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M Square: Mixed-Use Development At 3200 Post Oak Blvd.


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I haven't read the article. Does it mention anything about 80 and/or 50 floor towers? Anyway, it sounds like this 'rumor' has legs now. Sounds like at least part of the rumor (the Dubai part) has now been established as fact. I'm hoping the rest will be - in the near future. And then we can start the crane spotting on Post Oak/Richmond.

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Part of Uptown's line will be in a subway, so maybe METRO extends it south past San Felipe and towards the Galleria.

worried about traffic w/ a 80-story building...........but having the rail right there wont help either unless they build it elevated or below ground. otherwise, the intersection is already extremely busy...then you make all directions stop for the rail and it will be just as bad.....actually worse!!!

(i'd like to see the renderings of the uptown line running through the intersection at westheimer)

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Cool, thanks for that.

Any mention of a time table?

Nope. A representative from the Dubai firm said that unfortunately, they are not able to reveal any of their plans for Houston at this time. It's tippity top secret.

The article then goes on to speculate that considering how much was paid for the land, I think around $200 per square foot, the project will likely be "very tall."

Oh yeah, and Boymelgreen no longer owns the land. There was a flipping frenzy of that land over the last few months, driving the price way up, and resulting in the Dubai firm now owning it.

Edited by NewMND
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Oh yeah, and Boymelgreen no longer owns the land. There was a flipping frenzy of that land over the last few months, driving the price way up, and resulting in the Dubai firm now owning it.

Are you sure they no longer own any of the land they bought there? I believe that when Boymelgreen bought the land, they bought 9 acres and said their planned project would be built on one-third of the land. Then they put the other portions back on the market. That matches perfectly with this new Dubai development being 6 acres. I think Boymelgreen probably still owns the 3 acres site.

Edited by Houston19514
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I don't know anything about that, but according to the article, Boymelgreen bought the 9.4 acres from Hines for about $86 per square foot, with plans to develop about 3 acres, and sell the other 6. Boymelgreen then opted out of building on the site, and decided to sell all 9.4 acres. They flipped the land and some company called Lasco/Hicks bought it for about $140 psf, they then sold 6 acres to Elegant Development Group, who flipped the 6 acres to this Dubai group, for I think about $230 psf. And that's where we are at now.

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I don't know anything about that, but according to the article, Boymelgreen bought the 9.4 acres from Hines for about $86 per square foot, with plans to develop about 3 acres, and sell the other 6. Boymelgreen then opted out of building on the site, and decided to sell all 9.4 acres. They flipped the land and some company called Lasco/Hicks bought it for about $140 psf, they then sold 6 acres to Elegant Development Group, who flipped the 6 acres to this Dubai group, for I think about $230 psf. And that's where we are at now.

I saw that too, after my post. Thanks for the update.

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Wasn't there a rumor awhile back about Dubai business men wanting to invest in a project in Houston? Maybe this could be related to that? You know how they like to do in Dubai....tall!

Oh yeah, and he said it could be larger than the Oaks District project, if so, then I hope the site is either where the Old Navy is, or the strip center where Linens & Things is. Like someone else said, Uptown doesn't really need strip centers anymore.

HBJ is reporting that Dubai-based Deyaar Devlopment has acquired property for development at Post Oak and Richmond. It is 6 acres of the 9.4 that Boymelgreen purchased last year. They're not giving much deatil at this time.

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HBJ is reporting that Dubai-based Deyaar Devlopment has acquired property for development at Post Oak and Richmond. It is 6 acres of the 9.4 that Boymelgreen purchased last year. They're not giving much deatil at this time.

Well, I couldn't find anything on the website about the building. Was looking forward to adding it to the great Houston construction list on towrs.com.

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I also originally believed that West Ward expansion was ultimately hurting Downtown Houston's chances of ever gaining a strong residential market. However, I was in a class that talked about the city of houston and the professor said something that I thought was pretty profound. He stated that you shoul dthink of Houston as not as Dowtown, Uptown and Medical Center in competition, that golden triangle should be viewed as the Manhatten of Houston. It is roughly the same size and if you look at the how Houston is shaping, up Central Houston is really within that Triangle. That does put DT Houston on the east side, but if you fast forward about 10-15 years from now, I think you will see 3rd and 5th Ward occupied by dowtown workers and Medical Center Workers. In addition, traffic will squeeze growth in the Galleria area, even though Uptown is trying to rival DT Houston, the infrastructure is not there to support 2-3 80/60 story buildings respectively. Even with the rail system, that area is already swamped with traffic today and if you clog up the arteries of Richmond it would be unrelentless gridlock.

Sounds just like Prof Longoria.

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BTW: Can someone rename this thread?

Renaming this thread to "Deyaar Post Oak" until a real name emerges.

I think all developers should consult HAIF before naming their towers. "Hines 47" was much better than Main Place or whatever they went with.

I guess I shouldn't be all that surprised about a developer from the Middle East wanting to build on Post Oak. Last time I was in the Galleria you couldn't swing a hookah without clanging into an Emirates ad. They should rename it Emirates Mall or West Dubai Mall or something.

(Not being critical. My last trip to Houston was a gas to see how very different in an international sense it is from what I remembered and what I'm used to.)

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Last time I was in the Galleria you couldn't swing a hookah without clanging into an Emirates ad. They should rename it Emirates Mall or West Dubai Mall or something.

Well, if you need to find one, just go on sage or hillcroft, depending on your budget. :)

Next time you're in town, even for a short time, you need to let us know so we can HAIF for a coffee.

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I guess I shouldn't be all that surprised about a developer from the Middle East wanting to build on Post Oak. Last time I was in the Galleria you couldn't swing a hookah without clanging into an Emirates ad. They should rename it Emirates Mall or West Dubai Mall or something.

Yeah, then they'd have ads with the slogan "What do you buy at West Dubai?" (gag). They could just rename the whole district the "Uptown Area of Enterprise" or "UAE".

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If new owner Deyaar does decide to develop the property, it's likely the project will be very tall.

Says Jaggi: "The only way you can pay those types of prices is to go vertical. Our market has done flips. In 12 months, prices have doubled."

This is most fascinating, and gives a head's up as to not only what Deyaar may be doing but development plans in Uptown overall. Aside from the lack of infrastructure, the Uptown versus downtown rivalry seems to have teeth right now--and even with that Uptown is poised for rail expansion.

Meanwhile, the Med Center goes about its business quietly and constructively.

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Thanks for that.

So three acres is plenty of room to build a tower, right?

I'd imagine you could do a whole lot w/ 6 acres, but does that mean it'd be less tall?

The JPMorgan Chase building downtown is the tallest building in Texas, at 75 stories, and it sits on a 1.44-acre parcel. Provided sufficient sewer capacity, there really aren't a whole lot of limits on six acres that we stand any chance of running into.

As for what might actually be built, I really have no idea. The most accurate (if not precise) answer is "lots of stuff".

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The fact is that relative to the remainder of the Houston region, downtown's job base isn't growing as quickly, and strickn's reasons aren't too far off. And its residential base is severely constrained, especially now that land prices are once again driven by office space as a highest and best use. Even if you were to see ten new towers on the same scale as Finger's, it's a drop in the regional bucket.

Moreover, the data that I've seen indicates that strickn is correct that people really dislike having to cross through downtown during a commute. For instance, TMC employees are very heavily concentrated in Pearland, Sugar Land, and Missouri City, with relatively few from suburbs opposite downtown or the West Loop. This shouldn't come as much of a surprise.

And while a dot density map showing the concentration of persons with master's degrees or greater does indicate a concentration in Clear Lake, it is relatively isolated compared to the greater mass whose center is just west of the Galleria area. In that context, downtown's office market really is on the eastern periphery. I don't mean to discount the eastern part of our metro area for economic activity...but that kind of activity and those kinds of households just don't tend to play off of and support downtown as greatly as do the western sectors. In fact, just about the whole Pasadena/Deer Park/Baytown/Clear Lake sector may as well be its own economy...that's just how clearly the industries are demarcated as seperate from the rest of our region.

Man I am so thankful for comments like these. Houston is not Dallas. Why? b/c of the economy/heavy industry of Pasadena/Deer Park/Baytown. Houston is not Pittsburgh/Detroit/Buffalo. Why? b/c of the financial/glitzy sectors of the the Galleria/Downtown/ and THE Medical Center. That line of demarcation is what allows this city to be the "economic sore thumb" of the United States... we don't play by the rules well. This is a good thing though, b/c it means that we have enough diversity to put up a long-hard fight with the Recession economy.

I am fortunate enough to have been very nomadic in my time here... started out living on UH campus (I was like the only person that lived there lol), then moved to the Meyerland/Galleria area. Now I live on the east side just inside the Beltway at I-10. I've worked in Pasadena, Katy, and Sugar Land. Currently, I work at UH Main Campus during the day, and Downtown at night. Oh yeah, and March first I'm moving to the Eastwood neighborhood (goodbye car choking commute,, hello METRO!!!)

I'll agree that the west and east can be very separate worlds, but they are re-establishing big connections. METRO, for as crappy as they can be about some things, Just started up the commuter route to Baytown. That's right, Baytown. I ride that bus in the mornings, and have met at least 10 people who are eternally thankful for the opportunity to work downtown without killing themselves with gas and wear and tear on the car. It came at an awesome time too, because Baytown, NorthShore, and southern Pasadena are all booming right now, and not just with students from San Jac.

In reference to trying to figure out where the "center of Houston" is, I'm proud to say that there is enough construction in this city that it changes everyday. Not only is Midtown booming, but the east side/warehouse district will have to be labelled "midtown #2".

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  • 1 month later...
  • 5 weeks later...

It looks like Deyaar's CEO was arrested for a "financial irregularity", and they're in the process of finding another CEO and shuffling around board members. I wonder if that will have any impact on this project in Houston or not. They don't talk like it will impact their profitability and there's no mention of how it would change their strategy going forward.

anyone heard anything new about this development?

http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle...siness&col=

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Where did ENGcons go? Any new info on this? Are they really going to make it taller and turn it into a supertall?

Fellas these projects don't happen overnight. There have to be meetings, and then there has to be meetings about the meetings. Then we can start talking about setting up the next meeting to discuss the action items of the first meeting.

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Fellas these projects don't happen overnight. There have to be meetings, and then there has to be meetings about the meetings. Then we can start talking about setting up the next meeting to discuss the action items of the first meeting.

You would think people will have learned from the Pavillions ordeal. Then again, there's the Shamrock debacle as a counterpoint.

I guess my real point is don't obsess over it. I try to focus on the numerous project underway to get a feel for how they may help shape the areas in which they're located. It's great to speculate about potential projects but they don't really add anything tangible to the current landscape until they actually break grown.

Take the new tower on Studemont under construction along Memorial Parkway. I think that tower is really going to change the visual landscape of that portion of Buffalo Bayou, and I'm anxious to see what impact it may have on future development in the area.

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  • 1 month later...
  • 2 weeks later...
If it's ok to post here for this, does anyone know why that "joke of a renovation across the st" (so true) with Luby's and Zadok is...well, just a joke of a renovation instead of something....better? Also, what is the story with the 24 hr fitness on post oak....anyone buying that so far?

Post on Joke Renovation across the street that I started. Yes, this shopping center belongs in Katy, not on Post Oak in the heart of Uptown.

Uptown 24 Hour Super Sport lease is up this January 2009. The option to renew was not granted, they plan on relocating. I don't have any idea where. But the Q/Super Sport building will be demolished.

Brucette's shoes is asking $400/ft for his land. No joke. He knows no one (please Deyaar, don't buy at this $) will pay that but is 'content' with holding it. He was going to do a deal and move to Zadok's site but couldn't command the same terms of lease that Zadok possesses so it was scrapped.

If Deyaar buys it, why not? It is nice to have foreign investor put money in American soil. We sure invest enough money overseas, let them share the wealth back.

Edited by Pumapayam
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Post on Joke Renovation across the street that I started. Yes, this shopping center belongs in Katy, not on Post Oak in the heart of Uptown.

Uptown 24 Hour Super Sport lease is up this January 2009. The option to renew was not granted, they plan on relocating. I don't have any idea where. But the Q/Super Sport building will be demolished.

If Deyaar buys it, why not? It is nice to have foreign investor put money in American soil. We sure invest enough money overseas, let them share the wealth back.

Does anyone know who owns the land under 24 hr....and what's supposed to be going on there?

Regarding Deyaar, I'm not only fine with but welcome direct foreign investment. The benefits U.A.E. companies generally pay foreigners in their own countries tend to be great for the job market, as well. My point is that if they pay $400/ft with the cheap $ they have, it makes it very difficult to compete here. Look at the run-up on the price of the land of this Deyaar development - from 80something $/ft to $400/ft for post oak land in 9 months or less is NOTHING short of a mania...i don't really prefer that.

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