vtfan18

I've used this example before. But I really think St Pauls quadrant could utilize something similar to the design shown here in the link below. If you click through some of the pics, you'll see a mixed-use development with business (janus capital headquarters), hotels (jw marriot), restaurants, shops (crate and barrel), and residential. And this section is only four blocks of a much larger master plan in Cherry Creek Denver. Its essentially a much better version of TC in Va Beach. Much more original and urban. TC in Va Beach is nothing but a copy cat of similar developments all over the country like Tysons Corner. But St Pauls quadrant needs to be similiar in being able to attract business and big box retailer names and restaurants. If we had a development like this, we could then bring in a mix of local restaurants and chain restaurants, big name retailers, etc. This is what Norfolk is missing. Who ever heard of a city without the likes of Cheesecake Factory, Maggiano's Little Italy, Morton's Steak House, Barnes and Noble, Crate and Barrel, etc. I'm just throwing out names but you get my point. There's a certain level of amenities and dining/shopping options that Norfolk desperately needs. http://www.claytonlane.com/gallery.html

ODU Engineers = Non-operational Maglev Sorry...just had to take my cheap shot! HAHAHA....

Extension to the navy base would be HUGE! I know so many people who hate driving onto the base because of traffic and so many of those same people get stuck going down hampton blvd.

Exactly...I'd hate to seem them design the entire area around the design of the churches! Come on...we're talking about re-development, not preservation. The churches can stay but other large cities do an amazing job of modern urban design with historic churches and NYC is a great example! If we have another "historic freemason" district design, I will be disappointed!

When is the next meeting? I definitely want to attend!

I think the proposed rail line is appropriate for Norfolk. If we wait around for the entire region to collectively agree on building the rail system, it'll never happen! Let's look at the alternatives, build more roads and highways? Thats not going to happen considering we can't even pass a transportation budget. By the time they ever build another hampton roads bridge tunnel, it'll be too late and we'll need two more to meet demand. Norfolk is smart, people in our region are set in their ways and are old school. They would never welcome a mass rail line bridging all cities. But if they make the project successful, it'll encourage the rest to follow in their footsteps. The rail line allows the opportunity to meet future demand and connect with other lines in the future. Street cars do not provide that type of flexibility considering the eventual longer distances covered.

There are a few units for rent in the building. I know of a corner unit which recently rented for $1600, so its not outrageous, although it was a two bedroom. The rental market downtown will soon pick up speed. Many of the previous apartments converted to condos during the last two years which decreased the supply of rental units.

A small number of people have moved into the building. Mostly those units on the Freemason side and the corner of freemason which was considered phase 1 for release. All units will be substantially complete by Sept 30. A small number of parking spots have been reserved in the garage which gives you a pretty good gauge of the folks currently living in the building. The majority of residents will move in during the month of Sept. They are running about a month behind on scheduled closings right now. Although a few months behind on the projected finish date. Anyway, I've kept pretty good record of the progress of the building from start to finish so I'll post them here soon. I've got pics of when the old commonwealth college building on freemason was getting torn down and when the old garage was getting torn down.

All the more reason to get this thing built! Article discusses how light rail has spurred development around Denver. Exactly what we need to happen here. http://cbs4denver.com/topstories/local_story_234231337.html

Here is a little clip from an article on CNN regarding the housing market. Link: http://money.cnn.com/2006/08/15/real_estat...dex.htm?cnn=yes "Where the strength is Despite all the negative signs, some areas are holding up well. Some of the best performers were in markets that welcomed a large number of Katrina refugees. In Baton Rouge, Louisiana, prices leaped 11.6 percent from last quarter and 27.3 percent from a year earlier. That was the biggest percentage gain of any metro area in the United States. Nearby Beaumont, Texas gained 18.3 percent from a year ago. Other strong markets included Ocala, Florida (up 25.3 percent for the 12-month period), Virginia Beach (23.6 percent) and Gainesville, Florida (19.3 percent). Los Angeles led the nation's largest cities, racking up a gain of 14.6 percent. San Francisco slipped past San Jose to claim the dubious honor of sporting the nation's highest single-family home prices. The median price in the City by the Bay is now $751,900, up 3.4 percent for the past 12 months. The Bay area also claimed the highest condo prices - a median of $647,200 - far higher than second-place Los Angeles ($410,500)."

HAHAHAHA....

Yeah, they pretty much have a monopoly on the business around here. They operate out of their office by the Lesner bridge.

I agree. Whole foods is probably best suited for Hilltop/Great Neck. I even think it would struggle for quite some time at TC.

That was just my mistake. Still two towers proposed. Without getting into too many of the details. I'm going to assume the hotel component is still a go at this point considering I was told there were not very many condo units being designed at this time. The plan would be to build more condos if the hotel component does not work.

I just learned over the weekend that a friend of mine is designing the office space for the Ghent South Tower project. I was also told that preliminary designs for the condos are very close to being completed. The project is still a long way from "breaking" ground but at least they're working on it. I'll keep you guys posted as I hear more...

Thats funny Chesapeake Pirate! I was there too! Got a fancy umbrella out of the deal as well! Anyway, perhaps we should start a 388 Boush topic even though its almost complete. I have a ton of pics showing progress since they started demolishion of the old garage and the old commonwealth college building.

I never mentioned poaching companies from other cities! My point was that in order to increase day time foot traffic downtown, Norfolk needs to increase its business base. Those companies would have been nice candidates. In fact, VB tried real hard to lure Trader away from Norfolk and that was common knowledge in the business world and mentioned in numerous articles! Even though Trader had operations in VB, the headquarters were still based in Norfolk. VB wanted them at Town Center.

Foot traffic is definitely up from what it used to be years ago but definitely not on par with other "major" cities. Norfolk is still a few years away from having a true dowtown presence. More residences will add to the mix but the only way to really increase day time foot traffic is to bring in more business. Trader is a step in the right direction. I know its easier said than done but Norfolk should have tried to lure Dollar Tree into moving its corporate headquarters from Chesapeake to Norfolk. They also should have also tried to get American Funds to move downtown instead of building new offices in Chesapeake. Amerigroup would have been another great downtown candidate for a company's headquarters. They just built two new offices off I-64. They probably did make an attempt but I definitely would have given big tax incentives to lure them downtown.

I hope they get the thing working. It's created some bad press for ODU among citizens and academics. If they were VT engineers, this never would have been a problem! J/K...couldn't help it!

I'm not so sure Granby is losing momentum. Like Vdogg said, the weekends are packed and foot traffic has never been busier. Day time traffic is going to pick up soon too with the addition of the 1000+ jobs from Trader along with all the new downtown housing. 100+ new residents will soon call downtown home once 388 Boush is complete in about a month. The next "large" influx of residents will come when harbor heights is complete. There is a lot that goes on behind the scenes which may cause a tenant not to renew their lease. Or the landlord may have chosen not to extend the lease. Even with great foot traffic and attention, still goes to show that a poorly run business will go under no matter what. ps- I never really did like Jack Quinn's!

There is definitely the potential to make better use of the land. I just hope they realize the need to build up and not out. Hopefully they don't get any crazy ideas to relocate in the st pauls quadrant. As much land as possible needs to be saved for private use. The city jail needs a makeover too.

Yeah, they've been there for a few months now and I definitely like them. It does remind me of the bridge downtown in Miami.

I was told by some engineers on site that folks should start moving into 388 boush by the end of July.

I too am a bit disappointed with the name. Chaulk up another great decision by city council!