UP|Asheville

"The Block" revitalization back on the table

thecowgoesmoo — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 21:16:10 +0000

They way they're going we'll be able to witness the new building about the same time as the 26 connector is finished.

View information on projects and add your own in our new Project Database: [Link]

"The Block" revitalization back on the table

rooster8 — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 19:27:18 +0000

We'll see how it goes. I'd feel better if the church had some concrete plans for their property. I still wish rehabilitation was/is possible (are those buildings still standing?).

View information on projects and add your own in our new Project Database: [Link]

"The Block" revitalization back on the table

orulz — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 17:11:08 +0000

The Citizen-Times has a new article on the Eagle-Market Renaissance project. The architects also have a presentation with some new renderings.

The current incarnation seems to involve one additional facadectomy, and two complete demolitions of small, less-significant buildings in comparison with the 2008 incarnation above. I'm not upset because the buildings that are being demolished are insignificant 1-story structures, and the buildings having their facades removed are nothing too nice either. It looks like the 3-story Del Cardo building will be preserved intact, and a small part of the new building will apparently be cantilevered partially over it from the 4th floor up. The 2-story building at the NW corner of the lot (next to the alley) is also kept intact.

I'm more than a bit skeptical that this can get off the ground given the economic realities of today and the fact that this project has already been stuck for well over a decade.

View information on projects and add your own in our new Project Database: [Link]

Asheville Mall

StevenRocks — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 02:54:38 +0000

Sears remodeled substantially all of its stores in the mid-'90s, replacing the catalog departments with more room for apparel.

View information on projects and add your own in our new Project Database: [Link]

Asheville Mall

rooster8 — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 15:01:15 +0000

While doing a little Google News Archive research I learned that Sears was originally just the first floor with the second being office and warehousing. This article from 1993 seems to indicate that the main impetus was the announcement of Montgomery Ward.

Sears to open major clothing display

Might be old news for some of you, but it's new info for me.

View information on projects and add your own in our new Project Database: [Link]

Zona Lofts, Zona Village, Chrysler Building

thecowgoesmoo — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 22:44:14 +0000

thecowgoesmoo, on 30 January 2010 - 01:19 PM, said:

It looks like Altura - who was working on Zona - is being circled by the vultures.
http://www.citizen-t...EWS01/301300033

http://www.citizen-times.com/article/20100212/NEWS01/100212038

WOODFIN — The company developing the upscale Altura community here has filed for Chapter 11bankruptcy, saying it has $40.6 million in debts.

The filing Monday allows Altura Communities LLC to stay in business while it reorganizes. It stops for now completion of the foreclosure sale of about 90 acres of its property that was the subject of an auction that began on the steps of the county courthouse Jan. 29, an official with related company Altura Global LLC said.

Several creditors have filed legal actions seeking collection of Altura Communities debt.

Altura Global CEO Frank Peterson said the company is “very confident” that it will get funding to continue development of the community, located about half a mile north of the Metropolitan Sewerage District treatment plant.

“Our funding will be in place in the next few weeks and we will begin to work through issues. We look forward to re-energizing the projects and creating a lot of new jobs for the local economy,” Peterson said.

Monday’s filing says Altura Communities had $6.5 million in income in 2007 and $3.7 million in 2008 and only $13,000 in assets. County tax records say Altura owns considerable acreage in the Altura development, which is planned to include about 200 acres.

View information on projects and add your own in our new Project Database: [Link]

Asheville Mall

Lootles — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 00:06:21 +0000

arkula, on 01 February 2010 - 12:20 AM, said:

As to Innsbruck...this mall just seems to have gotten the shaft. It is apparently the oldest, but its lack of room to expand except upward and quick crushing by Asheville Mall makes it a miracle it lasted as long as it has. It looks like whatever renovations it has gotten were cheap at best...it still looks like 1965. It took a lot of people posting on my blog about it to get it straight what its anchors were. It was Mason's first, Sky City second and then it was subdivided into Brendle's and Office Depot. Brendle's closed with the chain then Big Lots came much later. Ingles was the other anchor...apparently built before 1970 and closing in 2005. Eckerd was in the mall, but where I'm unsure of. The area does have an obvious crime problem (I saw a store clerk at the replacement Ingles running down a shoplifter), and the actual mall portion has pretty much been relegated to small local businesses not dependent on regular shopping traffic. However, the lower level "strip" portion is largely occupied with some offices or something in the background. It could reasonably be converted to a two-level mall in that area if the need was there, and that portion of the mall is still successful otherwise.

I've worked down the street from Innsbruck since 1980 and can answer some of your questions. Brendle's was in the space currently occupied by Big Lots and Office Depot. It occupied that entire space for a very long time. I don't really remember if they downsized to half the space before closing or not, but I don't recall them and Office Depot being occupants at the same time, side by side. Ingles was (obviously by the outside decor) on the other side across the parking lot from where the new Ingles store is. That space is still vacant. Eckerds was in the space where Anna's Linens is now. The lower strip portion used to have two occupants, one a religious publishing company and there was an underground restaurant. When I moved here it was called The Rathskellar and then was The Windmill, and then the Windmill European Grill. I think it may have been a location of Franks Roman Pizza at some point, too. The restaurant closed a few years back when the mall underwent renovations. The restaurant was owned by the Shastri's, parents of Vijay Shastri - who has the Flying Frog downtown. Vijay worked there as chef as a teenager.

I'm trying to remember what was in the Dollar General Store location before it was DGS. I don't recall Sky City ever being at Innsbruck Mall - but maybe they were before 1980. Also, there was a cafeteria at the eastern end of the second floor of the mall where all the large windows are. It may have been a precursor of J&S. I do remember it had a similar name but which letters exactly, I cannot recall. It was there for a very long time before closing.

View information on projects and add your own in our new Project Database: [Link]

Aloft Hotel?

thecowgoesmoo — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 14:21:25 +0000

Alias, on 01 February 2010 - 03:18 PM, said:

What's the status of this project? According to aloft's website the hotel os supposed to open March 1, 2012.

http://www.starwoodh...propertyID=3373

They better get a move on, because unless something happens RSN there is no way they can beat that date. I wonder if they're having funding issues like everyone else?

Maybe they can dig up the parking lot and turn it into a mud pit like Zona Lofts.

View information on projects and add your own in our new Project Database: [Link]

Aloft Hotel?

Alias — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 21:18:37 +0000

What's the status of this project? According to aloft's website the hotel os supposed to open March 1, 2012.

http://www.starwoodh...propertyID=3373

View information on projects and add your own in our new Project Database: [Link]

Asheville Mall

arkula — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 05:20:06 +0000

Lootles, on 18 September 2009 - 06:23 PM, said:

Oh, man. Trying to remember that second story at the A-Mall is going to drive me nuts. I do believe there was one and, like Orulz said, that it connected to Ivey's which is the current Dillard's location. I've worked within a few blocks of both malls for nearly 30 years now and, though I'd rather be nibbled to death by ducks than go to either one, I have been around for many changes. Yes, Brendle's was the main tenant in Innsbruck Mall for many years. It took up the entire location that is now Big Lots and Office Depot. After Brendle's closed, they divided the space into two stores. There was not a Montgomery Ward there at all. There was a large cafeteria on the upper level on the northeast end. One of those places with initials for a name, like J&S, but not J&S, best I recall.

As for the A-Mall, I seem to remember escalators being in the hallway area that now goes down alongside Dillard's and to the Gallery South area. There was a Litchfield's restaurant in that area, too. They had great Rueben's, btw. The opening into the Ivey's store was in or adjacent to the kitchen/housewares department. Belk's was never a two-story store until their renovation several years back and the second floor section of the mall didn't connect to that store. The Asheville Mall offices were in the second floor and, it seems, there were a few stores up there. Maybe the cigar shop?

I found out quite a bit about Asheville Mall recently. What surprised me was that the back parking deck and old part of the mall were apparently built cheap and have had problems, so the owners have all done a nice job keeping that from being an obvious or dangerous problem. I did notice that the concrete on the back parking deck was quite shall I say old looking...I was a bit stunned about how old it looked considering that part was built in 1989, and the back entrance likewise looked way older than that as well. I also understand that the upper Dillard's was actually completely rebuilt as Montgomery Ward (not original to the mall). It is obvious that somehow they have taken a mall that I understand has been at times unpopular and extremely controversial into the ultimate victor taking down retail downtown, at Innsbruck (whatever it was originally called) and lastly Biltmore Square.

Maybe my memories were completely wrong on the "second level". Apparently the only "second level" was the old upper level dining area of J&S Cafeteria that later became B Dalton with Piccadilly underneath. That would make sense since I remember Piccadilly being on a "lower level". I also understood a second level was planned as well, but was fought hotly. One of those reasons was that apparently that whole entire wing of the mall would need to be rebuilt from scratch to support it. While Asheville Mall did what it had to survive, the reality is that they basically murdered Biltmore Square. While the city obviously did not want a third mall, it seems one mall took over completely on too small of land, but managed to pull it off very successfully. Nevertheless, I quite frankly do not like the sea of parking decks there. Perhaps rebuilding the older mall with the upslope part two levels and downslope part 3 levels might not be such a bad idea. However, I think it should match the original mall in design (skylights, high windows), add some water features and plants and give the mall a true log cabin, mountain feel. I would also demolish the entire 2000 addition to make room for a new three-level Dillard's to tack onto the 1989 addition. The double-Dillard's is odd.

As to Innsbruck...this mall just seems to have gotten the shaft. It is apparently the oldest, but its lack of room to expand except upward and quick crushing by Asheville Mall makes it a miracle it lasted as long as it has. It looks like whatever renovations it has gotten were cheap at best...it still looks like 1965. It took a lot of people posting on my blog about it to get it straight what its anchors were. It was Mason's first, Sky City second and then it was subdivided into Brendle's and Office Depot. Brendle's closed with the chain then Big Lots came much later. Ingles was the other anchor...apparently built before 1970 and closing in 2005. Eckerd was in the mall, but where I'm unsure of. The area does have an obvious crime problem (I saw a store clerk at the replacement Ingles running down a shoplifter), and the actual mall portion has pretty much been relegated to small local businesses not dependent on regular shopping traffic. However, the lower level "strip" portion is largely occupied with some offices or something in the background. It could reasonably be converted to a two-level mall in that area if the need was there, and that portion of the mall is still successful otherwise.

I actually blogged on how this mall could be redeveloped while still holding onto the enclosed mall. It is too bad in that time that instead of creating a ridiculous and monstrous redesign of Asheville Mall that JCPenney and another department store couldn't have just moved in and brought it back. There is an empty anchor pad up front that has never been filled that would have made a decent two-level JCPenney and the disconnected Sky City could have been demolished for a decent two-level department store. As of today, this would make a nice urban renewal project blended with the mall to make it fun. Asheville may have a glut of retail on Tunnel Road, but they do not have everything. I get so sick of how people just "give up" on the first generation malls. Sure some of them are just too bland to remain, but some just strike me as needing inspiration.

View information on projects and add your own in our new Project Database: [Link]

Zona Lofts, Zona Village, Chrysler Building

thecowgoesmoo — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 19:19:27 +0000

It looks like Altura - who was working on Zona - is being circled by the vultures.
http://www.citizen-times.com/article/20100130/NEWS01/301300033

View information on projects and add your own in our new Project Database: [Link]

Preserving local shops in downtown Asheville

Gazzeravl — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 04:31:53 +0000

The building has continued considerably since this photo. The fencing is down in the front; you can see inside now and it is looking very good. Asheville has been very careful to stop the foodchains at the border of downtown, with some notable exceptions, namely the Subway and Starbucks. UO may be the start of a trend, which is not necessarily a bad thing, if it gets people back walking in town instead of doing 99.965% of their shopping at Wal-mart. Mal-Wort is the standard to which all pricing, shopping, value, tradition, specials are judged. No matter what you are looking for in Asheville, some point in the conversation will be, "I got it at Wal-Mart," or "went to Wal-mart," or "they have it at Wal-Mart." So, I'd much rather see something like this bringing people downtown than a McDonald's or Mal-wort. (Personally, I haven't stepped foot in a Wal-Mart since 1995 and I only go to McDonald's to pee. Best place in all of America to take a piss. You always know where the toilets are; they are usually fairly clean; and there is usually good parking. NEVER, I repeat, NEVER eat anything there. Just use the toilets. Keep America Clean!

View information on projects and add your own in our new Project Database: [Link]

Preserving local shops in downtown Asheville

Gazzeravl — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 04:26:49 +0000

rooster8, on 09 December 2009 - 04:03 PM, said:

I'd consider this a positive sign:

Photo Courtesy Ashvegas

View information on projects and add your own in our new Project Database: [Link]

Preserving local shops in downtown Asheville

rooster8 — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 21:03:15 +0000

I'd consider this a positive sign:

Photo Courtesy Ashvegas

View information on projects and add your own in our new Project Database: [Link]

Preserving local shops in downtown Asheville

nyxmike — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 20:42:56 +0000

Does anyone know if Urban Outfitters is still considering opening a store in that spot? Asheville is not listed as "coming soon" on their website and last I heard, they were planning to open in the fall. I know UO is a chain, but I think it's a good fit for Asheville.

View information on projects and add your own in our new Project Database: [Link]

Zona Lofts, Zona Village, Chrysler Building

thecowgoesmoo — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 19:43:02 +0000

A sign appeared east of the building site today....I guess they lost their permit that allowed them to close Collier Alley. I wonder what's next as the handicapped ramp into the building juts out into the alley.

View information on projects and add your own in our new Project Database: [Link]

Art Museum reconstruction

hauntedheadnc — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 19:35:51 +0000

The paper finally got ahold of this story today, complete with a rendering of what the reconstruction would look like. I like it actually, but then I'm a big fan of juxtaposition. I love it when the buildings not only don't match, but actively clash with one another. That kind of dissonance is part of why downtown is so visually vibrant.

View information on projects and add your own in our new Project Database: [Link]

Glen Rock Apartments

thecowgoesmoo — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 00:53:18 +0000

Looks like they're about to get some funding for this project. http://www.citizen-times.com/article/20091202/NEWS01/91202049

View information on projects and add your own in our new Project Database: [Link]

Glen Rock Apartments

orulz — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 04:16:23 +0000

The site plan for the hotel renovation, and the revised site plan for the new building, is now on the development mapper. There are also some elevations for the hotel, but there's nothing really worth mentioning on them. The site plan is here.

View information on projects and add your own in our new Project Database: [Link]

Civic Center Discussion

thecowgoesmoo — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 22:13:03 +0000

macrocosim144, on 24 December 2008 - 08:43 AM, said:

I cant believe its taken six years to build Pack Square Park! That's crazy ... couldn't we have used inmates from the jails or something to speed it up!! lol what do they have like two guys and a goat putting it together? lol

2 guys and a goat would have gotten it done faster. Hell, I could have finished the thing by now and I a lazy butt. Like anything else here it's mired in bureaucracy. I'd also love to know where they spent all of that money on, the steps and columns couldn't have cost that much.

I just googled...that park cost 20 million.

View information on projects and add your own in our new Project Database: [Link]

Civic Center Discussion

rooster8 — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 16:26:08 +0000

Seems like a good site for a performing arts center. Is the adjacent church supportive of this project?

In regards to the Civic Center, I believe they are working on the roof now.

View information on projects and add your own in our new Project Database: [Link]

Civic Center Discussion

orulz — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 15:53:28 +0000

The C-T reports that an architect has been chosen for the performing arts center project.

They think it might open somewhere between 2013 and 2015. This is still supposedly going to be a mixed-use project.

View information on projects and add your own in our new Project Database: [Link]

Glen Rock Apartments

orulz — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 21:39:04 +0000

I've been following the construction of this one and what's being built doesn't match with what's shown on the latest master plan from the Development Mapper. They have eliminated the integrated parking. Looking at MHO's website confirms this. Instead, there will be 20 spaces on-site, 54 spaces across the street (where the Southern railroad station used to be) and 44 spaces on-street on Ralph and Depot.

So now I wonder where those 20 spaces will go? Maybe in the spot where "phase 2B" was originally planned?

View information on projects and add your own in our new Project Database: [Link]

Preserving local shops in downtown Asheville

rooster8 — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 03:51:20 +0000

Shot these photos the other day. I wonder if they are beginning to regret the decision to take off the stucco.

View information on projects and add your own in our new Project Database: [Link]

Zona Lofts, Zona Village, Chrysler Building

thecowgoesmoo — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 14:08:50 +0000

orulz, on 03 November 2009 - 12:37 PM, said:

However, perhaps the banks saw through this and never came through with a construction loan?

Good points indeed. A friend did some more searching, it looks like they took out a 3.2 mil loan and still owe the 3.2.....I can't believe that the 162 Coxe project cost 3.2, if so they got taken.

One thing that irked me about this project was that the design presented to council looked good....what was getting built was something totally different. Asheville needs to stop that, if you present building A then build it, not something stripped down and gutted.

View information on projects and add your own in our new Project Database: [Link]