many inaccurately listed properties! Note to realtors: Urban Loft townhomes aren't actually lofts ;)

ETA--Interior courtyard artist conception: http://harpictures.marketlinx.com/MediaDis...hr1581611-1.jpg

Edited by travelguy_73
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Sort of OT, but I wish the City would do more to encourage development in this area. Once you get past Lofts at the Ballpark, the streets are a complete mess, and I imagine the sewer and other infrastructure is just as bad. I realize there are limited resources to go around, but IMO if anywhere deserves a TIRZ, this is it!

A TIRZ is in place. It is the 'East Downtown TIRZ', aka TIRZ No. 15. It was put in place a few years ago when a high-priced research firm with offices in every glitzy, uppity, planned city (not Houston) around the nation forecasted massive growth for the area, largely the result of all the planned stadia and convention center expansions. For a while, land prices and interest for lots in the area spiked, but the projected development was way off. Lofts at the Ballpark had a really tough time filling up the complex, as I understand, as did the Alexan Lofts, further north. For a while, the Alexan was giving away free plasma TVs and several months of free rent for a 13-month lease.

So now, the TIRZ is on Mayor White's hit list, as per a Chronicle article from a ways back. Its not surprising either. The tax base is extremely limited anyway--they couldn't possibly be pulling in enough revenue to get anything really significant done in any short period of time. The other thing is that TIRZs are most effective when there are extremely few that are active.

The optimal approch to implementing them is to have one within each of your core urban areas using very strict definitions as to what is urban. In other words, have one Downtown, another in Galleria/Post Oak area, and another in TMC. Then create one or two that are in underdeveloped and lower-income neighborhoods that are directly adjacent to higher-income areas. Its ok to create large ones, but they need to create a sense of continuity of growth. I'd like to have seen Midtown's extended up through Fourth Ward, Sixth Ward, and First Wards, then up the Washington Avenue Corridor, and that be the end of it. All other TIRZs should be eliminated until the active corridor has been well-established. And just because the area is looking nice and infrastructure is updated, doesn't mean that its time to back off, either. To continuously promote a lot of development in the short term, public art projects, neighborhood parks, a district police force, and elaborate economic development efforts need to be constantly active. Then, all the peripheral TIRZs need to be axed, at least for the first decade, so that TIRZs aren't competing with one another. That's how to make them work.

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Not loving the continuous balconies (hides too much of that beautiful brick) but at least now I know why they were appearing to gut the interior of the building (see the fountain in one of the pics).

I'm ok with the balconies. I'm ok with almost anything that allows projects like these to increase appeal and become successful, as at least they'll still be standing in some form. I think the original no-frills loft concept is less popular anyway and people are probably looking more for a regular condo styled unit.

I drove by yesterday and noticed the Herrin nameplate is now Crane....? I just glanced at the building and now I'm half-wondering if I was looking at something else.

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From the rendering it almost looks like something that would be in NOLA.

Funny that you mention it, because it reminded me of the same thing. Balconies with giant Boston Ferns hanging off them and lots of window boxes. I like the rooftop terrace, especially if they do small trees up there (a la South Texas College of Law's rooftop terrace, which is beautiful from the street level). Hopefully they will have a management company to maintain all of this!

They spent the past few weeks powerwashing the grafitti off--looks to have been successful.

Carriage.jpg

Balcony1.jpg

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 4 weeks later...

A few facts from the agent:

-Beautiful courtyard with grand fountain

-Elevator and 2 stairway access to beautiful sky deck garden overlooking Downtown Houston

-Control Access entry gate to assigned private covered parking in the first two levels of the building with camera surveillance of gates and parking area.

-Each unit features a private balcony (except 3 )

-New York Loft style, brick walls

-Double pane windows for maximum energy efficiency & sound

-Insulated and sealed for sound proofing with a specific technique between units and hallways.

-10

Edited by travelguy_73
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  • 4 months later...

Any news on the Herrin Lofts? On MLS it states completion dates of 8/20 and 9/20 and there are 52 units on MLS with no Option/Pending/Pending Sales.

I drove past and around the building this past weekend and it appears to me that there is still quite a bit of work to be done and a completion date for the first units in a month is not realistic.

Toolman are you still considering the Herrin Lofts? I would imagine the developer and the agent would kill for some sales so you may be able to get them to come off the prices quite a bit.

Scharpe St Guy

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