shasta

Anyone know what they are building here?

This is the site across the street from Kroger where Pier 1 Imports used to be.

3 hours ago, thatguysly said:

Now I really wish the Disco Kroger development was something more than a wrap. At least the former Mattress Firm/Specs/Half Price Books location should also be a sustainable development. But if the Disco Kroger location would have also been a high rise, it would really have a nice affect on the area.

do you have a rendering of the Disco Kroger site wrap proposal?

On 8/19/2022 at 8:43 AM, Luminare said:

Nurse get in here!.....Its bad. We can't save him. This patient has....*sigh*....RSDS....Regent Square Derangement Syndrome....dum dum dummmm

You are correct, people all over the world regard Houston as a model of high quality development and superior urban and city planning.

WE are definitely on the short list for most charming cities and every city looks to Houston and wonder how they did it...oh wait, none of that is true and the demise of a quality project like Regent Square to a very bland dull project that can't even get tenants, is a perfect example of a reason why!

Am I wrong, Luminare?

1 hour ago, Houston19514 said:

Someone needs a nap...

Someone needs glasses

1 hour ago, monarch said:

^^^ why should he "need a nap"... when he can just POP the TOP?  go shasta go!

Someone had to move to Houston because they wanted to be in a city with a real College Football team

3 minutes ago, Texasota said:

*rolls eyes*

It's definitely not worse than the Embassy Suites. Is Autry Park better? Of course! Is Regent Square as good as what was originally shown? Not at all! But it's not bad!

I think the Dallas St frontage is generally pretty good - it engages the sidewalk and is overall pretty pleasant. There's a lot of potential for the retail plaza at Dunlavy, especially once that street gets rebuilt and the next phase of Regent Square (hopefully) gets built.

The long term vacancy *is* a problem. But hopefully it's one that's finally going away.

NOT worse...it's a million times worse.

Go back and look a the original layout, design  and the fact that a number of high quality architects worked on the original scheme.

It went from the best inner loop project to what we have now and add in the fact the lots (A + B) vacant for almost 15 years and A is still vacant.

Even with being open, they still haven't leased the spaces and GID started this project in 2007!

They even built a building across the street with a large scale model!

Compare that progress to Hanover.

10 minutes ago, Texasota said:

Eh, the hate on Regent Square is overdone. In reality, Regent Square and Autry Park *together* are completely transforming this part of W Dallas.

No, the hate is 100% justified.

They Value Engineered both the layout and quality it worse than the Embassy Suites downtown and in the process left the lots vacant for over a decade.

Meanwhile, Hanover put together a very high quality product in a fraction of the time and were faced with the same exact issues as GID, from a catchment area analysis.

Two solutions for the exact same type of project in the exact same exact location. But with two drastically different strategies: One went high quality and one went cheap and still has only 2 tenants.

The hate is definitely justified.

The only hope is that they use the now vacant "Block A" to significantly improve the quality but their reputation of Block B may hurt. They can benefit by piggy backing off of the Hanover vision.

Autry Park makes Regent Square look like a cheap strip center.

Of the two additions

Law Building- Probably the best looking building on campus and that include 1 designed by Pritzker Prize winner (Philip Johnson) and one designed by Cesar Pelli.

Medical School Building - .

Serious question...why did the Karens scream over this project? There are many examples of mid rises in the Rice University area, and surrounding area. Many over looking residential. This is not out of character for this district.

The do need a stop light at Dunlay @ Bissonnet, with or without this building.

Didn't Randall Davis, with the Rice conversion to Residential, along with a few other pave the way before Fingers?

Plus, how many here remember the once proposed residential high rise on the block on Main that used to house a suburban style McDonalds?

48 minutes ago, Amlaham said:

3 new businesses opening soon per article linked below

• M Vincé Nail Spa will open at the end of 2022 at 1203 Dunlavy St, really big "luxurious" national chain
• Sudor Sauna Studio will open in fall of 2022 at 3515 W. Dallas St., ste 400, a flagship location 
• Clean Juice will open in September at 3515 W. Dallas St., ste 800

https://communityimpact.com/houston/heights-river-oaks-montrose/impacts/2022/05/13/3-new-businesses-announced-for-regent-square/

 

 

I imagine a Nail Spa, Sauna, and Clean Juice are not the type of tenants they thought thought they'd get for this project.

I didn't know River Oaks was getting a new strip center...what, no checks cashed place...no dry cleaners...no donuts shop?

This literally went from a City Centre or River Oaks District type project to this! How did GID botch this project when every other developer figured it out and in less desirable locations?

To give them credit, they are really good at building giant scaled models of "their development"

3 hours ago, gregpet said:

GID out of Boston is Regent Square developer…

It has to be said.

GID royally messed up this project...here is how:

1) Good: They design an excellent ambitious project (probably one of the best inner loop infill projects from a quality standpoint and attention to detail standpoint)

2) Good: Demolish Block 1 & 2 of Allen House Apartments for upcoming Groundbreaking of the project above!

3) Bad: Great Recession of 2009-2010 puts project on hold indefinitely. Revenue is lost from the now demolished Allen House Apartments on Block 1 & 2.

4) Bad to Neutral: GID responds to the boom times immediately after the Great Recession by scraping their initial urban village style master plan and building a stand lone Residential tower on the FAR edge of the future Regent Square Site

5) Bad: There are rumors that the Regent Square Project has gone through multiple value engineering changes that could transform it from one of the most ambitious projects in Inner Loop Houston to one that has been VE'd to a point it is no longer recognizable (i.e. Embassy Suites )

6) Bad & Good: Rumors above are confirmed and a generic looking project breaks ground.

7) WTF: The project FINALLY opens in early 2022 (15 years after the project started) with ONE open tenant (The Flight Club). As of mid May 2022, The other restaurants have yet to start construction and ALL of the retail spaces are still boarded up?!?!?

Summary: they only had 15 years to get this right and they almost have a random approach to this project. On the lack of retail- THEY ARE LOCATED IN ONE OF THE BEST CATCHMENT AREAS IN THE STATE OF TEXAS (RIVER OAKS) and still could not get the retail component finished.

I've walked to the project many times...The "park" area is always empty and this is in large part due to ONE retail/restaurant space.

Meanwhile, Hanover, In probably 4 years of time have designed, constructed, and secured their retail/restaurant tenants.

WTF is GID doing!?!?!?

There is no activity on the restaurants or the retail shop!

I believe the restaurants were first scheduled to open last month but they are still an empty lease space.

I've seen zero movement on the restaurant build-outs.

15 hours ago, monarch said:

^^^ as a proud houstonian, and as a super proud TEXAS LONGHORN 4 LIFER, i can honestly assure you @shasta that the TEXAS HOOK'EM hand sign is something to behold.  (how on earth, could it not be?) astronauts, jedi, aliens, darth vaders, and all of the other extraterrestrials and extracurriculars of this huge world... already know this.  therefore, it's ok.  it's all good.  it's gravy.  it's the chizzle on the drizzle.  just raise your arm up... place your fingers into the shape of horns... and loudly yell HOOK'EM!   

No thanks, this PROUD Houstonian reps the University of Houston and not the University of Austin (UT-A).

40 minutes ago, hindesky said:

Houston Mural Artist Nicky Davis.

Wouldn't a Cougar Paw or a Whooty Who have been more appropriate than a Hook-em IN Houston?

I stopped by over the weekend to see what was open.

So far, there were some residents in the apartments and The Flight Club appeared to be the only thing open.

I walked past the future restaurants (Georgia James & Pastore). Georgia James had a sign up that they were opening in April 2022 but they haven't even started construction on the interior space so that is obviously wrong. Do we have an opening date?

On the Flight Club, it was a really cool place and they did a great job on it. It has been open a month a half and it was pretty busy. It had a late 1800s carnival theme interior. Makes me wonder why they haven't even started construction on  even ONE of the other retail spaces. The restaurants were nowhere near opening and the retail under the apartments were still boarded up so who knows what they will be?

I did like the Flight Club but this development, or Autry Park, really needs an upscale Sports bar. We don't have one serving the River Oaks/West Gray/ Allen Parkway area. The closest one is the Bw3 on Washington but I think this can accommodate a nicer upscale sports bar.  The Flight Club is a nice add but I can't see it having as much repeat business in the area as a sports bar/restaurant. How many times can you pay to shoot darts? The Sports bar would be packed for football, March madness, baseball, World Cup, etc.

And on the strategy of the development as a whole is still very confusing to me. The development  was "technically" under construction way back in 2009 (Allen House demolished) and they got skittish and tabled a far superior design to "wait out" the recession. They then call an audible and build the Sovereign FIRST and scrap the original master plan for  a completely different value engineered bland version and begin construction a decade later..... all while  missing out on the boom cycle.

They then open Regent Square up in early 2022 with ONE retail tenant!  Anyone else confused by the strategy on this project? Covid did not seem to hurt the opening on The Flight Club and this is IN Texas so I don't see that as an excuse. Especially since retailers are looking to open up in less restrictive states. This project has been as slow and methodical and calculated as you get so how are they still getting it wrong?

2 hours ago, mfastx said:

One can only hope. 

I'm serious...we would probably have renderings of their district if the lockout hadn't occurred.

The Astros have been quietly purchasing neighboring lots to build a baseball theme village similar to what has been happening in other MLB cities.

2 hours ago, tigereye said:

Hope the new FOB doesn’t block the skyline view from within the stadium bowl. 
 

That's a really old photo. The Indoor practice facility already blocks the view.

Are the lots behind the Marriott Marquis going to be part of the Astros village development?

3 hours ago, iah77 said:

There is literally nothing wrong with everything you stated lol. If people here do not want to pay for it and are willing to forgo it, what's the problem? Houston is not Boston, New York, or Paris - nor should we attempt to be. Any city you view as a roll model is probably very expensive and unaffordable to most Houston residents. As long as the city is divided into many counties etc, these problems are going to be very hard to address so what is going on is a rational reaction to that. If Harris county funds things that people do not want to pay for, they will go to a county where they can pay less and enjoy the "free" nice things by just driving in. 

You do realize, Texas (including Houston) has some of the highest property Tax rates in the country....right?

Our tax money should be re-invested to assist and protect our property...they are not!

Every significant rain event leads to flooding. We have some of the worst roads in the country. We have limited connectivity with sidewalks, etc.

Yes, we have made MAJOR strides in the last 20 years but we essentially let to inner city rot for the 100 years before that.

On 1/15/2022 at 2:47 AM, Big E said:

Shhhhh....Don't tell him.

 

I actually fail to see how that's a bad thing? Part of the reason suburban sprawl is what is, is because the states and federal governments have long been subsidizing its growth. Actually forcing developers to pay for their developments seems like it might actually go a long way to slowing that trend.

 

The answer is obvious. We'll take the money because it is our tax dollars too, just like Texas has always taken earmarked dollars, just like every other state. People may heehaw about the billions of dollars in spending that will almost certainly be waisted but they'll take the money all the same and heehaw about it later.

 

And yet the city still functions as it should and millions still move here, tens of thousands more coming every year. One wonders why if infrastructure was really that bad.

This may be the most sort-sided response I've ever seen. Yes we have many people moving into the city of Houston but our infrastructure is lagging ...by a lot. We literally have unpaved ditches a quarter mile outside of downtown Houston, we have streets and side walks that are  in very poor condition, for a metro of 7 million + we basically have very few miles of mass transit. And if you state wide, our energy grid wasn't equipped to handle a major weather even like the one we had last February.

And I don't think you understand how Suburban Sprawl works...a city/region can squash suburban sprawl with regional and city plans leading developers to develop a region per an actual plan.

The City of Houston n=has a rejected a city plan multiple times. The truth is...there was a while when the only "federal funds" we aggressively went after was funding to build new freeways...thus encouraging sprawl for developers looking to develop master plan communities and supporting developments.

Very little in Houston is thought our from a Civic standpoint...they are almost all negotiations with developers/ This is NOT the way to create a forward thinking city that matches the charm of the other Alpha cities it desperately wants to be a member of that group. You get a city of nice "pockets" but you also get a lot of third world type infrastructure.

On 1/11/2022 at 4:29 PM, Big E said:

If anything, this shows how much we don't need more extensive city planning. Developers are doing this because there is a demand for these kinds of spaces and this kind of development. The city didn't have to do jack, and its reaping the benefits. And better the city didn't do anything, because it would only mess up and do things to make these kinds of developments (or other kinds of developments that aren't like this) impossible, like in so many other cities.

Uh...No. We have some of the worst infrastructure and planning of any major world city that claims to be "alpha status".

We desperately need some kind of city plan, or vision, or we will continue to have have haphazard developments , some quality, but surrounded by poor sidewalks, no connectivity, even ditches a block or two over. .....quite pathetic

The strategy for Houston, and most of Texas, is to pass on the costs of infrastructure on to the developer. You want this development YOU help pay for the sidewalk upgrades, etc...no coincidence they are doing sidewalk and street upgrades right now around Regent Square and the Hanover project.

I'd love to see the actual breakdown of who paid for that.  The city of Houston sometimes applies for Federal money for improvements...but this is Texas so they do so lightly because those sitting in the Capitol Building in Austin do not like that move.

Texas even rejects federal funds that were GIVEN to us (i.e. Tom DeLay rejecting light rail funding). The joke is on us because THOSE funds just go to competitor cities that gladly take the federal funds that taxpayers ALREADY have paid for...

It will be very interesting to see how Texas handles President Biden's Infrastructure Bill....so do we ACCEPT the federal funds earmarked for improvements in Texas or do we REJECT the funding out of political pride and grandstanding?

They purchased one of the nicest looking developments in all of Houston and in a great location. I would really like to see a building like this downtown..but even taller.

I envision high rises replacing the shopping centers on Kirby...one by one.