The Ellis – 33 Floor Apartment Tower – Lennar does what Levine couldn't.

[uptownliving]

[Blue_Devil]

Any news on the Hotel section?

[QCxpat]

Today 11:10 a.m.

Edited November 23, 2020 by QCxpat

[Blue_Devil]

This one is turning out pretty cool. 

[KJHburg]

The Ellis looking good.

Today. 

[DMann]

Don't you just want to straighten the windows?

[Hushpuppy321]

On 11/19/2020 at 8:59 AM, Blue_Devil said:

Any news on the Hotel section?

Hotel is dead.  Pandemic gutted the hotel industry.  We will be lucky if they try to restart construction on this location within the next two (2) years.

[DH17]

On 11/24/2020 at 2:15 PM, DMann said:

Don't you just want to straighten the windows?

I had never noticed until you mentioned....   

[gman430]

[videtur quam contuor]

Can anyone here comment from personal experience of living in a concrete apartment/condo building compared to a wooden frame/stick built structure regarding sound transmission, vibration or other unpleasant factors inherent to building material?

This project offers both which brought my question.

Edited November 29, 2020 by tarhoosier

[Matthew.Brendan]

Concrete is superior in practically every measure.

[tozmervo]

^ yup, the mass of concrete will significantly reduce sound transmission from above and below. Really good wood frame detailing and construction can be perfectly fine, it just rarely gets the quality treatment needed

[j-man]

23 hours ago, gman430 said:

Thank you for giving us these amazing photos on every thread every now and then. You really capture them in the best way that we all love to see and it also helps us see all the areas that need to be developed around the subject of each photo. Hopefully the North area can see growth that would match the south side of Uptown. Thank you! 

[QCxpat]

Today 11:00 a.m.

Edited December 2, 2020 by QCxpat

[CharlotteWkndBuzz]

The Ellis needs another tall friend  around First Ward park.  Those top 7 levels or so at the Ellis look like they have some pretty cool floor layouts and views!  That whole area in general is a long-term work in progress and First Ward park doesn't have the gravitational pull or vibe as Romare (yet)...but this project if a great start.

 

What was the verdict on that Market St again?  Pedestrians only or will it be open to cars as well?  Ped only, that area has potential to be something special being right off the light rail and park.

Edited December 2, 2020 by CharlotteWkndBuzz

[QCxpat]

Today 12:10 p.m.

Edited December 9, 2020 by QCxpat

[cltheel.sdl]

I appreciate what this development is doing for the north side of uptown.  That being said, can we all just be honest and admit that this tower is ugly as hell?

[JacksonH]

26 minutes ago, cltheel.sdl said:

I appreciate what this development is doing for the north side of uptown.  That being said, can we all just be honest and admit that this tower is ugly as hell?

I live in San Diego and a number of residential towers have been built downtown in the last five or six years and they ALL look like that, so I'm becoming immune to the  look.  Yes, you're correct about that, but at least you only have to look at one!

[KJHburg]

I actually like it for it is somewhat Jenga style but not as much as this tower in Austin.  But in a city of bland apartment towers I think it is pretty easy on the eyes.

 

[cltheel.sdl]

I think my opinion has more to do with materials and just the mesh of the different sections rather than the "jenga" style, per se.  I quite like that Austin building since it is all glass and seems to flow well.  But I think we have the red-headed stepchild version here (no offense to the ginger people).

1 minute ago, cltheel.sdl said:

I think my opinion has more to do with materials and just the mesh of the different sections rather than simply the "jenga" style, per se.  I quite like that Austin building since it is all glass and seems to flow well.  But I think we have the red-headed stepchild version here (no offense to the ginger people).

 

Edited December 10, 2020 by cltheel.sdl

[RANYC]

11 hours ago, cltheel.sdl said:

I think my opinion has more to do with materials and just the mesh of the different sections rather than the "jenga" style, per se.  I quite like that Austin building since it is all glass and seems to flow well.  But I think we have the red-headed stepchild version here (no offense to the ginger people).

 

Sunbelt cities are hilarious.  

• If one gets an aerial view of Charlotte, you'll see ample land still remaining for densification, even in what we believe are our most urban and dense areas of town.  The idea that builders must now go 30+ stories vertically just to house people is amusing, imo.
• I'm amazed that there's a market for a 30+ story apartment building here. 
• I'd question whether stacking humans in this way is ever really optimal or appropriate.  Extreme vertical living is typically forced or borne out of space constraints, e.g. an extraordinary demand for oceanfront or bayfront or Signature Park views in a fairly restricted space, and so the best way to deliver the hotly-demanded amenity is to stack the market.  No such amenity exists with the Ellis, as far as I can tell.
• I lived in the heart of Manhattan for 14 years, and of the 5 places I occupied in that time, the tallest building was 18 stories.  If I could have lived in a high-quality Manhattan townhome, I most certainly would have chosen it.  Manhattan dynamics are very peculiar, not just for an American city, but by international standards as well.  The idea that Charlotte should now encourage and celebrate these types of projects at this stage in its urbanization/densification is a bit unfounded.
• I think largely single-use high-rise residential projects like this are doomed here in Charlotte for quite a while, post-COVID.  I speculate that the Ellis will be the last one we see for a long while, perhaps a generation.  I'm a bit more sanguine about high-rise mixed-use experiences like that of the FNB tower.
• If I'm proven wrong, I'll be quite ok with that.

[CLT>___]

10 minutes ago, RANYC said:

Sunbelt cities are hilarious.  

• If one gets an aerial view of Charlotte, you'll see ample land still remaining for densification, even in what we believe are our most urban and dense areas of town.  The idea that builders must now go 30+ stories vertically just to house people is amusing, imo.
• I'm amazed that there's a market for a 30+ story apartment building here. 
• I'd question whether stacking humans in this way is ever really optimal or appropriate.  Extreme vertical living is typically forced or borne out of space constraints, e.g. an extraordinary demand for oceanfront or bayfront or Signature Park views in a fairly restricted space, and so the best way to deliver the hotly-demanded amenity is to stack the market.  No such amenity exists with the Ellis, as far as I can tell.
• I lived in the heart of Manhattan for 14 years, and of the 5 places I occupied in that time, the tallest building was 18 stories.  If I could have lived in a high-quality Manhattan townhome, I most certainly would have chosen it.  Manhattan dynamics are very peculiar, not just for an American city, but by international standards as well.  The idea that Charlotte should now encourage and celebrate these types of projects at this stage in its urbanization/densification is a bit unfounded.
• I think largely single-use high-rise residential projects like this are doomed here in Charlotte for quite a while, post-COVID.  I speculate that the Ellis will be the last one we see for a long while, perhaps a generation.  I'm a bit more sanguine about high-rise mixed-use experiences like that of the FNB tower.
• If I'm proven wrong, I'll be quite ok with that.

Construction goes vertical to maximize the developers profit for the land area they have purchased. There is a lot of open space in uptown but Lennar does not own it. If the market will support a 30 story apartment building why would you build a 6 story apartment building on the one plot of land you own?

[RANYC]

Just now, CLT>___ said:

Construction goes vertical to maximize the developers profit for the land area they have purchased. There is a lot of open space in uptown but Lennar does not own it. If the market will support a 30 story apartment building why would you build a 6 story apartment building on the one plot of land you own?

Yes, I'm aware of the profit math on vertical construction (margins grow as you go up), but I'm challenging assumptions about how deep such a market is and whether we should envision and plan for Uptown's residential future as one that includes many such Ellis's.

[CLT>___]

4 minutes ago, RANYC said:

Yes, I'm aware of the profit math on vertical construction (margins grow as you go up), but I'm challenging assumptions about how deep such a market is and whether we should envision and plan for Uptown's residential future as one that includes many such Ellis's.

I believe most people on this site push for high-rise construction because it is exciting to see the skyline grow. I think if we are all honest with ourselves it may be better to get more infill projects of mid to low-rise size that would help fill in some empty areas and provide more street level engagement in uptown. 

[RANYC]

2 minutes ago, CLT>___ said:

I believe most people on this site push for high-rise construction because it is exciting to see the skyline grow. I think if we are all honest with ourselves it may be better to get more infill projects of mid to low-rise size that would help fill in some empty areas and provide more street level engagement in uptown. 

On this we are most assuredly in agreement.