Huntsville updates

[Huntsville_secede]

http://www.al.com/news/huntsvilletimes/index.ssf?/base/news/116375906040780.xml&coll=1&thispage=1

Sales-tax hike not dead yet, Strong says
Friday, November 17, 2006
By STEVE DOYLE
Times Staff Writer [email protected]
Commissioner reconsiders vote,cites new location for high school

Supporters of a half-cent sales tax for schools may yet get their wish.

Madison County Commissioner Dale Strong, who voted against the tax hike last month, said Thursday night that he is reconsidering and may bring the tax back up for discussion soon.

County school officials prompted Strong's apparent change of heart by compromising on the location of a proposed $30 million high school in western Madison County. He has been arguing that the school should be built in Monrovia, which has about 26,000 residents.

The county school board, which had favored putting the school in a less-developed area north of Alabama 53, is now focusing on a 40-acre site in Monrovia, board President Kenny Johnson said Thursday night.

Johnson would not pinpoint the location other than to say it is south of Alabama 53 and north of Nick Davis Road. The board has not made an offer on the land and could afford to buy it only if the sales tax is approved, he said.

Strong "asked for a site (in Monrovia), and we've given him a site," Johnson said. "The ball's now in his court."

Strong, a Republican, said the Nick Davis Road property would give Monrovia its own high school - a plan that has overwhelming support in the booming bedroom community. Sparkman High School on Jeff Road could then become a less-crowded campus serving Harvest, Toney and Madison Cross Roads.

"We're closer than ever, I feel, to getting this done," Strong said. "We've still got a little ways to go, but it is my hope to get this solved by the end of the year.

"I tip my hat to the Board of Education and (acting superintendent) Terry Davis. By us keeping the dialogue going, it's potentially going to benefit this entire area," Strong said.

[HSVTiger]

One of the new downtown hotels is almost certain to be a Marriott. The second no word yet. If and when Mr. Hammons gets involved you can expect good things.

[TimCity2000]

great news about the marketsquare site! can't wait.

[HSVTiger]

Huntsville has been seeing a surge in the reuse of vacant former, K Marts,
Winn Dixie etc buildings. These are key to rebuilding abandoned strip malls
and encoraging new development.

By MARIAN ACCARDI
Times Business Writer [email protected]
More and more chains move into vacant stores to save time and money

Atlanta-based Havertys Furniture had considered Huntsville for a store location for years. Instead of building a new showroom here, the furniture retailer decided to lease the former Food World store on Old Monrovia Road, a building that's been vacant for more than a year.

http://www.al.com/business/huntsvilletim...s/1163931769112220.xml&coll=1&thispage=2

[HSVTiger]

A few general updates.
The planned 8 story Ovation condo downtown is in a holding pattern as some contract issues are resolved. IF it happens groundbreaking may be this summer.

Market Square project downtown will begin in intensity next spring/summer.
Two new downtown hotels part of this development.

The Westin/Huntsville is on the third floor of 12.

Still strong rumors of at least a 20 story building planned downtown.

More Bridge Street tenant announcements soon, maybe Apple, Brooks Brothers, Whole Market, Wild Oats among them.

[HSVTiger]

Publix plans another store on County Line Rd. Madison/Limestone County

The supermarket will anchor a new strip mall called Village Shoppes at Madison, to be built on 17 acres near the Heritage Provence neighborhood. This will be the first commercial development in the Limestone County portion of Madison, Atallo said.

Developer Flexxon Operating Co. of Sugar Hill, Ga., has told the city that construction will take about nine months.

[HSVTiger]

Hotel Construction

By JOHN PECK
Times Staff Writer [email protected]
Huntsville's hotel market has awakened after slumbering since the opening of the Huntsville Marriott in 1986.

Five hotels with a combined 684 rooms have opened in the last year and a half, capped with the Nov. 1 grand opening of the Embassy Suites Convention Hotel downtown. A Homewood Suites opened days earlier in the Village of Providence.

Another five hotels with a combined 542 rooms are under construction with openings planned next year. They include Westin - the city's first four-star hotel - in the $210 million Bridge Street Town Centre development in Cummings Research Park, and the city's second Hilton Garden Inn.

And at least two more hotels with a combined 450 rooms are planned for the MarketSquare mall site beside the Von Braun Center downtown.

[HSVTiger]

good stuff

By MARIAN ACCARDI
Times Business Writer [email protected]
Steak n Shake to be located near Madison Square

A Steak n Shake restaurant is finally heading to Huntsville.

A building permit in the amount of nearly $850,000 has been issued for the construction of a Steak n Shake at 5903 University Drive to the east of Madison Square Mall's University Drive entrance. The permit was issued to Tennessee-based Hudson Co. It is to be built at a former Union Planter's Bank location.

The restaurant is projected to open by mid to late March, said Johnathan Shaw, a human resources manager for the company.

"We have been looking at the Huntsville market for about three years," Shaw said.

The Steak n Shake chain has more than 430 restaurants in 20 states. The Huntsville location will be the restaurant's sixth in Alabama. There are two Steak n Shakes in Mobile, and one each in Decatur, Dothan and Prattville.

The Steak n Shake Co. is one of the oldest restaurant chains in the U.S. It was founded in 1934 in Normal, Ill., and operates 478 restaurants in 19 states.

[HSVTiger]

Originally Posted by HSVTiger

Huntsville International Improvements
This will greatly improve the security and waiting area before entering the concourse and gates. Visitors will have a good view of the planes without having to go through security.
Passenger Screening and Public WaitingCurrent Status: Under DesignEstimated Completion: Fall 2007Fun Facts:•Addition of 20,000 square feet to public waiting and security screening•Addition of 200 seats in public area•Paradiesgift shop expansion in concourse and terminal •New public restrooms with family restroom•Concessions expansion and addition•Larger security screening area•Public observation area •Expanded U.S. Army Display•Upgraded Flight Information Systems•New customer service kiosks.


there will be two sections like this on each side of the above render.

part of this
Bids are being awarded for some behind-the-scenes work to prepare for an expanded, window-lined connector from Huntsville International Airport's terminal building to its concourse.

A contract to relocate and upgrade mechanical equipment has been awarded to Smith Services of Decatur, which submitted a low bid of $1.53 million. Airport officials also are finalizing a deal with Martin & Colby Inc. of Athens for mechanical and other work to prepare for widening the connector. That company submitted a low bid in the amount of $3.51 million.

The plan is to bid in February a third package for the construction of the connector, said Luther "Butch" Roberts Jr., the deputy director of The Port of Huntsville, which includes the airport.

Roberts told the Huntsville/Madison County Airport Authority on Tuesday that negotiations are also under way with Johnson Contracting Inc. to finalize another contract. The Muscle Shoals company submitted the lowest of three bids to expand the concourse to create a larger food court and build new baggage lifts on two gates.

The projects are part of the airport's terminal area improvement and expansion plan that's expected to cost about $30 million.

[HSVTiger]

Home building surge

By JOHN PECK
Times Staff Writer [email protected]
Lot approvals are up 143% in 3rd quarter; permits increase 33%

City planners signed off on several more subdivisions Tuesday night, a move that is becoming increasingly common as Huntsville prepares for thousands of residents arriving through the BRAC plan.

Tuesday's lot approvals by the Planning Commission came against the backdrop of a quarterly internal growth report by the city showing huge increases in building permits, certificates of occupancy and single-family lot approvals.


The Huntsville Development Review for the third quarter shows a 143 percent jump in single-family lots compared with the same period a year ago, a 33 percent increase in building permits and a 46 percent boost in certificates of occupancy, which give final clearance for a move-in.

The 781 homes approved for July through September compare with 321 in the third quarter of 2005. Building permits jumped from 235 to 321, and certificates of occupancy climbed from 188 to 274.

The average sales price for single-family houses rose from $161,260 in the third quarter of 2005 to $177,774 for the quarter just ended. Building permits for commercial structures declined slightly from 877,420 total square feet to 803,645 total square feet.

[HSV79]

Did anyone happen to see the 10 o'clock news last night and see the quick reference they made about a new mall coming to U.S. 72 and Nance road area? They said the project will cost $90 million and be built by Colonial Properties and have a movie theatre and a Walmart. I have to wonder if it will be a strip mall being it might have a Wally World.

[HSV79]

Friday, December 22, 2006
By JOHN PECK
Times Staff Writer [email protected]
Discounter part of $90M deal OK'd by City Council

Chalk up another Wal-Mart for Huntsville.

A giant Supercenter, a multiscreen movie theater and apartment complex are part of a $90 million-plus commercial development deal approved Thursday night by the City Council.

The project is being developed by Colonial Properties Trust of Birmingham. It is proposed for an 80-acre tract of land on the north side of U.S. 72 just west of the CVS Pharmacy on Balch Road - roughly across the highway from the Madison Bowling Center.

The development deal approved by the City Council commits up to $900,000 in city money for turn lanes and traffic signals on U.S. 72 at the entrance. Colonial has a purchase option on the land and will now move forward on closing the deal.

Mayor Loretta Spencer said the project will be good for Huntsville because it will mean yet another retail opportunity for shoppers with their sales taxes. Sales taxes make up more than half of the city's $201 million operating budget: $119 million is projected in city sales taxes this budget year.

Spencer said city annexations along the U.S. 72 corridor into Limestone County are beginning to pay for themselves with developments that generate more sales and property taxes.

"There are a lot of people that come in that route to their jobs," she said. A city study in 2000 said 8,878 Limestone County residents work in Madison County.

Bryan Ratliff, senior vice president of Colonial Properties Trust in Birmingham, said groundbreaking on the shopping/apartment/movie theater complex is slated for fall 2007. Developers hope to ramp up completion of the theater for a possible opening in spring 2008, he said.

AmStar Cinemas, a medium-sized theater chain based in Birmingham, is planning a 14-screen complex. Ratliff said Wal-Mart and the other yet-to-be-named retail stores could open by late 2008 or early 2009.

"It's a great investment for the City of Huntsville," Spencer said in justifying the city's agreement to build the turning lanes and signals.

Ratliff said the older Wal-Mart on U.S. 72 about five miles east of the planned new one will remain open. Ratliff said Huntsville's rapid growth, strong business climate and projections for huge population gains with the thousands of jobs that will be transferred here from BRAC make the project an attractive investment. The location seems ideal, he said.

"The population growth has been very prolific in the Harvest-Monrovia area and, of course, the city of Madison and east Limestone County along County Line Road," Ratliff said.

He believes more growth will fill in, lessening the chance for the development to "bleed off or transfer too many sales."

Spencer also doesn't believe the retail giant will siphon sales from established retail venues on U.S. 72. The new location follows Wal-Mart's strategy of building on major highways on the fringes of cities to capture commuters from the suburbs as they drive in. The new Wal-Mart would be the seventh in Madison County.

The retail component will be a $59 million investment and the apartments a $34 million investment. Colonial Properties Trust is publicly traded and is the largest real estate company in Alabama with total market assets valued at over $5 billion, Ratliff said.



Man I must say that Huntsville is booming nowadays...

[Rail Claimore]

^Traffic is already bad enough to County Line Road. As far as I'm concerned, it's time to extend the six-lane portion of 72 all the way to Athens.

I don't see this Wal-mart siphoning customers from the one at University and Enterprise either. Most people in that part of Madison either go to the one on Madison Blvd or shop at the many other retail stores on 72 between Slaughter and Wall-Triana. The few customers that it will take will eventually be replaced by new residential areas to the north along 53.

And as for Steak n Shake... one word: FINALLY!

[HSVTiger]

Nice rendering of the new building, which is under construction, to house the actual Saturn V.
The standing one is a mockup.
An allstar lineup is planned for the dedication

By KENNETH KESNER
Times Staff Writer [email protected]
Shatner, Rice, Leno on guest list for pivotal events during year

U.S. Space Camp is celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2007, and Capt. Kirk is coming to the party.

William Shatner has agreed to emcee the Space Camp Hall of Fame induction banquet in June, said U.S. Space & Rocket Center CEO Larry Capps.

"We're looking forward to it with a lot of enthusiasm," Capps said.

The inaugural Hall of Fame event will honor 10 people who are former Space Campers or who have been major supporters of Space Camp and the Space Center, he said. A committee is establishing criteria and selecting the first group to have plaques with their names on permanent display, perhaps in the new Saturn V rocket exhibition hall and visitors center now under construction.

Ticket prices, location and other details about the banquet will be announced.

Shatner is not the only recognizable name on the Space Center's invitation list for various 2007 events. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, comedian Jay Leno, astronauts Story Musgrave and Bob Springer and Army pilot Michael Durant of Madison, whose story was featured in the movie "Black Hawk Down," could all make appearances during the year, Capps said

[HSVTiger]

Originally Posted by Rail Claimore

^Traffic is already bad enough to County Line Road. As far as I'm concerned, it's time to extend the six-lane portion of 72 all the way to Athens.

I don't see this Wal-mart siphoning customers from the one at University and Enterprise either. Most people in that part of Madison either go to the one on Madison Blvd or shop at the many other retail stores on 72 between Slaughter and Wall-Triana. The few customers that it will take will eventually be replaced by new residential areas to the north along 53.

And as for Steak n Shake... one word: FINALLY!

In regard to Steakn Shake, glad they are coming but Red Robin Burgers (2 on the way) and CheeBurger CheeBurger are probably better.

[neilson]

I know about the Bridge Street location but where's the other Red Robin gonna be at?

[HSVTiger]

Originally Posted by neilson

I know about the Bridge Street location but where's the other Red Robin gonna be at?

Valley Bend@ Jones Valley

[HSVTiger]

A few updates on Bridge Street stores

Connors Seafood
Ketchup
Tin Pin Alley, upscale bowling lounge
Fossil
Crabtree & Evelyn
J Crew
Anthropologie


Ketchup and Tin Pan Alley are being developed by the Dolce Group out of Los Angeles. They are planning the first locations in LA on Sunset Boulevard.

[HSVTiger]

Happy New Year Huntsville, we hope this is just the beginning of a great 2007

News Columnist Lee Roop

This party's cranking up for the entire new year
Sunday, December 31, 2006
Huntsville Times
Everything's ready and the hour is here. The caterers are still busy as ants, putting the last polish on perfectly set tables. Valets are waiting out front to park cars, and the hosts are poised in that deliciously awful moment of suspense where they wonder if the effort was worth it. Will anyone actually show up for the party?

If Huntsville were a person, that's how she might feel as the clock moves toward midnight and the beginning of 2007. Her eyes dart from detail to detail, because she knows this could be a memorable year.

The party analogy isn't perfect. The guests we're expecting are thousands of BRAC transferees from northern Virginia, and the truth is they've been arriving for a while. Some already realize they've found something special, and word's getting back to the folks still behind.

For those here for a while, it's a different experience. Next year, we'll find out what hitting a new population plateau means. Already, we anticipate:

More shopping. Another Wal-Mart complex on U.S. 72 West, new stores at Bridge Street on Research Park Boulevard, new Publix centers on County Line Road and Winchester Road, to name a few.

Five more hotels, including a Westin at Bridge Street.

New residential growth west in Madison and Monrovia, north near Meridianville, and east in Hampton Cove.

More restaurants, nightclubs and entertainment, including the opening of Crossroads downtown. That live performance venue will make downtown even more of a party magnet.

With rare timing, all of it arrives in a year that civic boosters such as Ralph Petroff describe as a "perfect storm" of national publicity for Huntsville. In 2007, we'll see:
The 25th anniversary of Space Camp featuring William Shatner, the original "Star Trek" commander.

The opening of the new home for the Saturn V moon rocket that will spotlight this amazing local creation of world-class technology.

Can anything still rain on our party? As always, there are a few clouds that could. Our three public school systems still need money to grow, and the County Commission hasn't seen fit yet to raise sales taxes to meet the need.

Road construction - especially the widening of Governors Drive downtown - threatens the sanity of east Huntsville drivers. And rush-hour gridlock looks like a long-term fact of life on University Drive west, Ardmore Highway, Memorial Parkway and many smaller roads.

Fortunately, that traffic won't faze the BRAC crowd. One thing we've learned about traffic is that how much it bothers you depends on what you're used to. They're used to much worse.

A Democratic Congress will put the defense budget under a microscope, and the return of most of Alabama's congressional delegation to minority status could have local bigwigs reaching for Maalox. But the value of the work done here should make itself obvious even to the biggest doves on Capitol Hill. The best bet is that nothing major will stop.

That sound you hear is cars turning in our driveway. They are coming, and it looks like an amazing 2007.

It's time to think how we each can make the most of it.

[HSVTiger]

Toyota expansion, will impact Huntsville engine plant.

NEW YORK (Reuters) -- Toyota Motor Corp. may name a site in the southern United States for its eighth North American assembly plant as early as this month, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Toyota (Charts) is considering three to five locations, including Chattanooga, Tenn., and Marion, Ark., the Journal said.

Other sources told the paper that locations near Alamo, Tenn., and in North Carolina also are possibilities.

The new plant would have annual manufacturing capacity of 200,000 vehicles and start production in 2009, sources told the Journal.

It and other plants being built and ramped up would increase manufacturing capacity to about 2.2 million vehicles a year, compared with 1.5 million now, the paper said.

Ford and Toyota CEOs 'get acquainted'
The plant would likely produce the next-generation Toyota Highlander sport/utility vehicle and possibly a tall station wagon like the Chrysler Pacifica, the Journal said.

The wagon is called the Ace and is a replacement for the Toyota Solara, people familiar with the matter told the paper.

The move, which Toyota has been pondering for months, would show that Toyota will try to take more of the U.S. market from domestic rivals in the next several years, the Journal said.

It also would strengthen Toyota's hand if a backlash against non-U.S. brands arises from the increasing troubles of domestic automakers and their suppliers, the paper said.

Toyota will likely expand its existing engine-manufacturing facilities in the United States, most likely by beefing up its engine plant in Alabama, the Journal said, citing sources.

A decision on engine-manufacturing expansion also will likely come before the end of the first quarter of 2007, the Journal quoted sources as saying.

A spokeswoman for Toyota Motor North America was not immediately available for comment.