Tag: Condos

01/13/10 1:05pm

Spilling It to the Judge: 2520 Robinhood and Hans’ Bier Haus Get Their Day in Court

Hazards, Neighborhood Disputes, Nightlife, Rice Village

20 Comments

When will the ongoing feud between Hans’ Bier Haus and the 2520 Robinhood at Kirby condos be optioned for television? Fortunately for the scriptwriters among you busy preparing your treatments, the tale of the little open-air bar in the Rice Village and the residents of the 16-story condo tower next door who like to pour water and heave beer cans, bottles, eggs onto its patrons isn’t just a simple melodrama. It’s a simple melodrama with a rich lineup of stock supporting characters. Reporter Angela Grant introduces a few of them in her report on yesterday’s court hearing:

The helpful concierge. Reggie McGowan, the condo-building concierge Bill Cave dragged by the necktie into the elevator on the night of December 13th, had no idea what was happening, and feared the angry and shouting Bier Haus co-owner was going to bring him up to the roof and throw him off:

When the pair exited the elevator onto the 4th floor, McGowan said he heard Cave say that water was spraying the bar and he wanted to turn it off.

â€œI said oh, I understand. I can take care of that,â€ McGowan said. â€œI had already picked up the hose Wednesday morning of that week.â€

The disgruntled former employee. Condo management company employee Alton Smith was fired on December 15th, after a confrontation with 2 of the 3 condo residents the lawsuit claims had been throwing items at the bar. Conveniently, both of those men — Mark Theusen and Richard Booker — “happen to serve on the condo associationâ€™s board of directors, which is responsible for firing decisions,” writes Grant.

The water that rained down on partygoers at Hans’ Bier Haus two nights earlier came from a hose that was connected to a spigot on a patio belonging to Robert Souders, the lawsuit’s 3rd defendant. But Smith told the court he had seen the hose in the same Bier-Haus-soaking configuration at least 2 times before that night. Writes Grant:

“Angry about his firing, Smith approached the Hansâ€™ Bier Haus owners, told them what he knew about the incidents and he named the three defendants as the perpetrators.”

More bit parts that may soon be available:

77005, Bars, Condos, Lawsuits, Neighborhood Disputes, Nightlife, Rice-Village

Apartments

01/06/10 3:26pm

Comment of the Day: Fast Food Townhouses

Comments, Condos, Franchises and Chain Stores, Quicklink

10 Comments

COMMENT OF THE DAY: FAST FOOD TOWNHOUSES “Iâ€™ve been in Houston for 3 years and Iâ€™ve noticed how many expensive townhouses and condos back up to fast food restaurants and other potentially noisy businesses. It would drive me nuts but I would also look around the neighborhood before I purchased or rented something there. I canâ€™t imagine having to listen to the Jack-in-the-Box drive-through traffic all night long. ‘YA WANT FRIES??'” [Apartment dweller, commenting on 2520 Robinhood Vs. the Merry Men of Hansâ€™ Bier Haus: Itâ€™s Come to This]

Apartments, Comments, Condos, Fast Food

Apartments

01/06/10 11:44am

And the Second Tower Too: The Montage Foreclosure

Bankruptcies, Condos, Financing, Foreclosures, Hermann Park, Highrises

8 Comments

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.

77004, Apartments, Bank Failures, Bankruptcies, Condos, Financing, Foreclosures, Hermann Park, Highrises, Mosaic and Montage

01/05/10 5:11pm

2520 Robinhood Vs. the Merry Men of Hans’ Bier Haus: It’s Come to This

Hazards, Neighborhood Disputes, Nightlife, Rice Village

33 Comments

The long-simmering feud between Rice Village bocce bastion Hans’ Bier Haus and some residents of the 2520 Robinhood condo tower next door has reached the courts. The condo association and residents are now subject to a restraining order that forbids them from tossing “produce, water, or anything” onto the bar patrons below. Hans’ Bier Haus’s owners are seeking a permanent injunction and compensation for the damage and lost business caused by projectiles coming their way from the 16-story condos. And 3 Robinhood residents have apparently been planning their own civil lawsuit against the bar owners.

But as of today, the battle’s obviously become much more serious, as the story has found its way into . . . the newspaper! Writing in the Chronicle, Mary Flood adds a colorful account of a few details bar co-owner Bill Cave appears to have glossed over in the description he gave to the Houston Press — namely, how he wound up with a misdemeanor assault charge after a scuttled gig on that fateful December 13th:

77005, Bars, Condos, Hazards, Lawsuits, Neighborhood Disputes, Nightlife, Rice-Village

12/24/09 9:35am

2520 Robinhood Torments the Beer Drinkers Next Door

Neighborhood Disputes, Nightlife, Rice Village

53 Comments

The notable lifestyle advantages of taking up residence at 2520 Robinhood, the condo building off Kirby just north of the Rice Village: convenient shopping nearby, no lawn maintenance, plus .Â .Â . it’s so easy to tweak those pesky customers at the tiny little mostly open-air bar right next door!

“They have been tormenting us, basically, for the last five years,” Hans’ Bier Haus owner Bill Cave tattles to the Houston Press‘s Craig Malisow. How?

throwing eggs and roofing tacks; using a laser-sighted gun scope to train a red dot on various customers, thus freaking them out; throwing beer bottles and cans . . .

Sure, it sounds like a little fun nighttime activity from condo balconies above such an easy target. But do the merry residents of 2520 Robinhood realize the people they’re toying with have been . . . drinking?! Cave tells Malisow he’s “decided to file a lawsuit against every resident, because even if a particular resident didn’t take an active part in the war, they all were complicit” in the off-bar games.

77005, Bars, Condos, Neighborhood Disputes, Nightlife, Rice-Village

Construction Problems

12/14/09 1:45pm

Ocean Tower Demo: How They’re Making More Sand on South Padre Island

Demolitions, Hazards, Highrises

2 Comments

You know you want to see it: Yesterday’s “controlled demolition” of the hobbled 31-story Ocean Tower condo at the northern end of South Padre Island. Controlled Demolition’s dynamite work took down the tallest reinforced-concrete structure ever to be imploded.

A few more videos below. South Padre sure knows how to party!

Condos, Construction Problems, Demolitions, Hazards, Highrises, Implosions, South Padre Island, Videos

Cancellations and Delays

12/11/09 9:04am

No Second Shot: Saying Goodbye to the Leaning Tower of South Padre Island

Condos, Construction Problems, Demolitions, Hazards, Highrises

21 Comments

Here’s a little drive-by tour with expert commentary on the lost and leaning Ocean Tower on South Padre Island, slated for implosion this Sunday at 9 a.m. The condo tower has supposed to have 31 levels, but accumulated many more stories: Construction was halted last year after one side of the building sunk more than 14 inches into the sand.

Three months after topping out the tower last spring, developer Antun Domit sent a letter to buyers noting that a problem of “differential settlement” had occurred:

Unfortunately, there is a layer or stratum of which the engineers tell us is “expandable clay”, meaning that it is a clay stratum that compresses [when] weight is placed upon it. Although our foundation is engineered to a depth above that stratum, the weight pressing on the stratum has caused sinking of the building on it.

But there’s a fix for that!

Cancellations and Delays, Condos, Construction Problems, Demolitions, Hazards, Highrises, Implosions, South Padre Island

Boulevard Oaks

12/10/09 12:08pm

Ashby Highrise Developers: We Were Only Kidding!

Development Regulations, Development Strategies, Highrises, Neighborhood Disputes, Proposed Developments, Southampton

15 Comments

Hey, good one! Remember all those revisions Buckhead Investment Partners finally made to the Ashby High Rise plans — cutting out a bunch of the ground-floor retail space, enlarging the restaurant, and putting that big driveway loop on Bissonnet — so that the city might finally approve the Southampton-side tower? Yesterday the developers told the Chronicle‘s Mike Snyder they were really just part of an elaborate fake-out maneuver:

Between July 2007 and August of this year, city officials rejected applications for the project 11 times on grounds that traffic it generated would increase congestion on nearby streets to unacceptable levels.

In August, the city approved a 12th application after [Buckhead’s Matthew] Morgan and [Kevin] Kirton removed all the commercial uses except the restaurant and reduced the number of residential units. The developers said Wednesday that they changed their plans to test whether the city would approve their project under any circumstances, but never intended to build anything other than the project they designed in 2007.

Aw, c’mon: If you actually did go ahead and build the approved plans, that would be a great stunt too! But how did these fun-loving developers happen upon such a wacky strategy? Snyder provides some insight into their inspiration:

77005, Apartments, Ashby Highrise, Boulevard-Oaks, Condos, Development Regulations, Development Strategies, Highrises, Neighborhood Disputes, Proposed Developments, Retail, Southampton

Buying and Selling

12/08/09 4:08pm

Comment of the Day: Endeavour Rescue Plan

Clear Lake, Comments, Condos, Highrises, Homeowners' Associations, Pasadena, Quicklink

1 Comment

COMMENT OF THE DAY: ENDEAVOUR RESCUE PLAN “Original asking prices for the 80 unit tower ranged from $425k to $2.5 million. After all the hype about sales, it looks like the developer was only able to sell 36 units. Now Regions has unloaded 44 units for an average price of $216k plus back taxes and interest. OUCH! And what can we read between the lines of this comment? ‘The group also said it would pay normally budgeted homeowner assessments for 2010 for any condo owner current on their assessments for 2009.’ It sounds to me like MANY of the 36 original buyers are behind on their maintenance fees. Wonmore is trying to incentivize them [to] get current by offering to pay all their fees for 2010??? That sounds like an awfully big incentive? Are they trying to solve an awfully big problem? When condo associations go broke, look out below. . . .” [Bernard, commenting on Wonmore in Bankrupt Endeavour]

77586, Buying and Selling, Clear Lake, Comments, Condos, Highrises, Homeowners' Associations, Pasadena

Bankruptcies

12/08/09 9:55am

Wonmore in Bankrupt Endeavour

Buying and Selling, Clear Lake, Condos, Highrises, Pasadena, Quicklink

2 Comments

WONMORE IN BANKRUPT ENDEAVOUR The sale of 44 unsold condos in high-flying developer Robin Parsley’s bankrupt Endeavour highrise on Clear Lake in Pasadena was approved by a court last week. “The winning bidder was a partnership named Wonmore Ltd. The group agreed to pay $9.5 million plus past-due taxes and interest, according to Houston attorney Walter Cicack, who represented Wonmore. The group also said it would pay normally budgeted homeowner assessments for 2010 for any condo owner current on their assessments for 2009. . . . The 30-story Endeavour, at 4821 NASA Parkway, had been in legal limbo since earlier this year when its developer filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection the day before the building was scheduled to be sold in a foreclosure auction. Regions Bank was listed as a creditor in the bankruptcy with a claim of $20.8 million.” [Houston Chronicle]

77586, Bankruptcies, Buying and Selling, Clear Lake, Condos, Foreclosures, Highrises, Pasadena

Cancellations and Delays

12/03/09 11:28am

Dolce & Freddo Condo Towers on San Felipe: Left out in the Cold?

Charnwood, Development Strategies, Highrises, Houston Architects, Proposed Developments

2 Comments

Just a month ago, an executive of Brooklyn’s Boymelgreen Developers was telling the Chronicle‘s Nancy Sarnoff that the company was still committed to building those twin 28-floor condo towers at the very end of Woodway on San Felipe, next door to the old Dolce & Freddo gelato shop. Development director Sara Mirski reported that the firm planned to start construction on the Ziegler Cooper design next year, after completing a new market analysis in the spring.

The former shopping-center site, just a leap over Buffalo Bayou from Piney Point Village, was purchased by an Israeli company controlled by developer Shaya Boymelgreen 2 years ago, just days after another Boymelgreen affiliate flipped the property at the corner of Richmond and Post Oak — the site of the former Mason Jar and Steak & Ale — for a quick $24 million profit.

But those were the good ol’ days. Now Boymelgreen may have a few other things to take care of before he can get going on the San Felipe Condominiums:

77063, Cancellations and Delays, Charnwood, Condos, Development Strategies, Highrises, Houston Architects, Luxury Highrises, Proposed Developments

Comments

10/26/09 2:29pm

Comment of the Day: The Value of Failed Developments

Condos, Development Strategies, Financing, Hermann Park, Highrises, New Construction: Residential, Quicklink

10 Comments

COMMENT OF THE DAY: THE VALUE OF FAILED DEVELOPMENTS “The financial failure of Mosaic is not related to zoning or neighborhood protection. Mosaic represents a massive mixed-use project that will (eventually) fill up and further the civic goals of increasing population density and adding positively to the streetscape. In the mean time, the FDIC and out-of-state investors are paying the property tax bill on units that arenâ€™t occupied by people that would stress our infrastructure. Whereâ€™s the downside in that? If the alternative were a vacant lot, Mosaic is far preferable from a civic perspective. . . .” [TheNiche, commenting on Only the Towers Remain Standing: Mosaic and Friends Break the Bank]

77004, Bankruptcies, Comments, Condos, Development Strategies, Financing, Foreclosures, Hermann Park, Highrises, Mosaic and Montage, New Construction: Residential

Apartments

10/23/09 12:22pm

Only the Towers Remain Standing: Mosaic and Friends Break the Bank

Bankruptcies, Condos, Financing, Foreclosures, Hermann Park, Highrises, New Construction: Residential

42 Comments

With its most recent achievements, the Mosaic earns its place in Houston’s spec-development record books: Last month the 29-story condo tower near Hermann Park — wedged between Almeda and 288 — scored the loan-default trifecta, having notched a bankruptcy, mass foreclosures, and an attendant bank failure to its credit all within a single calendar year.

Chicago’s Corus Bankshares, which held a $71 million loan for the Mosaic, foreclosed on all 271 unsold units (out of 394 total in the building) in September, just days before the bank itself was seized by the FDIC. A few weeks later, the federal agency sold 40 percent of the bank’s real estate loans to a team of private-equity firms calling itself Northwest Investments and led by Starwood Capital Group — for 60 cents on the dollar.

Any further fun at the Mosaic will be courtesy of the FDIC, reports Nancy Sarnoff:

77004, Apartments, Bank Failures, Bankruptcies, Condos, Financing, Foreclosures, Hermann Park, Highrises, Mosaic and Montage, New Construction: Residential

10/19/09 5:14pm

2727 Kirby: Refunds Are on Their Way