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Originally Posted by Houston Chronicle

Manhattan architecture influences condo developer

For his newest condo project, Randall Davis wants to bring a slice of the Big Apple to Houston.

Davis is proposing to build a 34-story residential tower in the Galleria area that would incorporate similar design elements from Manhattan's poshest towers.

The site of the tower, which will be called Arabella, is on San Felipe at Westcreek, just north of the coming River Oaks District mixed-use project.

Davis is asking between $800,000 and $4 million for the building's 109 units.

Six of the units will have their own swimming pools, and many will have private elevator entries. Penthouses also have 12-foot ceilings and heated floors in the master bathrooms.

The building has been designed so that some of the units will extend beyond the glass facade.

The tower would be developed in partnership with Roberto Contreras. The two have joined on other projects and have used a federal program where international investors can attain U.S. visas to help finance their real estate deals. Davis said they plan to use the program for just a small component of Arabella's financing. A Chinese real estate investment firm is also providing capital for the project.

Davis said he hopes to pre-sell at least 30 units before breaking ground.