Huntsville updates

[HSVTiger]

some neat model pics of Bridge Street, most of this is in various stages of construction.




The Westin

[HSVTiger]

Saturn V building update. It will be fun to watch them move the actual rocket(not the one standing) into the building when it is ready.
The goal was to raise 7.5 million for the Save the Saturn V, so far 7.6 million has been raised.

[daveyp]

this new surgery center is sooooooo hideous. what were they thinking?

[Shawn35816]

Has anybody thought about how nice Bridge Street would be if it didnt have all of those large parking lots but instead had parking decks. That way the open land could be used for future buildings that could be added later. It would make it feel more urban instead of like the suburban sprawl we have grown to hate. The parking lots that will go all around the development just makes it feel isolated from the rest of Research Park, to me. I wish the whole of research park would adopt a method of building instead of building as they like, because as of now it just feels spaced out.

[neilson]

Originally Posted by Shawn35816

Has anybody thought about how nice Bridge Street would be if it didnt have all of those large parking lots but instead had parking decks. That way the open land could be used for future buildings that could be added later. It would make it feel more urban instead of like the suburban sprawl we have grown to hate. The parking lots that will go all around the development just makes it feel isolated from the rest of Research Park, to me. I wish the whole of research park would adopt a method of building instead of building as they like, because as of now it just feels spaced out.

But there will be Parking Decks.

[daveyp]

Originally Posted by Shawn35816

Has anybody thought about how nice Bridge Street would be if it didnt have all of those large parking lots but instead had parking decks. That way the open land could be used for future buildings that could be added later. It would make it feel more urban instead of like the suburban sprawl we have grown to hate. The parking lots that will go all around the development just makes it feel isolated from the rest of Research Park, to me. I wish the whole of research park would adopt a method of building instead of building as they like, because as of now it just feels spaced out.

i agree whole-heartedly. and though there will be some decks i would like to see more in lieu of open blacktop.

i wish the same for constellation as well, though it is a little better than bridge street in this regard.

[HSVTiger]

MONTGOMERY -- Gov. Bob Riley today signed into law two bills that will help a proposed commercial development on Redstone Arsenal.

The new laws will assist a development planned by Montgomery-based Jim Wilson & Associates on 422 acres of Redstone near Interstate 565 and Rideout Road.

Tentative plans call for the company to build an office park with some stores and possibly a hotel.

The bills signed by the governor will exclude the debt associated with a Tax Increment Finance, or TIF, district on federal property and extend from five to 10 years the time that a city can make expenditures from TIF revenue. The extension on the time for expenditures is not retroactive to existing TIFs.

Under TIFs, the city issues special bonds for work near a planned commercial project and repays the loan with higher tax revenue from later economic growth. Schools also have been built with TIFs, with the debt paid by the revenue generated by higher property values.

Huntsville city officials said the legislation was needed in case Wilson & Associates asks the city for help in providing services such as sewers, roads and utilities. Redstone would have to ask the city to annex the site before such services are provided.

[HSVTiger]

By WAYNE SMITHTimes Business Editor wayne.smith@htimes.com
Summit brings in business, elected officials each year

With gas prices reaching record highs, it seems like an appropriate time to talk about our nation's energy supply and security.

Energy will be one of the major themes at this week's Tennessee Valley Corridor National Summit. This year's 17th summit will be Tuesday and Wednesday at the MeadowView Conference Resort and Convention Center in Kings-port, Tenn.


The corridor - stretching from North Alabama through Tennessee and into Kentucky and Virginia - brings together business and elected officials from across the region to discuss economic development.

The list of keynote speakers includes Tom Kilgore, president and CEO of the Tennessee Valley Authority, which restarted its Unit 1 nuclear reactor at Browns Ferry last week. The Unit was shut down Thursday because of a leak of hydraulic fluid from a control system.

U.S. Rep. Bud Cramer, D-Huntsville, is expected to join U.S. Rep Zach Wamp, R-Tenn., for a session Wednesday on energy security.

This year's summit, titled "New Corridor Solutions for America's Biggest Challenges,'' will also focus on health-care solutions, education, maintaining the region's technical work force and homeland security.

"The caliber of speakers, leaders and organizations represented at the Corridor's National Summit year after year is very telling of the role our region continues to play in solving some of America's toughest challenges,'' said Paul E. Stanton Jr., president of East Tennessee State University.

"The collaboration among key players that takes place at this event is essential to advance the Corridor as one of America's premier science and technology centers.''

[MDL]

1st post greetings, all. Thanks for a truly informative thread. I've been reading the last 6 months of posts in my spare time the last several days as I look ahead to a relocation, temporary at least and permanent hopefully, to HSV (though not part of BRAC).

One question: what's the timeline on a lot of these residential developments? When will they be available for occupancy? I know that's dependent on a lot of external finance factors, but I'd appreciate any informed guesses. I'm a downtown loft type of guy and would love to get into something like that as soon as I can solve dual residences or get rid of my current one.

Developments I've seen mentioned here:
Councill Court high-rise
Westin Huntsville (prices anyone?)
Roosevelt Place
Midtowne on the Park
Constellation

Thanks again for a great thread.
MDL

[HSVTiger]

Originally Posted by MDL

1st post greetings, all. Thanks for a truly informative thread. I've been reading the last 6 months of posts in my spare time the last several days as I look ahead to a relocation, temporary at least and permanent hopefully, to HSV (though not part of BRAC).

One question: what's the timeline on a lot of these residential developments? When will they be available for occupancy? I know that's dependent on a lot of external finance factors, but I'd appreciate any informed guesses. I'm a downtown loft type of guy and would love to get into something like that as soon as I can solve dual residences or get rid of my current one.

Developments I've seen mentioned here:
Councill Court high-rise
Westin Huntsville (prices anyone?)
Roosevelt Place
Midtowne on the Park
Constellation

Thanks again for a great thread.
MDL

Welcome to the forum, follow these links for more info and contacts;
Some of these are still being developed so no info is yet available.
Roosevelt Place should see construction begin soon.
Councill Court still a year or so out
Ovation Condo next to Summit is still delayed.
301 East is available now


http://www.enfingerdevelopment.com/p.../06/13/8431462
http://www.westinhuntsvilleresidences.com/

[daveyp]

there are also a few older apartment/condo towers downtown that you could look into. most of them seem to run at least 300k from what i've seen.

condos at 301 are 300k-700+

someone else may know better than me, but isn't there a condo or two going in on the second floor of the jeff sikes development/remodeling on the north side of the square?

[HSVTiger]

Coming soon:
new La Quinta Inn and Suites/Huntsville International Airport.
Longhorns Steakhouse at Valley Bend, next door to Red Robin.

[HSVTiger]

New Lee High School update..
this is a key component to new retail and housing coming to
North Downtown NorthEast HSV/Chase area. Once ground is broken
more developments will start happening.

The Huntsville school board this morning made offers totaling a little over $2.5 million on more than 17 acres to expand the Lee High School campus, and might acquire half of that property by eminent domain if necessary.

The extra land would link the campus to Meridian Street and allow students to use the present building after construction begins this fall on its $42.5 million replacement.

The board offered $1.575 million for 8.8 acres along Meridian Street. Once home to a Coors distributor, the site is owned by Dewey Brazelton and Charlie M. Smith Sr.

The board also offered $950,000 to Hardwick Properties for 8.9 acres farther north at Meridian Street and Quietdale. But the board has been unable to reach an agreement with Hardwick Properties and made plans to condemn the property.

[HSVTiger]

Huntsville's Foreign Trade Zone #83 located at Huntsville International Airport.


FTZ No. 83 is located on two non-contiguous sites.

The first site is a 1550 acre industrial park located directly adjacent to the newly remodeled Huntsville International Airport as well as the Huntsville International Intermodal Center, an air, rail and motor carrier intermodal terminal.

The second site is the Mallard-Fox Creek Industrial Park and Port, a 1000 acre industrial park located on the Tennessee River, in Decatur with water access for barge freight. This park is located only 20 minutes away from the International Intermodal Center.

Between these two sites Foreign-Trade Zone No. 83 has all modes of transportation, AIR, RAIL, ROAD and WATER

There is an 200,000 sq. ft. International Air Cargo Center located within FTZ No. 83. The International Air Cargo Center is receives direct flights from Europe, Asia, Mexico and it is preparing for more direct international flights in the near future.

The International Intermodal Center has two 45-ton capacity overhead gantry cranes, which helps support a broad range of services for receiving, transferring, storing and distributing air, rail and highway cargo with overnight delivery throughout the Southeastern United States. Nationwide rail service is also provided.


stacked and packed ready for delivery


Mallard-Fox Creek Industrial Park and Port is a General commodity dock facility which can accommodate eight barges and a 40,000 square foot warehouse and office. A 40-ton forklift and a 80-ton crane are on site. Nationwide rail service is also provided.

The facilities and equipment at Mallard-Fox Creek Industrial Park and Port can be further enhanced to accommodate anything that moves on the inland waters of the U.S..

Both Foreign-Trade Zone Facilities are located only minutes away from Interstate 65.

Foreign Trade Zones in Alabama, Ports of entry are either Huntsville, Birmingham and Mobile in the state.

FTZ No. 82 Mobile
Port of Entry Mobile

FTZ No. 83 Huntsville
Port of Entry Huntsville

FTZ No. 98 Birmingham
Port of Entry Birmingham

FTZ No. 211 Anniston
Port of Entry Birmingham/Huntsville

FTZ No. 222 Montgomery
Port of Entry Birmingham

FTZ No. 233 Dothan
Port of Entry Panama City

[HSVTiger]

Even on the beach of good things sometimes there is an albatross,
the new Metro Jail would be that...

By DAVID HOLDEN
Times Staff Writer david.holden@htimes.com
However, safety problems repaired, city official says

Legal haggling is expected to further delay the completion of the eight-story metro jail expansion until at least fall of 2008. But safety problems in the structure have been repaired, a city official said Wednesday.

The problem-plagued jail project - beset by structural problems and work stoppages that led to a legal battle between the former contractor and the city - was originally set for completion in 2006. As recently as December, officials estimated it could be finished by spring of 2008.


Now, the completion date is between and May and December of 2008, the city's Public Building Authority learned at its meeting Wednesday.

Repairs to safety problems left by the project's former general contractor, Dawson Contracting Co., have been finished by the new contractor, Lee Builders, said Bruce Taylor, director of Huntsville's facilities projects and fleet management department.

Those problems included an unsupported concrete slab under the building's cooling towers and inadequate reinforcement for the floor in the machine room, he told the building authority.

"There were areas in the building that were unsafe for people to enter," Taylor said.

The original price tag, including architectural and engineering services and other final work, was to be more than $29.9 million. The projected cost has jumped by more than $7.8 million to $37.7 million.

[HSVTiger]

The Shoppes at Riverbend lifestyle center update, Zierdt Rd and I-565.
Until they get some kind of commitment from ALDOT(note: pay them to do it) then this project will die.
key is in bold, realistic...

Last week, DeBartolo Development shared the concept of a proposed project in Madison with thousands of retailers at an international convention in Las Vegas.

"Once they get a gauge of interest, DeBartolo will develop another more realistic preliminary design and at that point we can get more serious cost estimates on roads and utilities," Steve Raby, Breland's spokesman, said Thursday.

Breland has estimated the $500 million project will take about $40 million worth of incentives from the city for roads and water and sewer lines.

Madison City Council President Tommy Overcash said Thursday city officials haven't heard from the DeBartolo company since the convention last week, but they expect to within the next couple of weeks.

[HSVTiger]

Originally Posted by HSVTiger

New Lee High School update..
this is a key component to new retail and housing coming to
North Downtown NorthEast HSV/Chase area. Once ground is broken
more developments will start happening.

The Huntsville school board this morning made offers totaling a little over $2.5 million on more than 17 acres to expand the Lee High School campus, and might acquire half of that property by eminent domain if necessary.

The extra land would link the campus to Meridian Street and allow students to use the present building after construction begins this fall on its $42.5 million replacement.

The board offered $1.575 million for 8.8 acres along Meridian Street. Once home to a Coors distributor, the site is owned by Dewey Brazelton and Charlie M. Smith Sr.

The board also offered $950,000 to Hardwick Properties for 8.9 acres farther north at Meridian Street and Quietdale. But the board has been unable to reach an agreement with Hardwick Properties and made plans to condemn the property.

By CHALLEN STEPHENS
Times Staff Writer challen.stephens@htimes.com
The Huntsville school board Wednesday approved offers of about $2.5 million to expand Lee High School by 17 acres, but the board may have to acquire half of the land through eminent domain.

The new property would link the campus to Meridian Street and allow students to continue to use the current high school building after construction begins this fall on its $42.5 million replacement.

During a special meeting Wednesday, the board offered $1.575 million for 8.8 acres along Meridian just north of Oakwood Avenue. Once home to a Coors distributor, the site is owned by Dewey Brazelton and Charlie M. Smith Sr.

The board offered $950,000 to Hardwick Properties for the neighboring 8.9 acres at Meridian and Quietdale Drive but hasn't been able to reach an agreement with owner David Hardwick.

"They want front-row seats without having to pay for them," said Hardwick, referring to his access to five-lane Meridian.

Hardwick lives in the house on land that has been used as a cattle farm, bordered by the high school and the Coca-Cola bottling plant. He said he initially listed the property for $1.6 million.

The board passed a resolution Wednesday saying the system would condemn Hardwick's property if he does not accept its offer of $950,000 by June 30.

Alabama law allows a local school board to condemn and acquire land "for enlarging a schoolhouse lot" when it can't reach an agreement with the owner.

The combined tracts would expand the current campus to more than 51 acres, giving Lee the second-largest high school plot in Huntsville after Columbia High, which sits on 56 acres in Cummings Research Park. However, Lee's new campus would be divided by railroad tracks.
About 25 trains pass along those tracks each day, said Susan Terpay, a spokeswoman for Norfolk Southern.
There are plans to build a $1.5 million pedestrian bridge at least 23 feet above the rails, said Herbert Wheeler Jr., director of finance for the school system.

[HSVTiger]

Retail news

By MARIAN ACCARDI
Times Business Writer marian.accardi@htimes.com
McLain gets 'a lot of bites' for project at retail convention

Just back from his 22nd trip to the International Council of Shopping Centers annual spring convention, Huntsville commercial developer Scott McLain is optimistic about the local retail scene.

"We're well-positioned and well-recognized in the region as a profitable and prosperous retail market," said McLain. "Retailers have discovered the Huntsville market and are very interested in investing here.
"We're clearly on the map."

That's good news for McLain, who's searching for retail tenants for a planned $150 million development at the old Market Square site near downtown Huntsville. The proposed Constellation complex is to include two hotels, restaurants, shops, a condominium or apartment tower, offices and parking.

McLain spoke Thursday at the first North Alabama Real Estate Market Symposium, which drew nearly 200 bankers and lenders and real estate appraisal, development, brokerage and management professionals.

For the Huntsville retail market, "the infill (development of underused space) and specialty markets hold the most promise," McLain said. The city already has a regional mall and neighborhood mall - Madison Square Mall and Parkway Place - and two "power" shopping centers - Valley Bend at Jones Farm and Westside Centre on University Drive, McLain said, and eight Wal-Marts in the area.

As for the grocery store market, "the holes are huge," McLain said. Though Target and Wal-Mart have entered the grocery business, "only Publix and sometimes Kroger are the only players," he said.

McLain believes that his Constellation project will be successful because Marriott Courtyard and Springhill Suites are lined up for the project and 160,000 cars a day on Memorial Parkway pass the site. The location also has a 40-year shopping history.

At the shopping center convention in Las Vegas, "the project was very well-received," McLain said. "I got a lot of bites."

[HSVTiger]

and on the office market side, looks like the time is ripe for downtown
office construction,

The local commercial office market is dynamic, said Kyle Collins, senior vice president of Colonial Properties Trust.

Figures show some 13.5 million square feet of office space in downtown Huntsville, the emerging Madison and Jetplex Industrial Park area and Cummings Research Park.

In Research Park alone, Collins said, 1.5 million square feet of office space is under development or has been developed in the last 18 months, he said.

The overall occupancy rate in Huntsville for Class A and Class B office space is 94 percent to 95 percent, Collins said.

Spike in vacancies

"Anything above 90 percent is healthy," he said. "There's been a spike in vacancies," but Collins believes that's a result of companies consolidating here.

"I don't think we're overbuilding today," he said.

In the industrial market, the vacancy rate is running about 4.8 percent in the Huntsville area, said Jeff Wilke, vice president of Graham & Company Southeast LLC.

That company tracks the market for buildings of 20,000 square feet and more.

More than 350,000 square feet of speculative - no tenants signed - industrial space is being built or soon will be under construction, he told the group.

That development is in Jetplex Industrial Park and Jetplex Supplier Park, part of the Port of Huntsville. Graham & Company is developing a 208,000-square-foot spec distribution center in the northern part of the industrial park, and Huntsville-based Triad Acquisitions Group is developing a 146,000-square-foot spec warehouse distribution center and a two-story office building in Jetplex North.

In Jetplex Supplier Park, Industrial Properties of the South is building a 42,000-square-foot warehouse distribution building.

[HSVTiger]

hopefully this will be the end of this wasted effort to build a barge terminal in the Wheeler Wildlife Refuge, no means no way..
Huntsville needs to get with Decatur and promote their existing port and develop plans to make it what it needs to be

By JOHN PECK
Times Staff Writer john.peck@htimes.com
Decision follows Wheeler rejectionof canal permit

Huntsville's Ditto Landing marina board is giving up its effort to win approval for a major fuel barge port near Huntsville International Airport.

Several Ditto board members said Thursday that the board should focus on other matters in the wake of federal rejection of a right-of-way permit for a canal through Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge.

"My view is, Ditto does not have the financial resources to appeal the process," said Wally Kirkpatrick, president of the Huntsville-Madison County Marina and Port Authority, which governs the Ditto marina complex along the Tennessee River.

Kirkpatrick said the barge port idea still has merit, but some other group that can build a convincing case should take it on. "Ditto really doesn't have the resources in terms of financial capacity or staffing capacity. The board needs now to face up to what its priorities are," Kirkpatrick said.

Marina General Manager Ed Mitchell identified the airport as a logical agency to resume the port push. Kirkpatrick echoed that recommendation Thursday in an e-mail to Ditto board members suggesting that Mitchell immediately cease all Ditto involvement in the port idea and transfer appeal rights to the airport authority.
Board member Jada Leo also welcomed turning loose the port project loose, saying the board's central mission should be on boaters and other recreational interests at Ditto.

"There are some who believe it's (fuel port) consistent with running Ditto because it could potentially bring in so much needed revenue," he said. "But the reality is, if community efforts from various city councils and the airport couldn't bring this to reality over the last 40 years, who are we to believe in this day of heightened environmentalism we could make this a reality?

"It's folly."

(Your right about that)

Wheeler Manager Dwight Cooley notified Mitchell earlier this week that he had finalized his position on Ditto's request for right of way through the refuge. "As we discussed, I found that construction of a barge canal across Wheeler NWR was not an appropriate refuge use and as such, the (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service) cannot issue a permit," Cooley wrote.