SAN ANTONIO | Urban Core Development Thread

[sirkingwilliam]

http://www.mysanantonio.com/business...nt-3634929.php

The city council approved 5 million tax incentives for the 42 million dollar mixed use development planned at the Big Tex site just south of Southtown. Or is it in Southtown or SoSo? lol

360 units, retail and a parking garage right next to the now complete Cevallos Lofts development.

[necropolis]

In some downtown updates:

1. The Plaza de Armas building next to city hall won council approval for an $8.4 million renovation
2. There will be an expansion of the B-cycle program, adding another site at/near the Weston Centre
3. A contractor has been chosen for the demolition of the current SAPD Headquarters, scheduled by the end of the year
4. As SKW already posted, Blue Star will see growth along the Big Tex site
5. A new commercial development along Jones Ave won an incentive package from council for the rehab of a current structure into commercial space
6. The Riverwalk is getting some maintenance and upgrades with the a new phase of Riverwalk improvements
7. The city also passed a program to provide certain amounts of home loans to city employees for choosing to move in and around downtown as a 1st time home buyer
8. The city is poised to revamp its incentive packages for developments to make it easier and more clear as to what developments may get as development packages.

More info on each item can be read from the downtown blog on mysa.com

http://blog.mysanantonio.com/downtow...ram-sapd-demo/

Also it looks like the proposed hotel at the former Ace Mart Rest. Supply is making some progress. The windows and doors have all been boarded up, and decorated with a couple of dinosaur stickers, lol.

The new hotel and law office along 9th/Arden Grove are also making progress with construction already started.

Jimmy John’s opened up along Houston St. and a new Papa John’s is opening in July next to Subway at the Vistana.

[SAguy]

.

[Schertz1]

Developer Lynd talks about S.A. challenges

An article in today's paper highlights hurdles to development in San Antonio's downtown. At the same time it emphasizes a high level of interest among developers to build there. Overall the article is very promising.


http://blog.mysanantonio.com/downtow...-a-challenges/

[Fireoutofclay]

http://www.mysanantonio.com/business...nt-3649400.php

[KevinFromTexas]

^I like the sound of that. I always go to San Antonio to see downtown, not the suburbs. I would love to see more development downtown that makes it even more inviting. I hope it's respectful of what is there already, particularly the architecture. I've gotten so used to San Antonio's skyline being full of beautiful old buildings, I would hope anything new that comes along mixes with it well.

[miaht82]

And one step closer.....

Part that I found interesting was this...VVVV

Brewery on East Side close to a reality
By Valentino Lucio
Read more: http://www.mysanantonio.com/business...#ixzz1z2yRjdPJ

The brewery plan has already sparked other development interest in the area. Jacob Wittig owned a lot near the brewery site. He said the brewery plan inspired him to build a 100-unit, market-rate multifamily development, so he bought another lot. The project is still in the preliminary stages.

Read more: http://www.mysanantonio.com/business...#ixzz1z2yfhHZF

100+ units and the Brewery/restaurant set the groundwork nicely for future development/investment in the area, especially considering that it already is not too far from the River and the rest of the development along Broadway.

[WorldTexas]

100+ units and the Brewery/restaurant set the groundwork nicely for future development/investment in the area, especially considering that it already is not too far from the River and the rest of the development along Broadway.

That was my thinking exactly. And from a walker's perspective, it's also strategically centered. It's roughly 10 blocks to Pearl, and if you go in the other direction it's about 7 blocks from Sunset Station/Vidorra.

Sunset Station may not be as lively year round as Pearl, but it does manage to draw a good amount of people. I think if the city plays its cards right, this could be a nice foundation piece to link the two areas together and spark a redevelopment of the area between 37 and Hackberry.

I'd personally be interested in living in the area if it was cleaned up. I could walk to Sunset Station and catch the train to Austin for the weekend.

[Complex01]

I saw that news about this. Its great news for the area. They have been clearing a lot of land in that area. Also hopefully it will bring more projects along Broadway. It will be kewl to see from I-37.

[UrbanTrance]

Anyone ever heard of this? Hope it's for realz.

Soledad Block Mixed Use

http://www.robertyakasdesign.com/san...high-rise.html

There's also something about Leon Valley on there too.
http://www.robertyakasdesign.com/town-center.html

[jaga185]

That looks pretty cool. Looks like it's next to the old Solo Serve where the old Piazza San Lorenzo site. I wonder if they've sent it to be reviewed.

[KevinFromTexas]

I seem to remember that being posted about before. Man, if that happens that'll be some serious density there.

http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/loc...ng-3706159.php

County to Fed: We really want that building

By Nolan Hicks
Published 07:17 p.m., Friday, July 13, 2012

Bexar County has offered the U.S. Federal Reserve $5 million for its building near the Bexar County Courthouse downtown, and failing that, has put the option of declaring eminent domain on the table.
According to a letter to the Fed from District Attorney Susan Reed, the county began negotiating to buy the building in May 2011, after the Fed announced that it was consolidating its operations in San Antonio and no longer needed it.

[KevinFromTexas]

http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/loc...za-3706112.php

Rethinking Alamo Plaza
Published 06:53 p.m., Friday, July 13, 2012

Alamo Plaza offers an iconic piece of history and not much else.
This was the conclusion of Team Better Block, a Dallas-based company which helps cities see underutilized public spaces in new light.

“Whether you're a resident or you're from out of town, the same thing came back: I come here. I see the mission. I leave,” Andrew Howard, construction director of Team Better Block, said. “Or, I go to Ripley's.”

The idea, Howard said, is to introduce fresh elements to the plaza that would keep people there after their Alamo tour.

[kornbread]

Updated 07:55 p.m., Wednesday, July 18, 2012
This is the group that recently purchased the St. Anthony.

With the historic St. Anthony Hotel already on its books, San Antonio-based BC Lynd Hospitality now has its eyes on another site downtown.

The development company is under contract for four parcels along Soledad and East Houston streets that include the historic Book Building and the former Solo Serve location.

Read more: http://www.mysanantonio.com/business...#ixzz21547sQ6b

[Boquillas]

It would be great to see the Book Building revitalized. It has a wonderful elevated patio facing Acenar that has been closed for years.

[kornbread]

Definitely. The buildings on Houston St. need to be better utilized.

I really wanted to see the last proposal for that site go through. I thought the design fit in with the Valencia hotel, but what i really liked was that they had that plaza in their design to try and bring in the river traffic. I wish the river would have those types of spaces where someone could explore and find interesting spots or pathways that would improve the nearby street life.

[SAguy]

Originally Posted by kornbread

Updated 07:55 p.m., Wednesday, July 18, 2012
This is the group that recently purchased the St. Anthony.

“I identified two or three key blocks of the downtown that I thought were particularly unattractive. Soledad, between Houston and Commerce, adjacent to the river, was one of them,” he said. “I then wanted to develop what I wanted to call a development capacity study that looks at all of the development regulations that apply to that particular block and gives me an idea of whether I can build a two-story building, or a four-story building, or a 40-story skyscraper.”


Read more: http://www.mysanantonio.com/business...#ixzz21CWeMbt6

40-story highrise we would be a great addition to the SA skyline!!!

[GoldenBoot]

Originally Posted by Schertz1

Developer Lynd talks about S.A. challenges

An article in today's paper highlights hurdles to development in San Antonio's downtown. At the same time it emphasizes a high level of interest among developers to build there. Overall the article is very promising.


http://blog.mysanantonio.com/downtow...-a-challenges/

The article really does not mention any other developer then Lynd. He just identified "interest" in downtown SA...not anything specific to who was inquiring or to what type of projects were being considered (i.e., new development, purchase of existing property, redevelopment of existing property, repurposing of a property, etc.). I truly believe he would like to develop more properties locally than say Miami. Nonetheless, it's a business and developers are always going to go and develop in locations where they believe they will profit the most.

As mentioned, what drives any development (no matter its scale)...is the economics (i.e., margins) the developer could gain by developing a project. It sounds like the SA government is on the right track for making it easier to develop properties downtown; however, until the economics of building in downtown SA are "right" (for that specific project)...nothing will be built.

Every city is different. And for now, it seems that the economics are "right" elsewhere in the SA, and just not downtown. Hopefully, that will change.

[Schertz1]

Originally Posted by GoldenBoot

The article really does not mention any other developer then Lynd. He just identified "interest" in downtown SA...not anything specific to who was inquiring or to what type of projects were being considered (i.e., new development, purchase of existing property, redevelopment of existing property, repurposing of a property, etc.). I truly believe he would like to develop more properties locally than say Miami. Nonetheless, it's a business and developers are always going to go and develop in locations where they believe they will profit the most.

You are absolutely right; there is no mention of specific developers or projects. However the article clearly says there is lots of interest in downtown from local and regional developers. It is not just Lynd. The article also mentions the interest is in building multifamily projects downtown, it is very specific. I for one am optimistic. In fact, I am in the planning stage for a boutique, Chicago-styled, multifamily building not far from the proposed microbrewery.

[sirkingwilliam]

Let's not forget local billionaire Graham Weston and his working with half a dozen or so developers.