U.S PIPE & FOUNDRY COMPANY On 1-24

[sunrisese]

What?

[DowntownAdam]

Both the U.S. Pipe site and the Wheland Foundry site will both be great sites for redevelopment. Lyndhurst is already in the mix. For those of you that don't know, Lyndhurst is basically the Lupton family's philanthropic arm and has led to the creation of the River City Company and The Tennessee Aquarium.

http://www.chattanoogan.com/articles/article_86119.asp has a small write up about U.S. Pipe and Wheland.

My personal long term guess is that we'll start to see some serious planning in 2 years when the latest round of condo development is complete and we have a large influx of people living downtown. Maybe then we can lure large retail to the Wheland/US Pipe site. It'd also make a great site for a Marina and of course more housing.

Think Atlantic Station in Atlanta but a much much smaller scale.

[Hankster]

Both the U.S. Pipe site and the Wheland Foundry site will both be great sites for redevelopment. Lyndhurst is already in the mix. For those of you that don't know, Lyndhurst is basically the Lupton family's philanthropic arm and has led to the creation of the River City Company and The Tennessee Aquarium.

http://www.chattanoogan.com/articles/article_86119.asp has a small write up about U.S. Pipe and Wheland.

My personal long term guess is that we'll start to see some serious planning in 2 years when the latest round of condo development is complete and we have a large influx of people living downtown. Maybe then we can lure large retail to the Wheland/US Pipe site. It'd also make a great site for a Marina and of course more housing.

Think Atlantic Station in Atlanta but a much much smaller scale.

[Kheldane]

Hey, that foundry was in business the last time I drove by. Not a gosh darn thing will "happen to it", it will continue to produce pipe and offer high-paying jobs to some chattanoogans. There is sooooooooooooooooooooooooooo much empty space in and around downtown chattanooga where condos could be built that putting forward the idea of getting rid of that foundry to make way for condo's is so ludicrous...I'm blown away. This reminds me of the whole "what should be done with PSC metals" thread in the nashville forum. What is this tendency for urban hipsters to ponder the demolition of functioning industry?

[ATLBrain]

The foundry has been closed. That property is vacant, and the city has bought (some of?) it.

[flith]

Hey, that foundry was in business the last time I drove by. Not a gosh darn thing will "happen to it", it will continue to produce pipe and offer high-paying jobs to some chattanoogans. There is sooooooooooooooooooooooooooo much empty space in and around downtown chattanooga where condos could be built that putting forward the idea of getting rid of that foundry to make way for condo's is so ludicrous...I'm blown away. This reminds me of the whole "what should be done with PSC metals" thread in the nashville forum. What is this tendency for urban hipsters to ponder the demolition of functioning industry?

[smeagolsfree]

I would love to see that site developed as it is part of the gateway to Chattanooga and such an eyesore. Everytime I pass by there, I could envision an urban development. It did play a huge part in the economy of Chattanooga in years past and could play a great part in the coming years.

[DowntownAdam]

Wheland closed about two years ago and US Pipe closed in the last 12 months.

The City doesn't own either of the properties. Mike Mallen bought both properties. I know that he paid only $1 for the Wheland site but he had to pay for all of the environmental clean up. I'm sure he made a nice profit on the scrap metal alone, especially with steel prices exploding.

If you have seen what has happened in the Southside area with both Jefferson Heights and Cowart Place you'll get an idea of the type of housing that could take place. Single family housing, mixed with both apartments and condominiums.

[ATLBrain]

Thanks for the correction on the ownership question, I was given wrong information. I knew they had closed. Does Mallen have a track record in Chattanooga? If so, is it good?

[Hankster]

Hey, that foundry was in business the last time I drove by. Not a gosh darn thing will "happen to it", it will continue to produce pipe and offer high-paying jobs to some chattanoogans. There is sooooooooooooooooooooooooooo much empty space in and around downtown chattanooga where condos could be built that putting forward the idea of getting rid of that foundry to make way for condo's is so ludicrous...I'm blown away. This reminds me of the whole "what should be done with PSC metals" thread in the nashville forum. What is this tendency for urban hipsters to ponder the demolition of functioning industry?

[Kheldane]

Because it is not a functioning industry. The plant has been closed. These foundries are not cost competitive with new mills and would have to be torn down and rebuilt to be cost competitve. New mills such as the Nucor plant near Memphis are being constructed, and the industry is not dying out. It's just evolving. Quite frankly it costs too much to do business in downtown locations, and a lot of the fault is with high taxes and excessive government regulations in our cities. Quite frankly, it's considerably less expensive to do business out in rural areas.