UrbanFuture

Going vertical party? Ha, how about "We're actually going to build something on this site" party. Jeez, what a delay nightmare. These developers must have some serious F.U. cash to sit this long.

Define close proximity. Charlotte is one of the only places I've been which is considered a city where 6 blocks = too far to walk. In New York, Chicago, LA, DC, etc, I'd happily jump at the chance to live anywhere within 12 blocks of my desired cultural destination. Also, the light rail, (I feel like you can't say train in this city without fear of being struck by lightning) is able to deliver people from 10 miles out almost to the doorstep of the place as well as the upcoming Wachovia cultural complex, all of the existing museums, convention center, stadiums (current and future), Nascar Hall of Fame, etc etc etc. Assuming Charlotte will push through and build at least one or two more lines of the light rail then you have even more people, if they will take mass transit, that essentially live in close proximity of the cultural center. The residences that define or will help define a cultural landmark should be top tier, it adds to the value and the lifetime of the venue. Programming and events will attract whatever demographic it wishes in a downtown central business district that is becoming more and more accessible to people outside and on the outskirts of downtown.

the architecture is beautiful, looks like one of those shiny new gleaming residential buildings in SimCity. Charlotte needs more developers who push design and ingenuity over the suburban ideals like "must get more space, will sacrifice everything for more space" which leads to buildings full of 300-400 units. These are great and we still need them, but as several UP posters ahead of me pointed out, diversity is necessary. I actually want to live in one of those 300 unit buildings, but I would hate to see all of Uptown turned into vertical people warehouses. Way to go Donnelly.

Seeing the crane up definitely helps put the horizontal size of this project in perspective. Knowing that crane will have to go much higher before its all over ...

The parking deck for all 3 buildings on this block is going in the corner closest to the Panther's stadium from what I understand. They definitely have to start on this before they get too far along with Catalyst because they need to have it up and functioning for any move-in's / closings to occur at Catalyst for residents. The way the site looks now I'd say that office building will be the last one started, not necessarily finished, but that space would aid in the staging for Twelve since logic would argue that Catalyst would already be out of the ground, the deck soon to follow, and Twelve being the largest project on the site. hmmm... I just wish they'd change the website already.

slightly new rendering on Novare's site.

Unfortunately, most likely not. That development is not dense enough to warrant or support its own village atmosphere, Gateway Village is much more of what you are thinking of. Furman has 12,000 sq ft of retail in his plans the last time I checked. Unfortunately I worry that we will see the same slew of businesses that inhabit the street level of most midrise mixed use in Charlotte right now; Drycleaners, nail salon, small businesses etc. that don't enable a self sufficient micro niche. On the other hand, everything you would need to survive/thrive is walkable, so while not in the actual block that makes up the Quarterside Development, it and several other buildings in Uptown are approaching the point where owning a car if you work and live in the city is optional.

I have a unit at The Quad in Quarterside. Furman and staff are saying late spring 2008 for move in . They also are admitting that Trademark walk throughs and closings are slowing them down. I guess they underestimated the back end of the schedule for Trademark. As far as contract concerns, I'm not too worried overall. They are staying within their budget, at least on the exterior from what I've heard. Just moving incredibly slow for a wood framed building with an incredible dry streak for weather. They should've had at least the Quad framed or close by now. It looks like they are waiting on floor trusses before they go the next floor up on the Quad. Back in contract they were saying they were just going to build the Row and sell at market prices since the Quad and Ledge sold well. I'm not sure if they changed their minds in the last year or so though. EDIT: I was running out the door this morning, didn't actually respond to the post. Pros: - Inside of I-277 - Walking distance to the Square, Epicenter, Bobcats, Nascar Hall of Fame (didn't know that at the time), Next door to post office, walking distance to future light rail, walking distance to Met Midtown, walking distance to government district, walking distance to grocery (Reids), Etc; - Out of Uptown price point for Inside of Uptown address; - Well known local developer. - "Urban Village" feel of mixed use - Retail in ground floor - Not all of the condos in one building Cons: - Wood framed building (purely for the noise aspect) - Pool is only included on The Ledge building (the biggest one) - Busy developer (lots of open projects right now) - Limited parking for amount of condos & retail Overall the Pros far outweighed the Cons for me personally for this particular purchase. Hope that helped.