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Uptown Dallas Density


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The panoramic pic is actually of a rather isolated area south of the 16-lane Stemmons expressway (I-35E). The three brown brick buildings of varying heights to the right constitute the mammoth Anatole Hotel and it's across the freeway from the market center. The photographer was, I think, on the Oak Cliff side of the Trinity. About 6 inches to the right of the edge of the photo would be the Victory project and behind that the State/Thomas area. Downtown Dallas would be further to the right.

The State/Thomas area is indeed dense. There is nothing comprable in Houston. Buildings do not have grass/mud easements and it gives the whole area a distinctly practical urban feel. Sidewalks extend to the curb (like in the Post development) instead of having a silly little beatup patch of grass two feet wide that you have to step on when you get out of your car or avoid another pedestrian. It all runs together somewhat seemlessly although there are still a few vacant lots. I think people bought there rapidly because it was zoned and they weren't afraid a CVS and its suburban style parking lot would go in next door (i.e. W.Gray in midtown). Like Fourth Ward,, which it resembles in some ways, it was a slum. But unlike Fourth

Ward, its residents didn't fight back and throw rocks through new windows which has happened for some time in Houston. Its main street, McKinney, is bustling and crowded with snazzy resturants, offices, shops, and several highrise condos. There are many Post developments in the area. This was all possible because of zoning.

I moved to Houston from Dallas in '73 partly because I liked the eclectic mix of buildings in Houston. It seemed more urban to me so I stayed. State/Thomas and other areas of the so-called uptown Dallas district and Oaklawn have changed my mind about zoning. I'm afraid Midtown Houston will continue to be a hodgepodge of compounds unless some kind of restrictions are imposed on developers by the city.

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The panoramic pic is actually of a rather isolated area south of the 16-lane Stemmons expressway (I-35E).  The three brown brick buildings of varying heights to the right constitute the mammoth Anatole Hotel and it's across the freeway from the market center.  The photographer was, I think, on the Oak Cliff side of the Trinity.  About 6 inches to the right of the edge of the photo would be the Victory project and behind that  the State/Thomas area.  Downtown Dallas would be further to the right.

The State/Thomas area is indeed dense. There is nothing comprable in Houston. Buildings do not have grass/mud easements and it gives the whole area a distinctly practical urban feel.  Sidewalks extend to the curb (like in the Post development) instead of having a silly little beatup patch of grass two feet wide that you have to step on when you get out of your car or avoid another pedestrian.  It all runs together somewhat seemlessly although there are still a few vacant lots.  I think people  bought there rapidly because it was zoned and they weren't afraid a CVS and its suburban style parking lot would go in next door (i.e. W.Gray in midtown).  Like Fourth Ward,, which it resembles in some ways, it was a slum. But unlike Fourth

Ward, its residents didn't fight back and throw rocks through new windows which has happened for some time in Houston. Its main street, McKinney, is bustling and crowded with snazzy resturants, offices, shops, and several highrise condos.  There are many Post developments in the area.  This was all possible because of zoning.

I moved to Houston from Dallas in '73 partly because  I liked the eclectic mix of buildings in Houston.  It seemed more urban to me so I stayed.  State/Thomas and other areas of the so-called uptown Dallas district and Oaklawn have changed my mind about zoning. I'm afraid Midtown Houston will continue to be a hodgepodge of compounds unless some kind of restrictions are imposed on developers by the city.

0 sorry, I forgot to scroll. That is a nice pic.

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The M-Line stops right at the subway entrance. The M-line Authority is already converting more practical vehicles(more modern streetcars) and they are in talks with DART to help fund, as well as extend the line more extensively through downtown. It will be a novelty no more.

BTW, in that rendering, 7D(Bryson), Half of 7C(Border and Chase Bank), West Village, and ZOM(Mondriand) are finished are near finished. The other half of 7C has been mentioned in articles and is already staked. A development that is unlabeled here and across Blackburn from West Village(to the right here) is under construction. Its another ground floor retail, residential above building extension to the West Village. In addition to this, on the DFW forums, we have renderings of the soon to go up subway entrance tower, and some architects on the forum have mentioned designing several 20+ story towers for this project, but won't give details.

Uptown is on pace to fill up in less than 5 years and begin to feed on its own older or more cheaply built apts. The next question, is what becomes the next Uptown? The candidates I think are the Trinity River Meander, Park Lane/Northpark(rezoned and has great new developments u/c), or Deep Ellum/Bryan Place area. The Cedars will become its own cool area. A half super urban/half Deep Ellum(Nightlife is moving there). I pick the Bryan Place/Deep Ellum area. You already have Bryan Place looking like State-Thomas. Then you have the CityLights development that's akin to the West Village. Then you have mixed-use announcements for Deep Ellum and the Two DART stations going in the next 5 years. Deep Ellum will go from Punk/Clubs to Yuppie, hehe. The Cedars from wasteland to urban pioneer.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Redevelopment projects go from bust to boom

12:08 PM CST on Saturday, January 15, 2005

By DAVID FLICK / The Dallas Morning News

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcon...lick.4389f.html

There has been nothing like it in downtown Dallas for 20 years. After a period when progress on redevelopment seemed stalled, or at least invisible, the coming year will see at least 10 projects in various states of construction in the center city. Most of the projects will convert office buildings into residential and retail space. The DP&L and Interurban buildings will be ready for occupancy in the first half of the year, and city officials say they expect construction to begin or continue on the Republic Bank Tower, Gulf States Building, Fidelity Union Life Insurance building, the so-called Davis lot, the 1414 Elm St. building and the 1200 Main St. building.

In addition, work will proceed on the new hotel-retail complex at 1530 Main St. and the retail building at 1217 Main St. The last time we had so much construction going on downtown at one time was six years ago, and this is much larger than that," said Alice Murray, president of the Central Dallas Association. "I think it makes a big statement." Last week's edition of Downtown This Week, published by the CDA and the Downtown Improvement District, noted that the number of housing units downtown grew 747 percent between 1995 and 2005

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  • 2 weeks later...

The Azure

Harwood International's New Division Unveils $100M Condo Project

By Connie Gore

Last updated: January 24, 2005 08:21am

DALLAS-Promising to raise the bar on condo designs, Harwood International today unveils the Azure, a 31-story, sleek tower set to rise as the first in a branded line for an emerging subsidiary. The $100-million high rise will break ground April 15.

Harwood CEO Gabriel Barbier-Mueller and Harwood Living president Julie Morris will share the dais with Dallas Mayor Laura Miller and several council members at the 2 p.m. debut of a 10-foot model at the 2828 N. Harwood St. sales center. The 202-unit Azure, bearing a spring 2007 delivery, will rise at 2900 McKinnon St. on 1.3 acres in Harwood's 12-block footprint in Uptown. The site will take three months to prep, with the expectation that the Azure will start to go vertical by midsummer.

Barbier-Mueller tells GlobeSt.com that he's been waiting nearly two decades for Dallas to emerge as a luxury condo market. "I waited for this area to create a need for an urban residential environment," says the developer of one million sf of trophy office and retail space in Uptown and heir to a family responsible for developing 45,000 residential units in Switzerland.

The project site was ticketed for another office building in Harwood International Center until three years ago when Barbier-Mueller started mapping out a new plan, sped along by Uptown's top-performing commercial markets and the return of condos as hot properties in most US metros. He then laid the groundwork for Harwood Living, now a team of 12 brought together to lead the Azure's development and sales plus act as a model for a branded residential portfolio.

"We are exploring other markets," Barbier-Mueller says, "but at this time we're focused on the Azure, which will become the showroom." He adds it's too preliminary to discuss other locations, but did say the search includes the US and Europe. He's also not ruling out a sister project for Harwood's Uptown blocks. "It depends on the success of this one," he adds. "But as Dallas continues to mature, I think that's certainly a possibility."

The Azure will break ground with some condos sales closed and several prospects eyeing penthouses. The number of sales isn't being released. However, early buyers have been from out of town, including one with homes in Mexico, Europe and Dallas. "We're well ahead of where we thought we'd be," Barbier-Mueller says.

Morris predicts the Azure, with units from $400,000 to $4 million, will be sold out before construction is done. Each floor is designed with eight units, ranging from 881 sf to 5,025 sf and terraces of 134 sf to 3,940 sf. The high rise will take up one-third of the 1.3 acres and the balance will be laid out with gardens and an Olympic-size swimming pool with private cabanas. Underground parking will feature two-vehicle, private garages.

The Azure is being touted as a new landmark for the Dallas skyline with "a walk-to-life lifestyle" for its proximity to upscale entertainment and restaurant venues along with a built-in, resort-style amenities comparable to a five-star hotel. Cabinetry will come from Germany; stones will be imported from France; and the skin will be floor-to-ceiling glass for unobstructed views from the tallest building in Uptown, 375 feet or nearly 140 feet higher than its neighbors.

As Uptown booms with condo development, Barbier-Mueller says his team's created a niche in the luxury arena. "We don't have a hotel with it. We are focused on privacy and exclusivity of the 200 residents," he says. "We are definitely offering a new style of lifestyle."

Barbier-Mueller's Harwood is partnering with Westbank Projects Corp. of Vancouver, BC on the development, designed by James KM Cheng Architects Inc., with offices in Vancouver and New York City, and Gensler Architects, a San Francisco-headquartered international firm with offices in 25 cities. Dallas-based SWA Group is the landscape architect while Gensler and Lauren Rottet of Los Angeles teamed on interior designs. Harwood Living is overseeing a sales team that includes Gullotto Group/Ebby Halliday Realtors and the Seattle-based Rennie Marketing Systems. Barbier-Mueller says 70% of the subcontractors are in place while the decision is still out on a general contractor.

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  • 5 weeks later...

Steve Brown

A flaw in the numbers game

Downtown vacancy rate is being recalculated to drop boarded-up shells

09:48 PM CST on Thursday, February 3, 2005

Often things aren't as bad as they appear.

That turns out to be the case with the downtown Dallas office market.

For years, we've heard how downtown has the highest office vacancy in the known universe

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Something to keep in mind about downtown is the majority of the empty buildings downtown are currently being renovated or have proposals for renovations. To make the deal work and qualify for the Tax Incentive Program developers are typically making; the typical building conversion is into apartment rental units. Right now the place for new condos (for sale) property is in uptown / Turtle Creeek; this is why there are new buildings going up.

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I'm not sure how I like the idea of Uptown Dallas being so close to downtown. I know everybody loves density but I personally like the way Houston is setup with so much space in between DT and UT. Theres so many green spaces, parks and absolutely fantastic trees. I was driving down Memorial from UT yesterday (looking for the Orion condos) and love the way all the green spaces have been preserved. I hope the city never builds on these areas.

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Barbier-Mueller's Harwood is partnering with Westbank Projects Corp. of Vancouver, BC on the development, designed by James KM Cheng Architects Inc., with offices in Vancouver and New York City, and Gensler Architects, a San Francisco-headquartered international firm with offices in 25 cities. Dallas-based SWA Group is the landscape architect while Gensler and Lauren Rottet of Los Angeles teamed on interior designs. Harwood Living is overseeing a sales team that includes Gullotto Group/Ebby Halliday Realtors and the Seattle-based Rennie Marketing Systems. Barbier-Mueller says 70% of the subcontractors are in place while the decision is still out on a general contractor.

Check it out at http://www.azureliving.com -- it is REALLY nice. It looks like something straight out of Vancouver (where the architect is from), which imho is a great way to go.

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The next five to seven years are going to find both Dallas and Houston scoring points in the 'Where's the best city' game.

I grew up in Houston and moved to Dallas about 6 years ago. The mere thought of moving to Dallas sent chills up my spin. Once I got settled, I realized that Dallas is a great city. I live in Uptown and think it is the place to live in Dallas. I can leave my car in the garage all weekend and walk to bars, restaurants, stores and even Target if I needed to. I think Houston needs to do more to develop mid town and attract the type of residents that would make it a great urban area. With the new concert hall, Trinity River Project and bridges (if completed) and the new project to cover Woodall Rogers Expressway with parks fully materialize, Dallas is going to be the cultural center of Texas.

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Man, I don't know what part of Vancouver you are talking about, but that city is full of 1950s disasters a step left of a Praha commune.

Even the places on Robson St. are nothing to look at.

Seriously?

Vancouver looks like a mini-Hong Kong in a Seattle setting. Beautiful, beautiful city -- the kind that makes you seriously consider sucking it up and paying the taxes to live there.

Want to see a disaster in the making? Look outside your Midtown window. The momentum is waning. We need to open our eyes and get busy again, like Dallas has done with Uptown. Midtown is about 20 years behind Uptown Dallas and losing steam.

The MMD is made up of people from Fulshear and Sugar Land who like to play urban advocate. The land is overpriced. The architecture is a hodgepodge of uninteresting and downright offensive. Our mass transit in the area is a nationwide joke -- it's fun to watch cars speed past while this bus on rails creeps through Midtown.

Now, there's still hope. Midtown is still a blank canvas. But it needs a big boost in the next few years, or the fickle early adopters are going to head elsewhere.

The only question is, what will it be?

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