capnmcbarnacle

A few updates below

 

 

I heard a rumor today at a real estate office that this property has been sold. Has anyone heard?

 

There have been applications to abandon parts of streets back there as part of sales of existing parcels...

Great improvement.  Turns out you can make a silk purse out of a sow's ear.

This is across from the Menil parking lot -- I like the way they handled the parking.  Compare this one to the development on the corner of Dunlavy and Westheimer where Space is and Common Bond will be (which I like, but used two lots for parking behind it).   

 

Well done.

Looks like this one is underway.  They are currently taking down the oaks on the east side of the property line and are preparing the smaller oaks to be moved.  The large grove on the northwest corner has been surrounded by protective fencing.

 

 

That was the plan until they announced cost cuts last month. The cuts included delays in the new downtown Houston, Bakersfield, Covington, and Pittsburgh offices.

 

I don't mean to imply that anyone is pulling the plug. The project already has money to do preliminary engineering and this will continue, though at a slower pace than expected before. The final decision will determine whether and when they get the remaining 90% of the money for the project to proceed.

 

FWIW, I heard that the final decisions on the offices you mentioned, Bakersfield, Covington, and Pittsburgh (i.e., the extent of eventually moving part of those operations to Houston and obviating the necessity of new construction there), is what delayed the Houston tower, and that the Houston tower will be appropriately funded once those decisions are made.  It's worth noting that Chevron is moving forward with its Midland campus (uh-oh, a campus!), presumably because their future presence and needs have been well-settled.

I don't think I've seen the number of units that are going to be in this thing -- anyone know?

It was a stroke of genius that it should face the Kroger rather than Montrose Blvd., since they both embrace the same urban design principles. The creative interplay of their curb cuts and entrance/exit lanes should be fascinating to watch.

 

Snarktastic.

You have seriously got to be kidding me.

I have no words. Where did these jurors come up with these random/outrageous dollar amounts? Even down to 'xx,xxx.58 cents'. Cents? Really?? Who the hell do you think you are? Man, now I REALLY hope this thing gets built so bad and it actually DOES lower their precious property values to the tune of more than they are awarded and they end up having to stay living under the "Tower Of Terror" because moving out would equal a huge loss.

 

I'm sure they got these numbers from various appraisers and expert witnesses who put a number on the loss of market value.  Both sides got the chance to present testimony from their own expert witnesses and the jury got to decide who they believed. 

 

There is nothing too surprising about this verdict.  If you are the guy next door, is having a 20 story building over your backyard a nuisance?  I see how the jury would think it is, and it's easy to get an appraiser to give an opinion on a loss in value if it gets built.  It's also clear the jury thought other people were too far away to be effected and gave them nothing.  That being said, I'd be very surprised if the judge permanently enjoins this project.  The residents will get compensated for the loss of use and enjoyment of their property and Buckhead will build their building.

THIS

 

any other new office proposal without a lead tenant and it probably wouldnt of seen the light of day given all the existing proposals out there. a residential tower would of been neat but Hilcorp ended up being the ones willing to fork over the dough for that "prime property" (wouldnt the Hines tower be much more prime since its at the intersection of 2 light rail lines?). it would be cool if they engineered the building for future height expansion when the company grows.. heh

 

I'm guessing they bought the adjacent lot to accommodate future growth.  As a general rule (taking land costs out of the equation) would it be cheaper to build one 44 story tower, or two 22 story towers?

Yea they might as well have left Allen house there until it really needed to be torn down and collected rent up to that point.

 

I'm sure the developer would agree with you, hindsight being 20/20,  but this place was torn down in the summer of 2007 and whatever financing they had to move forward vanished.  That whole liquidity crisis/Lehman collapse/Dow at 6500/recession event put the brakes on lots of things.  At least this "eyesore" was a nice open field instead of a rusting hulk of steel a la High Street on Westheimer.  The fact that this one is still going forward, and that they have gone forward with the Sovereign, backs up what these developers have always said -- they have had this property for a long time and are committed to it long term in the future.  In the list of ambitious projects from 2006-2008, BLVD Place is one of the few that resembles its pre-recession self.  Time will tell on Regent, but the signs point to them sticking to the original vision.  I'd rather they do that, at the expense of a vacant lot for six years, than throw something up like High Street.

Not a big loss. 

 

I'm still wondering how 609 Main will connect to the tunnels, if at all.

 

You know, the tenants could access the tunnels by spending 30 seconds above ground, walking across the street, and entering the tunnels from the  the old Gulf Building.  I know it's crazy, but walking through that lobby never gets old. 

This remodel will expand the existing structure pretty significantly -- it won't be recognizable. Expect the patio to border the sidwalk in front -- should be a nice size. Will go well along with El Real and Royal Oak for bringing the patio life out to the street and sidewalk.

This snippet from the WSJ...

"Final investment decision for the project, designed by HOK, is expected in the second quarter of 2014. Groundbreaking will follow final investment decision, and occupancy is anticipated to begin in the fourth quarter of 2016."

How many times does the first public rendering turn out to be the one we see built? What are the odds this rendering changes between now and "final investment decision?"

I was pleased to hear about this until I heard it was the same people that brought us the Embassy Suites. I hope they don't find a way to ruin the views from Discovery Green from another direction.

First time I ever heard of a 23 story building needing two city blocks.  Bet there will be a skybridge too.  Not much hope that this will be anything but craptastic.

I'm not so sure. Hillcorp is not a huge company with a need tons of space, obviously, but they made a killing the last few years and have billions to spend. Between deep pockets and working with Hines, I bet we could see something cool. Maybe not something that impacts the skyline, but a cool building nonetheless. I'll take 25 stories of awesome over 50 stories of blah.

Here's the rendering. ImageUploadedByTapatalk1367794907.110369.jpg

Why do I feel like I've seen this rendering before...

I couldn't find if there is a separate post that speaks of the new 600-unit apartments next to the Montrose whole foods (and maybe this one is it)...but my question is if anyone knows what is now being developed NEXT to the 600-apartments as that land too is being cleared... This section/development that I speak of is the northwest corner of West Dallas and Montrose. 

 

It is being developed by JLB Partners out of Dallas.  Another apartment project.

 

Does anyone know who the contractor is on the Finger West Dallas property?  There are so many of these going up I'm wondering who is cornering the market on building them.

Chevron picked up the parking garage across the street as part of their long term plans.

 

 

http://blog.chron.com/primeproperty/2013/03/chevron-buys-downtown-property/

 

I noticed that the foundation is being laid for a new building at Westheimer and Dunlavy. A long time ago there was a thread with a rendering but I could not find it so I am starting a new one. Looks like the parking will be in the back which is great. ImageUploadedByTapatalk1362854550.630352.jpg ImageUploadedByTapatalk1362854583.529327.jpg ImageUploadedByTapatalk1362854617.513269.jpg

 

The thread on this was in the Montrose section.  I am pasting the link.  The initial rendering was bland, but let's see what they end up with.

 

http://www.houstonarchitecture.com/haif/topic/26343-dunlavy-westheimer/

This building is foul.  They got their variance to build up to the street and then put something this flat, bland, and unintersting right in your face?  You have to work hard to be this boring.  There is nothing to break the smooth -- no balconies, nothing indented, nothing interesting at all.  Something, anything, would be better.  I never thought I'd catch myself yearning for Houston's worst design cliches, but at least lick and stick stone, keystones without arches, fake storm shutters and turrets break the monotony.   I never thought those things could have any value until I saw this thing.   Let me paraphrase Larry Sobchek -- say what you will about crappy design cliches, but at least its an ethos.  There must be big courtyards or something on the inside, right?  Right? Driving past this thing makes me feel like I'm in a prison yard.  Of all the cookie cutter 5-7 story compelxes going up, this one managed to distinguish itself by taking bland and somehow making it even blander.  Its aggressively boring.  I just keep thinking someone must have made a mistake -- like they got to then end and then went, "Oh crap, balconies!! I knew we forgot something!"  I can't imagine the developer even feigned interest in the design of this place.  Could the design budget have been any less?  Such a shame to put this blight in a great spot.

How hot does it get in NYC and Chicago in the summer time? Is it humid there?

Good question. I have been really, really hot in those cities in the summertime, and I've also had to put on a jacket at night on occasion. So I decided to look up the data and compare. No doubt those places get their share of brutal days, but the intensity and duration of the summer are different. I'm posting the average High/Low that I found.(rounded up or down). Their June, August and September is more like our April and October. Their July is like our May. If it never got worse than May around here, I bet we'd see a lot more walking.

NYC

April 61/44

May 71/53

June 81/63

July 85/68

August 83/66

September 77/60

October 67/51

Houston

April 79/61

May 86/68

June 91/74

July 94/75

August 95/75

September 90/72

October 82/62

I would think that there would have been a press release if those were actual tenants.

Quite a few of those are already over at The Galleria, so it would be quite an exodus...

FWIW, crews have been onsite drilling different locations on the property for the last couple days -- soil samples maybe?