Montgomery development news

[bystander1]

Originally Posted by EXbubba

That looks like the old exchange hotel, a seven story eyesore that was a flop house on courts square. It was very historical and was the major hotel in montogomery a a hundred years. I believe its where the delegates for the confederacy did their back room deals. I think it partially burned and no one wanted to put the money into it. Hindsight is 20/20.

Originally Posted by OldCloverdale

I'm not sure if you're referring to the building in the above pic, but the partially demolished building in this photo is on the site where One Court Square now sits. But the Exchange Hotel was across the street where the old Colonial Bank HQ sits.

[EXbubba]

Originally Posted by bystander1

I'm not sure if you're referring to the building in the above pic, but the partially demolished building in this photo is on the site where One Court Square now sits. But the Exchange Hotel was across the street where the old Colonial Bank HQ sits.

I stand corrected and yes, I was speaking of old Exchange Hotel where the defunct colonial bank hq sits. A shame it could not have been restored, but I guess it had deteriorated too much.

[thoraudio]

Originally Posted by EXbubba

I stand corrected and yes, I was speaking of old Exchange Hotel where the defunct colonial bank hq sits. A shame it could not have been restored, but I guess it had deteriorated too much.

The one they tore down for the Colonial Bank building was actually the NEW Exchange Hotel. There was an old one that was torn down before that

The original





The Old Exchange being torn down



The New Exchange

[bystander1]

Thanks for posting those pics. I love visiting that website.

[Dyingyak]

Originally Posted by bystander1

Thanks for posting those pics. I love visiting that website.

I have to ask...which website?

[thoraudio]

Originally Posted by Dyingyak

I have to ask...which website?

http://216.226.178.196/cdm4/photo.php

Alabama Archives digital photo collection

[Dyingyak]

Originally Posted by thoraudio

http://216.226.178.196/cdm4/photo.php

Alabama Archives digital photo collection

Wow...I have never seen that before. Thanks. That's going to come in handy in the future!

[bystander1]

Originally Posted by Dyingyak

I have to ask...which website?

Sorry I forgot to post the link. Thanx thoraudio.

[nimsjus]

Originally Posted by thoraudio

The one they tore down for the Colonial Bank building was actually the NEW Exchange Hotel. There was an old one that was torn down before that

The New Exchange

The newer Exchange Hotel bears some resemblence to the "New" Battle House in Mobile? Was it built near the turn of the century? The Battle House in Mobile was rebuilt in 1906 after the original pre civil war hotel burned.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Battle_House_Royale_02.jpg

[bystander1]

Originally Posted by nimsjus

The newer Exchange Hotel bears some resemblence to the "New" Battle House in Mobile? Was it built near the turn of the century? The Battle House in Mobile was rebuilt in 1906 after the original pre civil war hotel burned.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Battle_House_Royale_02.jpg

Yea, pretty much the same thing. The "new" Exchange Hotel was built in 1906 after the pre-civil war building partially burned.

[nimsjus]

Originally Posted by bystander1

Yea, pretty much the same thing. The "new" Exchange Hotel was built in 1906 after the pre-civil war building partially burned.

Interesting...Thanks!

[bystander1]

Montgomery to seek bond, bank credit for projects
By Jill Nolin • June 16, 2010

The city of Montgomery will pursue a $60 million bond issue and a $15 million bank line of credit for capital improvement and economic development proj­ects now that the Montgomery City Council has officially given Mayor Todd Strange the go-ahead.

The City Council voted 8 to 1 during its Tuesday meeting to pass a resolution approving pre­liminary work on acquiring bond financing and the line of credit for various projects. The projects include an overhaul of Cramton Bowl, the construction of a new multipurpose sports fa­cility and the renovation and restoration of City Hall.
A portion of the bond money, about $25 million, would go to­ward the construction of a $35 million high school in east Montgomery if the Montgomery County Board of Education has a change of heart and decides to accept the money.

City Councilman Glen Pru­itt, who represents District 8, said he considers all of the proj­ects to be necessary to help the city grow. But he said he consid­ers the new high school in east Montgomery to be the most im­portant of the proposed projects.
"All of these projects need to be done, and we have to contin­ue to push the city forward," said Pruitt, who made the mo­tion that the City Council ap­prove the resolution.

City Councilwoman Martha Roby abstained from voting be­cause she said her husband's firm, Balch and Bingham, repre­sents two parties involved in the bond issue transaction.

City Councilman C.C. Cal­houn, who represents District 5 and who also serves on the Cen­tral Alabama Sports Commis­sion, said he believes the Cram­ton Bowl and the 92,000-square-foot multipurpose sports facility projects will ulti­mately boost the local economy. Changes to the aging football stadium could cost more than $10 million, and the multi-use sports center would cost about $12 million.

If the city is successful in se­curing the bond issue, work at Cramton Bowl could start as soon as August and the con­struction of the sports facility could begin as soon as Novem­ber. The city then would work to recruit games and events to the new facility for the spring of 2012.

Calhoun said he also thought the work at City Hall was much needed and long overdue. "It's not inviting (now). It's like we closed the door at City Hall," Calhoun said.

The bond money and line of credit also would pay for a con­nector road from Ray Thoring­ton Road to Taylor Road to en­courage development, a new police substation on West Fair­view Avenue and either a new fire station in east Montgomery or the renovation of an existing station close to the former Mont­gomery Mall.

The money also would be used to continue to acquire properties in the areas of Max­well Boulevard, downtown and West Fairview Avenue, which could be resold to developers or offered as economic develop­ment incentives.
"This is a huge step for us. Some of these projects have been sitting around for quite a while," Strange said after the meeting.

Strange said city officials will start working with invest­ment bankers to pursue the bond money. He added that Mer­chant Capital Investments would serve as the lead on this phase of the project as the city explores its options.
"It's not a science. It's an art ... We still have a lot of work to do," Strange said.

[Scoots71]

VA clinic may locate at Montgomery Mall site

A proposed Veterans Administration outpatient clinic is the latest potential use for the old Montgomery Mall.

The mall, which has been empty for almost two years and was in decline for years before that, would be torn down to make way for a new 120,000 square foot building that would house the VA services, according to Montgomery Mayor Todd Strange.

That, Strange said, would allow the owner of the majority of the property, Atlanta-based Blue Ridge Capital, to either participate in the project or sell the property to a developer.

Fritz McPhail, president of the development company, told the Montgomery Advertiser his firm was still committed to the property but was looking for new ideas on how to develop it.

Strange told leadership from the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce as well as other elected officials on Wednesday that a plan to develop the old mall around a VA center is gaining traction. The VA plans to build an outpatient clinic within 10 miles of its main location on Perry Hill Road, the mayor said.

He is hoping the agency will decide to locate the clinic at the old mall. If that happens, contractors would bid on the demolition of the old building and the construction of a new one, he said. Blue Ridge Capital’s role in such a development is unclear, but Strange said he believed the company would sell the property.

In fact, Strange said the mall’s owner has offered the property to the city recently, and he believes it has been offered to other area governments as well.

Blue Ridge Capital has redeveloped mostly strip mall shopping areas that have lost an anchor tenant. That means its experience is not in medical developments, so McPhail said he doesn’t know what role the company will play in developing a VA clinic.

“The VA project will require a development team with more VA and medical office expertise than our company can provide,” he said.

“We would support another development company’s selection as the site developer for a VA project. We would be interested in participating however it would be seen as beneficial to assist with the repurposing of the Montgomery Mall facility.”

-- Cosby Woodruff

[OldCloverdale]

Originally Posted by bystander1

Montgomery to seek bond, bank credit for projects
By Jill Nolin • June 16, 2010

...Strange said ...that Mer­chant Capital Investments would serve as the lead on this phase of the project as the city explores its options...

Securities and Exchange Commission fines Merchant Capital for abuses during Alabama two-year college bond rating trips

Thursday, June 04, 2009
John A. MacDonald
The Birmingham News

Wives, husbands, adult children and boyfriends of Alabama two-year college officials enjoyed the nightlife of New York City on the system's dime during bond rating trips from 2003 to 2005, according to the federal Securities and Exchange Commission.

The trips were arranged by Merchant Capital, a Montgomery-based investment banking firm that did business with the two-year college system.

The SEC announced today that Merchant Capital violated federal law by paying more than $24,000 for family and friends of system officials to attend Broadway shows, eat at upscale restaurants and attend Yankees and Mets games in New York City. Merchant Capital improperly fronted the expense money, then was reimbursed by the two-year college system, SEC officials said.

In some cases, the relatives were also employees of the two-year system, but they did not attend any meetings and their travel was not necessary to the business at hand, the SEC said.

The SEC censured Merchant Capital and fined it $55,000.

[bystander1]

That's alright. If not them, someone else will do it. As long as these projects are done.

[OCA REP]

Originally Posted by bystander1

That's alright. If not them, someone else will do it. As long as these projects are done.

Very true...

[The Heights]

Originally Posted by bystander1

That's alright. If not them, someone else will do it. As long as these projects are done.

Too bad Blount Parrish isn't still around to help out...

[bystander1]

The old Colonial parking deck on Commerce Street, bought by 130 Commerce LLC, will be leveled in order to 'enhance and spruce up' the property...

Over $1M spent just to 'spruce up' a concrete lot, ...yeah.

[Jefficator]

Sounds like a buy and hold to me. They know that spot is prime territory for a new hotel as soon as commercial lending returns. So they sell all the useful bits from the existing building and then sit on the lot until they convince someone with deep pockets to buy the site.

[rbp]

I've got a question about a location of a fire alarm strobe in my building. Anyone have a suggestion on who I need to talk to about where it's located and if it could be moved at all?