Camden Conte: Multifamily At 1515 Austin St.

[Urbannizer]

Camden Property Trust will build on two blocks in downtown. Phase one begins in Spring 2015 which will include a 12-story high-rise. Phase two begins in Spring 2017. Total of 518 units. #31 on the new development map.

http://downtownhouston.org/site_media/uploads/attachments/2013-12-19/131218_Current_Projects_11x17.pdf

Edited December 19, 2013 by Urbannizer

[ZKB9]

I'd prefer them on the other side of that park, but whatever! Downtown residential is always a good thing!

[Houston19514]

Sweet!  (Maybe we can hope for something taller on the other side of the park.)

[lockmat]

12-stories seems like a perfect height. Great news. I think this location will help bridge the gap between multiple areas of downtown.

[LarryDierker]

So far away.

[HoustonIsHome]

12-stories seems like a perfect height. Great news. I think this location will help bridge the gap between multiple areas of downtown.

I agree. Seems perfect for the area to me. Mainly empty lots and single story buildings in that area.

Glad that this area is finally getting done love. With Skyhouse, Allied and now this makes a total of 4 new building between 10 and 25 floors throw in Alliance and Houston House and that makes 6 residential buildings in the SE part of town. That boosts the residential in the area to about 1500 units. Not bad considering the past few decades.

Stupid Alliance and Fingers need to reconsider their lower rise apartments.

Anyway glad to see downturn turn around

[Howard Huge]

So far away.

LMAO, VERUCA SALT!

[mfastx]

Will hold off on getting excited for this one, still lots of time before groundbreaking. 

 

Would be awesome to see though.

[Arternative]

There is a bar on the northern block there. Progress is progress. So long quirky, dive bar I shall not name. I'll miss you too street parking (which is awesome in that area.)

[Purdueenginerd]

500 units.. that's the biggest apartment complex (by unit number) yet downtown, or am I mistaken? I like this project... should continue to help merge midtown and downtown as residential communities

 

 

[arche_757]

This may sound strange but I'm actually much more excited about these smaller residentail projects than I am about any of the big commercial highrises planned.  Downtown will continue to grow and diversify if we can get a healthy number of people living down there.

 

More residents = need for more services = need for more space for more services = need for more buildings.  Growth in population will keep Downtown viable for many decades to come.

[H-Town Man]

This may sound strange but I'm actually much more excited about these smaller residentail projects than I am about any of the big commercial highrises planned. Downtown will continue to grow and diversify if we can get a healthy number of people living down there.

More residents = need for more services = need for more space for more services = need for more buildings. Growth in population will keep Downtown viable for many decades to come.

I'm with you, but the 600 and 1100 blocks of Main are huge eyesores right now, and we need those buildings to go up for the sake of aesthetics in the area. But in general, yeah, residential space > office space.

[Urbannizer]

The address for this project is 1521 Austin St. & 1404 Leeland St.

• Two 9-10-floor residential buildings
• Apartments over parking garage
• Active ground floor uses front La Branch and Bell on Block 330; La Branch and Leeland on Block 346.
• Phase one (Block 330) begins in Feb. 2015, Block 346 begins in Feb. 2017

 

[Urbannizer]

Also expect to hear another residential project TBA for downtown soon with 463-units.

[cloud713]

463 units? I hope it's a tower.. How close are we to hitting that 2500 unit quota for the residential incentives program?

[Urbannizer]

463 units? I hope it's a tower.. How close are we to hitting that 2500 unit quota for the residential incentives program?

Pretty close, we're at 2,355 units. The 463-unit project will push that total to 2,818 units, but they are looking at raising the cap.

[downtownian]

I think there is either a typo in the table below or the Downtown District Dec 2013 Meeting Notes PDF posted in the Retail District topic. The meeting notes states that Marquette is developing residential at block 52 (over by Minute Maid Park) instead of block 42 in the table below which is by Market Square.

 

From page 6:

(i) approve and authorize execution of an agreement with Marquette Companies for a Chapter 380 reimbursement grant for the proposed residential development of 1400 Texas (Block 52) in an amount equal to 75% of the assessment paid to the District and 75% of the property tax paid to the City based on the delta between the HCAD value for Block 52 as of January 1, 2012 and the HCAD value upon completion of the project and thenceforward as reassessed by the District in future Service and Improvement Plans for up to 15 years;

 

Pretty close, we're at 2,355 units. The 463-unit project will push that total to 2,818 units, but they are looking at raising the cap.

 

[cloud713]

<p>

The address for this project is 1521 Austin St. & 1404 Leeland St.

• Two 9-10-floor residential buildings
• Apartments over parking garage
• Active ground floor uses front La Branch and Bell on Block 330; La Branch and Leeland on Block 346.
• Phase one (Block 330) begins in Feb. 2015, Block 346 begins in Feb. 2017

Interesting that they chose to turn their back on the activity going on to the west of these plots, and put the retail and/or live/work studios along the streets facing east. I guess they are hoping the area east eventually develops into that planned entertainment district with a new park (the 2 block park proposed in the downtown Houston PDF a few months back?), or at least develops into a new urban district in downtown.

[ClutchCity]

Pretty close, we're at 2,355 units. The 463-unit project will push that total to 2,818 units, but they are looking at raising the cap.

The 463 unit project isn't Alliances rumored 2nd downtown development is it? If not, with this and Fingers' ~400 apartment complex Downtown could be pushing 3500 units under construction or completed downtown in just a couple years from now. It will be interesting to see how much they end up raising the cap.Very exciting times ahead, I'm just greedy and wish downtown could get a residential tower over 40 stories!

[cloud713]

The 463 unit project isn't Alliances rumored 2nd downtown development is it? If not, with this and Fingers' ~400 apartment complex Downtown could be pushing 3500 units under construction or completed downtown in just a couple years from now. It will be interesting to see how much they end up raising the cap.Very exciting times ahead, I'm just greedy and wish downtown could get a residential tower over 40 stories!

Good question! I'm hoping they raise the cap to 5,000. Considering they hit 2,500 in less then half the time allocated for the initiative, I don't think that's too unrealistic.

And I'm with you on that 40+ story residential tower! Hopefully one of these new ones is a tower, along with the 38 story texaco tower and hopefully ritz will built that projected 40+ story tower, that would likely have residential units.

Edited January 6, 2014 by cloud713

[Urbannizer]

The 463 unit project isn't Alliances rumored 2nd downtown development is it? If not, with this and Fingers' ~400 apartment complex Downtown could be pushing 3500 units under construction or completed downtown in just a couple years from now. It will be interesting to see how much they end up raising the cap.Very exciting times ahead, I'm just greedy and wish downtown could get a residential tower over 40 stories!

Possibly, I was thinking that it could be the residential proposal for Block 35. The 463-unit project is very likely to appear on the next development map.

[Hugh Stone]

Does anyone know if there is a thread at HAIF or any info about #17 on the above pdf (28 floor residential w/ 9 floors of parking).  

 

Thank you!

[Triton]

Wait, block 42? With the parking garage on it?

[Urbannizer]

Does anyone know if there is a thread at HAIF or any info about #17 on the above pdf (28 floor residential w/ 9 floors of parking).  

 

Thank you!

 

http://www.houstonarchitecture.com/haif/topic/29199-new-28-story-residential-high-rise-for-downtown/

 

Wait, block 42? With the parking garage on it?

Typo

[ClutchCity]

Possibly, I was thinking that it could be the residential proposal for Block 35. The 463-unit project is very likely to appear on the next development map.

Yes, but it's still fun to speculate! 463 seems like a lot of units for a half block even if it is 35 stories. My suspicion is that it would be for Block 100 behind the new GRB hotel. If I remember correctly HFF or some similar entity wanted that block to move on a similar construction schedule to the hotel so some information needs to be released soon! It's cool to watch the residential pockets form on different parts of Downtown.

[ClutchCity]

Possibly, I was thinking that it could be the residential proposal for Block 35. The 463-unit project is very likely to appear on the next development map.

Unfortunately it didn't show up in the newest downtown update although there the information from Central Houston makes it sound like this project(Camden's) will be 2 12 story towers with 2Q '15 and '17 groundbreakings.

http://downtownhouston.org/site_media/uploads/attachments/2014-01-07/Downtown_Real_Estate_Update_2013-4Q.pdf

http://downtownhouston.org/site_media/uploads/attachments/2014-01-06/140102_Current_Projects_11x17.pdf

[Urbannizer]

Unfortunately it didn't show up in the newest downtown update although there the information from Central Houston makes it sound like this project(Camden's) will be 2 12 story towers with 2Q '15 and '17 groundbreakings.

http://downtownhouston.org/site_media/uploads/attachments/2014-01-07/Downtown_Real_Estate_Update_2013-4Q.pdf

http://downtownhouston.org/site_media/uploads/attachments/2014-01-06/140102_Current_Projects_11x17.pdf

It's not there because the next meeting where the project will be discussed has not been held yet. I didn't expect them to post a new map so soon, but the only thing different from the new map than the previous one is that the METRO North Line is no longer listed.

[Urbannizer]

 

http://www.downtownhouston.org/site_media/uploads/attachments/2014-03-05/140303_Project_Renderings_11_x_17.pdf

[Subdude]

Every urbanist's worst nightmare:  residences set on top of a two-story parking podium at street level, with rolling metal garage doors and no retail.  It does look safe.

 

 

[swtsig]

ya it looks very institutional - almost prison-like. for that part of downtown though that may have been the look they were going for haha.

 

that said i thought this was going to be 12-stories... looks like only 8 including parking.

[Avossos]

ehhhhhhhhhhhhhh

 

seems like a waste of space. go up not out.

 

But development in that area is needed. So i am torn. Was hoping for better. and we lost 4 stories somehwere.... How will they break up the phases on this???

[HoustonIsHome]

Eh, very disappointing. Thought these was supposed to be twice as tall as the alliance one on Main.

Why Camden???? WHY????!!!!!!!!

[Naviguessor]

Isn't this two blocks, two phases?  One block/phase 8 stories (this we see) and the other 12? 

[KinkaidAlum]

That part of downtown needs development, but this is awful. It doesn't encourage interaction with the streets or sidewalks and is 100% built for drive-in/drive-out living. 

 

The only thing missing from the rendering is barbed wire on the fencing to complete the Third World look.

[Naviguessor]

The other thing missing here, are views of the other three sides.  To me, this looks like the back of the building, as there is not any apparent pedestrian entrance.  Perhaps, this garage is the the back...behind retail.  Looks like it to me.  

[Moore713]

will the sheer bitching never stop

[HoustonIsHome]

will the sheer bitching never stop

Why should we? This is our city. We live it and want the best for it.

[Moore713]

Why should we? This is our city. We live it and want the best for it.

 

 

Who does not ? but link after link its just bitching , bitching , bitching.. one after the other .. am I trilled by some of these no... but i would take them over a damn parking lot anyday... I would love a more uniform design to the area... I would love for all these delveopers to get togther and say lets work  out  some designs that completmet each others buildings, not look like a hudge pod of random thrown toghetr apts.. but on the same hand I welcome thousands of more people , living in DT, which will encourage  more stores to open DT, which will encourage more high end places to open DT .. which will bring more people on the St  of DT.. as the area population grows the fancy apts will follow.

[HoustonIsHome]

We are all happy for more residential options, but still, why should we settle for crappy designs right smack in downtown?

[ZKB9]

Kind of disappointed by the lack of height and street level retail, although I do like the modern aesthetic and we all know that area needs development.

Edited March 6, 2014 by ZKB9

[HoustonIsHome]

I guess it is better than what is there now.

[intencity77]

I guess it is better than what is there now.

Oh goodness, the good ol' "it's better than what's there now" justification.

[HoustonIsHome]

Oh goodness, the good ol' "it's better than what's there now" justification.

Yep. We are a city if people who just settle for anything.

According to Moore we shouldn't B#&$H

[Moore713]

Yep. We are a city if people who just settle for anything.

According to Moore we shouldn't B#&$H

No according to me.. bitching and moning about it will not stop it from being built, so we should at least be glad it will be one less parking  lot !!!! or we can hope it fall thu at which point everyone can go back to bitching about how DT is blighted with nothing but parking lots

[HoustonIsHome]

Well this is an architecture forum.

[lockmat]

will the sheer bitching never stop

 

I try not to complain about projects too much, but you have to admit, they barely tried at making this interact well with the street. This is one step above garden style apartments. Okay, that's a stretch, but I just feel like exaggerating ;p

 

I don't care if this doesn't have GFR. I think everyone would be much happier if they at least disguised the garage better. Would it cure all things? No, but it'd be a big step. That and giving us our 4 floor back!

[kbates2]

Son of a B.  I need to try to post earlier. ^^^ This rendering does blow.  I live in Camden City Centre in midtown.  I like the design of these.  Other than that, every Camden seems to suck for one reason or another.

[Avossos]

The more I think of this one, the more I think it is a huge let down. No thanks Camden. Try again. This one sucks. Not worth closing the street for!

[lockmat]

The more I think of this one, the more I think it is a huge let down. No thanks Camden. Try again. This one sucks. Not worth closing the street for!

 

They're closing the street? I know my memory is awful but I don't remember hearing that.

[Naviguessor]

How do we know that there is no GFR in this development? One rendering of one side of one block in a two block project?? Maybe we could learn some facts before we fly off the handle.