The Shops On Sage: Retail Center At 2800 Sage Rd.

[JR3985]

I was driving down Sage this morning to ge my breakfast at Chica Fila, and could not help but notice the huge crane that is imbetween the apartment complex 3000 sage and the new shopping center still under construction. It is much taller than the one they have up at the Holiday Inn construciton site. Does anyone have any idea what they are building? Just curious.

[HOUCAJUN]

I've asked that question so many times and no one seems to know. Hope you have a better response than i did.

[ninjacop]

it's a downtown borders books store..

just kidding.

[houstonsemipro]

They had the picture on Houston Chon online. It looked like a freeway they building behind the sage.

[JR3985]

Link

[Talbot]

A freeway?

[LTAWACS]

I have no idea...

[houston-development]

I was driving down Sage this morning to ge my breakfast at Chica Fila, and could not help but notice the huge crane that is imbetween the apartment complex 3000 sage and the new shopping center still under construction.  It is much taller than the one they have up at the Holiday Inn construciton site.  Does anyone have any idea what they are building?  Just curious.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

i thought i mentioned this a while ago but it may have been on the old forum. i was told that a hotel was going up on the site adjacent to 3000 sage.

[yaga]

That's a very tight spot for a hotel, but I do remember seeing something about a mixed use development in the HBJ.

[JR3985]

Dou you think they could be adding on to 3000 Sage??

[houston-development]

That's a very tight spot for a hotel, but I do remember seeing something about a mixed use development in the HBJ.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

if my memory serves me correctly, i believe my little birdy was the manager of 3000 sage. said they were offering steep concessions on the units facing north due to "the hotel that will be built there soon". could be mistaken but that's what i remember.

which leads me into..

Dou you think they could be adding on to 3000 Sage??

i can assure you that will not happen. property is already on the block at $150K/unit

[yaga]

if my memory serves me correctly, i believe my little birdy was the manager of 3000 sage.  said they were offering steep concessions on the units facing north due to "the hotel that will be built there soon".  could be mistaken but that's what i remember.

which leads me into..

i can assure you that will not happen.  property is already on the block at $150K/unit 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Houston-Development, is there any way you could find out what hotel is being built on the site and how many stories. That is a pretty large crane for your typical 6-8 story hotel development.

Also this would have been a nice step in the urbanization of the Galleria area if it weren't for that shopping center at the corner of Alabama and Sage. Once again 1 step forward 2 steps back....

[houston-development]

Houston-Development, is there any way you could find out what hotel is being built on the site and how many stories.

[kjb434]

And there is nothing wrong with making a fee.

As for site approval process, Houston does have that process in place. Every site has to be approved before any construction can commence. If you personally have an issue with anything being proposed, you can go to the planning commission. Many of times can find allies on the board and present your alternative. The alternative must meet the same criteria that the developer proposed and be resonable. If the developer wants to build a strip center, he has every right to do so, you maybe able to incfluence the placement of the parking lot to the back of the development and push the retail to the front near the street. The developer still builds the same thing, but aeshetic issues are addressed.

The developer has every right to build his/her developement. Unless they are building in a deed restricted area or a historical district, they should be free to build like they want. If the community doesn't like the proposal, they should make there voice heard. But people need to remember that not letting the development move forward at all is not an option. Compromising is the best solution. The rules are much better set up to handle compromises than complete objections.

[VelvetJ]

kjb434, no one is questioning whether a developer has a RIGHT to do something, I think that is pretty obvious in Houston. The question is SHOULD a developer do something?

CAN the owner of the lot where the proposed Shamrock Tower change his mind and decide to build a used car lot there on Main Street in the middle of downtown because he could possible make money.......yes, he can. But SHOULD he build a used car lot there to make money.....IMO, no he shouldn't. But the problem in Houston is there are too many that would say it would be fine for that location to be a used car sales lot, just as long as the owner can make money. That is a problem.

There can be drawbacks to a city having a developer free-for-all environment, and there are tons of examples of those drawbacks in our fair city.

[westender]

kjb434, no one is questioning whether a developer has a RIGHT to do something, I think that is pretty obvious in Houston. The question is SHOULD a developer do something?

CAN the owner of the lot where the proposed Shamrock Tower change his mind and decide to build a used car  lot there on Main Street in the middle of downtown because he could possible make money.......yes, he can. But SHOULD he build a used car lot there to make money.....IMO, no he shouldn't. But the problem in Houston is there are too many that would say it would be fine for that location to be a used car sales lot, just as long as the owner can make money. That is a problem.

There can be drawbacks to a city having a developer free-for-all environment, and there are tons of examples of those drawbacks in our fair city.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Yes but said developer wil eventually come to the realization that amount of yearly taxes on said property due to the area the jackass decided to build in isn't worth the profits on a used car lot. Something of that nature will never be done by a businessman looking to maximize profit. With Houston Law the possibility is present, but the probability of its occurence is not. Although it would be done by a businessman with more money than he/she knows to do with and has a vendetta against the city.

[houston-development]

theres a glitch in the system, though. notice wearhouses/storage going up in great locations? two that stand out in my mind are the one on louisiana/just s of webster and the one across 610 from the galleria. purchase high $ dirt with no immediate plans for future development, build a cheaply constructed wearhouse, and cover your note and taxes. they are, no pun intended, wearhousing the land.. ie buying it to hold for a long period of time. essentially, they are happy to break even or make a couple of bucks a year with the long term goal being the land's value increasing over the next several years. and yes, people do the old "set it and forget it" routine. you may think they are crazy and its a bad business, but it happens more than you realize.

regarding the city plan approval, we all know its a joke. w/o zoning or a neighborhood deed's restrictions, you can build whatever you want as long as its within the city's set-backs. houston is the only city that im aware of that you can build an office building, next to a liquor store, a home, a strip center, and then a church (as long as the church's front doors are x feet away from the liquor store). wanna build that strip center w/ 100% hardi-plank and paint it pink? no problem.... area residents can complain and sometimes the good guys win (i.e. wood partners' w u high-rise and lsr's monaco).

im not knocking developers... just look at my alias i see both sides but i gotta keep a roof over my head i guess you could say that im a democrat at heart but i vote with my wallet

[kzseattle]

Yes but said developer wil eventually come to the realization that amount of yearly taxes on said property due to the area the jackass decided to build in isn't worth the profits on a used car lot.  Something of that nature will never be done by a businessman looking to maximize profit. With Houston Law the possibility is present, but the probability of its occurence is not. Although it would be done by a businessman with more money than he/she knows to do with and has a vendetta against the city.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Which is why I wonder, why the heck that developer decided to build a typical retailer center at such a prime location (W Alabama and Sage), walking distance from Galleria mall, right between high-end residential units? I dont know who are going to be the retailers, but it would be a waste of land if they are going to be your typical laundry and nail shops. It seems that they could have done a lot better than that to maximize the profit given the location. Or why do we often find things like liquor shops, pawn shops, auto shops etc on prime pieces of real estate such as inside the loop or along Memorial Drive. It just doesnt make economic sense.

[JR3985]

Galleria-area parcel gives developer 'front row seat'

Nancy Sarnoff

Houston Business Journal

Hunington Properties Inc. has captured the what the company calls the "last front row parcel of land" in the Galleria area.

The Houston-based retail firm, led by Sandy Aron, is developing part of a four-acre tract of land at the southwest corner of Sage Road and West Alabama.

A pair of shopping centers will be developed on the prime site.

The larger property will comprise 23,899 square feet. A 9,350-square-foot building will also be developed.

Letters of intent have been signed with at least five retailers and restaurants to lease the space, says Aron.

The sales price was not disclosed, but similar tracts in the area have been selling for between $40 per square foot and upwards of $60 per square foot.

Galaxy Investments sold the land to Aron and a group of investors that make up Shops on Sage Road Ltd.

When completed in the fall, the shopping center will be surrounded by upscale housing, additional retail, office space and a new hotel.

An investment group purchased 1.4 acres from Aron's group for a new Homewood Suites hotel. An 11-story building with 150 hotel suites is being earmarked for a site just north of Aron's tract.

Also, The Morgan Group is nearing completion on a 324-unit, four-story apartment complex at the southwest corner of Sage and Hidalgo. (See "New complex arising on 'other side' of Galleria," Sept. 23, 2002.)

Meanwhile, the Galleria mall recently added two new anchor stores -- Nordstrom and Foley's -- and more than 200,000 square feet of additional retail space.

Aron says his project will benefit from traffic patterns that will be

[Trophy Property]

Galleria-area parcel gives developer 'front row seat'

Nancy Sarnoff

Houston Business Journal

Hunington Properties Inc. has captured the what the company calls the "last front row parcel of land" in the Galleria area. 

The Houston-based retail firm, led by Sandy Aron, is developing part of a four-acre tract of land at the southwest corner of Sage Road and West Alabama.

A pair of shopping centers will be developed on the prime site.

The larger property will comprise 23,899 square feet. A 9,350-square-foot building will also be developed.

Letters of intent have been signed with at least five retailers and restaurants to lease the space, says Aron.

The sales price was not disclosed, but similar tracts in the area have been selling for between $40 per square foot and upwards of $60 per square foot.

Galaxy Investments sold the land to Aron and a group of investors that make up Shops on Sage Road Ltd.

When completed in the fall, the shopping center will be surrounded by upscale housing, additional retail, office space and a new hotel.

An investment group purchased 1.4 acres from Aron's group for a new Homewood Suites hotel. An 11-story building with 150 hotel suites is being earmarked for a site just north of Aron's tract.

Also, The Morgan Group is nearing completion on a 324-unit, four-story apartment complex at the southwest corner of Sage and Hidalgo. (See "New complex arising on 'other side' of Galleria," Sept. 23, 2002.)

Meanwhile, the Galleria mall recently added two new anchor stores -- Nordstrom and Foley's -- and more than 200,000 square feet of additional retail space.

Aron says his project will benefit from traffic patterns that will be

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Well, I am impressed with Sandy Aron's ability to not only build solid retail procucts, but I know from experience his group is excellent at leasing. This center should be filled up in no time. How does it look. I have not driven by in a quite a while.

[westender]

^^^^^^^^It's not inspiring, kind of bland^^^^^^^

[Trophy Property]

^^^^^^^^It's not inspiring, kind of bland^^^^^^^

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

That does not suprise me. There are not a lot of exciting 23,000 SF shopping centers around.

There is a new little strip center on the SE corner of Westheimer and Sheppard. It has a unique look to it, any thoughts on that center. I think it looks pretty cool. Of course it has been finished for about a month and there is no tenant finish out going on. It amazes me that they would build it without leases in place. Maybe the tenant are just to get started.

[guess]

"Homewood Suites-The Galleria-Houston, Texas. 160 suite extended stay hotel will enhance the area wide vision of providing pedestrian friendly architecture at the street level.

Provided along the major street are the private dining and terrace and a retail/caf

[kjb434]

This project will be good for the area.

[citykid09]

So thats whats going up over there?

And construction has started?

I haven't been to Houston since Spring Break (except for going to the airport.) So I'll bet a lot of new stuff has happened. Everytime I go to Houston there is always something new.