JWW

Anyone know if the McDonalds land deal was closed on by R.Davis - I had read it was supposed to be the end of June.

I think that this is related to the LEEDS certification that all the new buildings are gaining. Blue is very efficient for the amount of light it allows vs. the amount of heat that it allows.

I have been told the same.

maybe they're adding a beacon?

Hahaha

I get questions like these and wish I were a structural engineer. I distinctly remember that the guy from Hines mentioned something special about the concrete...but I can't place the exact verbage...whether it was "pre-cast," "poured," or something else. In any case, that was their conclusion, that it would be heavier than anything built previously.

Is there anyone reading this who has an engineering background or can elaborate (here or in a more general thread) about building systems and thier characteristics (i.e. poured-in-place concrete vs. pre-cast vs. tilt vs. composite, etc.) ???

A little bird told me that sales are going well, with some big, big purchases.

If not the % of pre sale, can you divulge any info regarding the big purchases??

I'll throw out a question posted before under another post - Anyone have insight into the facade-hanging process of a building? I have noticed that for even the same materials, different buildings of the same use hang their facades at different times and in different procedures. Many times the process seems to be erratic with regard to which glass panels are hung at which time on a glass-exterior building as well as some buildings wait to be topped-off before hanging the facade while others start much earlier (One Park Place). Any insights?

Also, with regards to recent questions about Class of commercial real estate - this link has a short definition of the classes. http://officespace.com/terms.cfm Whoever wrote a more thorough explanation a few months ago under a different thread, could you post it here?

Many, many of the threads contain questions or comments that are valuable to countless readers but are not seen as the topics are project-specific which can be ignored inadvertently by a curious member. This is a topic/post regarding development and real estate and hopefully can inform members about important development/real estate concepts and rules-of-thumb. If you have questions about "Class A vs Class B real estate" or capital structuring of a development or buildout questions, anything not necessarily project-specific, please post here and hopefully our informed members can throw some great information into the discussion.

Post on Joke Renovation across the street that I started. Yes, this shopping center belongs in Katy, not on Post Oak in the heart of Uptown.

Uptown 24 Hour Super Sport lease is up this January 2009. The option to renew was not granted, they plan on relocating. I don't have any idea where. But the Q/Super Sport building will be demolished.

If Deyaar buys it, why not? It is nice to have foreign investor put money in American soil. We sure invest enough money overseas, let them share the wealth back.

Does anyone know who owns the land under 24 hr....and what's supposed to be going on there?

Regarding Deyaar, I'm not only fine with but welcome direct foreign investment. The benefits U.A.E. companies generally pay foreigners in their own countries tend to be great for the job market, as well. My point is that if they pay $400/ft with the cheap $ they have, it makes it very difficult to compete here. Look at the run-up on the price of the land of this Deyaar development - from 80something $/ft to $400/ft for post oak land in 9 months or less is NOTHING short of a mania...i don't really prefer that.

From best to worst, building classes are:

Trophy

Class A

Class B

Class C

Class D

Sometimes people will also talk about "Class A++" or "A-" or "B+". But it is really kind of subjective, taking into account not only recency of construction, amenities, and interior finishes, but also visibility and accessibility. Ultimately the best measure of Class probably is, very simply, the rents that can be charged.

Trae, someone (I believe Niche, maybe someone else) wrote a little more thorough explanation several months ago. Don't know if there is a way to search for the post.. we are about to start a new thread that addresses questions such as these - post there and hopefully the very informed, like Niche, can discuss there

I wished they made a side cut into the property along Post Oak and San Felipe for true street side retail and to minimized the surface lot parking to parallel parking only. But it is still better than what surrounds the area, especially the joke of a renovation across the street.

I think surface lots mixed with retail will remain for awhile until the cost of the parking, essentially free land that is not charged rent, is not possible anymore. I would think anything huge would want to not have any surface lots anymore so they can maximize the retail rent space.

Uptown maybe can't justify it yet, but land values are going up, James Coney Island demo and the 2 story McDonalds redo being good examples of the trend.

Makes it more pedstrian friendly. Uptown is trending to become more urban and eventually have mass transit, we should have

street ► sidewalk ► retail ► parking garage/rear surface parking.

not

street ► sidewalk ► front surface parking lot ► retail.

No way.

If it's ok to post here for this, does anyone know why that "joke of a renovation across the st" (so true) with Luby's and Zadok is...well, just a joke of a renovation instead of something....better? Also, what is the story with the 24 hr fitness on post oak....anyone buying that so far?

Brucette's shoes is asking $400/ft for his land. No joke. He knows no one (please Deyaar, don't buy at this $) will pay that but is 'content' with holding it. He was going to do a deal and move to Zadok's site but couldn't command the same terms of lease that Zadok possesses so it was scrapped.

It's not the beacon. It's the fact that we already have a super-tall in the Galleria district, which is already outside of our CBD. Do we really need another super-tall next to it, when we have block after block of one story strip centers that are 40/60 commercial space to parking lot?

How about a little common sense infill? Two 40 story buildings would far better serve for buillding a more pedestrian friendly urban environment. You double your potential ground floor retail space. Understanding that taller does not equal better (especially for the light-rail) - that's what separates the fetish.

1. Glad you are dropping the beacon discussion.

2. "Do we really NEED another super-tall..." - I have a fundamentally different opinion here. I don't look at increased rents (higher floors obviously command these) and a more DRAMATIC skyline from super-talls as something we must put up with...I welcome them (generally).

3. I agree about the undesirable strip centers/parking lots in the area. However, what's the point here? Advise Deyaar to buy those properties and build towers on those sites, as well, if you want to do something about it. Opposition to a super-tall has nothing to do with those under-utilized (in some of our opinions) properties nearby. Build, and build up, on all the sites is my answer.

4. "Two 40 story buildings would far better serve..." - again, Deyaar is not Emaar (Dubai Government-controlled developer rather than completely private as Deyaar is) - Deyaar's managers have one responsibility and that is to bring MAXIMUM value to its SHAREHOLDERS (as opposed to local residents). I am sure you trust Deyaar's d.diligence team to decide whether to take on the political, construction, legal, and financial risks of building a more-expensive 80 (supposed) story building rather than two 40 story buildings on its site....projected reward vs. risk... Deyaar can figure out which strategy will bring that maximum value home - unless you want to propose a pro-forma to them.

5. I won't comment on the importance of light-rail here, but I (and, hopefully, most here) do not equate taller = better. But I do equate taller = higher construction costs as well as taller = higher rents. It just depends which monies outweigh the others.

I'm of the impression that the city requires a certain number of parking spaces to be provided in realtion to the square footage of any new commercial construction. If I'm mistaken, someone please correct me. If not, this well-intentioned ordinance has doomed us to the building patterns of a half century ago.

And please don't buy into this whole 'free market' myth. There isn't - and shouldn't be - any such thing.

Municipalities generally have parking space requirements that differ for the type of development; hotel, office building, retail, (i presume apartment?), etc., will differ. Requirements can break down as simply as "2 parking spots per hotel room unit".

Not totally following the "please don't buy into this whole 'free market' myth. There isn't - and shouldn't be - any such thing." But besides the parking requirements from a muni., the developer obviously has to judge what the market (free) will bear regarding parking.

looks like the design doesn't call for windows there.

Had completely forgotten the facade was not completely glass in that area of the building...whoops

Your point is moot. All of the examples you give were built in their respective city's central business district.

Stop selling out Houston just to satisfy your high-rise fetishes.

My point is not moot, at all.... the point is that a skyline, whether central business or elsewhere, is not negatively affected because a 'tall' building is put in place. And your only 'point' is that it would get in the way of a stupid beacon on top of a building!

Next, a high-rise "fetish" ? - can we deal without the rhetoric here? Think about what you are stating; you are complaining about others' high-rise 'festishes' getting in the way of blocking a light coming off of another high-rise? ??? What if there had been a beacon on the top of a 20-30 story building in the galleria area when Williams/Transco was developed? Would you have opposed that?

"Stop selling out Houston".... I dont think I need to respond to this one.

Ok - all agreed - the highest building in the Galleria area will have a beacon. Maybe we can start a "save the beacon" fundraiser next...

Also, besides my question re: current sales at 2727, could someone digress a bit about the facade-application process and why some high/midrises apply it after all the floors have been finished while some apply it at (in my uninformed mind) sporadic points in the construction process? It seems to be this way to me regardless of the material applied.

Not knowing the specifics of this project but...... the architect probably designed the retail as 'spec shell space' with square footage requirements per the developer. Depending on how the marketing went on this one all of the shell retail may not be leased at time of the residential opening. The developer isn't going to wait for the retailers because the apartments equal net profit per month for the rent for the developer.

Typically, the developer leases the retail space and then the retailer 'designs' and builds out the space as a tenant improvement.

It all depends on when the tenants (retailers) sign an agreement and then how long it takes for their design team to design and buildout the space.

I'm not sure about all but I'm sure the Pavilions have had tenants signed up pretty early on so they can design and built out their space around the same time. An example would be the House of Blues...... so they have their design team working on the shell' space they acquired from the developer. It's just how the developer decides to go about it. The Pavilions didn't have a residential portion so they could wait a little longer to get commitments on the retail before breaking ground.

Thx for your ideas.. I know how retail development works re: buildout logistics... but I would think (and would greatly appreciate more info from those who have insight of mixed-use development financing) the developer probably had to have a decent portion of its retail pre-leased for its construction $ to be released as I would assume it's a different situation for a mixed-use with apartment/retail than a mixed-use condo/retail that has little pre-leasing with its retail but strong pre-sales of its condos... If that logic were true and the retail needs to be 'strongly' pre-leased, I would think the retail buildout would be going on by the tenants concurrently with the apartment buildouts by the developer.

You stated that the developer won't wait for retail as the apartment rent brings revenue every month. I would think the same logic applies conversely, especially if the developer might have a 'fixed rent + % of gross sales (name for that?)' type of lease with the retail tenants.

What do you think, Shasta, and others?

Did construction stop completely, or did it just slow down? Golly, I hope they didn't run out of money.

Yeah, Ed Wulfe ran out of money. About as likely as the Astros winning their division this year...

By the way, the Astros are only a game and a half out of 1st.

Anyone notice Ed tipping poorly recently?

Nice.

Let's see - nice call on the Astros for this year.

Also, Ed Wulfe did tip the valet driver at Fertita's house last week....after he gave $10,000 for a one hour photo-op reception with McCain.

Any more brilliant comments?

And that's exactly why. There's no reason to mess with the Uptown skyline. The Transco tower doesn't look lonely - it looks magnificent rising above all the other buildings. To let another building trump it, less than a block away no less, is just insulting.

It is a metaphorical lighthouse of sorts for those traveling to and through Houston.

Imagine if this type of argument had won in Chicago with Trump's Int'l Hotel & Tower, WTC in New York, Comcast's building in Philadelphia, and these a few, off-the-cuff domestic examples. Glad lenders don't have these attitudes. Get over the rotating beacon.

Anyone have any information sales on the building so far??

And why another year for the retail after the apartments open for occupancy? That seems like a long time to do the interior buildouts.

Can someone with more specific knowledge on mixed-use development throw out some reasonable ideas why? I would think the retail would get going first, assuming their tenants were pre-leased... quicker buildout, etc. Unless there was a feeling that construction of residential would keep retail customers away...

Did construction stop completely, or did it just slow down? Golly, I hope they didn't run out of money.

Yeah, Ed Wulfe ran out of money. About as likely as the Astros winning their division this year...

Is there a .mobile site for bberrys, smart phones, whatever to access HAIF or just the regular houstonarchitecture.info page? I didn't realize I could access the site on my bberry

I don't really consider Brennan's to be a competing STEAKHOUSE, do you?

Regarding this deal, would anyone have any insight on how a pre-signed tenant can "pull out" ? If no insight (information specific to this situation), in retail development, what are some specific contractual ways a pre-leased tenant can 'pull out'.... hypotheses, rules-of-thumb, educated guesses, whatever you have...just curious

Any and All..... please inform us with any inside information about the seller (a holding company perhaps since 'Transco' has not existed since '95 or '99)'s reasoning for selling in a market like Houston's, currently...especially around 180$/ft (forgot the exact sq ftg for the building much less the land in the deal). I'd love to hear the story why (and when) Hines sold the building in the first place (and continued to have the management contract).