Texasota Posted August 3, 2014 Share Posted August 3, 2014 wait am I really the only person who thinks this is bad 1980s design? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Naviguessor Posted August 3, 2014 Share Posted August 3, 2014 I think it's good 60's design. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phillip_white Posted August 3, 2014 Share Posted August 3, 2014 Wow. This is a nice design and the garage actually accents the tower. Thumbs up. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toxtethogrady Posted August 3, 2014 Share Posted August 3, 2014 Looks like old Wiakiki. Like it. Spires won't be so lonely now.And on the other side will be that twisted tower. If that's still a realistic project. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Naviguessor Posted August 3, 2014 Share Posted August 3, 2014 ^Whoops. Nope. Other side of the park. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted August 3, 2014 Share Posted August 3, 2014 (edited) wait am I really the only person who thinks this is bad 1980s design? definitely looks like something designed before I was born, but it's a-ight. garage is barf worthy Edited August 3, 2014 by lockmat 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fernz Posted August 3, 2014 Share Posted August 3, 2014 I think it's good 60's design.From Miami. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UtterlyUrban Posted August 3, 2014 Share Posted August 3, 2014 Does each unit come with a Lava Lamp? 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Avossos Posted August 3, 2014 Share Posted August 3, 2014 Surprised people are actually excited about this design 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Metro West Posted August 3, 2014 Share Posted August 3, 2014 (edited) I know. Why couldn't it have been shaped like a square box? We need more buildings with 4 sides and a flat roof. Edited August 3, 2014 by Metro West 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Naviguessor Posted August 3, 2014 Share Posted August 3, 2014 I really like it. Yes...looks also a bit retro Miami, without seeming too phony. Something new for houston. Good design for park front...since we don't have beachfront. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArchFan Posted August 3, 2014 Share Posted August 3, 2014 I too get the retro vibe from this design. It mainly reminds me of so many 3-winged hotels (often Hyatts) from the 60-70s with circular revolving restaurants on top. Even the 1957 Dallas Statler Hilton has that general shape (minus the revolving restaurant). However, the big, undisguised parking podium does make it seem more uniquely Houston. That said, I don't hate it. At least the details of the facade are more interesting than those of The Spires next door. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Texasota Posted August 3, 2014 Share Posted August 3, 2014 Yeah the building itself is somewhat retro, but the real problem is the parking podium.It's pretty horrible and it's siting just seems bizarre and disconnected from everything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KinkaidAlum Posted August 3, 2014 Author Share Posted August 3, 2014 I like it. It's going to have great views and a great location right next to Hermann Park. Dinerstein usually does rental apartments and I'd have to think there's a huge market being right next to the Med Center. The people in the Western units of The Spires on floors 4-20 will lose their views but that was going to eventually happened. This is the lot that had a medical/office planned for it by some company out of Cambridge, Mass. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KinkaidAlum Posted August 3, 2014 Author Share Posted August 3, 2014 Parking podiums are a necessary evil. Additionally, this is adjacent to the Braes Bayou and I know first hand the garage at The Spires has flooded before. Would you rather a parking podium flood or the main lobby of the tower? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luminare Posted August 3, 2014 Share Posted August 3, 2014 One word: boring... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Texasota Posted August 4, 2014 Share Posted August 4, 2014 I wasn't criticizing the fact that there's a parking podium; I was criticizing the fact that this particular parking podium is bad and completely isolates the tower from its site and context. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cloud713 Posted August 4, 2014 Share Posted August 4, 2014 I actually kind of like the garage.. But agree the layout/podium isolates the tower from any street/bayou interaction._ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
htownproud Posted August 4, 2014 Share Posted August 4, 2014 I wonder if the circular feature at the top is just a crown or whether that area will be used for something. It could be a cool amenities room for parties. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mollusk Posted August 4, 2014 Share Posted August 4, 2014 There's no law that says that parking podiums (podia?) must take up every square inch of whatever floor they're on. Downtown and the medical center are replete with buildings that have lobbies, common ameneties, GFR, etc. on the first floor (or maybe two), podium above that, and people space above that. Likewise, I'm perfectly comfortable with the idea of form following function, but really, do we have to advertise that it's a parking ramp? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subdude Posted August 4, 2014 Share Posted August 4, 2014 I too get the retro vibe from this design. It mainly reminds me of so many 3-winged hotels (often Hyatts) from the 60-70s with circular revolving restaurants on top. Even the 1957 Dallas Statler Hilton has that general shape (minus the revolving restaurant). However, the big, undisguised parking podium does make it seem more uniquely Houston. That said, I don't hate it. At least the details of the facade are more interesting than those of The Spires next door. That's funny, but the first thing I thought when I saw this was "60s hotel," like that one on 59 at Buffalo Speedway. That said, the mirrored glass is kind of a 1980s touch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
houstonartstudent Posted August 4, 2014 Share Posted August 4, 2014 Looks like the rendering magically removed the power lines running through the property, but took them into account for the weird angle of the parking garage :/ https://www.google.com/maps/@29.706463,-95.390111,3a,75y,50.09h,96.83t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1sojzHW7vNTR_tTUUoykd23Q!2e0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Urbannizer Posted August 7, 2014 Share Posted August 7, 2014 This one is on the planning commission. SubdivisionPlatPDF_BG2867_PDF.pdf 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HappyClam Posted August 18, 2014 Share Posted August 18, 2014 Interesting design. One third of the units will face the adjacent high rise condo, one third will face the gravel parking lot at Veteran's Hospital, and one third will face the medical center. I wonder how they will manage the proposed elevated traffic lanes TXDOT has planned for Holcombe Blvd designed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Urbannizer Posted September 5, 2014 Share Posted September 5, 2014 http://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/columnists/sarnoff/article/Developer-doubles-down-in-med-center-5734747.php Betting on the continued strong health of the Texas Medical Center, the Dinerstein Cos. is planning a high-rise apartment building at the corner of Cambridge and Holcombe, its second recent residential project in the area. The tower, designed by Chicago-based Solomon Cordwell Buenz, will rise 21 stories and contain 375 units targeted to "renters by choice," said Brian Dinerstein, president of the Houston-based developer that builds multifamily projects in markets across the country. "We love its proximity to the 100,000 jobs," Dinerstein said of the 2-acre site. "We love the unobstructed views of the zoo and the park and the access to the freeway. It checks every box of what we look for in a site." The building's angled design was created to take advantage of views of downtown and Hermann Park, he said. Demand for housing in the Medical Center/Bellaire submarket has pushed up occupancy 5.6 percent and rents 12.5 percent over a three-month period, according to an August report from Apartment Data Services. Developers are building thousands of units inside the 610 Loop, acting on growing desire by Houstonians to rent -- often for a significant premium -- in properties close to where they work instead of buying homes in the suburbs. Rents in Dinerstein's new building will start at $1,600 per month for a one-bedroom and go up to around $3,500. The average unit size will be just under 950 square feet. The building will have mostly one- and two-bedroom units. One of the company's financial partners on the project is AmREIT, a Houston-based real estate investment trust that owned the land. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Urbannizer Posted October 6, 2014 Share Posted October 6, 2014 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
houstontexasjack Posted October 6, 2014 Share Posted October 6, 2014 Apparently, people will jaywalk across Holcombe without looking at oncoming traffic to go to this building. It may be responsible for thousands of fatalities before all is said and done. I couldn't help but notice the light on for Cambridge is red while people cross the street anyways. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Texasota Posted October 6, 2014 Share Posted October 6, 2014 That's actually an improvement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monarch Posted October 6, 2014 Share Posted October 6, 2014 Apparently, people will jaywalk across Holcombe without looking at oncoming traffic to go to this building. It may be responsible for thousands of fatalities before all is said and done. I couldn't help but notice the light on for Cambridge is red while people cross the street anyways.funny... WINNER! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Avossos Posted October 6, 2014 Share Posted October 6, 2014 Looks nice, but still boring on the street. Overall, it will be a nice building, but ensures the area wont be as walkable.. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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