HOUSTON | Development Thread II

[Shasta]

No natural beauty?

Here's what I find beautiful about Houston;

1) Variety. Head up North and you get pine forests. Head down South and you get the Coastal Prairie. Head East and you'll hit swamplands rather quickly. The only part of town I don't love is the Katy Prairie to the West and that's because it's pretty much gone other than Bear Creek/Bush Parks.

2) Evergreen. The live oaks canopies still look beautiful this time of year. Compare that to Boston where the trees lost their cover around Halloween and wont get them back until late April. The Season of "Death" is what I began to call it.

3) The bayous. I truly love Buffalo Bayou. Sure, it's not a beautiful waterway that you swim in, but it's filled with wildlife; gators, bats, hundreds of bird species, coyotes, rabbits, and so much more.

[TexasPlaya]

Originally Posted by N90

I want both.

I want Houston to be a dynamic city that gets it's desires, the city doesn't have any natural beauty so to speak. It's not a very "unique" place, so to showcase the aesthetics of the city it's got to get on with the infill and the scrapers. It's how flat as a pancake Chicago built it's image.

Take away the Chicago skyline and make it a city like DC where every building is the same height, and there goes every aesthetic appeal of the city. See what I mean?

I would like both as well, but realistically Houston will add skyscrapers at a slow rate. Downtown Houston has the financial incentive for the first ~2400 residential units. Hopefully that along with all the new infrastructure (rail, buffalo bayou park renovation, bike trails, etc) in the downtown area will create a critical mass that can break free from the 9-5 commuter life.

By the way, BLVD Place has 6 skyscrapers in the works. 3 residential, 2 office, and 1 hotel. The first has already started.

It's pretty sweet. Hopefully they all get built pretty soon.

[N90]

Houston will come along one day, guys.

[N90]

Noble Energy 20 story office tower:
[IMG]http://assets.bizjournals.com/houston/blog/breaking-ground/c*900.jpg?v=1[/IMG]
http://assets.bizjournals.com/housto.../c*900.jpg?v=1

Developers are planning a 20-story office tower for Noble Energy Inc., a project that will create a corporate campus spanning nearly 1 million square feet for the Houston-based independent energy firm.

The 456,000-square-foot building, which will have an eight-story parking garage and a “town hall” for large employee gatherings, will be developed at the southwest corner of Texas 249 and Louetta.

The building will go up next to twin 10-story buildings Noble leased last year and plans to move into in May.

With the new project, Noble joins other large energy firms that have committed to major campus developments across the Houston area.

Millions of square feet of new buildings are planned or under way for firms such as Exxon Mobil Corp., Anadarko Petroleum Corp., Southwestern Energy and Phillips 66. The new projects are largely concentrated in and around The Woodlands and west Houston.

Source: http://fuelfix.com/blog/2013/01/25/n...-tower/#9545-1

[KevinFromTexas]

Originally Posted by weatherguru18

Well considering that an 800+ ft. building would make it the fourth tallest building in the city, I'd assume it would have an impact---especially from the south. To get any distinct skyline changes from the north or west, you'd have to have a scraper clear the 1,000 ft. marker. Even Chase gets lost in the views from the west.

Chase: 1,002 ft.
Wells Fargo: 972 ft.
Williams: 901 ft.
Chevron: 800+???
BOA: 780 ft.
Heritage Plaza: 762 ft.

Wells Fargo Plaza is 992 feet tall, not 972 feet.

[weatherguru18]

Originally Posted by KevinFromTexas

Wells Fargo Plaza is 992 feet tall, not 972 feet.

Typo. Thanks for the catch.

[BrandonJXN]

Originally Posted by KevinFromTexas

Wells Fargo Plaza is 992 feet tall, not 972 feet.

Why is Wells Fargo Plaza not 1,000 feet tall? They couldn't afford 8 feet?

[KevinFromTexas]

I don't know. The old height that we had always seen was actually 972 feet, but what I've seen listed now is 992 feet, and knowing the person who had the height, he probably got it from the blueprints.

The building does always look to be just as tall as the Chase Tower on the skyline. And since Houston is one of the flattest cities in America, I doubt elevation change has anything to do with it.

[TexasPlaya]

The weather and lighting was somewhat bad, here are some random updates by me:

Hanover @ Rice Village is one of my favorite projects and it's getting close to completion. Phase 2 will start this year which will consist of a ~12 story 200 unit residential which will replace a small apartment complex and some minor retail. So we are looking at ~500 units total.


IMAG0493 by dv1033, on Flickr


IMAG0494 by dv1033, on Flickr

Some mixed use

IMAG0499 by dv1033, on Flickr

New sidewalks

IMAG0500 by dv1033, on Flickr


IMAG0501 by dv1033, on Flickr

Phase 2 would be at the far end on the left

IMAG0502 by dv1033, on Flickr

Children Assessment Center (CAC) is where sexually abused children and their families go for haven and help is undergoing an expansion. It will consist of a parking garage (well underway) and about double the space.

Construction site rendering

IMAG0495 by dv1033, on Flickr


IMAG0496 by dv1033, on Flickr


IMAG0498 by dv1033, on Flickr


IMAG0504 by dv1033, on Flickr

Now in Montrose at my old apartment complex at 1301 Richmond near Montrose Blvd that was demolished and will be replace soon

IMAG0505 by dv1033, on Flickr


IMAG0506 by dv1033, on Flickr

Another old apartment complex demoed along Richmond... too bad rail won't be serving the apartments sprouting alongside the planned route.

IMAG0510 by dv1033, on Flickr


IMAG0511 by dv1033, on Flickr

Some new townhomes going up near these apartments

IMAG0508 by dv1033, on Flickr


IMAG0507 by dv1033, on Flickr

[N90]

Looks like this is happening after all: http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w...arcBinzOne.jpg

[AviationGuy]

I love the design of these new condos.




IMAG0507 by dv1033 on Flikr

[Rail Claimore]

Originally Posted by AviationGuy

I love the design of these new condos.




IMAG0507 by dv1033 on Flikr

Seconded: this is the kind of stuff I love about Houston.

[photoLith]

^
Thats the kind of crap I hate about Houston, destroying old Victorian or bungalow homes for that modernist bullshit.

[KevinFromTexas]

Yeah, I doubt that 100 years from now people will view those the same way they do Victorian homes. I have a feeling they'll be as popular as Brutalist or some forms of International style. I think it's the cold banal look that will make it old before it actually is old. Of course, I'm not just picking on Houston, Austin is afflicted with it, too.

[Illithid Dude]

Modernism gets no love. ): Though, I have to say, if I were to pick an architectual style I feel endemic of Houston, it would be post-modernism, not modernism.

[BrandonJXN]

Originally Posted by Illithid Dude

Modernism gets no love. ): Though, I have to say, if I were to pick an architectual style I feel endemic of Houston, it would be post-modernism, not modernism.

I agree. Whenever I think of post-modern architecture, I think of Houston.

[TexasPlaya]

FYI, those townhomes didn't replace some old bungalow(s).

Personally, I love Montrose because it has so many different types of architectures and forms.

[N90]

Originally Posted by TexasPlaya

FYI, those townhomes didn't replace some old bungalow(s).

What did they replace?

I hope nothing, I like infill of vacant lots rather than seeing something go.

[N90]

4 new multifamily properties across Houston area:

http://www.bisnow.com/testzz/writer/...stone-3800.jpg
One:

the 203-unit Broadstone 3800, Midtown

Two:

370-unit Broadstone Greenhouse, Katy

Three:

380-unit Alexan Creekside Pines, The Woodlands

Four:

and 354-unit Alexan Enclave, Energy Corridor

Explanation:

ARA VP Adam Allen recently closed four equity deals for multifamily construction here, and three were in the 'burbs. He says our fundamentals are coaxing cash from institutional and private investors. Strong sponsors help—these projects are with Alliance Residential and Trammell Crow Residential.

Investors find the latter two submarkets particularly compelling, viewing them almost as infill sites. Adam has two more equity deals closing here (and one in Austin) this quarter.

But Midtown is the hot spot for young pros, and this project is being built in the path of growth (the southern edge). Lots of streetscape improvements are under way (including $8M on West Alabama), and the submarket's rent growth is strong. Plus, deals are trading above replacement, making development lucrative. Adam tells us this investor was new to development, a trend that will continue as traditional equity players are either gone or smaller than last cycle

CRE's darling multifamily will continue to dominate in 2013, says JLL's new Texas multifamily managing director Jeff Price. Why? First, Jeff says, it's the most popular investment vehicle for many investors. Second: the reliable and attractive debt with Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and life companies. Third: the fair amount of new construction still hasn't met demand. Fourth: transaction volume—in virtually every city from '05 to '07—was huge. Assuming seven-year holds, '12 through '14 will be big transaction years. Finally, Texas markets are experiencing solid growth. Even with a lot of competition, there are still outstanding investment opportunities.

Source: http://www.bisnow.com/commercial-rea...f-financing-2/

[TexasPlaya]

Originally Posted by N90

What did they replace?

I hope nothing, I like infill of vacant lots rather than seeing something go.

I don't have all 3 of the houses but here's one of them from my thread of the area around my old apartment complex:



So 9 townhomes will replace this house and 2 other....