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Norfolk Gateway (It’s Complicated)


tallguy81"

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If you drive over by the court house along St. Paul's,  the land fronting St. Paul's in front of City Hall has been cleared and is cordoned off with orange barrier. Additionally, the old courthouse has been demolished. 

http://pilotonline.com/news/government/local/demolition-begins-for-norfolk-court-building-as-part-of-million/article_a2193c28-1786-5b97-b174-47e1f60acdd5.html

 

After the old courthouse is gone, the site will become a plaza between City Hall and the new courthouse. Main Street will be extended to create a new drop-off area for cars.  To lessen flooding, the grounds will be raised to the height of the nearby light-rail tracks.

In the short term, McCrane said, the plaza will have trees, grass and benches. Later, other features will be added.

Keeping the land fairly open allows the city to plan for the future, which eventually could include new civic buildings.

“The City Hall building’s 60 years old,” McCrane said. “It’s not going to last forever.”

 

 

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If they demolish city hall both towers will fit on one side of the current light rail stop with the new main street extension running between them.

28 minutes ago, mpretori said:

What's the parcel of land you are talking about being cleared off? 

Forgot to quote you. See above posts.

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By reading the posts that y'all have posted, this will definantely be located at the old city hall of it is built. I would think that the light rail stop would be the existing one. At civic square and in the renderings, there is a street running down the middle between the 2 towers. That is most likely the new Main Street extension. These would definantely be the tallest buildings in the state, without a doubt. Hopefully they get built, it would be cool to see these rise in the Norfolk skyline.

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2 hours ago, BFG said:

Also...I'm guessing Gateway refers to the bank...aren't they planning a tower at Town Center as well?

I think "Gateway" refers to it being a gateway to downtown Norfolk,  rather than the bank itself.  I'd be surprised if they're looking into any expansions right now unfortunately. 

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That long middle section is not a road that looks part of the tower complex.  Look at the 3D rendering.  It's raised.  Why would they put an urban mall in the city hall area when there is already an urban mall a block away.  

   I hope it is in downtown for the urban-ness of it, but many elements say Military Circle to me.  

1. The "Urban Mall"

2. The urban grid vision redevelopment of the Military Mall area in the recently publish "Vision"

3.  The future light rail stop in future said area.

4.  The recent mission to build more inland instead of in the shorelines to protect further development from rising waters.

5. The light rail stop at city hall is not perpendicular to the lot available to build this development.  It's comes across the courthouse plaza at an angle to the block.

waddauthink?

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4 minutes ago, metalman said:

That long middle section is not a road that looks part of the tower complex.  Look at the 3D rendering.  It's raised.  Why would they put an urban mall in the city hall area when there is already an urban mall a block away.  

   I hope it is in downtown for the urban-ness of it, but many elements say Military Circle to me.  

1. The "Urban Mall"

2. The urban grid vision redevelopment of the Military Mall area in the recently publish "Vision"

3.  The future light rail stop in future said area.

4.  The recent mission to build more inland instead of in the shorelines to protect further development from rising waters.

5. The light rail stop at city hall is not perpendicular to the lot available to build this development.  It's comes across the courthouse plaza at an angle to the block.

waddauthink?

I think...somebody should write to them and ask!  Muahahaha!

Your speculation is logical, however.

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We may just have to agree to disagree on this one. I wish I had the photo shop skills to show you how I'm orienting this project in my mind in relation to the light rail stop, but alas, my artistic abilities involving anything beyond a stick figure suck.

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5 minutes ago, mpretori said:

Should be one of these clients as the developers 

 

 

post108.JPG

The way I understand it is they do 3D modeling for the actual architect. Only architect I see in that list is WTG. May be worth looking into.

I don't see anything on WTG's site that suggest they would be able to take on a project of this magnitude. That said, I don't think that client list you have posted is exhaustive. Those may be just their most prominent ones or the ones who have agreed to be listed in their advertisements.

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I know the guy from WTG. They specialize more in church-related structures, so I'd rule that out. If this is being designed locally, I'm guessing Clark Nexsen.

Honestly, I'm crossing my fingers that City Hall is next to go. I used to love the design, but it hasn't held up well over the years.

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47 minutes ago, vdogg said:

We may just have to agree to disagree on this one. I wish I had the photo shop skills to show you how I'm orienting this project in my mind in relation to the light rail stop, but alas, my artistic abilities involving anything beyond a stick figure suck.

It's all good.  We're having a friendly conversation here.  I don't hold any personal stake in my assumption.  We'll all find out eventually.  :-)

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The 2020 plan shows twin towers bisected by rail/street on page 17. They're shorter than the renderings but it is possible that this is geared towards Harbor Park.

http://www.norfolk.gov/DocumentCenter/View/895

If you look at page 20 however you can see where Main Street would run straight through city hall. You demolish that and build a tower on either side of the reconnected road, one tower would be right next to the rail stop.

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2 minutes ago, tallguy81" said:

This is an employee of egd LinkedIn page.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/william-perry-28337011

 

Near the bottom of the page there is a reference to "Dowes C.O. management". It explains a project called Gateway Towers.  It is for a residential retail and hospitality development in Virginia.

Condo? Hotel entertainment center? MAN this is gonna be a sweet development! 

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1 hour ago, mpretori said:

Condo? Hotel entertainment center? MAN this is gonna be a sweet development! 

I was hoping for more office, I'm not sure we can support more hotel yet, though condo may be an option. We haven't had a significant supply of condos come online since the Westin, and that's a prime location. That said, I'd worry about them obtaining financing. I just don't want to get strung along again like with Granby Tower (yes, I'm still salty). If this is a hotel condo mix though like the Westin we could easily hit 40-50 floors (Westin is 38). I guarantee you they will not build both towers at once though. This is definitely going to be a tower per phase with perhaps the office component coming online first.

15 minutes ago, lammius said:

So I massed a pair of 500-foot towers, approx 130' in width, and plopped them down near the City Hall LRT station. I just threw two towers onto the spot, without trying to match the site plan dimensions, just to see what they'd look like on the Norfolk skyline.  I'd say they dominate the skyline.  

 

From I-264 WB approaching CIty Hall Ave exit:29295718236_012371376f_k.jpg

 

From the Berkley Bridge:28708633303_51f295be08_k.jpg

 

From the top of the old Radisson:29221262272_21deb3b8a9_k.jpg

 

From Brambleton Av near the Hague:29295713626_098f28ce64_k.jpg

 

From Crawford Pkwy in Portsmouth:28708629073_809a0cca18_k.jpg

 

From the WAVY TV 10 Tower Cam:29295715666_80c77055a1_k.jpg

 

And the view from the roof, looking down on the rest of downtown Norfolk:29221260972_d3d921d9fb_h.jpg

 

Awesome work. This is exactly what I was looking for. :)

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1 hour ago, mpretori said:

This has to be where gateway is going instead of Virginia Beach. Since 2008, the Gateway Bank Tower appears to have been cancelled or stalled. 

Gateway was acquired by Bank of Hampton Roads which has since been acquired by Xenith Bank. This is my understanding as to why the Gateway Bank tower at Town Center hasn't happened. 

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4 hours ago, Brennen said:

Gateway was acquired by Bank of Hampton Roads which has since been acquired by Xenith Bank. This is my understanding as to why the Gateway Bank tower at Town Center hasn't happened. 

They were also acquired back during the housing crisis if I remember correctly. While the office tower might not be dead the Gateway Bank portion is.

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7 hours ago, lammius said:

So I massed a pair of 500-foot towers, approx 130' in width, and plopped them down near the City Hall LRT station. I just threw two towers onto the spot, without trying to match the site plan dimensions, just to see what they'd look like on the Norfolk skyline.  I'd say they dominate the skyline.  

Do you mind doing the same thing with the River Tower over in the River Tower thread?

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9 hours ago, vdogg said:

I was hoping for more office, I'm not sure we can support more hotel yet, though condo may be an option. We haven't had a significant supply of condos come online since the Westin, and that's a prime location. That said, I'd worry about them obtaining financing. I just don't want to get strung along again like with Granby Tower (yes, I'm still salty). If this is a hotel condo mix though like the Westin we could easily hit 40-50 floors (Westin is 38). I guarantee you they will not build both towers at once though. This is definitely going to be a tower per phase with perhaps the office component coming online first.

Yea, either way should get a skyscraper soon considering it's on their 2020 vision plan. If they did what Charlotte did and focus on building around entertainment venues like the ballpark, this could take off. Added bonus is the water-view!! 

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