HOUSTON | Development Thread II - Page 441

toxteth o'grady · #**8801** Posted **Apr 29, 2015, 2:00 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Urbannizer

Exclusive: Two Galleria-area condo towers under construction almost fully leased

That'll show all the doubters!

Get the Hanover out of the ground!

toxteth o'grady · #**8802** Posted **Apr 29, 2015, 2:03 AM**

With oil still close to $57 for WTI and $65 Brent, there appears to be some stability in the market. So the developers can exhale and the lenders can lend again.

And the Astros are in first place, for the moment.

Shasta · #**8803** Posted **Apr 29, 2015, 2:08 AM**

Lazy journalism.

The Astoria and the Belfiore are both for-sale condo buildings. Nobody is leasing anything. They are BUYING units.

Secondly, the Hanover River Oaks isn't likely to happen. It isn't 100% that they won't go forward, but the demolition of the property is being done by the landowner to reduce taxes and insurance liabilities for having vacant properties on his land. Construction is NOT moving forward in the immediate future.

The worst part about that is the Kirby Collection two-block project is just a stone's thrown away and has been cleared for months but there's no sign of development. Would be horrible to have all of this vacant land in the heart of Upper Kirby.

Urbannizer · #**8804** Posted **Apr 29, 2015, 4:49 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shasta

Lazy journalism.

The Astoria and the Belfiore are both for-sale condo buildings. Nobody is leasing anything. They are BUYING units.

Secondly, the Hanover River Oaks isn't likely to happen. It isn't 100% that they won't go forward, but the demolition of the property is being done by the landowner to reduce taxes and insurance liabilities for having vacant properties on his land. Construction is NOT moving forward in the immediate future.

The worst part about that is the Kirby Collection two-block project is just a stone's thrown away and has been cleared for months but there's no sign of development. Would be horrible to have all of this vacant land in the heart of Upper Kirby.

Hanover River Oaks is still being planned. Hanover is waiting until August to purchase the site.

Kirby Collection is suppose to break ground in May.

Shasta · #**8805** Posted **Apr 30, 2015, 3:40 AM**

Keeping my fingers crossed on Kirby Collection. That's a great project and I'd hate to have the two blocks look like how they do for much longer.

toxteth o'grady · #**8806** Posted **Apr 30, 2015, 7:54 PM**

Houston was 2nd in absorption for Q1 2015, but that number may have been distorted by Exxon Mobil. Per BisNow:

"Blame stunted oil prices or the tsunami of deliveries: Houston office rent growth fell out of the top 10 in North America, according to new data by Colliers. But there's good news: our leasing activity is still among the best on the continent.

Houston was fifth on the continent for CBD office rent growth in Q4, with more than 10% year-over-year increases. That’s dropped considerably; Colliers recorded only 1% growth in Q1 ’15. San Francisco held onto the No. 1 slot, growing rates 14% from Q1 ’14 to Q1 ’15. On the other hand, Houston’s absorption is still nearly the best in North America. Last quarter, we soaked up 1.3M SF of office space, only slightly second to Dallas. That’s not much of a drop from 2014, when we absorbed 6.8M SF, or about 1.7M SF on average each quarter.

One huge difference from last year is how that absorption is broken down—last quarter, Houston had the fourth-highest CBD absorption in North America. This quarter, all 1.3M SF of positive net absorption came from the suburbs, and most of it's from Exxon. The Bayou City held onto the top slots in new supply and space under construction again—no surprise, since we’re still working through our record pipeline. In Q1, we delivered 3.5M SF of office space, well above the second-closest city (NYC Midtown, 2.3M SF). Amid that, our overall vacancy rose to 12.6%. We still have 14.5M SF underway, still nearly double the runner up (Seattle, 8.3M SF)..."

skys the limit · #**8807** Posted **Apr 30, 2015, 9:44 PM**

The Wall Street Journal reports the "new normal" of lower oil prices beginning to show its effects in Houston:

Office Markets in Tech-Heavy Cities Lead 2015 Pack
Signs of a slowdown in areas tied to energy production

Eliot Brown, Wall Street Journal Real Estate, April 1, 2015

The U.S. office market continued its slow-and-steady recovery in the first quarter, with technology-heavy markets leading an overall modest growth of rents and occupancies.

....

While the tech-heavy markets keep growing, there are signs of a slowdown in markets heavily dependent on oil. Houston, home to nearly one-sixth of the office space under construction in the U.S., has seen a jump in sublease space as energy employers shed offices.

At the end of the first quarter, 6.3 million square feet of sublease space was available, up from 4.8 million at the end of 2014, according to real-estate brokerage Savills Studley. These listings “were dominated by large blocks of space posted by those directly affected from the new normal of oil prices,” the company said in a report.

Full article: http://www.wsj.com/articles/office-m...ack-1427860983

Urbannizer · #**8808** Posted **May 1, 2015, 4:41 PM**

Updates

Dolce Midtown: By NotsuohPhoto

Block 334: By NotsuohPhoto

Mid-Main by larrydierker

Elan Heights: By merpityderpity

Hardy Yards: By Triton

toxteth o'grady · #**8809** Posted **May 2, 2015, 4:21 AM**

People really have no idea how transformative the rail has been. Three of the developments above are near train stations.

rdavis4559 · #**8810** Posted **May 2, 2015, 2:45 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by toxteth o'grady

People really have no idea how transformative the rail has been. Three of the developments above are near train stations.

As it so happens, UT Health is looking for participants for a transit study with the following requirements:

* Live within 3 miles of one of the new METRO light rail lines
* Be 18 years of age or older
* Not currently reside with someone who is already participating in the TRAIN Study

https://sph.uth.edu/research/centers...8-4523d76474d0

Michi · #**8811** Posted **May 3, 2015, 9:35 PM**

May 2, 2015

EADO Station

Vinyl siding?

Dallas Streetscape Project & Hotel Allessandra

toxteth o'grady · #**8812** Posted **May 4, 2015, 8:47 PM**

Houston's housing market is still regarded as strong by the Wall Street Journal, though the reasons for the continued uptick in building are being debated...

Houston Housing Market Holds Up

Urbannizer · #**8813** Posted **May 5, 2015, 5:42 PM**

Innovation Place: Mixed-use project possibly proposed for the corner of Main and Holcombe, where the Bank of America building sits in the Texas Medical Center. Anyone know more about this project?

toxteth o'grady · #**8814** Posted **May 5, 2015, 6:53 PM**

I'm feeling all turned around, but it looks like the old Shamrock parcel where Texas A&M has its medical facility.

I remember that bank building going up in 1963, so it will be a shame to see it go.

TexasPlaya · #**8815** Posted **May 5, 2015, 8:32 PM**

Which hospital would be expanding there? I could definitely see a few more hotels needed, but it seems like all the major hospitals are already expanding.

Soignies Forest · #**8816** Posted **May 6, 2015, 1:06 AM**

I worked at the Med center for over 20 years. There used to be an Art Deco Prudential building which later UT purchased. In addition there was a "Nations Bank" nearby. I haven't spent much time there since my wife became ill. Which of these sites is being used for this project? It appears to be the old Prudential site.

Urbannizer · #**8817** Posted **May 6, 2015, 2:44 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Soignies Forest

I worked at the Med center for over 20 years. There used to be an Art Deco Prudential building which later UT purchased. In addition there was a "Nations Bank" nearby. I haven't spent much time there since my wife became ill. Which of these sites is being used for this project? It appears to be the old Prudential site.

This is the site highlighted in red. The building's former name was "Fannin Bank Building".

Soignies Forest · #**8818** Posted **May 6, 2015, 3:04 AM**

I was off by one block. The old Prudential building was on Fannin and Holcombe.
Many years ago the Bank of America was the Nations Bank building. But then the tall Chase building downtown was called the Texas Commerce Tower and on and on. I'm glad the city hasn't changed it's name.

Thank you for the information Urbannizer. Keep up the good work.

JManc · #**8819** Posted **May 6, 2015, 2:55 PM**

Before it was called Nations Bank, it was NCNB. I kinda like the Med Center BoA building. Hate to see that one go.

toxteth o'grady · #**8820** Posted **May 6, 2015, 3:56 PM**

Let's wait and see if the money's there and who the tenants would be.

There have been a couple of positive reports saying both Kirby Grove and the Hines building on San Felipe are leasing up despite the downturn. Maybe the pattern is repeating in other parts of town.

And oil prices have been on a tear the past week. Nothing about the fundamentals explains it, but I'm certain some of the businesses that suffered losses in Q1 may be in the black again. We'll see how long it lasts.