One Park Place: Multifamily At 1400 McKinney St.

[jt16]

I guess it's always easier to complain, but I kind of like both names. At least it's not the Finger Tower. What's in a name anyway?

[marc]

One Park Tower located overlooking Discovery Green. This definitely sounds urban to me. The park itself will be beautiful. The tower as well. And folks, please, don't compare this to Dallas' Victory or whatever. This is Houston building and adding and making itself a better city. Do not compare to Atlanta or anyplace, please. Comparisons are only opinions which are useless in my book. Apples to oranges? Doesn't work.

On the one hand i do agree with you, houstonfella, i am pleased that Houston seems to be slowly but surely booming, projects all over the place, trying to figure out the mass transit situation, etc. I also agree, to some degree, that comparing one city to the next is going to be a matter of opinion.

BUT, i do think it deserves some merit when comparing. I think many posters, like myself, sometimes become amazed, intriqued, disapointed and sometimes, down right frustrated, when we see other cities building (let's face it......most cities in the US are experiencing some sort of building boom) and Houston's rate of building seems a bit lacking. As you can read in my other posts, YES, there are lots of things going on in Houston which is exciting....BUT, i think comparisons to, say Atlanta, are important, because we see a similar city in terms of topography and temperature, building highrises (many outside of the DT area) and although it is smaller in pop., seems to get cutting edge architecture.

I love that Up Town is becoming denser, but let's face it, most of those highrises in the Galleria area look very similar. I love that DT Houston is becoming denser- which is part of the Houston 2025 plan ( you can access the mission statement and future plans for DT) , but again, i see highrises in other cities which are taking a departure from the basic stone and limited glass facades. That's when i think comparisons are important. In other words, why do other cities seem to get avant guarde architects, when many of Houston's seem to be stuck in the style of the 90's?

m.

[marc]

I guess it's always easier to complain, but I kind of like both names. At least it's not the Finger Tower. What's in a name anyway?

That's funny. Finger Tower........could you imagine the jokes?

What's in a name? Well....that's where you lost me.

What's in a name?

Central Park

Times Square

Old Town Spring

Piccadilly Circus

Town Lake

Gorky Park

Mount Vernon

Hyde Park

i think you get my point. Names are VERY important. Especially if a place is to keep the name for generations. One Park Tower isn't outstanding, but neither is Central Park. It a park, central in NY, sooo,

hmmmm..........YEAH, Central Park. Not very imaginative, but probably one of the most famous parks in the world. In time, it probably will become an icon.

m.

[Ethanra]

i am pleased that Houston seems to be slowly but surely booming,

Isn't that an oxymoron

and Houston's rate of building seems a bit lacking.

It might seems to you, but go look at facts. Look at the number of buildings that are under construction.

The TMC alone has to be one of the hottest areas in the nation. DT has covered over 40 blocks over the last 5 years. Uptown new projects going up every couple months. The energy corridor have structures rising. The metro area of clear lake, galveston, sugarland, the woodlands have structures rising. Houston has at least 25 cranes up right now that I can name off hand. To be honest I don't think any other U.S. city outside of NY and Chicago has as much going on right now.

[TheNiche]

It might seems to you, but go look at facts. Look at the number of buildings that are under construction.

The TMC alone has to be one of the hottest areas in the nation. DT has covered over 40 blocks over the last 5 years. Uptown new projects going up every couple months. The energy corridor have structures rising. The metro area of clear lake, galveston, sugarland, the woodlands hve structures rising. Houston

has at least 25 cranes up right now that I can name off hand. To be honest I don't think any other U.S. city outside of NY and Chicago has as much going on right now.

I've got to agree that we're booming, although I don't think that we're all that special in that regard. Many cities are still booming. We'll probably continue to boom for a good two years after the other cities have cooled off.

I glanced toward the TMC earlier today from the Peirce Elevated and noticed just how much the cranes just seem to dominate it. It was utterly awe-inspiring...and there's more coming!

[Montrose1100]

It might seems to you, but go look at facts. Look at the number of buildings that are under construction.

The TMC alone has to be one of the hottest areas in the nation. DT has covered over 40 blocks over the last 5 years. Uptown new projects going up every couple months. The energy corridor have structures rising. The metro area of clear lake, galveston, sugarland, the woodlands hve structures rising. Houston

has at least 25 cranes up right now that I can name off hand. To be honest I don't think any other U.S. city outside of NY and Chicago has as much going on right now.

Now I'm not sure who said this, you or marc, but I can easily think of other cities that have way much more going on... Such as Miami, San Diego, San Francisco, Atlanta, Charlotte, Tampa, and I'm skeptical about saying this but Dallas too.

I would put Memorial City & Westchase above the energy corridor. Galveston & Clear Lake seem to have all of the action. TMC is growing, but its not comparable to the "hot spots" of the nation.

[Ethanra]

Now I'm not sure who said this, you or marc, but I can easily think of other cities that have way much more going on... Such as Miami, San Diego, San Francisco, Atlanta, Charlotte, Tampa, and I'm skeptical about saying this but Dallas too.

For Highrises UC according to emporis ( i know emporis is not 100% accurate but it will give an idea)

The SSP list was close to thies numbers as well.

Houston 12 uc (not including park tower and 3 towers at HP to break ground soon) (22 in the metro) ( I'm not sure if this is counting the two that have broke ground last month either)

Dallas 6 UC

Miami 62UC WOW!!!

SF 12 UC

San Diego 18UC

Charlotte 9UC

Atlanta 16UC

Tampa 15UC

Fla is booming. I wonder if theis are resorts and/or apartment buildings.

Sorry, I was way off. Houston is doing well though,

I wonder if the number of town homes being built in Dallas and Houston take away from the number of apartment high rises to be built? Does the Fla cities build thousands of townhomes like Houston does or just mostly Apt. buildings?

In terms of new jobs and new houses as well as an economically, pop. growth throughout the metro area of each city, I know for a fact Houston, Dallas, and Atlanta are far ahead of rest of the country.

In terms of a highrises, Houston is in the middle of the pack.

[Dallasboi]

For Highrises UC according to emporis ( i know emporis is not 100% accurate but it will give an idea)

The SSP list was close to thies numbers as well.

Houston 12 uc (not including park tower and 3 towers at HP to break ground soon) (22 in the metro) ( I'm not sure if this is counting the two that have broke ground last month either)

Dallas 6 UC

Miami 62UC WOW!!!

SF 12 UC

San Diego 18UC

Charlotte 9UC

Atlanta 16UC

Tampa 15UC

Fla is booming. I wonder if theis are resorts and/or apartment buildings.

Sorry, I was way off. Houston is doing well though,

I wonder if the number of town homes being built in Dallas and Houston take away from the number of apartment high rises to be built? Does the Fla cities build thousands of townhomes like Houston does or just mostly Apt. buildings?

In terms of new jobs and new houses as well as an economically, pop. growth throughout the metro area of each city, I know for a fact Houston, Dallas, and Atlanta are far ahead of rest of the country.

In terms of a highrises, Houston is in the middle of the pack.

Yes......You were right. Emporis is very inaccurate. We all know that dallas has way more than 6 buildings under construction.But I'll leave it at that.

[Ethanra]

Yes......You were right. Emporis is very inaccurate. We all know that dallas has way more than 6 buildings under construction.But I'll leave it at that.

6 highrises UC (11 or more stories) in the city limits... We know that their are more buildings UC in Dallas and her metro area.

[Gary]

6 highrises UC (11 or more stories) in the city limits... We know that their are more buildings UC in Dallas and her metro area.

That's the thing, Houston seems to build taller structures than say Dallas, thus I would rather see the rankings in square footage.

[TheNiche]

Yes......You were right. Emporis is very inaccurate. We all know that dallas has way more than 6 buildings under construction.But I'll leave it at that.

City of Dallas or Dallas-Fort Worth CMSA? The City is really very small by its political boundaries; that would explain much of the disparity.

[NYC Texan2]

I have to weigh in on the side of ProHouston, jmancuso and shasta. Those that don't like NYC haven't lived there... There is something very, very seductive about going downstairs and walking about 30 yards to get what you want, while enjoying the weather and coming back home within 5 minutes. A car just loses meaning in those conditions.

Regarding the stories of people from NYC and CA who say great things about Houston, they are being nice b/c they know you care about their opinion.

[TheNiche]

Those that don't like NYC haven't lived there...

Well yeah, why would somebody that doesn't like NYC live there? Masochism?

[The Great Hizzy!]

LOL

[marc]

Isn't that an oxymoron

It might seems to you, but go look at facts. Look at the number of buildings that are under construction.

The TMC alone has to be one of the hottest areas in the nation. DT has covered over 40 blocks over the last 5 years. Uptown new projects going up every couple months. The energy corridor have structures rising. The metro area of clear lake, galveston, sugarland, the woodlands have structures rising. Houston has at least 25 cranes up right now that I can name off hand. To be honest I don't think any other U.S. city outside of NY and Chicago has as much going on right now.

I knew i was going to get flack for this post.

Believe me, if you look at my other posts, i am as pro Houston development as the rest of you. We all have seen more development in Houston over the past 6 years than in the previous decade (90s). What i meant by the slowly but surely bit, was that i think Houston is being more prudent about building. In other words, most highrises being built are at least 50% occupied. We all know that Houston overextended itself in the early 80s, so when the oil bust hit, we were left with mostly empty skyscrapers.......especially in the DT area. I honestly don't need convincing that Houston is experiencing developmental growth. It is, plain and simple.

The gist of what i was trying to say, is that, when i look through links, like Emporis, Skyscraperpage etc.

(not entirely accurate) i see that in other cities, a development concept is created, under construction, and built , seemingly, in no time, whereas, it SEEMS, that in Houston, we hear about a project underway for years before the site is even cleared. Which of course, goes back to my slowly but surely observation.

I think my problem is i am too impatient. I want all of those projects to be built NOW. Which of course, is ridiculous, because then we would probably run into the same problem of the post bust 80s.

Can't help it. My youth was spent watching the late 70s and early 80s boom, where the crain was our euphemistic state bird.

[marc]

Now I'm not sure who said this, you or marc, but I can easily think of other cities that have way much more going on... Such as Miami, San Diego, San Francisco, Atlanta, Charlotte, Tampa, and I'm skeptical about saying this but Dallas too.

Marc did not say that. I have investigated, and i really am pleasantly surprised that many cities in the US are developing at rates higher than they were in the 90s.

When i reread what i wrote, i realized some of what i was saying was confusing, so i will clarify.

1. YES, i can see that Houston is developing on a scale larger than we have seen in years.

2. BUT, i am sometimes disapointed that certain projects remain on the drawing board for years,

to either get scrapped, or scaled down, or revamped.

3. AND, i see other cities developing highrises which have a more 21st century look, rather than an almost

cookie cutter look that say, UT has.

4. TRUE, if the highrise concepts now on the drawing boards get built, then there will be some pretty

awesome looking buildings within the next few years in Houston.

5. BUT, then again..........will these projects come to fruition?

Hopefully, this clears up the jumble of what i was trying to say the other day.

[MidtownCoog]

It's easy to think smaller cities have more going on.

But Houston is a beast and activity is everywhere.

[N Judah]

Regarding the stories of people from NYC and CA who say great things about Houston, they are being nice b/c they know you care about their opinion.

This is 100% true, and not just in the case of NYC and CA people, either. It seems like the nicer the place they are from, the more they LOOOOOOOVE Houston, absolutely LOVE it...

But I will say that the NY Times seems to have a disproportionate number of articles dedicated to Houston goings-on. I don't know if this is just my perception or what. For example, a few months ago their Real Estate magazine had this whole big pointless spread about some real estate agent in River Oaks.

[largeTEXAS]

Now I'm not sure who said this, you or marc, but I can easily think of other cities that have way much more going on... Such as Miami, San Diego, San Francisco, Atlanta, Charlotte, Tampa, and I'm skeptical about saying this but Dallas too.

I would put Memorial City & Westchase above the energy corridor. Galveston & Clear Lake seem to have all of the action. TMC is growing, but its not comparable to the "hot spots" of the nation.

I don't think you know or even realize the insane amount of building this city is about to experience. All are still proposed, but if all goes as scheduled, 2007 we will start to see lots of cranes. 2008 don't book anything...there will be A LOT of openings! Houston's really about to explode. And, yes, we will definitely overbuild. but it'll be fun for a couple of years!

Large projects (I can speak of) coming up:

Houston Pavilions

Finger's Tower and the park

Camden Superblock

(lots of cool stuff in Midtown, more later on that)

(lots of cool stuff on Allen Pkwy)

Asia House

MFAH Expansion

Mosaic

Slosburg Medical Village (we'll see)

TMC Transit Village

Rice Village mixed use

Rice University's mixed use project(s)

Gables River Oaks

Westcreek

High Street

Turnberry's Uptown tower

Blvd Place

City Centre

I know I left some out, but almost all these projects are quite big. All in all, it's about to get a little crazy 'round here!

[C2H]

^^^ yeah you left out Hardy Rail Yards, UHD developement, T& C developements. Sorry just had to nitpick you LARGE

[Trae]

Yeah, our boom is definetly coming.

[Ethanra]

Driving by this block today they were tearing up the small park. Maybe they are starting to prepare this block for the fingers buiding?

[Houstonian in Iraq]

Driving by this block today they were tearing up the small park. Maybe they are starting to prepare this block for the fingers buiding?

Yeah I noticed this too.

this pic was taken about a month and a half ago,

looks like they were trying to conserve the oak trees, maybe for the new park

PS

Happy PUMAPAYAM DAY TO ALL!!!

[Endeavour Team]

Yeah I noticed this too.

this pic was taken about a month and a half ago,

looks like they were trying to conserve the oak trees, maybe for the new park

PS

Happy PUMAPAYAM DAY TO ALL!!!

The Finger Building has been put on hold from what I hear. The land it was going to occupy is currently a parking lot.

[TheNiche]

The Finger Building has been put on hold from what I hear. The land it was going to occupy is currently a parking lot.

You wouldn't happen to know why, would you? If I had to guess, I'd say that it is probably linked to Pavilions having moved back groundbreaking, and that they're just waiting to enusure that all of the area amenities will be in place before they take the big risk...but that'd just be a guess.

[nmainguy]

The Finger Building has been put on hold from what I hear. The land it was going to occupy is currently a parking lot.

Except the land it is going to occupy is a park-not a parking lot and from the Sakowitz thread you claim it is a part of the Pavillions-which it clearly is not and never has been. You may want to check your facts?

[Houston19514]

Except the land it is going to occupy is a park-not a parking lot and from the Sakowitz thread you claim it is a part of the Pavillions-which it clearly is not and never has been. You may want to check your facts?

My thoughts, exactly.

[houston-development]

The Finger Building has been put on hold from what I hear. The land it was going to occupy is currently a parking lot.

uh, says who? did you speak with marvy or something

they are still anticipating a january groundbreaking.

[nmainguy]

The Finger Building has been put on hold from what I hear. The land it was going to occupy is currently a parking lot.

Is this manufactured in order to increase your sales at Endeavor?

[TheNiche]

uh, says who? did you speak with marvy or something

they are still anticipating a january groundbreaking.

They had been expecting a groundbreaking in October or November. Seems like Park Tower got moved back when Pavilions did, supporting my theory.

Is this manufactured in order to increase your sales at Endeavor?

You'll have to forgive nmainguy, EndeavorTeam, but he's our resident drama queen.

Nmainguy, just so you're aware, the market for Park Tower's rental units is not the same as for any of the for-sale Endeavor projects' units. Not only are they geographically different, but they are not the same type of housing product. Your accusation is bogus.