44 W Monroe

[PHX602]

Thanks for the link and the update.

[sundevilgrad]

It's about time they put a construction update link on there website. Nice camera angle, it'll be sweet when the tower gets taller.

[HX_Guy]

So is there still work being done on 44 Monroe?

Doesn't seem to be anyone on the worksite...

[jvbahn]

Yeah, why is this taking so long? It was at level one or two back when I saw it in person in August....it should not take 2 months to build 5 floors. It would be ridiculous to have another situation like "Tapestry" where the thing sat in limbo as a half-ruin for a year before anyone did anything with it.

[PHX602]

I wouldn't worry about it too much. This building I've been following in Tampa took 2 months to put up 3 levels of the parking garage.

March 1, 2006


May 1, 2006


Here it is today only 6 months later.

[CANUC]

I wanted to point out some issues with the idea that the 8th floor is going to have 20ft high ceilings. If you look at the floor plans on the 44 Monroe website and look at the 9th floor you’ll notice that there are two dead zones on either side of the two condos on the south side of the floor plate. If you follow the dead zones down one is over the pool area on the eighth and the other is over the café area. Now if you read the details on the amenities section they describe the eighth floor as “Swimming pool nestled within 20-foot high great room with open access to the spa and sundeck that yield panoramic city and mountain views”. If you take into account the open area above the space it may indeed have the stated height but only above the pool and café. Also since there are condos on the eighth floor I don’t believe they every intended for the entire eighth floor to have 20’ ceilings. So anyone waiting to see a dramatic difference with the 8th floor may be in for disappointment.

[HX_Guy]

That's true, it won't be a huge 20' dramatic difference...but if you look at the plan...level 7 and 8 will be quite a bit different from the 6 below. I'm guessing this is why level 7 is taking so long...they are transitioning from the garage floors which were 9' floor to floor (8.33' floor to ceiling) and spiraled up to having to make it an even flat surface on level 8. Some areas of level 7 look like they will be up to 15.5' tall from the drawings...and from the street view it looks like its going to go from 8.33' to 12.08'...still a pretty big jump.

Ok enough rambling...in short, floor 7 + floor 8 = 27.67' combined...vs 9' for levels 2-6, so two floors will equal three previous ones.

[CANUC]

I agree, there will be some significant differences when these two floors are topped out but my point was more directed at some of the previous posts that seemed to indicate that the entire 8th floor would rise by 20ft. I also agree with the reason behind the slowed pace. If you recall the progress at SCS was also stuck at just above the garage portion for some time. However once the residential units got going it shot up at a fairly quick rate, hopefully the same will be true for this building.

Hmm, you know all of these numbers got me thinking. The 7th floor at its highest point is shown as 15.50ft and 12.08ft at the most elevated point on the north side of the floor. So my question is this; how deep is the pool on the 8th floor suppose to be? I mean it must not be much deeper than a play pool of 6ft. Considering plumbing, concrete and ancillary components how can the south end of the 7th floor still be listed at 15.50ft. Wouldn’t the bottom of the pool need to eat into some of that height? I doubt it can be elevated that much on the eighth.

[JI5]

Originally Posted by CANUC

I agree, there will be some significant differences when these two floors are topped out but my point was more directed at some of the previous posts that seemed to indicate that the entire 8th floor would rise by 20ft. I also agree with the reason behind the slowed pace. If you recall the progress at SCS was also stuck at just above the garage portion for some time. However once the residential units got going it shot up at a fairly quick rate, hopefully the same will be true for this building.

Hmm, you know all of these numbers got me thinking. The 7th floor at its highest point is shown as 15.50ft and 12.08ft at the most elevated point on the north side of the floor. So my question is this; how deep is the pool on the 8th floor suppose to be? I mean it must not be much deeper than a play pool of 6ft. Considering plumbing, concrete and ancillary components how can the south end of the 7th floor still be listed at 15.50ft. Wouldn’t the bottom of the pool need to eat into some of that height? I doubt it can be elevated that much on the eighth.

They don't make deep pools like they used to. Most pools made now go from 3ft. (shallow end) the 5 ft. (deep end). There were too many lawsuits because of people diving, so they took away the option. Another casualty of the excessive lawsuits is DIVING BOARDS and LADDERS; diving boards becuase of neck/back injury, and ladders because kids were getting tangled in them and drowning.

[HooverDam]

Maybe its a classy above ground style pool!

[JI5]

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Hmmm.. They seem to be having a good time with it. Room for one more?

[HX_Guy]

Finally, after two weeks things are moving along again. It's amazing how much progress can be made when work is actually being done.

The way it looked since about Oct. 27th until Nov. 8th...



Then today, Nov. 10th...

[CANUC]

Alright, now we’re talking. The 7th floor is about to be topped out and the 8th is next. The pace should start to pick up once the 8th is complete, although I got a feeling things are going to slow for a couple of weeks. Anyways, I was going to post a link to a realtors website that has actual units listed but I wasn’t sure if that would be viewed as advertising on the forum, which according to the moderator is not permitted. But just to give you an idea here are some of the numbers.

• Unit 909 - <1000sqft – 1.0br, 1.5bth - $498,900
• Unit 1608 – 1,001-1,2001sqft – 1.0br, 1.5bth - $599,900
• Unit 1103 – 1,201-1,401sqft – 1.0br, 1.5bth - $632,000
• Unit 2501 – 1,801-2,000sqft – 3.0br, 2.5bth - $999,900
• Unit 3106 – 2,001-2,250sqft – 3br, 2.5bth - $1,137,900

I have my opinions on the prices but what do you guys think?

[JI5]

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A 3br. 2.5 bath condo in paradise valley would go for a million bucks, so I don't see why a condo in a highrise downtown shouldn't get the same.

[HooverDam]

Originally Posted by JI5

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A 3br. 2.5 bath condo in paradise valley would go for a million bucks, so I don't see why a condo in a highrise downtown shouldn't get the same.

Because downtown doesn't have that same image yet, but developers are pretending it does. Ask anyone with that much money, and I promise you 9/10 times, theyll say downtown is "ghetto" and they wouldnt want to live there.

Almost 500K for less than a thousand square feet? Thats insane for the lack of amenities that are currently downtown. I hope it sells out, but won't be surprised if it doesn't at those prices.

[JI5]

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I don't think it is insane.. First, the prices are based on what will be, not what is. Real estate works that way. Second, the downtown of ANY major American city is going to cost significantly more than the land around it, ammenities or no ammenities. Its still a big bargain compared to cities with developed downtowns.

[HooverDam]

^ If the prices downtown are good, why is so much of the ground floor retail sitting empty? Why arent condo towers selling out? Because in the estimation of buyers, the prices are too high for what they are getting.

[soleri]

I think what we're all hoping during this real-estate downturn is just enough success downtown so we don't have to wait another 10 years for the next condo tower. 44 Monroe's buyers are, in effect, pioneers. Ditto SCS's. They're the ones we should be thanking for being more positive in their outlook than coldly calculating.

There really are no guarantees here despite the sky's-the-limit chat from the boosters. I measure the success of downtown with a metric that involves every single condo sale, business opening and new office leasing. We have to. It's still that basic.

[CANUC]

Well, IMO I believe the prices are actually quite reasonable. First the comparison must be the old adage apples to apples and not condo’s to suburban homes. But if we are going to compare apples to oranges lets look at one example. On the corner of Tatum and Lincoln there is a development called Montecilla Villas, which are described as ‘from the low 2 millions’. They are two floor, stick and wood construction and in reality are nothing more than town-homes. Anyone who buys one is not looking for amenities since Paradise Valley restricts retail within its boundaries. So what are they looking for; image, exclusivity, views?

Now lets look at some the items discussed, exclusivity; you can’t get much more exclusive than living in the tallest residential building in the state of Arizona (at least for now). Amenities; an entire self enclosed community with exclusive access to a pool, spa, game room, meeting room, community room, café, concierge service etc, etc. In the center of the city minutes from everything, direct access to light rail, sporting events, concerts etc, etc. Views; it’s a high-rise. Image; this is far too subjective, what image is the individual looking for? What image do you have of someone who buys a two million dollars town-home in Paradise Valley and what image do you have of someone who buys a million dollar condo in downtown Phoenix…its to subjective.

[kevininlb]

There may be another factor in play with regard to prices. A lot of times these types of condos are purchased by corporations for traveling employees or short-term housing for transferring employees (used to work in a company that had top-notch places in major downtowns around the country). I don't know if that happens in Phoenix, but if it does, a lot of companies don't gulp twice over a $1 million that, over time, will probably save them money. Just a thought...