AUSTIN | Projects & Construction III - Page 79

lzppjb · #1 Posted **Mar 18, 2013, 10:47 PM**

So I did find the right project. Just didn't find the good link.

I will get better at using that site!

JoninATX · #2 Posted **Mar 18, 2013, 8:08 PM**

A few shots from SXSW

KevinFromTexas · #3 Posted **Mar 18, 2013, 8:40 PM**

"Boo" I was hoping for more density and height there.

http://www.statesman.com/news/busine...ongress/nWwdm/

Quote:

Posted: 2:17 p.m. Monday, March 18, 2013
Buyer in place for high-profile Sixth and Congress property

Portfolio anchors iconic downtown corner

By Shonda Novak
American-Statesman Staff

Stream Realty Partners has a contract to acquire a prime block on Congress Avenue between Fifth and Sixth streets, Lance Sallis, a partner in the Austin office of Stream Realty, told the American-Statesman in an exclusive interview. Stream Realty is a national real estate services, investment and development firm.

The Bank of America tower will remain as is, Sallis said. However, an adjacent annex at 501 Congress will be remodeled into a contemporary five-story building with 112,000 square feet of first-class office space and a rooftop deck. An existing valet parking garage will be torn down and replaced by an eight-story parking garage with 300 spaces. That garage structure will also include 5,500 square feet of street-level retail space, Sallis said.

Another parcel — a half block site on East Fifth Street between Brazos and San Jacinto — will be sold once Stream closes on the purchase. Sallis said there’s been interest from developers looking to build hotel, apartment and mixed-use projects there.

lzppjb · #4 Posted **Mar 18, 2013, 8:52 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by KevinFromTexas

"Boo" I was hoping for more density and height there.

http://www.statesman.com/news/busine...ongress/nWwdm/

There's still hope for the lot that they plan on selling.

ahealy · #5 Posted **Mar 18, 2013, 10:20 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by lzppjb

There's still hope for the lot that they plan on selling.

I hope the street level really gets enhanced with these projects. GOOD retail, Food trailers, parklets, protected bike lanes. I am a street level kinda guy these days.

GoldenBoot · #6 Posted **Mar 19, 2013, 8:53 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by KevinFromTexas

"Boo" I was hoping for more density and height there.

http://www.statesman.com/news/busine...ongress/nWwdm/

Say "Good-bye" to a ~800' tower on that site. Only shot (in this area of downtown) for this to happen is the site at 5th & Brazos, which Stream intends to sell.

Hope Stacey made a nice profit!

I'm a bit sick about the sale to Stream. There were other national developers in the loop. However, it's obvious that Stream offered the highest purchase price.

wwmiv · #7 Posted **Mar 19, 2013, 12:05 AM**

Do we know if that project is student housing?

KevinFromTexas · #8 Posted **Mar 19, 2013, 12:07 AM**

The City of Austin link says multi-family, so I'd guess it's apartments.

NYC_Longhorn · #9 Posted **Mar 19, 2013, 1:34 AM**

This is a joke right? A six story building at 6th and congress? I just threw up in my mouth.... These people should be flogged in the town square that they ruined with a six story building.

Syndic · #10 Posted **Mar 19, 2013, 2:33 AM**

Yeah, just about anything is better than what's there now, but this is an incredibly boring building.

I agree with ahealy. Street-level is most important. If they get that right, I won't be so pissed. It's an upgrade over the status quo even though that property has WAY more potential.

I mean, what are these people thinking? "The Main Street of Texas? The most vibrant street in the city of Austin? I know! Let's build a featureless, boxy five-story office building! Brilliant!"

migol24 · #11 Posted **Mar 19, 2013, 3:29 AM**

How come Texas never does anything with a splash? Being one of the States with the best economies you'd think they'd toot their horns just a bit when given the opportunity. I don't get it.

Syndic · #12 Posted **Mar 19, 2013, 3:57 AM**

I guess there's a silver lining, though:

Quote:

Another parcel — a half block site on East Fifth Street between Brazos and San Jacinto — will be sold once Stream closes on the purchase. Sallis said there’s been interest from developers looking to build hotel, apartment and mixed-use projects there.

Also, this:

Quote:

An existing valet parking garage will be torn down and replaced by an eight-story parking garage with 300 spaces. That garage structure will also include 5,500 square feet of street-level retail space, Sallis said.

And this:

Quote:

"The redeveloped 501 Congress office building will provide much needed space in the near term."

So it sounds like this isn't a long-term plan for the site. They said this will be completed by June 14th of next year, so it sounds like they're just trying to jump into the market and meet some of the demand ASAP. Whatever high-rise is built in the future will "need" the accompanying parking garage, so they would likely only tear down the office building in that scenario.

lzppjb · #13 Posted **Mar 19, 2013, 6:50 AM**

Exactly what I pointed out in the other thread this is being discussed. They aren't building a 5 story structure. They are just renovating it. They're not putting much money into it, so it's not going to be something they'll balk at tearing down when the right proposal comes along. The other parcel is also something I mentioned. The sky is not falling yet.

BevoLJ · #14 Posted **Mar 19, 2013, 2:50 PM**

The garage with the retail space they are rebuilding is that the one on 6th? If so isn't there already lot more than 5k retail on the bottom of that? Won't this be decreasing the retail on 6th?

JoninATX · #15 Posted **Mar 19, 2013, 5:50 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by BevoLJ

The garage with the retail space they are rebuilding is that the one on 6th? If so isn't there already lot more than 5k retail on the bottom of that? Won't this be decreasing the retail on 6th?

The garage that there going to rebuild will be replacing that ugly 3 story garage on 5th.

StoOgE · #16 Posted **Mar 22, 2013, 8:15 PM**

This development looks like a temporary endeavor.

My guess is they think the property is worth something long term, either for themselves or someone else and want to sell it.

In the meantime, throw up something relatively cheap to build and get some income on the property while you wait to do something else with it.

That said, I would prefer they build a nice base structure that could support a 800-1000 foot tower, giving themselves flexibility in the future to build on top of the base. Similar to what is going on at 3WTC now.

That said, this is a much cheaper short-term investment, and it may be that they want to sell the site in the future to someone else.

KevinFromTexas · #17 Posted **Mar 19, 2013, 9:00 PM**

Wasn't it Stream that was dropped from the Seaholm development?

ATXboom · #18 Posted **Mar 20, 2013, 8:46 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by KevinFromTexas

Wasn't it Stream that was dropped from the Seaholm development?

YES... they haven't proven they can do anything. Couldn't lease seaholm... but they can lease this place?

H2O · #19 Posted **Mar 21, 2013, 10:22 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by ATXboom

YES... they haven't proven they can do anything. Couldn't lease seaholm... but they can lease this place?

No. It's the other way around. CIM, the equity partner that Southwest Strategies brought into the deal, hired Stream as a commercial broker because they were concerned about Southwest Strategies ability to secure tenants.

Kotliz · #20 Posted **Mar 21, 2013, 7:37 PM**

Has anyone heard any more about the (Westin?) hotel that supposed to go up on 5th and San Jacinto?