SAN ANTONIO | Urban Core Development Thread - Page 68

FastFerrari82 · #**1341** Posted **Sep 8, 2008, 7:40 PM**

seems like the vistana will be topped out real some...thanks for postin pics and not tryin to pass em off as ur own....

miaht82 · #**1342** Posted **Sep 10, 2008, 3:53 PM**

In my weekly rounds of driving around, I saw the old carquest building on Flores and Alamo being demolished. I saw a Reata sign out front and did a little research. Looks like there will be a little retail strip for the new residents of the area. Found it on the Reata Real Estate Web Site.

KeepSanAntonioLame · #**1343** Posted **Sep 10, 2008, 5:39 PM**

At one point there was a sign on that building with an internet address. It said something like "Decide what goes here".

sirkingwilliam · #**1344** Posted **Sep 17, 2008, 9:55 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paul in S.A TX

photobucket by newportpictures

How that street looks now:

satxgreen · #**1345** Posted **Sep 18, 2008, 3:39 PM**

i found this pdf and it has some old pics of west Texas before I10 and 410
http://www.balconesheights.org/newhistory.pdf

ydoc14 · #**1346** Posted **Sep 19, 2008, 1:56 AM**

Taken by arellis49 @ Flickr

JACKinBeantown · #**1347** Posted **Sep 19, 2008, 2:06 PM**

I like the bricks. What will the yellow surface above be?

miaht82 · #**1348** Posted **Sep 19, 2008, 3:15 PM**

sorry for the large pic, don't know how to shrink it down and still post it from here at work.
Don't know if you guys have seen the Westside MultiModal Center for VIA; I just stumble upon it because a meeting is set up for West Downtown neighborhood plan.

Taken from the VIA site;
Site location at 123 N. Medina, across the tracks from the Jail.
I just got excited by seeing what I thought was greyhound buses and hoped that they would move the one that is taking up space in its current location. By the picture, it looks like VIA (local, as the plan states it) is on the left of the pic, underneath commerce and Greyhound (regional as mentioned in the plan) is on the right of the pic.
I hope that is what will happen, that plus my girlfriend hates walking by the current location just to go eat somewhere for lunch.

sakyle04 · #**1349** Posted **Sep 19, 2008, 3:24 PM**

had VIA give a presentation to my professional association at a luncheon at the quarry on thursday...

they were excited about the WSMM and about BRT in general.

they also showed new videos that are now available on the VIA BRT website...
http://www.viabrt.net/Content/FredRo...spx?Video=List

miaht82 · #**1350** Posted **Sep 19, 2008, 3:52 PM**

Read through the pdf and I guess the Greyhound would move over there.
Great news.

KevinFromTexas · #**1351** Posted **Sep 20, 2008, 9:57 AM**

Anyone know if The Vistana is topped out yet? How's the crown looking?

Boquillas · #**1352** Posted **Sep 20, 2008, 5:09 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by miaht82

Read through the pdf and I guess the Greyhound would move over there.
Great news.

If they moved they can finally raze the old station and put a real building there.

KeepSanAntonioLame · #**1353** Posted **Sep 20, 2008, 11:48 PM**

From the SA Business Journal.

September 12, 2008
Upscale apartment project seeking to tap urban pulse

San Antonio Business Journal - by Tricia Lynn Silva

Cambridge Realty Group, a local real estate firm with a long-time focus on the city’s downtown
sector, has been tapped to market the retail portion of one of the latest urban residential projects:
Vistana.

The 14-story, 530,000-square-foot project by local developer Edward A. Cross II will bring a total of
247 market-rate rental units, and about 25,000 square feet of street-level retail, to downtown San
Antonio.

The project, which is located at 100 N. Santa Rosa, will take up a full city block that is bounded by
Santa Rosa, Houston and Commerce streets on the western stretch of downtown.
Heading up the retail leasing for Vistana is Andy Besing, a senior associate with Cambridge Realty
Group (CRG).

The goal on the retail side is to bring in some tenants that “are local and cool” — the very
characteristics that define the residential component of Cross’ development, Besing says.

Cross himself expects that Vistana will be attractive to service-oriented retailers — including dry
cleaners and florists. He also envisions Vistana as a prime site for a coffee shop, a cafe, perhaps even
some store-front medical offices.

The project has already snagged one tenant: Sterling Bank has signed a lease for roughly 3,500 square
feet for a new branch — one that will also include a drive-thru and 24-hour ATM service.

Critical mass

Another use being eyed for the street-level retail of Vistana is a grocery store.

“(Downtown San Antonio) is long overdue for an urban grocer,” Besing says. “We are in discussions
with concepts that have worked well in other (urban) markets.”

Of the some 25,000 square feet that makes up the retail portion of Vistana, there is about 20,000
square feet of contiguous space. That would be a good size for a grocer catering to San Antonio’s
urban residents.

Over the years, downtown has struggled to create the critical residential mix to make it attractive to
neighborhood retailers — including grocery stores.

But the tide is changing, says Cross, who is the president of local commercial brokerage firm Cross & Co.

In fact, Cross’ namesake firm has plans to bring a “lot more housing to downtown.

“It’s only a matter of time before we reach critical mass,” he adds.

An urban grocer, Besing adds, could be a boon for not only the residents of Vistana, but for nearby
neighborhoods, including the King William Historic and the Southtown San Antonio Arts districts.

In terms of building critical mass at Vistana, leases have already been inked for 39 of the units, Cross
says. Lincoln Property Co. is overseeing the residential leasing of the project.

Besides the retail and the residential, another crucial element to downtown living being provided by
Vistana is parking. All told, Vistana will boast 491 parking spaces — 268 of which will be public, feebasis
spaces.

This component, notes Cross, is especially crucial — given the shortage of public parking on the
western end of downtown.

the downtown campus of the University of Texas at San Antonio, Market Square.
But that’s changing as well, Cross says.

“Vistana is going to put downtown back on the map as a place to live,” he says.