258 replies to this topic

[colin]

City picks finalists for W. Side project

Failing a look at the respective plans, I vote for the mixed-use!

[colin]

Downtown hotel to get classy new life

Finally, the poor Santa Rita gets a hint of life.
This was a Clarion up until its closing about two years ago. I've always hoped that it would be renovated and put back on as a hotel. Downtown needs more hotels at this point.
I don't know that San Diego is a good example. I'd think more like Downtown Albuquerque and what they did with the Hotel Blue, although I would hope that it would be nicer than that.

[colin]

Four plans detailed for Downtown hotel

All four potential developers have finally released their full proposals.
I wish they could all win!
The Faulkner/Hyatt looks really interesting, but I don't think it'll make it (a little too weird for the chain hotel market).
The Norville/Marriott would most likely put the hotel in two different places in order to use his land. Kind of lame.

[tombarnes]

The Marriott plan seems to be the dullest of the lot.  I don't mind the glassy Hilton too much, but the Sheraton also suffers from a defecit of creativity.  As for the Faulkner/Hyatt plan, it looks a bit like packing crates stacked haphazardly atop one another.  I suppose one could say it had interest...  I hope that the city planners in Tucson will be bold enough to suggest revisions.  Is this at all likely, or is this what Tucson will be given in the end?  There's possibility there, I just don't see the bold creativity I had hoped for.

Edited by tombarnes, 09 September 2007 - 11:50 AM.

[colin]

I don't know if it was on this thread or not, but I had gone off on this fairly recently. Ernesto always seems to be able to be parse through the BS and tap the vane of the community. That's why he's got the front page editorial spot though as well as various other media gigs in town.

Ernesto Portillo Jr.: Portland trumpeted; no fanfare for Tucson

[colin]

City refuses $100,000-plus grant for security cameras Downtown

I posted something about this a long time ago, but I guess it just recently came up in Council.
The proposal would have set up cameras a la Big Brother to monitor illegal activity on Downtown streets. There is already quite a bit of implementation of this in the UK and it's been very effective for cutting down, if not outright preventing, crime.

I think it's a great idea, but I can understand why the city would be hesitant. American society is so full of conspiracy theorists and borderline paranoid schizophrenics that this is just asking for a lawsuit. I'd like to see an American city do this, but Tucson certainly isn't proactive enough to be the pioneer.

[colin]

City gives developer 30-day deadline

I was really excited about this project, but its death has been inevitable since the condo market started crashing almost a year ago. This was one of the more promising projects Downtown as it was to offer a large retail space and several well-designed condos all in a LEED-certified building.
Peggy Noonan is also actually a really nice lady, and I feel bad for her that she has to deal with press like this and flack from the City. But it's better than sitting on a dirt lot for another few years, since the parking lot has been pretty ripped up by excavations.

[colin]

This has been coming for a long time, but it's quite a blow to the residential side of Rio Nuevo.
City breaks deal with Downtown condo developer

The question now is: what will happen to the property? My prediction is that it will be redeveloped as a mixed-use site, but not with the height or density that was seen in this proposal.

[colin]

Two firms might link up on Rio Nuevo work

This is in reference to an article I posted in this thread a while ago ("W. Side project...").
I don't know about this cooperative effort.
The Portland people need to get moving on MLK: what an f'in eyesore! Bad enough that it's butt-ugly, but now it's all gated off and gutted.

[colin]

There have been a few minor things in Tucson's news regarding development over the past few months, but nothing big enough to get excited about.
This is a new project though:
Downtown church's Sunday school to become condos

And since the Star are now jerks and make you log in sometimes:

Quote

"It's a great old building and we want to maintain the '50s feel," said Quinlan, who plans to add a third story to the education wing and transform it into about 40 lofts, ranging in price from $200,000 to $800,000.

The building has been vacant for some time, but demo is actually happening! My bus goes by there every day and, like it shows in the pictures, the windows are gone and a fence has been erected, but a slew of old desks and other materials from inside also lay on the dirt outside.
I'm surprised that developers are still embarking on project like this with the way the market is. Can they really still sell a place like this for over $200k when there are larger houses not far away going for the same?

The Star is also still optimistic about The Post Lofts and 44 E Broadway projects, listing them in the "pre-construction" phases. 44 E Broadway has been in "pre-construction" for over two years.

[colin]

Quite a bit going on in the news about Downtown recently.
The streetcar tracks down Congress in front of the Hotel Congress are down (although there's no concrete) and the Fourth Avenue underpass is cleared for now.
The old MLK apartments, which were public housing but are being redeveloped into private apartments and condos, are actually seeing some demo and other work.
I'll take pics of this stuff when I get a chance.

There was also some drama with the Casablanca restaurant, which served over-priced Mediterranean in an old mansion at Franklin and Stone, as it was recently locked up by the owner for failure to pay taxes, as a condition of the lease (they had free rent). The owner blames Downtown construction for the "90% drop in business," but both the Tucson Weekly and Daily Star gave the place negative reviews soon after opening, and most people I work with Downtown had gone and had issues with it. Personally, I didn't think that it would survive just because of the prices (Downtown does not need another high-end restaurant at this point) and the service level. They also seemed to never really get their sh*t together. I went in once and asked if they did happy hour and the reply was that they were planning on it, although it never really happened.
The sad part of the story is that the tiny Latin-Up Cafe, owned by former Irene's owners, in the same building was also locked up as a result, preventing the owners from not only operating but also retrieving several thousand dollars in equipment. That place has not re-opened either, which is a shame because it sounded good and I never got the chance to try it.
Also an article in last week's Tucson Weekly regarding plans to remodel the Downtown train depot's lobby. Central Bistro, the failed experiment inside the depot, could not survive even with the free rent and closed fairly recently (although the sign is still up), and now Hotel Congress plans to establish a market at the site.

[colin]

There has been a lot of supposed activity regarding the Post Lofts construction Downtown. The city council gave an ultimatum: start building or you lose the property. It's good to see that sort of action, and it seems to have worked as the developer is now supposedly starting construction. Briefly, it was going to have hotel rooms, which the developer insisted were necessary to make the project economically viable, but he has since changed his mind and it's back to solely condos.
Info about the project is available on their site: http://www.thepostlofts.com/, and there have been numerous articles in the Arizona Daily Star over the past couple of months.

I've been spending some of my afternoon at Ronstadt Transit Center Downtown waiting for the bus and have been watching the demo of the former MLK Apartments (public housing), which are being turned into private apartments. There always seem to be changes when I see it, but I never actually see any activity. Maybe they knock off at 4. I can't find any official sites on the project from the developer and have never seen any renderings. Hopefully they'll at least repaint it.

The new county building on Stone at Franklin (a block which used to include the ill-fated Coconuts night club) has begun construction. It was, for many moons, held up by archaeological excavation, as the original plot was built over a 19th-century cemetery, and the bodies were apparently never moved before the original buildings were constructed. I'll start posting pics when there's something to actually look at.

[Butta]

"Builder seeks $15M in claim vs. city"
Article Here and also Here

Edited by Butta, 29 March 2008 - 06:37 PM.

[colin]

Got a link with renderings for the MLK Apartments revamp. It's called One North Fifth, in relation to its address.
The units will be studio and one bedrooms and will range from, or so I've heard, $650 - 750 per month.
http://onenorthfifth.com/

Nothing terribly exciting, but at least it's actually happening.

[Butta]

colin, on Apr 2 2008, 06:34 AM, said:

Got a link with renderings for the MLK Apartments revamp. It's called One North Fifth, in relation to its address.
The units will be studio and one bedrooms and will range from, or so I've heard, $650 - 750 per month.
http://onenorthfifth.com/

Nothing terribly exciting, but at least it's actually happening.

I don't know about anybody else, but this project doesn't excite me enough to sell my house and move downtown.  Hopefully they will be better projects in the horizon, I think 44 Broadway and The Post would entice more people, if they ever get built.

[Butta]

Downtown czar enlisting private sector to develop 4 gov't sites

Read Full Article Here

[Butta]

Price tag  for a new  Downtown arena soars
Projected $196 million tab may lead city to ax project

Full Article Here

Edited by Butta, 05 April 2008 - 03:33 PM.

[Butta]

Outlooks for lofts are mixed


Full Article Here

Edited by Butta, 06 April 2008 - 11:05 AM.

[colin]

44 E Broadway?
There was an article a few days ago that stated the property has gone into foreclosure. The office had sat for years, unused, and appeared to be unoccupied. One of several Downtown residential developments that tanked.
Here it is: link, although I read a different article.

This is in this current issue of the Weekly:
Missing Links
The article details one business owner's interaction with ADOT and the City's Downtown Links program. That program was responsible for the reconstructed Fourth Avenue underpass (which finally reopened about a month ago) and the realignment of both Sixth and Stone Avenues south of Downtown to two-way streets.

Also this: Link
Maynard's took the empty void of the failed Central Bistro inside of the refurbished train depot. I don't think that many people had faith in it, except that it was owned by the Hotel Congress guy, which gave it more hope. What's worked for the market is word of mouth and a weekly event that started less than a year: Meet Me at Maynard's. This is a running (or walking) event that takes place every Monday evening. It's been very successful. I know a few people who attend it regularly. Now that the underpass is back open, you should see more people not only at this event, but using the underpass to get over to Fourth Ave.

I also wanted to point out a couple of my Downtown observations.
If you haven't been to On a Roll yet, you should go for their happy hour. M-F, 4-6. Selected rolls are half price, draft beer is $3.50. Saturday reverse happy hour sees selected $1 nigiri and $2.50 drafts. Seriously, the best happy hour in town right now, because the sushi is actually really damn good. I'm not associated with the place, I'm just a big fan, and I'm really happy that they've managed to stay open.
Of the few dance clubs that I've set foot in, Asylum was the only club that I actually liked. It went under over a year ago, but their recently and seemingly randomly sprang up a new club there. The club was not only busy, but actually had a huge line down the street waiting to get in. Lots of pretty young people looking their best, so this is not Asylum (I used to go in there in flip-flops and jeans). I don't recall the name of the club, and that was a few weeks ago, but I do wish them the best. Downtown, and especially that part of Congress, need to liven things up.