500 West Trade (14 story apartments on site of former Polk Building)

[A2]

From what I've heard, the building is a gonner, and judging from what they paid for the land, it will definetly need to be a high-rise.

I think it is a great spot for apartments (near a transit station and JWU), plus like you said A2, there is considerable demand. However, if apartments do get built there, they will probably be the most expensive ones in Uptown (based on land cost, and the huge rise in building costs).....I'm guessing in the $1.70 per square foot per month range.

If you think about it West Trade is closing in on Tryon in a BIG way. I think the city's skyline is marching that way. I like it, and would consider moving to a rental uptown if the price was right. But with that kind of price I might just have to pass. Yikes ! That is over $1800 bucks per month on an 1100 square foot aprtment. But you know that is about in line with the Summit and Cotton Mill. Granted it is still pricier, but you get a view.

A2

[atlrvr]

The two Post properties uptown average $1.45 psf, and Cotton Mills averages $1.30, and Summit Grandview is $1.33.

Needing to achieve a 20% premium over existing buildings for new construction mid/high rise apts. in Uptown is the main reason that we are seeing so many condos......

[A2]

The two Post properties uptown average $1.45 psf, and Cotton Mills averages $1.30, and Summit Grandview is $1.33.

Needing to achieve a 20% premium over existing buildings for new construction mid/high rise apts. in Uptown is the main reason that we are seeing so many condos......

I agree atlrvr, it is simple economics. On a side note rates have been moving considerably higher on the 10 year and 30 year T-notes. They actually are sitting at around 12 month highs. The 2 and 10 year note broke straight through a resistance point.

I am saying all of that to say this:

The housing boom that many cities have seen is about to come to a hault. It will be another 3-5 years of building, but then I think we will see a pause in condo's popping up. Get it while the gettin' is good.

After that I still thinkwith all of the synergy happening we will pull out wil MORE retail/restraunts/and (fingers crossed) more rental units being developed in and around the 277 loop.

A2

[dubone]

i think it is more complex than that... t notes go up, construction goes down, construction costs go down, construction goes up, rents go down, gas prices go up up up up, people move near their offices, construction goes up, retail and arts construction goes up, people realize that living downtown is fun, construction goes up.

[appatone]

Do you think they could preserve some of the facade for visual interest? I'm thinking about something along the lines of what was done on Park Ave. and the trolley tracks where that building saved the old facades and incorporated them into the new structure. I think it would be great if they at least saved the front of the Polk building as the main building entrance and then went as high or as modern as they wanted. I would like to see a really modern structure rise up from the bones of an old structure.

[dubone]

and by preserving the facade.. do you mean sweep up the scraps of fallen bricks and put it in a barrel next to the nice new building?

[dubone]

on a serious note, though, i think they should save some of the architectural details like the 1925 marker at the top, and some of the detail elements in other parts of the facade. they could work those into the new building. the rest are either modern renovations, like the windows and the stucco, or are ruins, like the masonry.

[DigitalSky]

Or they could make it like the Hearst Tower in NYC, building over the pre-existing building.

[UrbanCharlotte]

Anyone want to take a guess on how tall this may be?

[A2]

Anyone want to take a guess on how tall this may be?

The Hearst or the potential tower on the Polk Building site ?

A2

[UrbanCharlotte]

Whatever will be built on the Polk site.

[dubone]

it would be cool for them to build over it, with the old building as the base...but i doubt it will happen in a city like charlotte.

[atlrvr]

I think the best we could hope for is what you mentioned earlier D, and that's to use some of the more significant architectual features in the new buildings, but I wouldn't count on it.

[RiverwoodCLT]

I hear that building is in bad shape inside and out. It would be too costly to use this building. The state did not spend much money on it, so they let the building deteriorate. The worker were glade to get out of it, due to leaks and other building problems.

Edited October 28, 2005 by RiverwoodCLT

[brianc]

Has anybody heard anything about the old Polk building downtown. I think something big might be developing. I think I saw someting about it just reading some city gov. sites but I cant remember. I will try to look for it again.

[stateman99]

Sorry, should have wrote this in the first of the 3 threads. On Monday the city councel is meeting to sell land downtown that includes that building to Trinity Capitol Advisors. They want to make it a mixed use area.

[Mobuchu]

Theres a thread on this, I thought the Trinity deal was old news?

http://www.urbanplanet.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=9201

[atlrvr]

To clarify, the state is selling Trinity the Polk building. That sell was supposed to close last November, but was delayed until Jan., though I believe it is delayed again over environmental problems.

The city owns the strip of land between the Polk building site and Wilkes place. This is the parcel that is to be sold to Trinity.

Originally, the city didn't want to sell that strip of land to Trinity because there was no guarantee that they would build office space, which is what the city wants in the parcels adjacent to the Multi-modal. I'm not sure if Trinity has now agreed to build office space on some of the property, or if the city is desparate for cash (which seems more likely). Another scenario would have been for Wilkes place to have been moved east to the back of the actual state owned Polk site, and for the city's to own property where Wilkes currently is, in which case the state would have bought this parcel from the city and combined it with their larger parcel adjacent to the rail line......I guess this plan is dead, which is fine by me, because the state's timeframe to sell their parcels for development isn't too aggressive.

Edited February 24, 2006 by atlrvr

[dubone]

http://www.charmeck.org/NR/rdonlyres/ehpyd...roperty+Map.pdf

In case you guys hadn't seen it before, the siteplan for the Trinity project is attached to an attachment on the agenda for tonight. I saw the PDF last week, but didn't see that the PDF had an attachment to it.

The fact that there are 3 or 4 docks for the loading docs sure makes it seem that the retail will be significant. .

Considering that CATS and the city were pushing so hard for office next to the Gateway Station, it would be really great if this deal is now happening because Trinity plans to include office in the project. I'd hate to see the city giving in on that issue when CATS just made as big a deal about how downtown employment is so key to their success.

[dubone]

The Trinity proposal for the Polk site is:

$83m investment

400 residential units

30ksf of retail

600 parking spaces

and possible office in Phase II, though unlikely.

The city would get $3.14m for the land.

They might also sell the land between Wilkes and the railroad tracks for an even larger development.

It'd be done in 2007/2008 time frame.

Terrible image (there'll probably be a better one in the Observer soon enough), but for those who didn't see the council meeting, here is a spy photo of the rendering.

EDIT: I corrected the sizing of the photo.

[turbocraig]

Wow. When I blow that image up, it kinda looks like your avatar...

[rockhilljames]

Looks like a parking deck.

I understand the Polk building is too far gone, but I hate to lose the charm of that building to this thing.

[atlrvr]

Well speaking of the devil.

http://www.charlotte.com/mld/charlotte/14001589.htm

Looks like we are getting some mid-rise apartments downtown.

I wouldn't expect these to be affordable to the middle class.

[DigitalSky]

What is the expected height on this thing? I would expect somewhere from 5-12 stories, anyone else in the know?

[atlrvr]

I'm thinking 10 stories, and by far, the most expensive apartments in Uptown so far.