Legacy Union (former Charlotte Observer redevelopment)

[J-Rob]

Here is snapshot from the webcam this morning.  I love the sunrise coming through in the background and the four cranes rising in the foreground.  By my count they are on floor 17, so think about doubling the existing height (essentially; give or take 10-15 feet) and adding a pyramid, and that gives you a good idea of how prominent this building will be.  It is really going to tower over the edge of 277.

 

Edited February 14, 2018 by J-Rob

[go_vertical]

We should be hearing something final about the next building to go up here in the coming months right?

[SydneyCarton]

I think that the show stopper will be the illuminated crown at night.

[Guest]

1 hour ago, go_vertical said:

We should be hearing something final about the next building to go up here in the coming months right?

I dunno. I think multifamily is softening tremendously. I think theres a chance we hear about a large hotel, and maybe another office tower. I'm not so sure multifamily is a sure thing right now, and I can tell you Lincoln Harris/Goldman Sachs is going to be watching the success of Novel Stonewall Station and 550 Stonewall like hawks. 

[QClifer]

I think it was the newer apt complex across the street from the baseball stadium, not the mint, and they are offering 2 months free rent already, im sure others are as well thats the only sign ive seen out of the sidewalk,  thats not good.   

[tarwater]

They're putting glass in on the webcam side now.

[Guest]

31 minutes ago, QClifer said:

I think it was the newer apt complex across the street from the baseball stadium, not the mint, and they are offering 2 months free rent already, im sure others are as well thats the only sign ive seen out of the sidewalk,  thats not good.   

Skyhouse is advertising 2 months at the door, and throwing in a third just to get leases signed.

[SgtCampsalot]

1 hour ago, ricky_davis_fan_21 said:

I dunno. I think multifamily is softening tremendously. I think theres a chance we hear about a large hotel, and maybe another office tower. I'm not so sure multifamily is a sure thing right now, and I can tell you Lincoln Harris/Goldman Sachs is going to be watching the success of Novel Stonewall Station and 550 Stonewall like hawks. 

 

54 minutes ago, QClifer said:

I think it was the newer apt complex across the street from the baseball stadium, not the mint, and they are offering 2 months free rent already, im sure others are as well thats the only sign ive seen out of the sidewalk,  thats not good.   

Without going too far OT: even if the rental market dropped a ton, wouldn't Uptown/the inner ring neighborhoods still be where you'd want to be? Even if prices drop a ton, Uptown/inner ring is still the place to be, and would then be even more attractive to renters, because it would then be affordable.
So, short of advocating a full-on recession, wouldn't these areas still be "fine" and the more suburban areas be at risk (sans South Park, Ballantyne, etc)? 

Edited February 14, 2018 by SgtCampsalot

[Dale]

Damn, I thought this thing had critical momentum and that stuff was going to be flying out of the ground.

[jednc]

1 hour ago, SgtCampsalot said:

 

Without going too far OT: even if the rental market dropped a ton, wouldn't Uptown/the inner ring neighborhoods still be where you'd want to be? Even if prices drop a ton, Uptown/inner ring is still the place to be, and would then be even more attractive to renters, because it would then be affordable.
So, short of advocating a full-on recession, wouldn't these areas still be "fine" and the more suburban areas be at risk (sans South Park, Ballantyne, etc)? 

I'm not sure what you mean: without SouthPark, Ballantyne, etc...

[CLT2014]

4 minutes ago, jednc said:

I'm not sure what you mean: without SouthPark, Ballantyne, etc...

I think the poster meant high end / high income suburban areas wouldn't see lots of vacancies as those areas have desirability / jobs close by, but apartment complexes in Northlake, Steele Creek, East CLT, South Blvd, etc... would drop in price as residents favor getting closer in to town. I.E. if a 1 bedroom apartment in Uptown dropped from $1,400 to 1,200 a month a 1 bedroom in Steele Creek would drop from $1,100 to $1,000 a month as some residents might make the leap for the Uptown building and cut out their commute.

Edited February 14, 2018 by CLT2014

[Scribe]

The glass, that is already installed:

[AuLukey]

I think once more office comes online, the need for housing will rise again. I feel like this “boom” only happened because of the severe deficit that has existed for so long. We may have reached a point where the demand is leveling off. But honestly I feel like this is just seasonal, housing markets are historically slower during winter months. The same thing happens in University where there has been a glut of apartments for more than a decade. Apartment complexes are just using standard tactics to keep at least some interest flowing. If I’m wrong, I just hope this won’t impact Market 42.

 

What we need now are families to broaden Uptown’s horizons. It will take a much larger cultural shift in Charlotte to get suburbanite commuters and their families to live in Uptown Charlotte. The conveniences they are accustomed to just don’t exist yet. Maybe once Whole Foods, Publix, and some more sundries come online Uptown won’t be as difficult for a family to call home. Even then I’d be astonished to see many families with children living here. Maybe it’s time for the condo market to rebound subtly. IMHO home ownership is much more attractive to families. I’d love to see condos as part of this complex, if even only a limited amount.

 

 

 

[jednc]

2 minutes ago, CLT2014 said:

I think the poster meant high end / high income suburban areas wouldn't see lots of vacancies as those areas have desirability / jobs close by, but apartment complexes in Northlake, Steele Creek, East CLT, South Blvd, etc... would drop in price as residents favor getting closer in to town. I.E. if a 1 bedroom apartment in Uptown dropped from $1,400 to 1,200 a month a 1 bedroom in Steele Creek would drop from $1,100 to $1,000 a month as some residents might make the leap for the Uptown building and cut out their commute.

You might be right. I thought of that based on the wording, but the context implied those were examples of places that would be hurt so I wasn't sure.

[SydneyCarton]

Honestly, it's not the lack of shopping that precludes families from living Uptown.  It's the schools.  Schools in Myers Park, Ballantyne, Waxhaw, etc are really good.  People who live there will never send their kids to inner city schools.

I may get a flurry of responses calling me a d..ick, but it's true.

Young couples with infants will live Uptown and then move to a better school district when their kids are older, but no one with school age kids will live there.

[go_vertical]

1 hour ago, AuLukey said:

Maybe it’s time for the condo market to rebound subtly. IMHO home ownership is much more attractive to families. I’d love to see condos as part of this complex, if even only a limited amount.

This is exactly what I was thinking after reading RDF''s reply. This would be an ideal project to reintroduce condos to the market. And it doesn't need to be something massive either. I would be very happy with ten to twelve floors as long as it's owner occupied.

[Guest]

7 minutes ago, SydneyCarton said:

Honestly, it's not the lack of shopping that precludes families from living Uptown.  It's the schools.  Schools in Myers Park, Ballantyne, Waxhaw, etc are really good.  People who live there will never send their kids to inner city schools.

I may get a flurry of responses calling me a d..ick, but it's true.

Young couples with infants will live Uptown and then move to a better school district when their kids are older, but no one with school age kids will live there.

Bingo. Uptown School districting sucks. 

[Guest]

1 minute ago, go_vertical said:

This is exactly what I was thinking after reading RDF''s reply. This would be an ideal project to reintroduce condos to the market. And it doesn't need to be something massive either. I would be very happy with ten to twelve floors as long as it's owner occupied.

Condos will reenter the market in 2018-19, but it won't be uptown, unless someone is willing to finance it themselves, or its a "Hotel & Residences," or "Office & Residences." 10 Tryon tried this, couldn't get financing, so they went all office. A soon to be announced project did similar too, but will opt for office & apartments, again for financing. Keep in mind, you can somehow you can still rent out a luxury product with fiber board and laminate cabinets, and standard manufactured stone. You can't attract a condo buyer with the same fits and finishes of the Museum Tower Penthouses for example. 

Construction and Land prices are too high, you will end up with 1Brevard all over again. $600,000 1 bedroom condos. Gold District, Elizabeth, Plaza Midwood, NoDa, Optimist Park has low enough land prices, but they will still all have to be built at price points much higher than the median sale prices in those respective hoods. 

[Dale]

I thought there was supposed to be an announcement of sorts Jan/Feb ?

[Guest]

4 minutes ago, Dale said:

I thought there was supposed to be an announcement of sorts Jan/Feb ?

haha, lip service my friend. If I had a penny for every time I've heard an announcement date, and it came and went... Well, I reckon I could buy a coca cola in 1985.

[Dale]

Ah well, maybe we'll have a huge bocce ball/croquet lawn until the next cycle.

[DMann]

Myers Park School District goes up Caldwell Street.  Courtside is in the MPSD.

[15895]

The ground floor of this has always been more interesting than skyscrapers. I’m fine with no more high rises until the market settles.

I will be very annoyed if we get a giant parking deck and BofA in the middle of a big field 

[KJHburg]

the uptown apartment market is the most expensive and per the rest of the city has lower occupancy.  High rise multifamily is extremely expensive to build and they might be waiting for Lennar to get off the ground then time their project for delivery about 6-12 months later.   I agree a hotel may come first.  In terms of a strictly condo tower that is still a ways off in Charlotte especially uptown unless it is a conversion of an existing building.  Only a few boutique condo buildings are being built now primarily in Myers Park area.  

[sakami]

5 hours ago, DMann said:

Myers Park School District goes up Caldwell Street.  Courtside is in the MPSD.

Yes Uptown is still zoned for Myers Park High but it lost Dilworth and AG. These kids will now go to First Ward and Sedgefield Middle. Losing those schools in the elementary years will push families out of Uptown earlier than they probably planned.