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Wells Fargo Center Progress

mikeas

By mikeas
in Norfolk

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gosscj Whistle-Stop

gosscj

Posted
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Cool rendering! Do we have a pic of Granby Tower that is the right angle to photoshop there? Either way, this pic really shows how dense Norfolk is becoming.

But what's with the developers calling it a "town center"? It's in the middle of downtown!

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erdogs Burg

erdogs

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I like this rendering, maybe it will grow in a year. This thing may be built before the Hilton, tic! I was always wondering why Wachovia didn't have a greater office presence in Norfolk. If you look around the Mid-Atlantic, they tend to build tall attractive office buildings. Now lets see if we can't get Granby on the rise to hold me over till this one starts.

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PeninsulaKiddo Burg

PeninsulaKiddo

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This is a great project and I like the glass design to the upper half of the building (but as it's been said -- kind of Trader-ish on the bottom portions). And that rendering vdogg is fantastic! It will make that chunk of the northern part of downtown seem much denser! I'm glad the city is filling in the skyline with new buildings and will transition from a linear, waterfront skyline to a much-more diverse and visually interesting one. :) And man, if they could just hit 30 floors, that would be spectacular!!

Also, looking back to that rendering, it offers a great vantage point from which to view all the projects; you can clearly see Trader (albeit under construction), HH, and the other various construction sites about the downtown area.

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vtfan18 Whistle-Stop

vtfan18

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I totally agree with the lower portion looking like trader. The retail portion looks too much like town center too! I wish they would do more modern store fronts on that section with steel and glass. Why is it other cities can design outside the box and we get the same old colonial store fronts with red brick looking just like town center. I think I'll write the guy from SL N. and give him our thoughts on the design. He probably won't listen but who knows, maybe if a few people do it then they'll at least be open to a slightly different design.

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vdogg Megalopolis

vdogg

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Guys, we have till mid-2008 before they even think about breaking ground on this sucker and it'll probably even be after then at that. Judging by past projects, the final rendering will look absolutely nothing like this one when completed. Being as this is an outside architect, I have faith that they'll come up with something a bit more unique for the area. That being said, they better not touch that glass top. I love it and it'll look awesome lit up at night. :)

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vtfan18 Whistle-Stop

vtfan18

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Guys, we have till mid-2008 before they even think about breaking ground on this sucker and it'll probably even be after then at that. Judging by past projects, the final rendering will look absolutely nothing like this one when completed. Being as this is an outside architect, I have faith that they'll come up with something a bit more unique for the area. That being said, they better not touch that glass top. I love it and it'll look awesome lit up at night. :)

we've learned from the past though that design changes in our area are rarely done to make the building more unique. around here they change the design to save money which sacrifices design.

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metalman Burg

metalman

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This is great, unexpected news for the city. I saw the paper at Wawa this moring and I has to double check what newpaper I was looking at. Awesome, especially if it can grow to more of a sleaker look as has been said. :alc:

Along with all of the other components of this tower and as a musician, I thought this was an interesting quote from the article...

"To the rear of the tower, a small parcel of land will be preserved by the city - perhaps as the site of a future symphony hall, Fraim said, though nothing is definite." :good:

I wonder what that means for the Virginia Symphony or Chrysler Hall, maybe an extra hall for them for smaller settings.?. :dontknow:

Great news!

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vdogg Megalopolis

vdogg

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I don't mean to be picky at all, but with Granby and the Westin and other proposals I thought we were done with these 20-story towers.

We'll never be done with them. They still put up 20 to 30-story buildings in New York every now and then believe it or not. What you're likely to see and what we are seeing is a gradual shift to more 30 and 40 story buildings being proposed. In time they will be the predominate but not only building height constructed and then we might start seeing some 50-60 story structures proposed. It all depends on demand and location. That being said, I think we'll at least see upper 20's out of this one and possibly 30.

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PeninsulaKiddo Burg

PeninsulaKiddo

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30 would be marvelous and would compliment Granby just a few blocks away. I have to disagree with the spire though; unless this thing grows considerably in height (say, doubles or more) I think the flat roof would be best, albeit with a GLASS, tapered and slender tower. I'd like to see something along the lines of Trump World Tower in New York in terms of the shape; sleek and slender and tall! The base isn't horrid and will give a sense of cohesion with surrounding buildings, but I do agree with the storefront commentary; something more modern and chic would be a welcome change. Maybe some stores from out of the region -- an upscale clothier, boutique shops, a classy restaurant or two. That'd be nice :)

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krazeeboi Gigalopolis

krazeeboi

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Man, Virginia's really kickin' things up a notch. Here we come, Charlotte!

Be careful what you wish for. ;) But I'm liking what I see coming from VA's two largest central cities lately.

Congrats on this project, Norfolk. I hope the next tower for you guys is something around 40 stories. ;)

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burt Megalopolis

burt

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Congratulations, Norfolk. How did they manage to keep this project a secret from you guys? :lol:

Like Metalman, I liked your Mayor's comment about a possible Symphony Hall on the plot that will not be used for Wachovia.

This will be terrific for Norfolk's density.

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vdogg Megalopolis

vdogg

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Congratulations, Norfolk. How did they manage to keep this project a secret from you guys? :lol:

Like Metalman, I liked your Mayor's comment about a possible Symphony Hall on the plot that will not be used for Wachovia.

This will be terrific for Norfolk's density.

We often comment that Norfolk is better than the CIA when it comes to keeping secrets, this is just another example of it. It's frustrating but it makes surprises like this all the better. :)

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vdogg Megalopolis

vdogg

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It's not a total surprise. I was told to expect an announcement of a new project soon, and I told you guys too. But it's still great news!

True, we knew something was coming but I never would've guessed on anything for that lot.

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vdogg Megalopolis

vdogg

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Yeah. I'm kind of bummed that we're not getting a new arena, but lately, pro sports don't seem to be as important. I can live without a pro sports team for a while longer I suppose.

Remember, that wasn't the only plot of land for the pro sports arena. I forget which document it was on but another plot of land was listed. Not to mention that Norfolk would be highly negligent to hold up such valuable real estate for the possibility of an arena in the distant future when it is needed for office development now. This is the type of TOD we all hoped would happen and the light rail line isn't even built yet. I think our focus should remain on downtown office, residential, and retail for the forseeable future and once we develop that critical mass the rest should fall in line.

It's not a total surprise. I was told to expect an announcement of a new project soon, and I told you guys too. But it's still great news!

Also, didn't your source say announcement(s) plural? :shades:

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