I also think it's much more likely that the developer simply does not need a 750' tower here. It's not that they are not continuing to be quite bullish on the rental apartment market - this tower will be over 700 units! That's a huge apartment tower, quite (appropriately) dense. The PD allotments are just that - allotments, and this one allowed some flexibility as to use. 750' may very well have come in handy for a ~50-55 story office tower on the E parcel, but it's just not necessary for a 700 unit apartment tower. I'm actually still slightly perplexed by the decision to not move next with the south tower as a condo/hotel tower, and then wrap-up with East (likely next cycle) as office.......that would have made the most sense - not that the scheme they are working toward won't also work. The condo market is going to surprise many over the next few years - to the upside. It's got good room to run. Hotels might be a little more iffy - although this year downtown is a down year (has a lot to do with the convention schedule), my expectation is that the hotel market will be back and perform better the next couple. Meanwhile, apartment demand is holding up decently for the most part - it's just that supply is growing more quickly, and will likely continue to........plus, I think there will be an incremental shift in market share as far as demand (and then new supply) toward ownership and away from rentership (don't believe the hype about the millennial generation staying permanent renters - or their ownership rate staying relatively flat - that's largely nonsense.....they will not stay in their 20s and early 30s forever, they'll get married, have kids, etc....many will move to the suburbs of course and get the single-family market kicked into a higher gear......which in turn will increase empty nester moves to city condos, etc).....
Anyway, OT, back to Wolf Point - I think the design of WPE is exceptionally nice - much like WPW. This is by far most important. Frankly, I would be pleased as punch if we were to get an 850' tower at WPS that was of similar caliber in design as the first two........
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It's simple, really - try not to design or build trash.
Last edited by SamInTheLoop; Oct 7, 2016 at 5:45 PM.
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