Mobile Development Thread

[elb401]

Just imagining the numbers of what it would take to invest in the restaurant.... it might not make it in Mobile. The city's tourist counts aren't high enough yet. Lets face it Mobilians really don’t support local businesses like they should. Would be nice to see one built here.............. even though I think everything jimmy buffet is really cheesy.

[BlessedMobile]

Hey guys...let's give the Golden Gate her due...that is the most beautiful bridge in America. Those pilings are 746' from the water surface while our bridge will be about 500'. Engineering in 2011 is superior to the bulky yet beautiful look of the 1930's. We will be the tallest in terms of clearance...215' as compared to the Golden Gate at 210'. Let's just concentrate on making ours look great and do the job. I think most area people have come to realize that the bridge is needed and the feds want it because the Wallace Tunnel is a major bottleneck on I-10. There isn't a faster way to get it started sooner because of design and environmental studies. The ALDOT video was very good. The Bridge is coming....The Bridge is coming.

[Alxx611]

^^ I wouldn't underestimate Mobile's tourism, I believe its so much bigger than advertised. I just recently went to a convention in Gulf Shores (Meet Mobile Day) intended for snow birds and newcomers. We had 675 people on record, let alone the ones that weren't counted. This was on a random Wednesday morning and wasn't even too heavily advertised. And this was just snow birds, mostly elderly people from Wisconsin, Ohio, and Massachusetts.

[Electrical Porpoise]

Originally Posted by *BRAVO*

.. ..

i suggest you read these seven very important words.
have you ever seen THE moonpie drop? this bridge will be like the swiss army knife of elevated roads.

[Alxx611]

double post, but I got a lot of photo updates:

The main broadcast antenna on the banktrust building has been removed, as well as many of the smaller ones on the elevator shaft. The shaft also looks like its been repainted. Most of the crane has been removed, and maybe only 3 floors of windows are left not blue:





view of Moonpie from the east is slightly awkward:







facade at the base of the building is looking RSA caliber..





new Candlewood suites. very nice on the inside, as well outside by the lobby and pool. Uses original iron work from old bank building.








Tower on Ryan Park is looks like its getting a new paint job. You can compare the before and after by looking at the North side(old) and South side (newer)





New Businesses:

Garden Party, at Dauphin and Claiborne. Now serving Beignets!! really good addition



Papillion Antiques, at Conti and Joachim



Aunt Chelle's, all day breakfast, at Conti and St Emanunuel?



New bar in Mobile Bay Adventure Inn



I think this is new? used to be Saga I think..



Job training facility for the state, on the causeway:



Bed and Breakfast coming soon in Fort Conde villiage





cathedral cat:




I've also heard the newly renovated building next to Entree Arts may become a wine place soon. The Paper Wasp art gallery is now Artology. Oysterellas on the causeway is now a Tacky Jack's, the same place Obama visited this summer when he was in Gulf Shores

[BlessedMobile]

Originally Posted by Electrical Porpoise

i suggest you read these seven very important words.
have you ever seen THE moonpie drop? this bridge will be like the swiss army knife of elevated roads.

Would the seven words be "the swiss army knife of elevated roads?" That is a funny name and I kinda' agree with you. There isn't much we can do with the cables but make them colorful and shine lights on them. We will need to come up with a cool name for us locals to call the bridge.

[BlessedMobile]

Alxx...I am an admitted downtown junkie. Thanks for the great photos and location updates. More....more...more

[*BRAVO*]

Originally Posted by Electrical Porpoise

i suggest you read these seven very important words.
have you ever seen THE moonpie drop? this bridge will be like the swiss army knife of elevated roads.

These seven?
You like swiss army moonpie elevated roads?

or these?

THE swiss army like elevated moonpie drop.

or these?

This army will like the swiss moonpie.

[*BRAVO*]

Nice pics.

Take some pics of the new Maritime Museum if you find time. I'd like to see it.

[Electrical Porpoise]

Originally Posted by BlessedMobile

Would the seven words be "the swiss army knife of elevated roads?"

Originally Posted by *BRAVO*

These seven?
You like swiss army moonpie elevated roads?

or these?

THE swiss army like elevated moonpie drop.

or these?

This army will like the swiss moonpie.

Im just glad I counted something right. And I like the last suggestion.

In all seriousness, Im not completely sure I want a bridge. I know I am in the minority -- but when it does it does happen I just hope it fits in and doesnt kill an area of downtown. I know they addressed this in the aldot videos so I guess that makes me feel a little better.

[SouthSky]

Great pictures Alxx! I wish I had a camera worth its own weight because I am downtown very often and miss plenty of potential "kodak moments".

I've also heard that corner building will become a wine bar... the for lease sign was taken down around a month ago.

Finally, I think the city's idea of turning many downtown streets into two-ways is something that can help revitalize the north side. Something as simple as this is good enough to spur interest in an investor to go ahead on a project that wouldn't be feasible with the low traffic counts on the current north side one ways. This would also enable momentum from Dauphin to branch out north instead of just south and east.

[Port_of_Bama]

All hale to Alxx all hale to Alxx lol..Thanks for the photos.Im with Bravo on the (pics) that new museum will look nice coming off of the water street ramp.

The Candlewood turned out better than I thought I will admit that. I wish it was taller though lol.And the St Francis street shot of the RSA Battlehouse and RSA Banktrust tower Palms and all is signiture and should be added on the Mobile Bay Tourism broucher good job again Alxx.


And I wish they would just expand the tunnel and add lanes to the Bay bridge but that may be more expensive ? So if they are going to build the bridge,I agree with the above have colored cables with a light show at night .

[Port_of_Bama]

BAY MINETTE, Alabama — An economic/demographic forecast commissioned by the county suggests Baldwin’s population could top 220,000 in 10 years, and underscores the need for an eastern link from the coast to Interstate 65, officials said.

http://blog.al.com/live/2011/01/stud..._populati.html

And I predict that Mobile County will add 20K from economic growth.


Also " Garden Party" serving beignets !! Thats good to know because its always good to have more beignet spots in town.I missed the place that use to serve them in midtown(loop area) and I know a spot in Daphne and Fairhope( Panini Pete`s) over in the French Quarter area of Fairhope.So It`s good to have another French Donut cafe in Mobile.

[SpawnOfVulcan]

Originally Posted by Port_of_Bama

And I wish they would just expand the tunnel and add lanes to the Bay bridge but that may be more expensive ? So if they are going to build the bridge,I agree with the above have clored cables with a light show at night .

If I'm not mistaken, the Wallace Tunnel is basically just a bunch of prefab sections linked together. Expanding it is probably next to impossible.

I would say that an expanded tunnel would be preferable, because it allows nearly all ships to pass by, but you have to consider the effects of hurricanes (flooding), and the effect of potential breakdowns on traffic, especially during peak travel times.

[Port_of_Bama]

Local investors paid $1.9 million for a 40,000-square-foot, fully leased office building at 201 St. Michael St., according to court records. Steven McMahon and Richard Inge of Yange, Inge & Associates represented the buyers.

The Melting Pot, a fondue restaurant franchise, has leased the 6,300-square-foot former Chili's Grill & Bar Restaurant building on Montlimar Drive at the Mobile Festival Centre, according to Josh Burmeister and Buff Teague of SRS Real Estate Partners. Renovations will begin soon, and Melting Pot should open by late June.

^^^ sounds good to me !

[Port_of_Bama]

Originally Posted by tredici

If I'm not mistaken, the Wallace Tunnel is basically just a bunch of prefab sections linked together. Expanding it is probably next to impossible.

I would say that an expanded tunnel would be preferable, because it allows nearly all ships to pass by, but you have to consider the effects of hurricanes (flooding), and the effect of potential breakdowns on traffic, especially during peak travel times.

Yeah the tunnel is linked and expanding it may hurt historical areas.major chunks of Fort Conde Village was detroyed for the Wallace Tunnel.

[SouthSky]

Originally Posted by Port_of_Bama

http://blog.al.com/live/2011/01/stud..._populati.html

And I predict that Mobile County will add 20K from economic growth.

I think if projects currently on the board follow through youll see much more than 20k added to the county. Current growth patterns alone will add 10k or so... this doesn't even account for any economic growth. If everything pans out for Mobile county I expect to be approaching and possibly eclipsing anywhere between 450k to 475k in 10 years. I know that could be a 65k addition would be a huge deal but that is 6,500 added per year. The current economic improvements cover a good number of that prediction.

Austal alone will add 2k+ workers... TK still hasn't even met half capacity as of yet... any EADS location along with ancillary business would bring 6-8k. The container port is about to add two more cranes (on which nothing has been reported) thus expanding traffic capacity... this adds warehousing and logistics jobs... also the unnamed "international" project yet to be showcased... and I'm sure there's more to come.

[SpawnOfVulcan]

Well, in the most recent estimate for Mobile County, the population jumped about 7 to 8 thousand didn't it? 6,500 isn't unreasonable at all.

[Port_of_Bama]

Yeah since yall put it like as jobs contibue to come through like the " big internationsl economic news the mayor spoke of" the county could add 65k by 2020.. I wasn`t thinking about the normal current growth trends.I also read that the Austal contract in Mobile may have saved thousands of jobs in New Orleans.I believe that if one person is eating then share the food with others.


@ Blessed as far as a name for the bridge(cough cough bringing out list) since I know you may know some big guns who are responsable for building and planing the bridge. How about : Fort de la Conde bridge, Riviere de la Conde,Jean -Baptist Le Moyne Bridge, or Sier de Bienville bridge.

[BlessedMobile]

Originally Posted by Port_of_Bama

Yeah since yall put it like as jobs contibue to come through like the " big internationsl economic news the mayor spoke of" the county could add 65k by 2020.. I wasn`t thinking about the normal current growth trends.I also read that the Austal contract in Mobile may have saved thousands of jobs in New Orleans.I believe that if one person is eating then share the food with others.


@ Blessed as far as a name for the bridge(cough cough bringing out list) since I know you may know some big guns who are responsable for building and planing the bridge. How about : Fort de la Conde bridge, Riviere de la Conde,Jean -Baptist Le Moyne Bridge, or Sier de Bienville bridge.

POB....keep your day job! I'll see what I can do. Naming things in Alabama is a memorable "so what". We will call it whatever slang term suits our fancy; ie Dolly Parton bridge!!!