33 replies to this topic

[FortWorthology]

Museum Place is a large multiblock mixed-use urban development now underway in the Cultural District just outside downtown.  The development grows from the big University/Camp Bowie/West 7th/Bailey intersection and is right next to the Modern Art Museum and the Kimbell Art Museum.  It will cover 11 acres.

The project will feature 173,000 square feet of ground-level retail space, 130,000 square feet of Class A office space, a hotel (likely an Aloft, judging by the renderings), 40 purchasable condos, and 500 rental apartments.  In addition, it will feature a new Post Office designed by Venturi, Scott Brown, and Associates.

Renderings:







The buildings containing office space:



The Post Office:



Work underway:

[krazeeboi]

Pretty cool development. It would be nice to see a fountain in the middle of that traffic circle.

[FortWorthology]

krazeeboi, on Jul 31 2007, 09:40 PM, said:

Pretty cool development. It would be nice to see a fountain in the middle of that traffic circle.

That's actually a conventional intersection, not a traffic circle.  Years back, the city had a deal with a private donor to convert it to a roundabout, but the donor had to cancel.  So, the city redid the traffic lights and did the circular brick paving, but that was as far as it went.

If I recall, the plan did feature a fountain in the middle originally.  One of these days it may well actually get turned to a roundabout.

[RestedTraveler]

Here's an opportunity for one of those public-private partnerships that Fort Worth is famous for... to convert that intersection into a roundabout with a huge fountain park in the middle...or at least a very large sculpture/edifice dedicated to someone/something...Will Rogers, for example.  I agree with Krazee - that space is just begging for a fountain though.

[FortWorthology]

Drilling is underway for the first building in the development.  Other lots in the development are being cleared now as well.

[FortWorthology]

Here's a better view of the new Post Office going up as part of the development.  It was designed by Venturi, Scott-Brown, and Associates:



Those poles in the plaza have an interesting story.  The poles were, a long time ago, the supports for an advertising billboard. The billboard was there until 2000, when the downtown tornado came through. The billboard was blown away, and the poles were bent by the tornado. So, the poles are a very visible reminder of the power of nature. They are being incorporated into the new plaza, and that side of the post office will feature a mural of a huge thunderstorm crossing the Texas prairie along with the Post Office “Neither snow nor rain…” motto.

[krazeeboi]

Interesting concept there with the poles. Who would have ever thought about making it a work of art and then connecting it with the USPS motto?

[richyb83]

What a great idea and one scary tornado!

[FortWorthology]

It has been confirmed - the Museum Place hotel is an Aloft.  We have gotten official confirmation on this, after months of rumors indicating that direction.  (So if you've been reading Fort Worthology, you're ahead of the game.    )

Meanwhile, the first building is underway:



Several other blocks are being demolished now as well.  Here's one - this Texaco will be replaced by a glassy Flatiron-style office building with ground-floor retail.  The island had already been demolished when I took this photo:



These first two buildings are shown in this rendering:



Here is the site plan, for the curious:

Edited by FortWorthology, 19 September 2007 - 04:59 PM.

[FortWorthology]

The Texaco is gone - that didn't take long.  The Flatiron building will rise on this site.  The historic building behind it will *not* be torn down - it will instead be integrated into the development, with its parking lot being converted to a new road with on-street parking.



The first building is on its way.



Finally, fencing is at last up on the site of the new Post Office.



Some of the names that have been going around as to possible Museum Place retailers include:

Apple
Anthropologie
Design Within Reach
J. Crew
Z Gallerie
La Duni
La Duni Coffee
Alo by La Duni

...and others.  None of this is confirmed yet, and the Museum Place people aren't talking.

Edited by FortWorthology, 20 September 2007 - 06:24 AM.

[FortWorthology]

I created a little map, showing the location of the various 7th Street/Cultural District projects and how they relate to each other:



Orange - Museum Place
Blue - West 7th
Red - Redeveloped historic Montgomery Ward building (Montgomery Plaza)
Yellow - So7

[FortWorthology]

I've put together a block-by-block walkthrough of the project - I'm glad to see all the plazas, and the "raised intersections with special paving" look interesting.

Edited by FortWorthology, 27 September 2007 - 08:56 AM.

[crossroad]

I SERIOUSLY think that a light rail line should be planned between Downtown FT Worth and Cultural/Museum District.  Without rail, the city will always sprawl and will not get dense and pedestrian friendly as it should be.  And time is running out!

[FortWorthology]

crossroad, on Sep 27 2007, 11:05 AM, said:

I SERIOUSLY think that a light rail line should be planned between Downtown FT Worth and Cultural/Museum District.  Without rail, the city will always sprawl and will not get dense and pedestrian friendly as it should be.  And time is running out!

It is in the works.  There's not a lot of information out there, but there are plans to run a line from downtown down 7th Street to the Cultural District.  The city's about to redo the 7th Street bridge over the Trinity and have already announced that they will be putting in infrastructure for a light rail line when they do.

I've heard many different things about how soon/how sure it is, but it's in the works.  Several of us, yours truly included, are working on a citizen's group to push it forward.

[FortWorthology]

As we watch the first two buildings now getting underway at the big Six Points intersection...



...another part of Museum Place that I have neglected to cover is already going vertical.



According to the documents I have, this is a live/work complex, set up for ground-floor retail with attached apartments above in classic New Urbanist live/work style.  A great addition to this neighborhood.  Also note the new Ken Schaumburg-designed Village Homes townhome development already complete on the right.  Museum Place is already attracting more density.

[krazeeboi]

It's always exciting to see new neighborhoods carved out from scratch, built in a 100% urban manner.

[FortWorthology]

Cranes at night for the office/residential/retail building at the big intersection (I have also seen on Museum Place's site plans that this building has a space marked "cinema").



Meanwhile, the first building is topping out.

[FortWorthology]

Rolling forward...





Now closed, the Wreck Room awaits its date with the demolition crews as Museum Place moves ahead with its construction.



The site where the Texaco used to be at the big intersection has been cleared for the construction of a glassy Flatiron-style office building with ground floor retail.











With its cranes in place, the office/residential/retail building at the big intersection between 7th & Bailey has started rising from its site. With its location, this will be a very prominent building, not only at the big intersection but from farther down 7th towards downtown. It should have a commanding spot in the streetscape.



Work has now gotten underway on the new Post Office at the big intersection between Bailey and University. The tornado-bent poles that will form the centerpiece of the Post Office’s plaza have been temporarily removed so as not to interfere with construction crews.



The nearby existing Post Office will be demolished for another large mixed-use building.





The first Museum Place building, on the north side of 7th at Arch Adams, topped out recently, and crews are adding what appear to be steel beams to the building now. Having not seen a rendering of this building, it will be interesting to see its finished appearance.



The building on Camp Bowie that formerly house Auto Restyling Center, Inc. and Pro Cuts looks to be next in line for demolition, as Midwest Wrecking has already parked a trailer on the site.  It will be demolished for another mixed-use residential/retail structure.  This is on the west end of the development - virtually everything between here and the big intersection is being demolished for Museum Place.



The cranes watch over the Wreck Room and 7th Street Barber Shop, all of which will be demolished for the development.



Domain and Backwoods will also be demolished (as will the office building to the west) and replaced with new mixed-use residential/retail structures and an Aloft hotel. Backwoods looks to be moving to the Shops & Lofts at So7, down 7th to the east.





Finally, the historic retail structure near the big intersection between Camp Bowie and 7th (home of the Great Outdoors sandwich shop) is virtually the only building in the development site that will not be demolished. It will, however, be integrated into the development - the building will not be changed, but its parking lot (seen above) will be converted into an extension of Barden Street, and will feature on-street parking.

[FortWorthology]

Here's a nifty update.  Deep in the heart of Museum Place is this awful 7-11 behind a parking lot:



I'd been thinking that, since this was getting demolished, that 7-11 was just going to leave (the 7-11 is being demolished for a large mixed-use building).

Turns out, 7-11 is moving into Museum Place.

So it turns out that this building...



...is where the 7-11 is moving to.  It will have condos above.  The 7-11 is going to be reworked into a "corner store" type of place, and guess what - I've been able to get ahold of a couple of renderings of the finished product.  I believe some small details have changed since these renderings, but this should give a pretty good idea of what this little building will look like.  I think they've done a fantastic job of integrating the 7-11:

[krazeeboi]

^Wow, I really like that. Adding residential above was a nice touch as well.