Embassy Suites By Hilton Houston Downtown At 1515 Dallas St.

[fatesdisastr]

I thought it was going to be 19. I wish and hope it won't be. It is going to look so tiny next to OPP DT and the Hilton which is at 24 stories

[LTAWACS]

The taller the better.

[Urbannizer]

Update by Phtolitherland

Edited May 14, 2010 by Urbannizer

[LTAWACS]

Thanks for the updates!

[Urbannizer]

Update May19th

JohnMe

[mfastx]

So what's the floor count now?

[LTAWACS]

I was there but i missed it. Sorry.

[Urbannizer]

May 26th , JohnMe

[Urbannizer]

May31st - dey37

[LTAWACS]

looks good.

[Arternative]

looks good.

What looks good specifically? Progress on the hotel or your post count?

[Gary]

What looks good specifically? Progress on the hotel or your post count?

LOL! His post count.

[mfastx]

How many more floors to go? I believe on another thread someone said it was already at 21 stories.

If that's true, it's almost topped out.

Not bad, it fills in nicely and doesn't look THAT short.

That's what she said.

[Triton]

LOL! His post count.

lol.

And it cant be the flags for the fallen soldiers that look good.

[fatesdisastr]

How many more floors to go? I believe on another thread someone said it was already at 21 stories.

If that's true, it's almost topped out.

Not bad, it fills in nicely and doesn't look THAT short.

That's what she said.

I highly doubt that it is almost topped out. According to the rendering we have all seen on here and is at the construction site, the building recesses 4 floors with another floor for the ES logo and name sitting on top of that. My guess is 5 floors.

To me it seems like they just poured floor #18. I count the whole base as floor 1.

[barracuda]

This is from last weekend. Sorry for the bad image quality (phone camera).

[Urbannizer]

As of now.

[mfastx]

How many floors to go? I think it's already past 22, but it seems as if there's still some more to go.

[Pumapayam]

Is there some random news of more floors being added?

I love that I am posting on my iPhone BTW. The mobile site is amazing from where it once was.

[fatesdisastr]

From the webcam this afternoon

If there is more floors to go (which the rendering shows there should be) they have really slowed down. They were averaging 1 story a week. This floor was paved a week ago today.

[Urbannizer]

Yesterday by JohnMe

[King Owl]

Today, it appears they are lowering the containment box onto the Embassy Suites. Hopefully it works better than the one in the Gulf!

[Subdude]

This is from last weekend. Sorry for the bad image quality (phone camera).

I wish something would be built to fill in the block between this and the Four Seasons.

[barracuda]

I wish something would be built to fill in the block between this and the Four Seasons.

Agree. Looking down from the Hilton, there are still an embarrassing number of surface lots that side of DT.

[TheNiche]

Agree. Looking down from the Hilton, there are still an embarrassing number of surface lots that side of DT.

You're embarrassed over literally nothing. Aren't there other extant things more worthy of your shame?

[barracuda]

You're embarrassed over literally nothing. Aren't there other extant things more worthy of your shame?

Thanks for reminding me why I've been keeping a distance from HAIF lately.

[fatesdisastr]

Can anyone tell me what the box container is that they unloaded on top of ES?

[bachanon]

Can anyone tell me what the box container is that they unloaded on top of ES?

if you look at the original rendering, there is a "box" with the "E" on it facing dallas. from the rendering, it looks as if the hotel faces dallas rather than the park. check out the picture on the mgmt company's website: http://www.amliberty.com/Projects/tabid/74/Default.aspx

[sargento03]

I don't know if the city is really hurting for hotel rooms, last i read in the HBJ, the city's hotel revenues have actually decreased(and predicted to so for the 2nd year in a row), definetely not a sign that more hotel rooms are needed. We're also expected to perform worse than the nation. In the Downtown area, however, you are correct, it does need more hotels.

http://houston.bizjo...29/daily31.html

What's nice is that this area of DT looks like it will be the hotel district, with the Four Seasons, Hilton, Embassy Suites all close together, and OPP, I really see the potential for more resiential and hotels here to create a more virbrant downtown.

I agree, I work for a hotel consulting firm and do quite a few assignments in the Houston area. Most houston submarkets are not hurting for hotel rooms. Houston has had one of the biggest increases in supply compared to other US cities during this downturn (all those little Holiday Inn Expresses that no one ever sees or thinks of). I believe the number is like 7% increase, but can double check.

Personally, I'd like to see less hotel rooms, higher occupancies, so that rates can begin to increase... and most may disagree, but i'll explain why. Houston has some of the cheapest room rates. I've seen the Four Seasons offer rates as low as $129 on the weekends, which is bordeline depressing. Until Houston sees some rate increases, we will never get new and sexy hotels, because it is financially unfeasible to build a new four seasons that will be forced to offer $129 rates. (my firm actually completed the study for this Embassy Suites -not me- and I don't remember, but did this property had some incentive from the city??)

I just finished doing an appraisal of a limited-service hotel in the medical center (one of the best performing markets) and this limited-service hotel had an average rate of $115 (actually very good for that type of property)....so considering building costs and earning potential, most people end up building the limited-service properties.

I've had calls from hotel brands (sorry can't disclose a lot of info), telling me that they've had a developer approach them wanting to build that hotel company's signature brand (think competitors to Four Seasons, St. Regis, etc.) in the Houston area, and they wanted to get my thoughts on the market. I love this city and tell them all the plusses, but as soon as we talk about numbers and what other properties are doing, the conversation ends. Numbers don't lie, the city's top two hotels (four seasons and st. regis) have an ADR (average daily rate) slightly above $200. They know what is going to costs them to build that signature property and the ADR that is needed to support those construction costs, which is way above $200. Some Marriotts and Westins in other US cities do better than that. :-(

Just to clarify, because I know this question always pops up: ADR is not to be confused with the rate you see on the hotel's website, also known as the rack rate. Many people ask: how is it that the XYZ Luxury Hotel has an ADR of $200 but when I go on their website their cheapest room is at $400? This is because XYZ Hotel, like all other hotels, set up contracts with their top accounts. They end up offering major companies rates of $130, because by doing so they guarantee themselves that business, which can be many many room nights in a year. Thus, they end up with a lower ADR at the end of the year.

[ricco67]

I agree, I work for a hotel consulting firm and do quite a few assignments in the Houston area. Most houston submarkets are not hurting for hotel rooms. Houston has had one of the biggest increases in supply compared to other US cities during this downturn (all those little Holiday Inn Expresses that no one ever sees or thinks of). I believe the number is like 7% increase, but can double check.

Personally, I'd like to see less hotel rooms, higher occupancies, so that rates can begin to increase... and most may disagree, but i'll explain why. Houston has some of the cheapest room rates. I've seen the Four Seasons offer rates as low as $129 on the weekends, which is bordeline depressing. Until Houston sees some rate increases, we will never get new and sexy hotels, because it is financially unfeasible to build a new four seasons that will be forced to offer $129 rates. (my firm actually completed the study for this Embassy Suites -not me- and I don't remember, but did this property had some incentive from the city??)

I just finished doing an appraisal of a limited-service hotel in the medical center (one of the best performing markets) and this limited-service hotel had an average rate of $115 (actually very good for that type of property)....so considering building costs and earning potential, most people end up building the limited-service properties.

I've had calls from hotel brands (sorry can't disclose a lot of info), telling me that they've had a developer approach them wanting to build that hotel company's signature brand (think competitors to Four Seasons, St. Regis, etc.) in the Houston area, and they wanted to get my thoughts on the market. I love this city and tell them all the plusses, but as soon as we talk about numbers and what other properties are doing, the conversation ends. Numbers don't lie, the city's top two hotels (four seasons and st. regis) have an ADR (average daily rate) slightly above $200. They know what is going to costs them to build that signature property and the ADR that is needed to support those construction costs, which is way above $200. Some Marriotts and Westins in other US cities do better than that. :-(

Just to clarify, because I know this question always pops up: ADR is not to be confused with the rate you see on the hotel's website, also known as the rack rate. Many people ask: how is it that the XYZ Luxury Hotel has an ADR of $200 but when I go on their website their cheapest room is at $400? This is because XYZ Hotel, like all other hotels, set up contracts with their top accounts. They end up offering major companies rates of $130, because by doing so they guarantee themselves that business, which can be many many room nights in a year. Thus, they end up with a lower ADR at the end of the year.

From what I understand (and I think I posted this several years ago), most of the hotels that are going up or built over the past couple of years have been in the pipeline for some time before the downtown. Houston (or the convention bureau) has been aggressively seeking more rooms for hotels to try to more medium and larger sized conventions, but they (the various conventions) have complained about the lack of rooms available in the downtown area. It is that reason why the new Convention Center Hotel has been looked at.

I don't have the figures on the various conventions that come through the GRB or Reliant on a year or biannual basis, but I assure you that it is rather significant impact to the local economy.