Oak Tree condominiums
Home values are increasing in Irish Channel
general map pf the Irish Channel
The old Sara Mayo Hospital on Jackson Avenue near St. Thomas Street will become 78 condominiums as Dallas-based Today Realty Advisors Inc. invests $25 million into the conversion of the 135,000-square-foot abandoned property.
The hospital complex will be converted into the Oak Tree condominium complex, which should be complete in about 18 months.
Realtor Isabel Reynolds thinks the conversion can accelerate commercial and residential development in a part of town that sorely needs an economic shot in the arm. The razing of the nearby St. Thomas housing complex and the reconstruction of the site into a multifamily, mixed-income neighborhood has opened up development potential along the river-end stretch of Jackson.
She added that at a cost of $250 to $300 per square foot, the Sara Mayo project undercuts more recent deals that begin in the $350 to $500 range. The average 1,200-square-foot condo at Sara Mayo will cost about $300,000. Since the demise of the St. Thomas housing complex, a flurry of home renovations are being undertaken in the Irish Channel area, and that trend is pushing up home values in the area, Reynolds said.
Today Realty is wholly owned by Eric Brauss, who has 35 years of experience in real estate development and management. Brauss, originally from Windsor, Ontario, also operates a sister company, Today Management Inc., also in Windsor.
Since 1990, Today Realty and its affiliates have developed nearly $2 billion in real estate projects, creating a portfolio of retail, office, and residential projects.