Swamplot Archives by Tag:
Financing
Thursday, March 18, 2010
“wow. in 2007 lenders doing 66% debt on raw land. raw land that looks flood prone. wow.” [JPSivco, commenting on Pearland Heads Cut Off: The WaterLight District’s Giant Presidential Bust]
Read more about: 77583, Comments, Financing, Flooding, Pearland
March 18, 2010 – 12:50 pm
The property intended to be home to the Waterlights District — the proposed mixed-use shopping and eating extravaganzorama in Pearland — has been posted for foreclosure by its main creditor, Amegy Bank. The 1.9 million-sq.-ft. development was to feature condos, luxury apartments, office buildings, retail space, restaurants, 2 hotels, a conference facility, a “water wall,” and a Venice-like “Grand Canal.”
The site, off the Shadow Creek Pkwy. exit on the west side of Hwy. 288, has been marked for more than 2 years now by a curious semicircle of David Adickes sculptures, a preview of the development’s Presidential Park and Gardens. That park was to feature giant white busts of all 38 U.S. Presidents. But unlike Adickes other presidential suite, I-45’s Mount Rush Hour just north of Downtown Houston — in which each of the sculptor’s busts rests on its own podium — in the Waterlights grouping the 7 Presidents moved to the site appear from the freeway to be buried in the earth up to their chests, somehow managing to keep their heads above the often-times-soggy land around them. Yes, it was the perfect marker for a freeway-side development buried in debt and treading quicksand just to keep itself afloat:
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Read more about: 77583, Art, Cancellations and Delays, Financing, Foreclosures, Mixed Use, Parks, Pearland, Proposed Developments, Public Art, Sculpture
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Suddenly, 2 of Metro’s 5 planned new light-rail lines are looking a lot less inevitable: “Parker said members of her transition team have ‘drilled down’ into Metro’s finances and she now feels comfortable only with the funding plans of three rail lines: the East End, North and Southeast. Construction on those lines is under way.
Parker’s goal is to make sure those three lines are built “very, very rapidly,” she said. The other two, the Uptown and University lines, ‘are lines that I want to see built, but until we can finalize all the numbers, and some of them are still moving, I’m not going to commit to whether that is possible.’” [Houston Chronicle]
Read more about: Financing, Light-Rail, Metro Rail, Proposed Developments, University Line, Uptown Line
Friday, February 26, 2010
February 26, 2010 – 12:00 pm
When last we looked in on the stalled Dynamo Stadium deal for East Downtown, Commissioner El Franco Lee was holding the ball. Today, the HBJ’s Ford Gunter provides a few clues about the dealmaking behind the scenes:
Lee has steadfastly refused to comment on the issue, and did not respond to interview requests. Speaking in Lee’s place during several recent interviews, [Harris County Community Services Dept. Director David] Turkel has become more guarded, citing the delicate situation and his desire to avoid hampering a possible agreement. In a nutshell, though, Lee wants concessions from the city and the team that he has not yet received.
“Lee is not comfortable putting it on the agenda as is, because it will get voted down,” Turkel says.
For one, the county is looking at who will own the stadium after the lease runs out in about 30 years, and how that would affect a deal in which the city would buy out the county’s share. Precinct 2 Commissioner Sylvia Garcia wants Dynamo family ticket packs priced comparably to movie tickets, which has been more or less agreed upon.
What is Lee really after?
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Read more about: 77003, Attractions, Buying and Selling, Dynamo Stadium, East Downtown, Financing, Harris County Government, Proposed Developments
Friday, February 19, 2010
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
February 17, 2010 – 6:03 pm
River Oaks Examiner reporter Mike Reed makes a valiant stab at deciphering the latest twists in the ongoing legal battle between the owner of the 7.68-acre site at the corner of West Alabama and Dunlavy where the Wilshire Village Apartments stood until last summer and Wedge Real Estate Finance, the lender that’s been trying since then to foreclose on the property. All that time, Matthew Dilick, the managing partner of property owner Alabama & Dunlavy Ltd., has been using a portfolio of delaying tactics to forestall foreclosure — hoping to sell or refinance the property before it’s taken from him and “two unnamed limited partners.”
According to Wedge, a Feb. 2 foreclosure sale marked the fourth month in a row such a sale had been scheduled, only to be halted by court actions.
Conspicuous among the court documents was a check for $1 million from Tour Partners Ltd., of Spring, Texas, to Wedge, dated Jan. 29 with “Alabama Dunlavy funding” written on it. The address on the check matches that of the Augusta Pines Golf Club.
The president of Tour Funding, Dennis Wilkerson, who signed the check, did not return calls from the Examiner. Neither did attorneys for either party in the lawsuit and foreclosure proceedings.
However, a few pieces of the puzzle were available through court documents:
Negotiation to lease the property for use as an H-E-B grocery store have been conducted by a “purchaser” identified as R.H. Abercrombie.
Photo: Swamplot inbox
Read more about: 77098, Financing, Foreclosures, Lancaster Place, Land for Sale, Neighborhood Disputes, Wilshire Village
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
February 9, 2010 – 6:28 pm
Wilshire Village rubberneckers: Pull on over; you are in for quite a treat! The gift that keeps on giving — the tragicomedy of real estate errors at the corner of West Alabama and Dunlavy in Montrose — has come through with another rich round of jaw-dropping twists. It’s up to us to recount and gawk.
We’re still combing through documents filed in the recent lawsuit for more goodies. But a reader who’s a few steps ahead of us has dug into them already and found these gems:
The property has been appraised at $26.8 million. Alabama & Dunlavy (“the partnership”) claim that they were jerked around by Wedge [Real Estate Finance, LLC] as follows:
At the instruction of Wedge, the partnership demolished the buildings on the property. They did this in an effort to prepare the site for development and increase its value by “millions of dollars.” Wedge demanded that this be done because Wedge purchased the Amegy $10 million loan, held the $3 million Wedge loan, and wanted to foreclose. Wedge allegedly stated that if the partnership demolished the buildings and increased the value of the property, Wedge would work with the partnership to avoid foreclosure.
So, the partnership – at great expense – “evicted squatters” and demolished the buildings. But, alas, Wedge decided to foreclose on the partnership and also seize $1,000,000 the partnership held in an amegy account that the partnership planned to use to help fund development.
Among the juicy tidbits…
What? There’s more!?
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Read more about: 77098, Apartments, Demolitions, Development Strategies, Financing, Foreclosures, Lancaster Place, Lawsuits, Neighborhood Disputes, Redevelopment, Wilshire Village
Friday, February 5, 2010
February 5, 2010 – 12:18 pm
“Talk to Houston Dynamo CEO Oliver Luck, and you get a much different view of the depth of Bellaire-area stadium proposal by the Midway Companies that’s taken on a life of its own in the past week, largely due to the buzz phrase, ‘privately funded.’ ‘We have not been presented a plan by the Midway Companies,’ Luck said. ‘I can’t say whether there’s “no public money” involved. ‘We (the Dynamo) won’t talk to the city or county about this deal — we have pushed that responsibility to Midway. We know what our conditions are, and basically, it’s replicating the financial structure of the downtown deal. That’s sort of a threshhold question. If they can do that, we’ll go ahead. If they can’t, it won’t happen.’ Under the East Downtown (a district now known as EaDo) deal, the Dynamo would pay about $60 million with the city of Houston and Harris County each guaranteeing about $10 million through a special tax reinvestment district.” [West University Examiner; previously on Swamplot]
Read more about: 77003, 77056, Attractions, Bellaire, Dynamo Stadium, East Downtown, Financing, Proposed Developments, TIRZs, Westpark
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
January 26, 2010 – 4:22 pm
Houston Dynamo fan and attorney Eric Nordstrom — who’s also a supporter of a new East Downtown stadium for the soccer team — writes in with a question:
I appeared at Commissioners’ Court this morning on behalf of the Dynamo Supporters’ Alliance to speak in support of county participation in TIRZ 15, which is the last hurdle to clear before the Houston Dynamo can begin construction of their stadium at the proposed downtown location. As you know, this deal has been held up for quite some time as it works its way through the political process. The Dynamo Supporters’ Alliance is dedicated to keeping this issue on the front-burner with our elected officials, especially now that the smoke has cleared from the municipal elections. It is important to us to get the message out about this project for it truly represents a remarkable commitment by the team to expend $60,000,000 of its own capital . . . Opponents often ask why, if the Dynamo want a stadium, don’t they pay for it themselves. The Supporters’ Alliance is dedicated to communicating the message that that is precisely what the Club is trying to do. If the City and County will fix the roads, we’ll build the house.
However, after my three minutes were up, Commissioner Radack asked if I was aware of a project currently under development by Midway Companies to construct a multi-use facility in Precinct 3 with 100% private financing, “a mile from the Galleria” near Westpark. To be honest, I was not aware of such a project, and though our first choice is the downtown location, I am intrigued by the location Commissioner Radack suggests. I’m wondering if any of your readers out there can fill in the gaps.
Rendering of proposed new Dynamo Stadium at Texas and Dowling, East Downtown: ICON Venue Group
Read more about: 77003, Attractions, Dynamo Stadium, East Downtown, Financing, Proposed Developments, TIRZs, Westpark
Friday, January 22, 2010
January 22, 2010 – 9:38 am
An executive with Skanska USA tells the Houston Business Journal’s Jennifer Dawson that the American subsidiary of the Swedish project development and construction company will build and finance this new freeway-side Galleria spec office building all by itself. Design work for the 14-story tower and 8-story parking garage, though, was farmed out to Kirksey.
Where will it go? The 2.3-acre former site of Tony’s Ballroom at 3009 Post Oak Blvd., across the street from the Water Wall Park. Metro will likely want a piece of that property too: A thin, mostly triangular sliver along the property’s western edge is needed to accommodate the new Uptown Line set to run down Post Oak.
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Read more about: 77056, Commercial Real Estate, Financing, Galleria, Highrises, Land Sales, Office Buildings, Proposed Developments, Uptown
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
January 6, 2010 – 11:44 am
Real estate agent Sandra Gunn informs us that the Montage, the second glass Almeda St. tower across from Hermann Park, was foreclosed on yesterday. Originally named Mosaic to match its adjacent twin directly to the north, the Montage has been a rental property since it was completed.
Almost exactly a year ago, the developer of both buildings — a limited partnership between Phillips Development & Realty and Florida Capital Real Estate Group — declared bankruptcy in order to avoid foreclosure on the Mosaic, which at the time was officially a condominium tower. And Florida Capital’s chief operating officer expressed hope that the Montage’s separate $71 million loan with Corus Bankshares could be renegotiated.
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Read more about: 77004, Apartments, Bank Failures, Bankruptcies, Condos, Financing, Foreclosures, Hermann Park, Highrises, Mosaic and Montage
Thursday, December 10, 2009
December 10, 2009 – 9:20 am
After poring through financial documents on the Metro website that the organization’s chairman now says are outdated, Congressman John Culberson announces his opposition to federal funding for the light-rail University Line — because he’s concluded that Metro won’t be able to afford it: “Culberson filed a formal objection with the Federal Transit Authority late Tuesday, ahead of a deadline today for members of Congress to file any concerns. Otherwise the FTA would have given Metro the nod to begin preliminary engineering work on the line. Part of the 10-mile route lies within Culberson’s congressional district. FTA spokesman Paul Griffo said the agency retains the final say. ‘It is not a process that requires explicit congressional approval or disapproval,’ Griffo said. ‘The FTA will keep Mr. Culberson’s concerns in mind, as we do the concerns of all elected officials, as projects advance through our evaluation process.’” [Houston Chronicle; more detail in the River Oaks Examiner]
Read more about: Financing, John Culberson, Light-Rail, Metro Rail, Proposed Developments, University Line
Monday, November 23, 2009
Friday, November 20, 2009
November 20, 2009 – 2:52 pm
What do all these Houston office towers have in common?
- The Fulbright Tower,
- 1 Houston Center,
- 2 Houston Center,
- 4 Houston Center,
- Post Oak Central One,
- Post Oak Central Three,
- Post Oak Central Two,
- One Greenway Plaza,
- Two Greenway Plaza
- Three Greenway Plaza,
- Four Greenway Plaza,
- Five Greenway Plaza,
- Eight Greenway Plaza,
- Nine Greenway Plaza,
- Eleven Greenway Plaza, and
- Twelve Greenway Plaza
That’s right — they’re all part of the vast Crescent Real Estate Equities empire, which at the peak of the market 2 years ago comprised 54 properties in all, stretching from Texas to the California coast. That’s when Morgan Stanley snatched up the whole thing for a mere $6.5 billion, thanks in part to a little $2 billion loan from Barclays Capital.
Today, Morgan Stanley announced it is giving up on the whole thing. Back to the bank all those properties go. All of them. (Okay, minus a few that were jettisoned along the way.)
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Read more about: 77002, 77046, 77056, Commercial Real Estate, Defaults, Downtown, Financing, Galleria, Greenway Plaza, Office Buildings, Real Estate Investing
Thursday, November 12, 2009
November 12, 2009 – 7:26 pm
“Federal prosecutors are seeking to seize the Islamic Education Center at 2313 S. Voss, just north of Westheimer, as part of a move against the Alavi Foundation, nonprofit organization with suspected ties to the Iranian government: “Faheem Kazimi, chairman of the board of directors of IEC, said tonight that the center leases its building from Alavi Foundation. No other connection exists, he said. . . . The Center’s premises on South Voss is occupied by one of Houston’s largest Shiia mosques and Al-Hadi School of Accelerative Learning, a private Islamic school. . . . The mosque . . . will remain open while the forfeiture case works its way through court in what could be a long process. What will happen to them if the government ultimately prevails is unclear. But the government typically sells properties it has seized through forfeiture, and the proceeds are sometimes distributed to crime victims. There were no raids Thursday as part of the forfeiture action. The government is simply required to post notices of the civil complaint on the property. Prosecutors said the Alavi Foundation, through a front company known as Assa Corp., illegally funneled millions in rental income back to Iran’s state-owned Bank Melli. Bank Melli has been accused by a U.S. Treasury official of providing support for Iran’s nuclear program, and it is illegal in the United States to do business with the bank.” [Houston Chronicle]
Read more about: 77057, Briargrove, Financing, Religious Facilities
Comment of the Day: Where the Water and the Money Were
“wow. in 2007 lenders doing 66% debt on raw land. raw land that looks flood prone. wow.” [JPSivco, commenting on Pearland Heads Cut Off: The WaterLight District’s Giant Presidential Bust]