The Vue

[Charlotte_native]

They justified higher prices because the top of the building had spires?

No silly, I said architecture and added (spires) as part of that architecture being taken away.

[Andyc545]

Could it not be beneficial to put spires on the top of the Vue that serve an actual purpose to help offset the cost? It does seem silly to waste such an opportunity for purely aesthetic reasons (if the spires as-was were to stay).

That sounds good to me. There is always a purpose for everything- and when something is architecturally just for image, its always able to find a way of finding a purpose. That sentance made little sence, I know... There are some good architects in this world that designs interesting spaces with the purpose of having water flow when it rains to maybe collect or drain but so it's not just a gutter on a house. I wouldn't see why these spires could be used for cell, tv, radio, or any sending or receiving device. It could even be used as a dummy device, where it's an antenna that has no purpose to it, until it is hooked up to something that can receieve or send. Later or during the construction phase, they can then sell it. How about as a Wi-Fi receiever for Metropolitian Network? Heck, the Vue can put it up and place it as Wi-Fi, have it password controlled and allow it to cover the whole 277 loop by utilizing Metropolitian Networking capabilities, or MAN. With protection, they can market free internet access for residents of the Vue, throughout center city by means of Laptop and PDA, etc. They can also sell off subscriptions for mobile users, or allow fees each time they utilize it.

[orlandonative]

All very good suggestions. It actually isin't uncommon for police/fire rescue to use roof spaces for transmitting signals. Unfortunately the revenue it generates isin't really that great.

[New Name]

I would have moored my zeppelin at the Vue... but now... looks like I am out of luck.

[uptownJim]

All very good suggestions. It actually isin't uncommon for police/fire rescue to use roof spaces for transmitting signals. Unfortunately the revenue it generates isin't really that great.

That's too bad. I would have to imagine that for the length of time it will take to build this, they can perhaps explore other options along the way....

So great to see this finally moving along!

[Charlotteman]

I just peeked at Vue Charlotte's webpage, and it looks like the twin spires are back~

[RiverwoodCLT]

I notice that the Vue did not put the Avenue and Trademark in the background of their exterior renderings.

[tiblerbrit]

The spires are gone again now.

[83alphaunder]

I just peeked at Vue Charlotte's webpage, and it looks like the twin spires are back~

No they aren't, they are only in one of the dozen or so pix. And the only reason it is still in the location pic is because it was probably hard to photoshop out.

[mshook]

Walked past it today on the way to work....actually a hole in the ground now...looks like excavation is in full force

[Andyc545]

It seems that the contractors already have the foundation permits (appologize if already posted), and are seeking the structural permit (framework) which they should have aquired within the next 2 weeks. Also in talks for getting a crane on site.

[Appetite for Construction]

The Charlotte Business Journal is reporting that RJ Griffin was awarded the Vue construction contract.

I'm not really sure why this is news, since RJ Griffin has had a banner up on-site for a while now.

The press release section on the Vue website also has a press release that talks about the RJ Griffin deal.

I wonder if folks from the Avenue job will move over to the Vue ... if so, those guys won't have to move the office far.

[kelerbela]

One is left wondering if the twin spires were removed as a cost saving measure. If so, it's a poor way to start a project like this.

How much extra could two spires add to the overall cost?

The sales person said a few million dollars.

[FALCON1981]

A few million dollars? Thats Kind of pricey.... For two small antenna's, I would have though maybe about 150,000 or so for each but anyway's, I wouldn't be a bit suprised either with a mill or so............ Not with the price of materials these day's.........

[dubone]

The wind speeds and potential wind speeds that high up are pretty considerable, so they would need need to be pretty substantial in engineering, considering they were multiple stories tall.

[tiblerbrit]

Can anybody give an update on this project?

[jednc]

Can anybody give an update on this project?

And preferably more than just something like "I just passed by this morning and I saw....". I mean, I'd also be interested in that. I'm just hoping for someone with a connection who has information we wouldn't otherwise be able to discover on our own.

[RiverwoodCLT]

I was by there today and saw dump trucks going into the site. There is a big hole where the tower is going and it looks like they are digging out most of the site. It look like most of the work is removing dirt.

[AuLukey]

This may have already been answered before, but how deep are they going with this project? I was under the impression that most of the parking was above ground.

[Andyc545]

This may have already been answered before, but how deep are they going with this project? I was under the impression that most of the parking was above ground.

Without looking up, it looks like they are more flattening the bottom and that is the reason for most of the digging, since the site is on a slope. i was under the impression as well that more of the parking was above grade, so I don't think there will be much underground...

[DCMetroRaleigh]

pics?

[Raintree21]

pics?

There isn't really much to see. As Andyc has said, all they've done is leveling. They've dug out maybe 1/2 story down and leveled it off. There were also a couple of trenches being dug the other week.

[Andyc545]

There isn't really much to see. As Andyc has said, all they've done is leveling. They've dug out maybe 1/2 story down and leveled it off. There were also a couple of trenches being dug the other week.

Yeah- there's a lot of action on site but still just ground work. Here is the latest pic I have from a month ago of the site. Really since this pic, there has been more activity on site (more construction crews, supplies, and vehicles) and the site is dug further down.

EDIT:

Here's an updated pic from 11.22.07 (they dug down about 1 story) :

Edited November 22, 2007 by Andyc545

[28202]

a section of crane is parked onsite. This warm weather seems to be causing an outbreak of those things...

[UrbanFuture]

Here is an email about the Vue construction that was included in the Friends of Fourth Ward newsletter. The news letter is published by Rob Cummings, president of FOFW. The email is from Tony Manning, Project Executive with the Vue. It details some of the construction practices, gives some early construction timelines.

"From Tony Manning, Project Executive for The Vue

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I wanted to follow back up with you on the matter of our method of site perimeter shoring. In the last neighborhood meeting, I explained our method of shoring as the "soil nail" method, which involved no impact work. Of course, our site is rectangular involving four sides and thus four property lines. Please note that along one side/one property line of our site we will be utilizing an alternate method of site shoring. In lieu of the soil nail method, we will be utilizing the typical "H-piling with lagging" method. This method is used on most of the work that is done in the Charlotte business district. This method does involve impact work in the form of the driving of the H-piles. These are basically big steel beams that are driven vertically into the ground. Please also note that this type of pile driving, while impact in nature, is not the same as, and is less obtrusive than foundation pile driving. In foundation pile driving, the impact of the pile driving hammer is much louder and more concussive. It also usually lasts much longer since the entire building foundation is involved. Our process will involve about 15 H-piles that will be driven into the ground along one property line. We appear to be clear with using the soil nail method along the other three sides of the property.

I am told by our subcontractor that is performing the work, that each pile takes about 10 to 15 minutes to drive, and that the entire piling process should be done along that property line in "a couple of days". Please understand that I give no assurances on the 10 to 15 minutes, or the "couple of days". This is underground work and my X-ray vision is not that great - they could run into some rock, or some other concealed underground obstruction during the process. So if the process takes 15 to 20 minutes for some piles, and the three or four days, I would not expect much second guessing. It will be our and our subcontractor's intention to complete this work as quickly as possible.

The work will likely take place right after the New Year Holiday, with some piles actually going into the ground on the 2^nd. However, they may not get started until the 3^rd. Again, this will be over with in a couple of days - the piling part. Following immediately behind the piles will be the installation of the wood lagging, which are horizontal timbers that are anchored on each end at the vertical piles and which are installed for the vertical depth of the excavation and actually hold back the excavated earthen wall at the perimeter of the site.

There is one other thing that I wanted to circle back around on, that I did not do too well with at the last meeting. That has to do with the work hours. When answering the question of our work hours, my answer was a little fuzzy because I really didn't know what our late hour - at the end of the day - would be. I said our day would usually end at the typical 5 to 6PM hour, but I was not up on what the local ordinance dictated. After the meeting, I was thinking: "of course we will be working many days on this project after 6PM"; I goofed when I said we would be working until 5 or 6PM. We have checked the ordinance. In summary, the ordinance states that one can engage in typical construction activity over 24 hours. "Noisy" construction work can take place from 7AM to 9PM. With that, we would take this to mean that we could continue to do "quiet" work after 9PM. What is left to interpretation is the definition of "noisy" (I don't believe the ordinance uses that word, but we will use it here for brevity). What will likely happen is our typical work day will run to a staggered quitting time of 5 to 8PM (depending upon the trade or crew), and anything after 8PM would be "quiet" work. This would include activities such as the tying of reinforcing on the ground, stocking the building with materials, interiors work on enclosed floors, etc. Please also note that this "quiet" work will not be restricted to the evening hours, but could also be in effect at the front end of the day as well - the early morning hours - 5 to 6AM or so.

I think the key here will be that if we see anything coming up that could have an impact on noise vs. late hours, we will endeavor to communicate with you for the purpose of communicating to the neighborhood."