Quote:
Originally Posted by crzyabe
Something to remember with all the talk about taller buildings: Tall buildings require bigger foundations and more expensive support structures. That increases the expense of the project and usually makes projects impossible to finance.
A developer can seek funding for a 30 story building at a cost of $125 Million with a projected ROI of 20 years. Or he/she can reduce the height to 5 stories, not require a steel base or large foundation, reduce the cost to $15 million and have a projected ROI in 5 years. Easier to get funding for the second option.
That is why most of the buildings are staying 6 floors or less - my assumption anyway.
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This is exactly it.
A separate issue, which comes down to personal taste, is whether you'd prefer density over height. I'd personally prefer a downtown filled with lower buildings but no surface parking over a downtown with a few tall buildings and tons of surface parking, which is what we would have with fewer (but taller) infill projects.