Cadillac Houston/Central Houston Nissan At 2901 South Loop W.

[Highrise Tower]

New multistory building and parking garage. This is located within the Nissan land? I believe the Nissan dealership right there is the largest in the world?

[Specwriter]

Who owns the Nissan dealership? Tom Peacock (or whoever the current owner is) has both a Nissan and Cadillac dealership on the North Freeway.

[JLWM8609]

On 7/19/2021 at 8:40 AM, Specwriter said:

Who owns the Nissan dealership? Tom Peacock (or whoever the current owner is) has both a Nissan and Cadillac dealership on the North Freeway.

Central Automotive Group owns it. They also own Central Houston Cadillac's current location on Main.

[kennyc05]

7 hours ago, JLWM8609 said:

Central Automotive Group owns it. They also own Central Houston Cadillac's current location on Main.

Maybe they're shutting down central that's pretty close.

[hindesky]

On 7/23/2021 at 8:19 AM, kennyc05 said:

Maybe they're shutting down central that's pretty close.

I rode by Central Houston Cadillac and talked with a couple of guys. They confirmed they will be moving down the the south loop location when they finish the build, they said they should be in there about this time next year. They didn't know what will take over their showroom on Main St but suspect more apartments.

Edited August 15, 2021 by hindesky

[dbigtex56]

17 minutes ago, hindesky said:

They din't know what will take over their showroom on Main St but suspect more apartments.

 

Good. 
Having an auto dealership at a light rail stop seems like a wasted resource (who takes the train to shop for a Cadillac?).
Presumably the inventory will also be relocated, freeing up the private parking lots in Midtown for better uses. 
If apartments aren't on the immediate horizon, perhaps the showroom could be repurposed for a restaurant, nightclub, or retail.

[JLWM8609]

38 minutes ago, dbigtex56 said:

Good. 
Having an auto dealership at a light rail stop seems like a wasted resource (who takes the train to shop for a Cadillac?).
Presumably the inventory will also be relocated, freeing up the private parking lots in Midtown for better uses. 
If apartments aren't on the immediate horizon, perhaps the showroom could be repurposed for a restaurant, nightclub, or retail.

People take the train to work there so it's not a wasted resource. The dealership pre-dates the light rail stop by decades. It was formerly Sam White Oldsmobile in the 1950s. It didn't become a Cadillac dealership (Don Massey) until the late 90s when Bland Cadillac shut down and was replaced by Lofts. There was some old school charm about having a dealer so close in town in a vintage building, a domestic dealer at that, imagining the old fintailed 88s and 98s on the showroom floor. San Francisco doesn't have a single domestic car dealership in its city limits. The last one closed in 2011. If you're rich enough to afford to live in SF, a domestic car is beneath you. We still have Knapp Chevy though, still rocking its Art Deco digs in the shadow of downtown, so that's a sign that central Houston isn't that unaffordable. . . yet.

 

http://swamplot.com/your-next-best-bets-for-houstons-most-historic-car-dealership-building-once-1621-milam-gets-demolished/2018-10-25/

Edited August 14, 2021 by JLWM8609

[Ross]

28 minutes ago, dbigtex56 said:

Good. 
Having an auto dealership at a light rail stop seems like a wasted resource (who takes the train to shop for a Cadillac?).
Presumably the inventory will also be relocated, freeing up the private parking lots in Midtown for better uses. 
If apartments aren't on the immediate horizon, perhaps the showroom could be repurposed for a restaurant, nightclub, or retail.

Keep in mind that building was a car dealer before light rail was built. Having said that, it's highly likely that the amount the property can be sold for is high enough to provide an incentive to move. HCAD value for the three parcels the dealer owns is about $17 million, so the sales price would likely be far higher. The property the dealership building is on is 125,000 square feet, or 2.9 acres. The block to the West is 37k square feet, and the lot to the East, across Main, is 24k square feet. This should be interesting, as the two lots on either side are all parking, making it possible to do almost anything with them.

[hindesky]

The guys told me it has been a car dealership since 1951.

[mkultra25]

21 hours ago, JLWM8609 said:

People take the train to work there so it's not a wasted resource. The dealership pre-dates the light rail stop by decades. It was formerly Sam White Oldsmobile in the 1950s. It didn't become a Cadillac dealership (Don Massey) until the late 90s when Bland Cadillac shut down and was replaced by Lofts. There was some old school charm about having a dealer so close in town in a vintage building, a domestic dealer at that, imagining the old fintailed 88s and 98s on the showroom floor. San Francisco doesn't have a single domestic car dealership in its city limits. The last one closed in 2011. If you're rich enough to afford to live in SF, a domestic car is beneath you. We still have Knapp Chevy though, still rocking its Art Deco digs in the shadow of downtown, so that's a sign that central Houston isn't that unaffordable. . . yet.

 

http://swamplot.com/your-next-best-bets-for-houstons-most-historic-car-dealership-building-once-1621-milam-gets-demolished/2018-10-25/

I'm pretty sure it was Sam White Oldsmobile until sometime in the 1970s. One of my clearest childhood memories is sitting in the showroom with my parents while they closed a deal to buy a new '68 Delta 88.

Assuming the property is redeveloped and the existing structures demolished, I'll miss the service department building, which is one of my favorite buildings. It's been there almost unchanged since the property first became an auto dealership almost 70 years ago. 

 

[dbigtex56]

On 8/14/2021 at 5:18 PM, JLWM8609 said:

People take the train to work there so it's not a wasted resource.

Do you know that for a fact? Seems unlikely that any significant number of employees (say, anything greater than zero) would take the train to their job at a car dealership.
My point is that there are other businesses (restaurants, for example) that would be a better fit for this site.
Almost everyone eats seven days a week, yet it might be weeks, or months, or even years between visits to their local Cadillac showroom.

[texas911]

My parents  bought an Oldsmobile from that dealership, but by then, it was Mossy Oldsmobile. Late 70's.

[Amlaham]

This is well underway! Site is not letting me attach my pictures because it exceeds 20kB? Looks like they're on track to finish early next year 

[hindesky]

I talked with an employee of Central Cadillac as I rode by. Asked him when they are moving out to the new south loop location. He said they should move spring' 23. I then asked him what was to become of the land and building. He said he thought it might become a nightclub. Cool mid century building that is fairly large and has 2 parking areas that they own. I could actually see that happening until something grander where to come along and whoever owns the property gets a fat payday. I think it's ideal for high rise apartments in the long run.

[hindesky]

[Highrise Tower]

Central Houston Nissan expansion.

[Amlaham]

. really bad quality maps picture, but we have a rendering! Nothing special though, looks like a garage wrapped building ..