Manchester Development

[I miss RVA]

17 hours ago, skinsfan said:

Favorite of the four? 
- Let’s vote!

Thanks      SH1

Confused     SH2

Like       Avery Hall

HaHa     Silos project

 

 

 

All kidding aside - I really do like all four - but my absolute favorite of the four would have to be Avery Hall. I just LOVE the intense urban look and feel - this looks like something you'd see built in New York - particularly in Brooklyn. Just a beautiful design that will really stand out on Manchester skyline.

Idk - but to me it's just SO cool that we could even begin saying "Manchester skyline" - and have it mean something. I hope and pray that the large development proposed for 201 Commerce Road eventually gets built - and is in that 16-story range that was discussed previously. I'd like to see some high-rise "depth" in Manchester, if that makes sense (meaning, not just having all the tall buildings lined up in a nice row along the riverfront - but also some height deeper into Manchester). That's been one of THE biggest reasons I've been SO disappointed that Port RVA II/512 Hull didn't pan out as a highrise - I was SO looking forward to seeing "depth" with a taller building rising several blocks "back" off the riverfront.

Either way - just being able to visualize now a legitimate "Manchester skyline" is SUPER exciting!

Edited November 18, 2022 by I miss RVA

[ancientcarpenter]

Avery Hall / Rivers Edge is beautiful with the all glass look - looks like a modern, major city design you'd see in Boston. 

South Falls 1 & 2 need to just...no... please, no.

[I miss RVA]

1 hour ago, ancientcarpenter said:

Avery Hall / Rivers Edge is beautiful with the all glass look - looks like a modern, major city design you'd see in Boston. 

South Falls 1 & 2 need to just...no... please, no.

Hourigan is the all-glass tower. Yeah - agreed - it does look like what you'd see in Boston. Philly, too.

South Falls - welcome to Walter Parks World. Ugh...  

HOWEVERRRRR... I want the height and density - I'm more than willing to trade the architecture for the benefit of the size.  Let's not let the perfect be the enemy of the good - and the good is the rather significant increase in population density, which will go great lengths to increase Manchester's vitality. Unfortunately, not every one of these towers can look as cool as the Hourigan or Avery Hall buildings - and that's okay. RVA has spent DECADES obsessing about architecture, "charm", "character" and all the other BS arguments in favor of form over function - and style over substance. Sorry - but I want the substance. The style -- while it's nice and certainly desirable - is, at the end of the day, nothing more than icing. It's not the cake.

Mind you - I don't disagree with you that SF I & II ain't the best looking set of buildings on the face of the earth. Maybe having the Hourigan and Avery Hall towers will help offset the rather 'blah' look and feel of the South Falls buildings. ANNNNNNNNNNNND... maybe if Tom Papa actually builds South Falls III - the condo tower -- it'll have a fresher looking design (even the preliminary placeholder renderings give it a different looking skin, shape, feel, etc.) So... here's hoping!

Edited November 19, 2022 by I miss RVA

[Brent114]

I think the Hourigan is the worst of the bunch.  It looks like a dated suburban office park to me.  I think it was stolen from the opening credits of Dallas.  

Of course it is leaps and bounds better than the silos that are there now and I’d be thrilled to see it actually get built. 

[Brent114]

The Commodore is going to be a beast…

 

Port Richmond takes shape (the Box is looking good behind it).

 

And the old depot beside both continues to get upgraded.  Even though this is just a parking lot, for what is being marketed as office space, cleaning up any block in Richmond is a great thing.  This was crushed gravel over grass two weeks ago.

 

 

BTW, the building along 2nd (I’ll learn the name soon, across from the old Caravati’s) is already above ground.  There is no basement or underground parking so it’s going up fast.  It’s just rebar forms at the moment so not much to look at…

[I miss RVA]

1 hour ago, Brent114 said:

The Commodore is going to be a beast…

 

Port Richmond takes shape (the Box is looking good behind it).

 

And the old depot beside both continues to get upgraded.  Even though this is just a parking lot, for what is being marketed as office space, cleaning up any block in Richmond is a great thing.  This was crushed gravel over grass two weeks ago.

 

 

BTW, the building along 2nd (I’ll learn the name soon, across from the old Caravati’s) is already above ground.  There is no basement or underground parking so it’s going up fast.  It’s just rebar forms at the moment so not much to look at…

My friend, you're adding to your "YOU DA MAN!!!" award for this week with these gems! Thanks SO much for taking and posting them. Fully agreed re: the Commodore: for a five-story building, it is a very robust building and the design is very muscular. It will be a heck of a solid presence at 7th and Hull.

Even through it'll only be 5 stories (and not 12), nice to see PortRVA II rolling along and really taking shape. Wow - this whole block is going to be VERY tightly developed with all buildings basically butting up against one another. Really good amount of density going in there. 

Given the intensity of the development throughout lower Manchester and the height coming to the riverfront, I honestly can't wait to see what Manchester is going to look like in the next 3 to 5 years. The Hull Street corridor from Commerce Road to the riverfront is going to be AMAZING. If there was a Richmond version of Rip Van Winkle who fell asleep in Manchester 10 or 15 years ago - and he wakes up five years down the road - he won't have any idea what city he's in.

Blows my mind how quickly this is all happening. And can you imagine - if we can maintain this pace for another decade - or longer - what the long-range impact on Richmond will be? WOWWWW!!

[whw53]

@Brent114thanks for the pics! FYI the project across from Caravati's has a working name of ' Trailhead Apartments '. The Port Richmond @512 is being marketed as 'The Cove' 

 

Also...SF1 is one of favorite projects in Richmond from the last 5 years. I'm no Ed Slipek but  for lack of better architectural vocabulary I get a Nordic impression that reminds me of newer infill in downtown Oslo. Sharp lines and that pale white color sit well against the choppiness of the river below. Good direction for pre-cast construction at least.

link - google images - oslo barcode project

The form is also  interesting - it's  like 2 conjoined structural twins that are swiveled open to embrace the river. That unique pivot and the slight height differentiation between the building wings provides a striking, clean modern form. Hey - i said i was no Ed Slipek!

[Brent114]

I agree about SF.  It feels really cosmopolitan and clean to me.  Definitely has Scandinavian vibes. 

[I miss RVA]

2 hours ago, whw53 said:

@Brent114thanks for the pics! FYI the project across from Caravati's has a working name of ' Trailhead Apartments '. The Port Richmond @512 is being marketed as 'The Cove' 

 

Also...SF1 is one of favorite projects in Richmond from the last 5 years. I'm no Ed Slipek but  for lack of better architectural vocabulary I get a Nordic impression that reminds me of newer infill in downtown Oslo. Sharp lines and that pale white color sit well against the choppiness of the river below. Good direction for pre-cast construction at least.

link - google images - oslo barcode project

The form is also  interesting - it's  like 2 conjoined structural twins that are swiveled open to embrace the river. That unique pivot and the slight height differentiation between the building wings provides a striking, clean modern form. Hey - i said i was no Ed Slipek!

Nice take! I can certainly see it. 

[RVA-Is-The-Best]

On 11/16/2022 at 10:17 AM, whw53 said:

POD filed this morning for 301 Hull - the Sampson Coatings site. for 250 unit mixed use development. No word on height or floor count. 

https://energov.richmondgov.com/EnerGov_Prod/SelfService/richmondvaprod#/plan/18d0cc08-ac02-4c63-bf60-ed5edb2587d5

 

 

Area in square feet of land disturbance is listed as 60,548, while Proposed Floor Area is listed as 312000. 

Low bar we can expect 5 floors if structure rises evenly over the disturbed area -  312000/60548 = 5.15. Probably higher - Thalhimer's Overlook 2 next door will contain 275 apartments and is set to rise 8 stores on a larger block.

 

We now have a BizSense article (the true barometer for determining when a project is officially 'on') on the Sampson Coatings redevelopment. 250 units in 7 stories + a two story parking garage (275 spaces).

https://richmondbizsense.com/2022/11/21/thalhimer-plans-7-story-apartment-building-on-sampson-coatings-site-in-manchester/

We also have this encouraging tidbit from Thalhimer

Quote

He said fluctuating construction costs and interest rates didn’t slow down the planning process and that the firm is looking to get the plan of development approved as quickly as possible so that once it’s ready to break ground, it’ll be good to go.

 And of course, we have everyone's favorite part of new project announcements, renderings.

Truthfully, I'm not sure what to make of the blank brick walls on the side where one would presume windows to be, as they are on the main facade. But a minor gripe against something that will ultimately bring more density and height to a burgeoning, formerly low-rise area.

[wrldcoupe4]

The density is good but I’m not a huge fan at first impression of the appearance. It feels like a brutalist institutional building from the 70s or something. I assume the facade with few windows (facing south) is due to the fact the adjacent parcel may get redeveloped at some point. 

[rjp212]

On the fence with the design, but I like they are keeping the smoke stack.   It'll be a good reminder of Manchester's origins.

[Flood Zone]

7 hours ago, RVA-Is-The-Best said:

 And of course, we have everyone's favorite part of new project announcements, renderings.

And one of my favorite subcategories: "What are the people doing in the renderings?" My favorite is the guy on the left - looks like he's taking a selfie.

Also, I like the look of the building.

[ancientcarpenter]

10 minutes ago, Flood Zone said:

And one of my favorite subcategories: "What are the people doing in the renderings?" My favorite is the guy on the left - looks like he's taking a selfie.

Also, I like the look of the building.

Biking with no helmet... 

[Hike]

17 minutes ago, Flood Zone said:

And one of my favorite subcategories: "What are the people doing in the renderings?" My favorite is the guy on the left - looks like he's taking a selfie.

Also, I like the look of the building.

https://tenor.com/QklL.gif
 

this is me talking a selfie

 

[I miss RVA]

I like it! Very muscular looking building - and it will carry a strong presence on Hull Street. Glad they're keeping the smoke stack. Call me crazy, but I think the building fits in quite well there - and seven stories, based on square footages and units, etc., is about what was projected earlier, no? 

[georgeglass]

10 hours ago, wrldcoupe4 said:

The density is good but I’m not a huge fan at first impression of the appearance. It feels like a brutalist institutional building from the 70s or something. I assume the facade with few windows (facing south) is due to the fact the adjacent parcel may get redeveloped at some point. 

I am not a fan of the design. It definitely feels like a residence hall built on any number of college campuses in the 1970s and 80s. I would still be happy for the density, but wish the building looked better. I know it would be a significant cost increase, but it would have been great to incorporate the facade from Hull St into the new building design IMO. 

[I miss RVA]

Just curious about a vacant parcel along the Manchester riverfront and a parking lot across the street - both parcels at 4th and Bainbridge:

Do we have a read on who owns these and if there might be any potential at all for either or both to be redeveloped into something with some density? Of the two, I'm more curious about the larger triangular-shaped vacant parcel north of the intersection as I'm guessing the parking lot might be connected to/owned by the City View Lofts (would that be a safe bet?)

I'd love to know the scoop on these two parcels and if there's any possibility something of any reasonable size/density could rise on either of them.

 

[Shakman]

White van crossing the yellow line.   That's me driving while port-o-potty spotting.

[whw53]

Just curious about a vacant parcel along the Manchester riverfront and a parking lot across the street - both parcels at 4th and Bainbridge:
Do we have a read on who owns these and if there might be any potential at all for either or both to be redeveloped into something with some density? Of the two, I'm more curious about the larger triangular-shaped vacant parcel north of the intersection as I'm guessing the parking lot might be connected to/owned by the City View Lofts (would that be a safe bet?)
I'd love to know the scoop on these two parcels and if there's any possibility something of any reasonable size/density could rise on either of them.
 
http://content.invisioncic.com/x329420/monthly_2022_11/2093493308_Screenshot(2483).png.306a88600a7b74934fcb5f2bb47be62e.png

The yellow parcel is controlled by Thalhimer. Pre-pandemic they were marketing it as an office tower.

I'm guessing orange parcel is controlled by the railroad.

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[wrldcoupe4]

Orange is city owned 

[I miss RVA]

1 minute ago, whw53 said:

The yellow parcel is controlled by Thalhimer. Pre-pandemic they were marketing it as an office tower.

I'm guessing orange parcel is controlled by the railroad.

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RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGHT!!! The nine-story office building that Thalhimer was talking about at some point. So - wow - given that they're actually building stuff of decent density in that part of Manchester (a 7-story apartment building and an 8-story apartment building) - maybe there's hope with them controlling that parcel that they will either go back to some kind of office building or mixed-use development - or - put up more high-density residential there. 

They're (sort of) slowly redeeming themselves from the dumpster fire that they're building over in Greater Scott's across the street from the Diamond District (although, is Thalhimer building the 7-story residential beauty that's slated to rise on Ellen Road? I can't recall who the developer is on that one.)

[I miss RVA]

@eandslee-- I'll post up a couple of the Scott's pix you were mentioning that are on Ryan Ramsey's Richmond City Watch/Facebook site shortly. Meanwhile, folks, here are a few really cool perspectives of projects in Manchester that Ryan posted up on his page.

Photos courtesy of Ryan Ramsey - Richmond City Watch/Facebook site.

1.) The Box with Port RVA II also under way (E. 6th and Decatur streets)

2.) The Box (looking northeast along Decatur -- note the Southern States Silos off in the distance -and picture Hourigan's GORGEOUS 20-23 story glass tower rising there!)

3.) The Commodore (looking northeast from W. 7th and Bainbridge streets)

4.) The (almost complete!) building formerly known as The Tidewater - W. 7th St

5.) River's Edge/Avery Hall development site (another one of those important "time stamp" kind of pictures to document what once was before the big change comes. Can't wait for Avery Hall to get underway!)

 

Edited November 28, 2022 by I miss RVA

[wrldcoupe4]

[I miss RVA]

9 minutes ago, wrldcoupe4 said:

Thanks, Coupe, for taking and posting this cool perspective of Hull Street. It's mind boggling, really, to consider - this ain't our grandparent's Manchester (or Richmond!) anymore!