Tag: Condos

Galleria, Highrises, Proposed Developments

4 Comments

Proposed Turnberry Tower, Uptown, Houston

The rumor Swamplot reported late last week has now been confirmed from multiple sources: The 34-story Turnberry Tower luxury condo palace planned for the Galleria area — yeah, the one with the tombstone-shaped silhouette — is officially dead.

Turnberry Tower: Turning Away? [Swamplot]
Nine and a Half Bathrooms: The Turnberry Tower Penthouse Evacuation Plan [Swamplot]
The Turnberry: More Wiping, in More Places, than at Any Other Condo Tower [Swamplot]
Tune In to the Turnberry Tower [Swamplot]

Rendering of Turnberry Tower Galleria: Robert M. Swedroe Architects and Planners

77056, Condos, Galleria, Highrises, Luxury Highrises, Proposed Developments, Turnberry Tower, Uptown

10/24/08 3:49pm

Hanover Uptown Apartment Tower: Officially on Hold

Financing, Galleria, Proposed Developments, Redevelopment

1 Comment

Proposed 37-Story Hanover Apartment Tower at Boulevard Place, Uptown, Houston From Jennifer Dawson in today’s Houston Business Journal comes confirmation of part of Swamplot’s report earlier this week on the two highrises planned for Boulevard Place. The Hanover Company’s planned 37-story apartment tower isn’t moving forward anytime soon:

Construction was supposed to start this month, but thatâ€™s not going to happen because itâ€™s too difficult to get a construction loan right now, says Hanover President John Nash.

He says it would be impossible to predict when the credit market would allow the project to move forward, but it could be delayed as much as a year.

Tight money postpones plans for residential tower [Houston Business Journal]
Putting Off the Ritz: Boulevard Place Towers Stalled [Swamplot]
Hanover Apartment Tower at Boulevard Place: 37 Stories [Swamplot]

Tower rendering: Solomon Cordwell Buenz, via the Houston Chronicle

77056, Apartments, BLVD Place, Condos, Financing, Galleria, Hotels, Mixed Use, Proposed Developments, Redevelopment, Uptown

Condos

10/24/08 3:04pm

Turnberry Tower: Turning Away?

Galleria, Highrises, Proposed Developments

3 Comments

Proposed Turnberry Tower, Uptown, Houston

From the Swamplot rumor mill comes an unconfirmed and second-hand report: that the team behind proposed Houston Turnberry Tower — the 34-story luxury highrise planned to rest just behind the Williams Tower — “officially pulled the plug on their galleria deal yesterday.”

Could this be true? A lot of hard work — and a lot of plumbing design — has been poured into that project. It would be sad to see it all go down the toilet.

Late Update: The rumor has been confirmed.

Nine and a Half Bathrooms: The Turnberry Tower Penthouse Evacuation Plan [Swamplot]
The Turnberry: More Wiping, in More Places, than at Any Other Condo Tower [Swamplot]
Tune In to the Turnberry Tower [Swamplot]

Rendering of Turnberry Tower Galleria: Robert M. Swedroe Architects and Planners

77056, Condos, Galleria, Highrises, Luxury Highrises, Proposed Developments, Turnberry Tower, Uptown

Commercial Real Estate

10/24/08 10:10am

Go-Aheads for Sonoma

Condos, Financing, Land Sales, Mixed Use, Proposed Developments, Quicklink, Rice Village, Streets

No Comments

GO-AHEADS FOR SONOMA Randall Davis’s Sonoma development couldn’t get financing for its first phase, but the condos-and-retail project’s sales team is now saying it has financing for its second phase, planned for the south side of Bolsover St. And requirements for taking over the block of Bolsover between the two projects have been fulfilled: “In an e-mail sent Saturday, sales team member Keith Kaposta said groundbreaking at the Rice Village site was still expected in February following the expiration of Walgreensâ€™ lease on the property at 5313 Kelvin St. In another development, the city of Houston said Tuesday that ~~developer Randall Davis~~ property owner La Mesa Corp. had successfully completed all work that was required by the extended deadline of Oct. 27. . . . [Public Works Department spokesman Alvin] Wright said even if the work covered under the letters of credit was not completed by the deadlines, the city would not get the property back. [West University Examiner; previously]

77005, Commercial Real Estate, Condos, Financing, Land Sales, Mixed Use, Proposed Developments, Randall Davis, Rice-Village, Sonoma, Streets

10/21/08 11:22am

Putting Off the Ritz: Boulevard Place Towers Stalled

Financing, Galleria, Hotels, Mixed Use, Proposed Developments, Redevelopment

1 Comment

Aerial View of BLVD Place, Showing Proposed Ritz Carlton and Hanover Apartment Towers

Remember the two 30-plus-story towers planned for Boulevard Place on Post Oak — the Ritz Carlton Hotel and the Hanover apartment tower? How have they been surviving the rumbling credit crunch?

A HAIF user last week

got slight confirmation that both the hanover tower and the ritz are going to be delayed at least slightly… they still expected both to happen, but they will be phased in.

Then yesterday came another comment:

i can confirm this in regards to hanover.

dont expect their tower to be built anytime soon.. i would consider it postponed indefinitely rather than slightly.

Followed by this:

As a sub on this project I will also confirm this. We have been told at least 6 months of delays.

But they still look great on ~~paper~~screen!

77056, Apartments, BLVD Place, Condos, Financing, Galleria, Hotels, Mixed Use, Proposed Developments, Redevelopment, Uptown

Candlelight Trails

10/15/08 4:36pm

Lights Out for Candlelight Trails?

Condos, Crime, Demolitions, Inwood Forest, Neighborhood Disputes

7 Comments

Candlelight Trails Condominiums, 5500 DeSoto St., Inwood Forest, Houston

City building officials closed down the Candlelight Trails condo complex in northwest Houston 14 months ago, citing substandard living conditions. But neighbors have still been complaining about squatters and crime. Now the Chronicle‘s Matt Stiles reports that city attorneys have filed a lawsuit asking a judge to allow them to demolish it:

the complex technically is a condominium property, so the city has to sue 150 owners to get authority to tear the property down. The City Council is set to vote this week to hire a law firm for those cases.

Candlelight Trails sits on 11 acres in the 5500 and 5600 blocks of DeSoto, off Antoine north of Tidwell.

City legal targets blighted apartment property [Houston Politics]
Request for Council Action (PDF) [Houston Chronicle]
Condo residents told to move out of seedy complex [Houston Chronicle]

Photo of Candlelight Trails: Matt Stiles

77091, Candlelight Trails, Condos, Crime, Demolitions, Inwood Forest, Neighborhood Disputes

Audubon Place

10/13/08 1:12pm

Styling the Bistro Vino Condo Tower: Low Voter Turnout

Condos, Montrose, Neartown, Proposed Developments

9 Comments

Style Possibilities for Proposed InnerLoopCondos.com Condo Development on West Alabama St., Houston

Remember back in July, when the folks from InnerLoopCondos.com sent out a survey about a new development proposed for 819 W. Alabama — the former site of Bistro Vino — and wanted you to help them choose which of six funny costumes the new condo building should wear? The company is now saying it’ll likely build 6 to 8 stories on top of at least 3 parking-garage levels, producing 80 condos priced from $190,000 to $400,000.

Best of all, InnerLoopCondos.com — a subsidiary of Montreal’s Group LSR — plans to break ground . . . in maybe only 18 short months!

What the thing will look like, though . . . is still up to you! â€œWeâ€™re very sensitive to what people are saying on the survey,â€ InnerLoopCondos.com’s Andre Julien tells the Chronicle‘s Betty Martin. So how are the votes tallying?

The company wonâ€™t start planning until the survey had received about 50 responses, the minimum needed to gauge what prospective condo buyers want, Julien said.

What? Fewer than 50 votes!???

Readers, the ballot box is still open. You have six colorful theming choices. Do you need to hear that lecture again about how important your vote is?

Condos to replace Bistro Vino [Houston Chronicle]
Potential Condominium Development In Neartown Houston [InnerLoopCondos.com]
InnerLoopCondos Wants To Know: Would You Prefer Ugly, Pretentious, or Simply Out of Place?
Bistro Vino: The Honeymoon Is Over [Swamplot]

Images: InnerLoopCondos.com

77006, Audubon Place, Condos, Montrose, Neartown, Proposed Developments, Theming

Commercial Real Estate

10/09/08 9:42am

Will the Village Get Its Bolsover Back?

Condos, Financing, Land Sales, Mixed Use, Proposed Developments, Rice Village, Streets

2 Comments

The West U Examiner‘s Michael Reed points out that Randall Davis has a looming deadline to complete some work on the block of Bolsover St. in Rice Village that was purchased from the city:

A condition, passed by the Houston City Council at the time of the sale, specified that some changes to the site of the high-end condo over retail project must be completed within one year.

The block was sold in August of last year so that Davis could use it as part of his Sonoma mixed-use development. Since then, Davis has run into problems finding financing, and the project has changed considerably. He now wants to build the smaller second phase — on the south side of the street — first. But the Walgreens currently on that site has a lease that won’t be up until January.

What needs to get done by the end of October?

The plugging and abandonment of the 8-inch water line within the street, and the relocation of the existing storm sewer inlets to Bolsover and Morningside.

The developer is â€œrequired to eliminate the appearance of the public streetâ€ at the intersections of Bolsover and both Kelvin and Morningside.

Bolsover deadline at hand [West University Examiner]
Previously in Swamplot: Sonoma: Bolsover Bulldozer, Sonoma Holdup: We Need Some Money, Council Bowls Over, So No More Street

77005, Commercial Real Estate, Condos, Financing, Land Sales, Mixed Use, Proposed Developments, Randall Davis, Rice-Village, Sonoma, Streets

10/08/08 12:11pm

Ashby Highrise: Strike Seven!

Boulevard Oaks, Condos, Development Regulations, Highrises, Neighborhood Disputes, Proposed Developments, Quicklink, Southampton

8 Comments

ASHBY HIGHRISE: STRIKE SEVEN! “The developers of the Ashby high-rise sent their plans back to the city of Houston just days before Hurricane Ike hit, and not long after the Public Works Department resumed operations, Buckhead Investment Partners were rejected for a seventh time. Records show the plans were filed again Sept. 11, seven days after being returned. They were denied a remaining permit again Sept. 29. In his comments, city engineer Mark Loethen said plans for a driveway permit contained no revisions and there was ‘no current justification’ for restriping plans on Bissonnet Boulevard at Ashby Drive.” [West University Examiner; previously]

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

09/12/08 10:00am

Ashby Highrise: Stuck on the Dock

Boulevard Oaks, Condos, Highrises, Neighborhood Disputes, Proposed Developments, Quicklink, Southampton

1 Comment

ASHBY HIGHRISE: STUCK ON THE DOCK That last city permit is proving difficult for developers of the Ashby Highrise, as the city denied the variance request for a loading dock last week: “In comments for the Public Works and Engineering Department, city engineer Mark Loethen said the at-grade loading dock from Bissonnet Street will not be allowed because its use would obstruct lanes of traffic. In his Sept. 4 comments, Loethen said the variance was rejected for the same reason, citing Sec. 40-86 of the code of ordinances. ‘Such a driveway, as proposed, would excessively interfere with the normal use of the Bissonnet Street right of way,’ he said.” [West University Examiner; previously]

77005, Apartments, Ashby Highrise, Boulevard-Oaks, Condos, Highrises, Neighborhood Disputes, Proposed Developments, Southampton

Commercial Real Estate

09/09/08 12:25pm

Sonoma: Bolsover Bulldozer

Condos, Demolitions, Development Strategy, Financing, Mixed Use, Proposed Developments, Rice Village, Streets

11 Comments

Demolition on Bolsover St., Rice Village, October 2007

Having torn down an entire block of buildings in the Rice Village for a condo project the company can’t get financed, Randall Davis has a better idea: Why not demolish the buildings on the other side of Bolsover — so they can build the second phase instead?

The Chronicle‘s Nancy Sarnoff reports that Davis and company have been unable to get a $100 million construction loan for the Sonoma mixed-use condo development he’s been marketing for a couple of years. Hey, that’s no problem! Just move on to the next project, and double down on the demo:

Now they’re negotiating for a $70 million loan with 40 percent equity to build the smaller second phase of 85 units.

“Hopefully they’ll respond positively since we have so many sales,” said Davis.

The sales, however, are for the first phase of the project, which has been 50 percent pre-sold.

And the second phase is on the south side of Bolsover, where Walgreen’s has a lease until January.

After the jump: marginal views of phase two!

77005, Commercial Real Estate, Condos, Demolitions, Development Strategy, Financing, Mixed Use, Proposed Developments, Randall Davis, Retail, Rice-Village, Sonoma, Streets

Buying and Selling

09/08/08 11:23am

The Solar Powered Shipping Container Sales Center for the Mirabeau B.

Condos, Construction Materials, Development Strategy, Environmental, Green Design and Development, Homes for Sale, Hyde Park, Montrose, Proposed Developments, Real Estate Marketing

3 Comments

Mirabeau B. Sales Center, 2410 Waugh, Hyde Park, Montrose, Houston

The new sales center for the Mirabeau B. is looking pre-fab! Now at the northwest corner of Hyde Park and Waugh: two 20-ft. recycled shipping containers, outfitted with a solar array on a digitally fabricated rack. The website for Metalab, the architecture firm in charge of the project, claims the solar panels will generate 180 kilowatt hours per month. What’s that figure converted to condo sales?

Oh, but selling condos is apparently only this structure’s day job for now:

Solar panels on the roof can fold shut at night or during bad weather, said Andrew Vrana from Metalab.

â€œWe would like to further develop this as a solution,â€ he said. â€œPeople could have one of these made and put in their backyard and supplement their energy with solar power.â€

Below: more pics!

77006, Buying and Selling, Condos, Construction Materials, Hyde Park, Montrose, Proposed Developments, Shipping-Containers

Condos

09/05/08 10:00am

Cisterns and Balcony Bikes: What You’ll See at the Mirabeau B.

Construction Materials, Development Strategy, Environmental, Green Design and Development, Hyde Park, Montrose, Proposed Developments, Real Estate Marketing

7 Comments

Rendering of Mirabeau B. Condos, 2410 Waugh Dr., Hyde Park, Montrose, Houston

How could anyone hope to top the opening line of River Oaks Examiner reporter Kirsten Salyer’s story about the Mirabeau B. condos?

Pigs flew over Hyde Park as residents and developers came together to promote Houstonâ€™s first green condominium.

This full-priced condo building is slated for the former site of Half Price Books, at the corner of Hyde Park and Waugh in Montrose. The 4-story development will have 14 units, priced mostly from $400,000 to $600,000 — though one penthouse unit will go for a cool million.

If they can sell 6, developer Joey Romano tells Salyer, they’ll actually build it!

And here’s some of the promised greenishness: The Mirabeau B. will leave 5 large oak trees and a large open space on the site. There’ll be a green roof, a solar array to shade one of the walkways, and cisterns to capture runoff. Harvest Moon Development says it’ll use low-flow plumbing fixtures, low-E glass, and low-VOC paints. A single central heating-and-cooling system to save energy. Attention to natural light in each unit. An in-condo recycling area. And actual native plants!

Plus a few more things that go with the hoped-for LEED-Silver rating: 10 percent of all building materials will contain recycled content, and 20 percent will come from within 500 miles. Half of all construction waste will be recycled.

What’s the punchline? How about . . . the architecture firm is from Austin?

More images of the Mirabeau B. below!

77006, Condos, Construction Materials, Development Strategy, Green Design, Green Development, Hyde Park, Montrose, Proposed Developments

09/03/08 12:49pm

Ashby Highrise: Down to a Loading Dock?