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Norfolk Union Mission Expansion Progress


cpeakesqr

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It's now official, the Union Mission in Downtown Norfolk is for sale. Any idea's on what will happen to it? Is the condo market too soft to convert this property? I doubt it can be or should be torn down.

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By the time the permits, delays and construction get going, the market should be back on the upswing to support more condos, especially on Boush St, central to the city. 2010, 2011. The James Madison Hotel is a good indicator for this project, we'll see how successful they are in sales and development (from what i've heard, right now they're doing mediocre, but given the market that's to be expected)

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A beautiful old lady, symmetric facade, great location. Buy it and remake it a combination of condos, retail and apartments. I wonder if there are any grants available for renovating such an historic building? If not, maybe another expansion of TCC?

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A beautiful old lady, symmetric facade, great location. Buy it and remake it a combination of condos, retail and apartments. I wonder if there are any grants available for renovating such an historic building? If not, maybe another expansion of TCC?

Richmond offers a tax break for restoration of historic buildings for up to 5 years or more; Maybe it's a local thing, but I thought it was statewide.

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If this building is torn down it will be the worst loss for Norfolk in the 23 years I've been alive - correct me if I'm forgetting something. I know it has appeared on Norfolk's "endangered species" list, but there had better be a hell of a fight to save it if anybody tries to demolish it.

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There is no way they're gonna tear this building down. I don't see anyone being for that and the city can choose to sell only to those qualified buyers who wish to rehabilitate the structure, vice tearing it down. Bobby Wright would be an obvious choice, but the relationship between him and the city isn't the best right now of course.

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This building would make a great "boutique" hotel. I think the condo market might not be right at the moment, but a small hotel could really work in this building. It goes without saying that much of the interior would have to be gutted. Does anyone know what the lobby looks like in terms of original fixtures? I have never been inside.

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The operative word here has to be "restore." If the interior needs to be gutted, so be it, but the exterior should stay exactly as it is today. I'll lead the fight to preserve this, but as vdogg says, I seriously doubt it would ever be torn down.

What should it be? A mixed use of condos, street-level restaurant, and perhaps a boutique hotel as suggested. The interest in this, if the building is in decent shape, should be immense.

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it would make a sweet boutique hotel. So the big question after what will happen to the building, where will the homeless go now?

Union Mission purchased land further down Monticello for a homeless center and distribution venue, in return they sold their center on St Pauls (adjacent to Scope) to the city last year, and this was the final step in proceeding to their new location.

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Union Mission purchased land further down Monticello for a homeless center and distribution venue, in return they sold their center on St Pauls (adjacent to Scope) to the city last year, and this was the final step in proceeding to their new location.

okay, well at least that is good news. guess we are playing the wait and see game now for the downtown building. so should we start taking bets that this building will get renovated into something before they finish the Hilton Hotel? :tough:

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By the time the permits, delays and construction get going, the market should be back on the upswing to support more condos, especially on Boush St, central to the city. 2010, 2011. The James Madison Hotel is a good indicator for this project, we'll see how successful they are in sales and development (from what i've heard, right now they're doing mediocre, but given the market that's to be expected)

I would think the upswing would fall more around 2012+. 2009 will hitt he tail end of the option ARM loan resets, then 2011 and 2012 I believe are home to when another type of loans will be resetting majorly. Figure all the inventory in 2009 and 2010, then add in the alt-a and other loan types... it could be bad for a while. I just don't think the housing in Hampton Roads will be absorbed for a while.

Low cost apartments or something would be a good use, but it won't happen. Whomever buys the property will try to squeeze the most out of it. Little apartments with stainless steel appliances, slapped under the term luxury marketed for $500K each or whatever. Ghent on the square, I don't remember my numbers but it was like a $7 million property being sold for $20+ mil.

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From what I can see in the video, many of the original fixtures appear to be in place. This building should prove to be a golden opportunity for someone. I hope it has some kind of protection/landmark status.

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From what I can see in the video, many of the original fixtures appear to be in place. This building should prove to be a golden opportunity for someone. I hope it has some kind of protection/landmark status.

It's not on the National Register for Historic Places, but I'll keep searching for other lists. It is on the city's 11 most endangered buildings list.

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Low cost apartments or something would be a good use, but it won't happen. Whomever buys the property will try to squeeze the most out of it. Little apartments with stainless steel appliances, slapped under the term luxury marketed for $500K each or whatever. Ghent on the square, I don't remember my numbers but it was like a $7 million property being sold for $20+ mil.

As nice as that might be, to keep in tune with the building's type of use over the last couple decades, I don't see it happening either. Before you even mention upgrading and modernizing, the amount of money needed just to bring the building up to code will make it prohibitive for the developer to use it for medium income families. They could potentially save a few units for for low-to medium income buyers, but that would certainly require significant incentives from the city.

I think it's a perfect location for a boutique hotel as well.

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