Pearl Rosemont: Multifamily At 102 Dennis St.

[HoustonMidtown]

Something is happening on this lot - that's a lotta dirt !!

[Naviguessor]

WholeFoods HoleDirt

[hindesky]

[Urbannizer]

Location: Somewhere in Midtown.

 

  (6) Pearl Rosemont, a multi-family residential building.

 

https://midtownhouston.com/midtown-houston-infrastructure-update-current-and-future-developments-in-the-community/

[j_cuevas713]

This city is getting nice as hell! 

[hindesky]

All the dirt is gone and a For Sale sign up. I wonder if they bought this just for the temporary dirt storage?

[Urbannizer]

On 9/24/2017 at 8:19 PM, hindesky said:

All the dirt is gone and a For Sale sign up. I wonder if they bought this just for the temporary dirt storage?

 

 

Morgan Group originally bought the property with intentions on building a mid-rise there.

[HoustonMidtown]

Guess the apartments are on again...

 

IMG_0059 by Houston Midtown, on Flickr

[Urbannizer]

12 stories, ZC is the architect

 

[CREguy13]

I have no problem with mid-rises because they improve density, but hopefully this is a sign that high-rises or (10+ floors) is the new standard for midtown residential.  You have to think it may be true with this project as an example.

[Moderators]

2 hours ago, CREguy13 said:

I have no problem with mid-rises because they improve density, but hopefully this is a sign that high-rises or (10+ floors) is the new standard for midtown residential.  You have to think it may be true with this project as an example.

Agree.

[HoustonIsHome]

14 hours ago, CREguy13 said:

I have no problem with mid-rises because they improve density, but hopefully this is a sign that high-rises or (10+ floors) is the new standard for midtown residential.  You have to think it may be true with this project as an example.

I always envisioned Midtown to be a more midrise area than hirises. Looks like there will be corridors but mainly envisioned a sea of 10 to 25 floor buildings

[H-Town Man]

The shift to highrises means land values will go up and more lots will remain undeveloped for longer. Luckily there are swaths of Midtown which lag behind other areas so there will still be midrises in the not-so-hot areas. I kind of always hoped the area would be a sea of midrises like Chicago's North Side (esp. near Wrigleyville) but I'm not complaining.

 

[HNathoo]

It’s getting more difficult to find full city blocks inside the loop for less than $100psf. 

 

In some areas, it’s no longer a question of price, it’s more about availability. Where do you get the land to build in a prime area? 

 

Developers need to build up to amortize the higher land cost and lack of full city blocks available. 

[Angostura]

19 hours ago, HNathoo said:

 

Developers need to build up to amortize the higher land cost and lack of full city blocks available. 

 

Or build on smaller plots! With the elimination of parking minimums in Midtown, small scale development might start to make more sense.

 

Neighborhoods developed as small (say, 0.1 acre on average) plots are virtually always better than neighborhoods developed a full block at a time. Compare the north end of downtown to the south end, for example. It takes a lot of effort to make a full-block development interesting at the pedestrian level, but if developed 25-50 ft at a time, it just happens naturally.

 

(Neighborhoods developed as a series of multi-acre reserves are not, in fact, neighborhoods. They're a series of subdivisions, interspersed with retail centers, connected by major thoroughfares.)

[thatguysly]

This will feel pretty tall in that area.

[H-Town Man]

2 hours ago, Angostura said:

 

Or build on smaller plots! With the elimination of parking minimums in Midtown, small scale development might start to make more sense.

 

Neighborhoods developed as small (say, 0.1 acre on average) plots are virtually always better than neighborhoods developed a full block at a time. Compare the north end of downtown to the south end, for example. It takes a lot of effort to make a full-block development interesting at the pedestrian level, but if developed 25-50 ft at a time, it just happens naturally.

 

(Neighborhoods developed as a series of multi-acre reserves are not, in fact, neighborhoods. They're a series of subdivisions, interspersed with retail centers, connected by major thoroughfares.)

 

All true, but Houston developers will feel compelled to provide parking, which is difficult to do in small parcel arrangements with zero setbacks. Especially when, lacking zoning, you don't know what's going to be built next door.

 

[Urbannizer]

https://www.virtualbx.com/construction-preview/houston-morgan-group-plans-another-pearl-brand-luxury-tower/

 

 

Houston (Harris County) — Morgan Group has revived its plans to build a 13-story Pearl brand luxury apartment tower in the north end of Midtown.

 

The Pearl Rosemont project has been in the works since at least 2015, probably earlier. It was introduced then as a five-story wood frame podium style apartment building with zero building lines on all sides. It’s located at 102 Dennis Street, three blocks south of West Webster Street Park. The design firm was Wallace Garcia Wilson and it had a price tag of $20 million. It’s going to cost much more than that now.

 

It was supposed to have been built between July 2015 and July 2016 but more than three years later this 153-unit project remains listed on the Morgan website with a “TBD” anticipated opening date.

 

Meanwhile, Morgan did get underway on a Pearl brand project elsewhere in town. The Pearl Midtown is a six-story, 264-unit building with a 24-hour cyber cafe, resort style pool, retail and parking garage, located at 3120 Smith Street. Currently under construction, it’s scheduled to open end of the year.

 

Back to Pearl Rosemont, Morgan has submitted plans on the 102 Dennis Street project that on one document refer to it as Pearl on Helena. The project was before the Houston Planning Commission on Thursday for a 3-foot building line variance (zero line for balconies and overhangs) on Drew Street, a zero building line on Helena, and a 5-foot building line on Albany Street.

 

“The Helena and Albany pedestrian realms will feature a distance of 26.5’ between the back of curb and proposed structure. The Drew and Denis pedestrian realms will each feature 15’ of space. The Albany pedestrian realm will feature additional space in order to protect the root structure of an existing mature tree. A tree protection easement is being required as a condition to approve the variance.”

 

 

The project site is a full city block and has an area of 50,000 square feet. City staff took note that Morgan has moved the structure back from adjacent rights-of-way and increased the height.

 

“The Helena and Albany pedestrian realms will feature a distance of 26.5’ between the back of curb and proposed structure.

The Drew and Denis pedestrian realms will each feature 15’ of space. The Albany pedestrian realm will feature additional space in order to protect the root structure of an existing mature tree. A tree protection easement is being required as a condition to approve the variance.”

 

The developer’s briefing notes to the commission recall its previous version:

 

“This project was previously approved for four floors of apartments over two floors of garage in July of 2014. This site is within the Midtown TIRZ, which has an adopted Project Plan approved by Council that calls for buildings to be constructed up close to the sidewalk as a way to promote a walkable pedestrian environment.

 

Sidewalks will be a minimum of 6 feet wide. The face of the building at the ground level will be 5 feet-5 inches from the property line on Dennis Street. The upper floors on Dennis Street come out to 3 feet from the property line with balconies and overhangs coming up to property line. Building lines on the other sides will vary from 3 feet-2 inches up to 8 feet-6 inches.

 

“At the corner of Dennis and Albany, there will be a glass storefront that will include access into the building for both residents and visitors. An additional resident access point will be located on Helena near Drew. A third access point will be located on Albany near Drew.

 

“One of the main concerns of residents from the prior approval was all the traffic coming out onto Dennis Street. In response to that concern, the developer has added a second ingress/egress point on Drew Street. Constructing the buildings close to the street is common in older sections of cities like Boston, New York, and Philadelphia and is a major factor in creating a sense of security and safety as well as in defining a pedestrian realm.

 

“The plan for this property is consistent with the Midtown Plan. An urban style apartment building with nine floors of apartments over a four-floor garage is proposed.”

 

“There is a very large street tree on Albany, which the builder proposes to save by notching the building back 8.5’. New trees to be planted will be a minimum of 3” caliper. Sidewalks will be a minimum of 6’. Other streetscape amenities will include pedestrian scale lighting and a mural from a local artist on one of the walls.

[Angostura]

Notwithstanding some neighborhood opposition, the setback variances were approved last week.

[thedistrict84]

3 hours ago, Angostura said:

Notwithstanding some neighborhood opposition, the setback variances were approved last week.

 

RISE Lofts just a few blocks away is of a similar height, and it seems as though the developers are addressing any traffic flow/accessibility concerns, so I don’t see how any opposition to this will be remotely successful.

 

On a related note, is “pedestrian realm” a legitimate industry term, or is the developer trying to be “hip” and “cool” by pushing a new buzzword?

[H-Town Man]

"We want to promote the pedestrian realm... sidewalks will be six feet wide."

 

?????

 

[Luminare]

2 hours ago, thedistrict84 said:

 

RISE Lofts just a few blocks away is of a similar height, and it seems as though the developers are addressing any traffic flow/accessibility concerns, so I don’t see how any opposition to this will be remotely successful.

 

On a related note, is “pedestrian realm” a legitimate industry term, or is the developer trying to be “hip” and “cool” by pushing a new buzzword?

 

As one who works in architecture, this is used quite often. Academics use it, Architects use it, designers use it. Its also one of the few architectural terms that is also marketable and understandable to the average layman, and is therefore good for marketing purposes.

 

with that being said....it has definitely become a term to label a development as "hip" and "cool". Not all developers use it appropriately or work with it as it is defined.

 

What is encouraging with Morgan Groups use of the term is how it relates to Midtown TIRZ and the Midtown Authority. They are designing to their standards (which are some of the most comprehensive in this city to date).

[ADCS]

9 hours ago, Angostura said:

Notwithstanding some neighborhood opposition, the setback variances were approved last week.

 

Why would anyone oppose the setback variances?

[jgriff]

36 minutes ago, ADCS said:

 

Why would anyone oppose the setback variances?

 

Because they want something from the developer or just generally oppose the development and will use any means to stop it. 

[Luminare]

31 minutes ago, jgriff said:

 

Because they want something from the developer or just generally oppose the development and will use any means to stop it. 

 

Sometimes. Sometimes its completely valid. Especially when buildings get tall. Then we are getting into things like sunlight, views, and a general feeling of people stacking themselves on top of one another. This is exactly why New York has setback requirements at certain stages of a building so light can pass through, etc... I'm also fine with opposition doing these for selfish reasons especially if its for the rational reasons stated previously (although all of them are quite subjective in nature). The only thing I'm not fine with is if its for completely irrational reasons.

Edited September 20, 2018 by Luminare

[jgriff]

23 minutes ago, Luminare said:

 

Sometimes. Sometimes its completely valid. Especially when buildings get tall. Then we are getting into things like sunlight, views, and a general feeling of people stacking themselves on top of one another. This is exactly why New York has setback requirements at certain stages of a building so light can pass through, etc... I'm also fine with opposition doing these for selfish reasons especially if its for the rational reasons stated previously (although all of them are quite subjective in nature). The only thing I'm not fine with is if its for completely irrational reasons.

I agree. It’s not always used for selfish or corrupt reasons but it sure is a good setup for graft.

Edited September 20, 2018 by jgriff

[Angostura]

15 hours ago, ADCS said:

 

Why would anyone oppose the setback variances?

 

Couple different reasons. 

 

For some, it's, "I oppose this project, so hopefully if the variance is rejected the project will go away."

 

For others it's too much density, so setbacks will reduce the number of units/amount of parking/effect on traffic.

 

Other people are just angry at either developers in general or this develop in particular, and oppose anything the developer supports.

 

Other people don't understand the relationship between setbacks and walkability, and just want more "green space," even though empty green space, like front yards, is dumb and useless.

[wilcal]

Facade testing is up:

 

 

I just moved around the corner, so can make frequent updates on this one. Had no idea it was gonna be so big. 

[MarathonMan]

I think the facade testing has been up for months, if my memory serves me correctly.  This one is taking a loooong time to get going.

[wilcal]

6 hours ago, MarathonMan said:

I think the facade testing has been up for months, if my memory serves me correctly.  This one is taking a loooong time to get going.

 

Doesn't look like any recent activity is taking place, just didn't remember seeing this.