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  #81  
Old Posted Feb 11, 2008, 11:29 PM
chadpcarey chadpcarey is offline
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Please don't take this personally, but I think many people (myself included) feel strongly about projects like this. I mean, really, all this big box chain retail......Best Buy, Target, Lowe's, Old Navy............with the standard chain restaurants on the pads out front.................it's bizarre to me that people are "proud" that San Antonio is getting it's 5th Best Buy........and it's 20th Chick-fil-A........etc..........like we're not a "legit" big city without them............at every major highway/thoroughfare intersection..........

And, of course, all these projects are completely auto-dependent. That's irrefutably counter to good urbanism. And bad urbanism ultimately yields a bad city.

Something to think about: France has 2.3 sf of retail per person. The U.K. has 2.5. The USA has over 20. Do we really need this much shopping? Might we be better served by trying to build human-scaled places where retail is only a small part of the fabric of the neighborhood?

I love your enthusiasm for development, but I believe that one type of development pattern is irrefutably superior to the other as a human habitat.

Chad.
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  #82  
Old Posted Feb 12, 2008, 12:33 AM
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sirkingwilliam sirkingwilliam is offline
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Chad, I respect you and your company for doing what you're doing and I love your two projects in the downtown area, btw are there still legal troubles with Snow White are they finally going to move out so you can get started on the 1800? With that said, I'm not cheer leading the Best Buy, Chickfila, Lowe's shopping centers. I am be posting about them but do you think if I were given the choice between a sprawled out big box development or a urban, self sustainable development I'd choose the first option? No, I wouldn't. I'd pick the Eilan's of this world over The Shops at The Rim's time over time.

I think it's foolish to try and compare the USA to the UK and France. If those two countries were as young as the US, they'd also be car oriented and have the large amount of retail per person. The US just happened to start growing these cities in a time when that was and is still the model for most development.
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  #83  
Old Posted Feb 13, 2008, 5:15 AM
kornbread kornbread is offline
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Originally Posted by sirkingwilliam View Post
I think it's foolish to try and compare the USA to the UK and France. If those two countries were as young as the US, they'd also be car oriented and have the large amount of retail per person. The US just happened to start growing these cities in a time when that was and is still the model for most development.
There are a lot of reasons for the differences, but I would have to disagree that youth is one.
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  #84  
Old Posted Feb 13, 2008, 5:22 AM
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sirkingwilliam sirkingwilliam is offline
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There are a lot of reasons for the differences, but I would have to disagree that youth is one.
100 or less years of development compared nearly 1,000 years and more does make a difference. Especially when that growth period takes place after the automobile is invented.
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  #85  
Old Posted Feb 13, 2008, 5:50 AM
kornbread kornbread is offline
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100 or less years of development compared nearly 1,000 years and more does make a difference. Especially when that growth period takes place after the automobile is invented.
It makes a difference in the ratio of retail space to citizens? This discussion could move into the weeds fast. I'll leave it to the posted topic...
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  #86  
Old Posted Feb 13, 2008, 6:23 AM
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sirkingwilliam sirkingwilliam is offline
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It makes a difference in the ratio of retail space to citizens? This discussion could move into the weeds fast. I'll leave it to the posted topic...
Yes, in terms of mentality.
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  #87  
Old Posted Feb 14, 2008, 11:44 PM
chadpcarey chadpcarey is offline
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There are no legal issues on either of our projects (unless you know something I don't!). Snow White (owned by the Mauricio family) moved out a few weeks ago. They have a new store near IHOP by the Witte. They're moving their main plant over to West Commerce. We're a bit behind schedule on the issuance of our building permit for 1800 (no big surprise there, really), but should still start construction in April.

I don't think it's "foolish" to compare the US with European countries. If anything, I think it's quite instructive to look at the high quality of urban life in European cities in contrast to the pathetic quality of urban life in American cities. And I believe that projects like The Rim further a development typology that produces low-quality human habitats (per Jim Kunstler, "places not worth caring about").

I also believe that one type of development/building pattern is objectively superior to the other, and we ought to stop looking at places like The Rim (and Stone Oak, and Alamo Ranch, and Westover Hills, and Cibolo, etc.) and saying that those places are "okay". They're not "okay", and we certainly don’t need more of it. We need to make better places, and we're capable making better places.

Also.........I don't understand why you associate our auto-centric living arrangement with massive amounts of retail space. The fact that we have 10x the amount of retail space than the UK and France speak to our cultural priorities, which was my point.

Said another way - what if we reprioritized our use of public funds (highways and roads to support our auto-centric arrangement) and use of private funds (buying tons and tons of "stuff") into building beautiful, sustainable, human-scaled places?

After all, Europeans have had access to private automobiles as long as Americans have. But for the most part, they’ve chosen to live very differently……….

Forgive me for the soapbox rant. I’m really passionate about this subject matter, as I know you are! I'll check back soon.
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  #88  
Old Posted Feb 14, 2008, 11:59 PM
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sirkingwilliam sirkingwilliam is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by chadpcarey View Post
SKW:

There are no legal issues on either of our projects (unless you know something I don't!). Snow White (owned by the Mauricio family) moved out a few weeks ago. They have a new store near IHOP by the Witte. They're moving their main plant over to West Commerce. We're a bit behind schedule on the issuance of our building permit for 1800 (no big surprise there, really), but should still start construction in April.
Good to hear. I think "legal troubles" was the wrong phase, but I did hear that Snow White was trying to fight relocation which was why the building hadn't been torn down yet. Check your PM box.

Quote:
I don't think it's "foolish" to compare the US with European countries. If anything, I think it's quite instructive to look at the high quality of urban life in European cities in contrast to the pathetic quality of urban life in American cities. And I believe that projects like The Rim further a development typology that produces low-quality human habitats (per Jim Kunstler, "places not worth caring about").

I also believe that one type of development/building pattern is objectively superior to the other, and we ought to stop looking at places like The Rim (and Stone Oak, and Alamo Ranch, and Westover Hills, and Cibolo, etc.) and saying that those places are "okay". They're not "okay", and we certainly don’t need more of it. We need to make better places, and we're capable making better places.

Also.........I don't understand why you associate our auto-centric living arrangement with massive amounts of retail space. The fact that we have 10x the amount of retail space than the UK and France speak to our cultural priorities, which was my point.

Said another way - what if we reprioritized our use of public funds (highways and roads to support our auto-centric arrangement) and use of private funds (buying tons and tons of "stuff") into building beautiful, sustainable, human-scaled places?

After all, Europeans have had access to private automobiles as long as Americans have. But for the most part, they’ve chosen to live very differently……….

Forgive me for the soapbox rant. I’m really passionate about this subject matter, as I know you are! I'll check back soon.
I think you have me wrong in thinking I ant more of the suburban big box sprawl, I don't. I'd take a River North any day of the week over a Rim.
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  #89  
Old Posted Feb 15, 2008, 12:00 AM
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sirkingwilliam sirkingwilliam is offline
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Since we have you here Chad. Is your company going to someday build a mid or high-rise downtown somewhere?
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  #90  
Old Posted Feb 15, 2008, 7:48 PM
chadpcarey chadpcarey is offline
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Never say never.........but in my opinion, SA is probably 10-15 years away from our market being able to justify mid/high-rise projects (other than one project every four or five years). They're much too expensive to rent (you'd have to get $2-$2.25/sf rents) and very expensive to sell (over $350/sf).

I think SA will behave like other TX markets with regards to urban infill, meaning lots of 3-5 story buildings with limited amounts of retail. My personal tastes find this sort of building type to be better for urban neighborhoods (think West Village in NYC).

Chad.
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  #91  
Old Posted Feb 15, 2009, 1:52 AM
tgannaway89 tgannaway89 is offline
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http://www.transwestern.net/Flyers/S...il%20Group.pdf

It shows site plans for the area, including a new I-10/1604 interchange and the expansion of La Catera Pkwy to NW Military Hwy. It mentions a trolley service?

It mentions a few hotels in addition to those already discussed:

Francesca's (any info?)
Hilton Concepts (no info, suggests mutliple)

It also shows what will eventually be the southern portion. It looks like they are still trying to lure Ikea.

And The Rim has changed their website:

http://www.therimsa.net
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  #92  
Old Posted Feb 18, 2009, 6:20 AM
tgannaway89 tgannaway89 is offline
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An apartment complex is now under construction along Vance Jackson in The Rim.

The crane for the Residence Inn and Courtyard is gone
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  #93  
Old Posted Feb 18, 2009, 6:29 AM
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Complex01 Complex01 is offline
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Man i have not checked this thread out in a while, very interesting. All i have to say is save the natural beauty of 1604 on the north and west side, please...
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  #94  
Old Posted Feb 18, 2009, 2:16 PM
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sirkingwilliam sirkingwilliam is offline
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All i have to say is save the natural beauty of 1604 on the north and west side, please...
Huh? 1604 on the north and west sides are all developed.
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  #95  
Old Posted Feb 18, 2009, 4:09 PM
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They were not always. I was just reliving the past...
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  #96  
Old Posted Feb 18, 2009, 5:22 PM
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sirkingwilliam sirkingwilliam is offline
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They were not always. I was just reliving the past...
Gotcha.

I thought you were saying what's there now (suburban sprawl) is beautiful.
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  #97  
Old Posted Apr 9, 2009, 9:19 PM
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The Haven at the Rim is the name of the apartments on Vance Jackson a couple hundred yards from the twin Marriotts. Here is the site of the developer, Flournoy Properties; typical looking, nice, but typical.

In this pic they are going to be on the turn before the V on Vance and the arrow on the West side of Vance Jackson.
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  #98  
Old Posted Apr 9, 2009, 9:38 PM
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Anything ever get built?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Complex01 View Post
Man i have not checked this thread out in a while, very interesting. All i have to say is save the natural beauty of 1604 on the north and west side, please...
I haven't checked it out in a while, either. Did anything ever get built....Ikea, six hotels etc???? I checked out the IKEA site and they only mention Austin, Dallas and Houston for locations. Anything under construction?
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  #99  
Old Posted Apr 10, 2009, 5:19 AM
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sirkingwilliam sirkingwilliam is offline
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The land is that area has been cleared/is being cleared, however, from what I've heard, nothing retail wise will be built there until The Village at The Rim is up and running. That's under construction now.
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  #100  
Old Posted Apr 12, 2009, 11:56 PM
tgannaway89 tgannaway89 is offline
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I haven't seen any work on Village at The Rim since they chaned the signage from "Opening 2009" to "Opening 2010". Has it been stalled?
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