1661 Tanglewood: Condominium High-Rise At 1661 Tanglewood Blvd.

[Highrise Tower]

Here's a protest sign I noticed today.

 

[Texasota]

Ok these people are crazy but don't take it out on the bats monarch.

[cspwal]

Would you say they're batty?

[Luminare]

On 6/15/2019 at 5:20 PM, ekdrm2d1 said:

Here's a protest sign I noticed today.

 

 

On 6/15/2019 at 5:27 PM, gclass said:

^^^ why on earth would anyone residing in the vicinity of TANGLEWOOD want to protect something like this ^^^  i mean like... SERIOUSLY?

 

Now this is getting interesting. I hope PETA gets involved just so this can get more ridiculous. Then they start claiming that "Bats have rights" or "All Bats Matter" starts trending on twitter. Oh this will be fun to watch.

 

EDIT: Then during public hearings you see people wearing batman outfits.

Edited June 17, 2019 by Luminare

[thatguysly]

What bats? 

[Timoric]

-

Edited July 12, 2019 by Timoric

[Urbannizer]

I believe this one's now cancelled, can anyone confirm?

[htownbro]

On 6/13/2019 at 12:47 PM, Urbannizer said:

An update will likely be provided here.

 

 

😒

[Vy65]

Lawsuit is still active and a summary judgment hearing scheduled for September. Wouldn't imagine that'd be going on if the project were dead. 

[Urbannizer]

On 7/30/2019 at 10:57 AM, Urbannizer said:

I believe this one's now cancelled, can anyone confirm?

 

Confirmed: https://seniorhousingnews.com/2019/08/27/watermark-hines-hope-for-canyon-ranch-partnership-on-senior-living-projects/

 

The three companies were pursuing a highrise project in the Tanglewood neighborhood of Houston. That proposed 20-story tower met with pushback from area homeowners, the Houston Chronicle reported in June.

 

The Tanglewood project is not moving forward, but Watermark and Hines are still eyeing opportunities to team up with Canyon Ranch. 

 

“A Tanglewood project is not currently in the works but we do hope to find a way for all three firms to work together on future senior living communities,” Watermark Chairman David Freshwater told Senior Housing News.

 

Hines Director of Health Care and Senior Living Ryan Pritchard echoed that sentiment.

 

“Hines doesn’t have any current pursuits or projects with Canyon Ranch at this time,” he told SHN. “That said, we hope to work with them at some point in the future.”

[Urbannizer]

Anyone mind providing a summed up update of the lawsuit?

 

https://protecttanglewood.com/tha-inc-vs-wmjk-ltd-2/

[Montrose1100]

 

Quote

The proposed condo tower replaces a plan for a previous development announced for the site. 

It will have three levels of underground parking and be situated close to San Felipe with 60 feet between the building and houses to the north.

At the earliest, the groundbreaking for 1661 Tanglewood could occur in early 2022.

Rising 460 feet, the building would offer panoramic views of the city.

Prices have not be set, but are expected to begin near where the Hawthorne leaves off — or upward of $3 million.

 

Houston Chronicle Article

The article mentions Jackson & Ryan as the architects but it's not on their site.

Jackson Ryan Architects

 

[tangledwoods]

well get prepared for a bunch of angry rich people in tanglewood to take up their metaphorical pitchforks!

[Montrose1100]

@Highrise Tower

You're too quick for me. I finally found Urb's post to merge and you beat me to it. Thanks.

[thatguysly]

Kind of funny they blocked a 22-story building to end up with a 33-story building

[s3mh]

The lawsuit is ongoing and has a September trial setting (courts are pretty log jammed due to COVID, so odds aren't very good that trial will happen in September).  HOA's argument is pretty thin.  The tract with the Tanglewood Corp building has an exception to the deed restrictions and specifically says that the tract can be used for commercial purposes.  The HOA claims that the tract is also subject to the deed restrictions that restrict using property for apartments, etc.  There were also attempts in the 2000s to amend the deed restrictions to make it clear that the tract could not be used for an apartment/condo tower.  The owner of the tract argues that the clear intent of the deed restrictions was to exempt the tract from the residential only restrictions and the subsequent attempts to amend did not follow the property code.  Just to make things fun, the owner hired Rusty Hardin, although Mr. Hardin probably isn't doing much of the legal leg work.  

This kind of dispute would usually be resolved on summary judgment motions, but the judge in this case does not like to rule on anything because she gets reversed a lot on appeal.  

I don't see the HOA prevailing.  It is pretty hard to argue that a commercial use exception does not apply when the property has been used for commercial purposes for decades.  

And that is the fun part about Houston's lack of zoning and dedication to deed restrictions.  Developers can stomp on the rich and poor alike.  

[KinkaidAlum]

I grew up in Tanglewood back when a two story house was not allowed. My house and those of all of my friends are long gone. Onwards and upwards.

[MidCenturyMoldy]

1 hour ago, KinkaidAlum said:

I grew up in Tanglewood back when a two story house was not allowed. My house and those of all of my friends are long gone. Onwards and upwards.

IKR? Though I don't blame them for objecting, or even for fighting it legally, they knew what they were getting into when they built their McMansions in that area.

Edited August 12, 2021 by MidCenturyMoldy

[Luminare]

9 hours ago, thatguysly said:

Kind of funny they blocked a 22-story building to end up with a 33-story building

I think the term you are looking for is "poetic justice".

[InterLooper]

5 hours ago, KinkaidAlum said:

I grew up in Tanglewood back when a two story house was not allowed. My house and those of all of my friends are long gone. Onwards and upwards.

That’s interesting. What years did you live there?

Edited August 13, 2021 by InterLooper

[Highrise Tower]

Waste water application permit last month. Looks like Walter P Moore is involved.

[houstontexasjack]

12 hours ago, s3mh said:

The lawsuit is ongoing and has a September trial setting (courts are pretty log jammed due to COVID, so odds aren't very good that trial will happen in September).  HOA's argument is pretty thin.  The tract with the Tanglewood Corp building has an exception to the deed restrictions and specifically says that the tract can be used for commercial purposes.  The HOA claims that the tract is also subject to the deed restrictions that restrict using property for apartments, etc.  There were also attempts in the 2000s to amend the deed restrictions to make it clear that the tract could not be used for an apartment/condo tower.  The owner of the tract argues that the clear intent of the deed restrictions was to exempt the tract from the residential only restrictions and the subsequent attempts to amend did not follow the property code.  Just to make things fun, the owner hired Rusty Hardin, although Mr. Hardin probably isn't doing much of the legal leg work.  

This kind of dispute would usually be resolved on summary judgment motions, but the judge in this case does not like to rule on anything because she gets reversed a lot on appeal.  

I don't see the HOA prevailing.  It is pretty hard to argue that a commercial use exception does not apply when the property has been used for commercial purposes for decades.  

And that is the fun part about Houston's lack of zoning and dedication to deed restrictions.  Developers can stomp on the rich and poor alike.  

Looks like the trial setting was already reset to February 2022.

[KinkaidAlum]

My parents moved to Candlewood in the late 1950s but I wasn't born until 1969. 

[hindesky]

Tanglewood developer plans $300 million, 33-story tower

 

Katherine Feser, Staff writer

 

 

The family of the founder of Houston’s prestigious Tanglewood neighborhood plans to build a $300 million, 33-story condominium tower on the community’s southern edge.

The 1.3-acre site, at the northeast corner of Tanglewood Boulevard at San Felipe, currently houses the headquarters of Tanglewood Corp., a third-generation, family-run real estate venture founded by Tanglewood developer William G. Farrington. The ranch-style office building, which opened in 1949, the same year as the neighborhood, would be torn down to make way for the tower.

“We’ve been incubating this wonderful corner for approximately 70 years,” said Kendall Miller, Farrington’s grandson, who lives in the house his grandfather built nearby. “The plan has evolved over the years, but has always been the new commercial idea of the moment.”

The lot was set aside for commercial use in the original plans for Tanglewood, which opened in 1949 with with innovative “rambling ranch” style homes on spacious lots and curved streets named for Nathaniel Hawthorne’s Tanglewood Tales. Residential lots in the neighborhood typically range from 1/4-acre to 3/4-acre, providing space for grand scale, multimillion-dollar houses that have replaced so many original homes in recent decades.

The proposed condo tower replaces a plan for a previous development announced for the site. That project, a 20-story luxury tower with 230 units was to be marketed to residents aged 62 and up. It was to include amenities associated with Canyon Ranch, the well-known health and wellness resort.

https://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/real-estate/article/Tanglewood-developer-plans-300-million-33-story-16380987.php

That project, which sparked a lawsuit by the Tanglewood Homes Association seeking to restrict the scale of the development on the parcel, is no longer planned. The case is still pending, according to Miller.

Tanglewood Homes Association did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The new condo building is designed to be compatible with the neighborhood and will adhere to deed restrictions, which were written by Tanglewood Corp., Miller said. It will have three levels of underground parking and be situated close to San Felipe with 60 feet between the building and houses to the north.

He added that the project will have less than 30 percent of the impact on city services than a previous proposal for the site.

“Tanglewood has on its periphery happily coexisted with more intense tall developments,” Miller said. “All parts of the area seem to be harmoniously working together.”

Tanglewood Corp. will have an office at the new 1661 Tanglewood building, which also borders Sage Road.

The company has also developed Post Oak Shopping Center at Westheimer and Post Oak Boulevard, which it sold in 2019; the Parkwood apartments, which were torn down to make way for a hospital on Baylor St. Luke's Medical Center’s McNair Campus; and built the Lamar River Oaks Shopping Center across from Lamar High School.

At the earliest, the groundbreaking for 1661 Tanglewood could occur in early 2022, Miller said. He said the project would be about a year behind the Hawthorne, a 17-story condo building that Pelican Builders is preparing start construction on at 5656 San Felipe at Chimney Rock, less than a mile away.

Miller said 1661 Tanglewood was being positioned to have international appeal, luring buyers from Mexico and South America as well as from surrounding neighborhoods. Prices have not be set, but are expected to begin near where the Hawthorne leaves off — or upward of $3 million, according to Miller. Most of the units will be more than 5,000 square feet, with some in the ballpark of 2,500 square feet and others topping 10,000 square feet.

“We think our target buyer is someone who doesn’t necessarily want to downsize, but would like to move into a vertical estate in the sky with amenities and views and the ability to lock and leave with less maintenance than a house,” Miller said.

Jackson & Ryan Architects designed the neo-classical style building with a granite-paved driveway, a guard house and porte cochere. A Venetian-inspired lobby will have inlaid marble and onyx ceilings. Rising 460 feet, the building would offer panoramic views of the city.

The property will have full-time concierge services, doorman, smart-home technology, a skyline pool deck, exercise, social and business facilities and landscaped gardens.

Miller said the scale of the building is on par with other Galleria-area condos such as Belfiore and Four Leaf Towers.

katherine.feser@chron.com

Edited August 13, 2021 by hindesky

[Valhalla]

if this is the beginning of a neo-classical skyscraper renaissance, I'm here for it. 

[arche_757]

So, let me see...  The first proposal was a 22 floor “active/wealthy” senior living building that was ultimately canceled - lawsuit pending regardless!  In true Houston fashion they come back to the same HOA who filed the pending lawsuit on them and present them with a 33 floor building and this is ok?  Fascinating.

I wonder if this concept will play out elsewhere on the properties mentioned in the article?  I would hate to see the shopping center across from Lamar High go, but I’m sure eventually it will.

[samagon]

59 minutes ago, arche_757 said:

I wonder if this concept will play out elsewhere on the properties mentioned in the article?  I would hate to see the shopping center across from Lamar High go, but I’m sure eventually it will.

considering that's my go-to for 31 flavors of ice cream, it would be a tragedy.

my only solace would be the ability to watch River Oaks erupt in a hail of fury and malice the likes of which even Ashby has never seen.

[Montrose1100]

2 hours ago, Valhalla said:

if this is the beginning of a neo-classical skyscraper renaissance, I'm here for it. 

I wouldn't get too excited. The same firm did Market Square Tower. Won't be nearly as romantic as the render. Also won't be as terrible as anything Randal Davis.

[Specwriter]

42 minutes ago, samagon said:

considering that's my go-to for 31 flavors of ice cream, it would be a tragedy.

my only solace would be the ability to watch River Oaks erupt in a hail of fury and malice the likes of which even Ashby has never seen.

Not to mention State of Grace is a pretty good restaurant. At least, I enjoy it.

[arche_757]

2 hours ago, samagon said:

my only solace would be the ability to watch River Oaks erupt in a hail of fury and malice the likes of which even Ashby has never seen.

Probably RO has some rules for this sort of occurrence in their neighborhood development standards?  Plus that neighborhood is in a different realm than the anti-Ashby’s.