Va. Beach Town Center project 2

[hoobo]

June 06 TC Update (pdf)

This is the latest update about TC on the City's website. Here's a quick rundown:

- Westin will be 37 stories (501 feet)

- The parcel in front of the PAC (Block 6E) will have 56 condos on top of 15,000 sqft commercial space the majority of which will go to a McCormick and Schmick restaurant.

- The parcel behind the PAC along Independence (Block 6W) will have 25,000 sqft of retail space.

- The parcel between Westin and Cosmo (Block 9) will start construction in 2012 and finish in 2014. It is slated for 75,000 to 100,000 sqft which is the same size as the Cheesecake block meaning the building will be 3-4 stories.

It's not supposed to be like the plaza building or Cheesecake Factory, is it?

It will be like the Cheesecake building, not 10-15 stories.

Edited June 16, 2006 by hoobo

[vdogg]

The parcel between Westin and Cosmo (Block 9) will start construction in 2012 and finish in 2014. It is slated for 75,000 to 100,000 sqft which is the same size as the Cheesecake block meaning the building will be 3-4 stories.

Is there some sort of disconnect here? The developer stated block 9 would start next year (07) and it's now been pushed back 5 years to 2012? That is one intense delay! Absolutely no mention of tower 2 in that document either? What the hell is going on?

- Westin will be 37 stories (501 feet)

Both the developers website and BBG are stating 512ft so this # may be inaccurate. I know, its only 10ft but i'm anal about this stuff.

I hope all this is just reflecting a shift in emphasis to City Walk.

[vdogg]

June 06 TC Update (pdf)

- The parcel between Westin and Cosmo (Block 9) will start construction in 2012 and finish in 2014. It is slated for 75,000 to 100,000 sqft which is the same size as the Cheesecake block meaning the building will be 3-4 stories.

3-4 stories is lowrise, not midrise. I think the developer said midrise for a reason, I doubt it will be that low. Oh well, we've got until 2014 to figure it all out. Perhaps by then I can take my flying car over and get aerial pics of the construction site.

[vdogg]

Go here and click on the video link. 47 minutes in they give and presentation on the changes to town center. I'm watching right now so I don't know all that was said yet.

[vdogg]

Phew! In the briefing they stated that the 2010, 2012, and 2014 dates were deadlines by which the developer must comply. This means that the developer may start as late as 2012 by agreement without facing penalty, this is not the actual timescale that the developer has given to council. I almost had a heart attack!

[hoobo]

Is there some sort of disconnect here? The developer stated block 9 would start next year (07) and it's now been pushed back 5 years to 2012? That is one intense delay! Absolutely no mention of tower 2 in that document either? What the hell is going on?

Tower 2 is part of Phase 4. That pdf was an update on phase 3. I'd imagine that Phase 4 is on schedule since it is office space and that is what is hot now. Retail and residential are cooling off right now. With a slowing economy and inflation worries, retailers are taking a hit and so may not be as willing to open as many new stores as planned. Since TC has been slow in the retail department that affects Block 9 a lot. Also, since Block 6E is to have a residential component and as vdogg mentioned, there is City Walk that should start up soon, more residential could saturate the market. Then there's the art house component. It seems that a year ago, the stars were aligned for Block 9, but now things aren't looking as good. As for being called mid-rise, the definition is anywhere from 5-10 stories tall, so the current project as it stands looks like a 5-story building. But in 5 years, that could become a 10-15 story building. Still, I doubt they want to block the views from the Cosmo.

[vdogg]

Without Pearl Smith, TC might not exist

The first thing you notice when you walk into Pearl Smith

[vaceltic]

What is the link for that article again vdogg?

[vdogg]

What is the link for that article again vdogg?

It's right above the quote.

Oops Don't know how that happened.

http://www.insidebiz.com/output.cfm?ID=4309184

[urbanvb]

Construction of Daily Grind Unwind at TC is really coming along nicely and appears they should be ready to open pretty soon. Oh, and their website says one is coming to OV as well.

[erdogs]

It also list Portsmouth, downtown on high street.

[metalman]

Where is its location in the TC?

[urbanvb]

Ground floor of the Cosmo building on the west side which faces the Westin.

[vdogg]

Va. Beach Blvd ped. bridge hits another snag

Dashing across Virginia Beach Boulevard at lunchtime, from Town Center to Pembroke Mall, is a test of nerves.

Idling cars stretch across eight lanes. When the pedestrian light says go, shoppers and lunchers walk fast - but not fast enough.

After only a few steps, the light's red hand starts flashing. The pedestrians aren't even halfway across.

"You have to look in all directions, and you have to start before the light changes or you can't make it all the way across," said Mike Nuckols, a lawyer who works in Town Center. "It could be a whole lot better."

A long-discussed pedestrian bridge across the boulevard, between Town Center and the mall, recently got pushed back. The City Council, strained for money, cut the $3.7 million bridge in May from the city's long-range capital plan.

City officials say it is not dead, but they could not say when it will be built.

^^^^They really need to priortize this bridge if they want pembroke to truly feel connected to the rest of TC.

[vdogg]

Plans for the pedestrian bridge were delayed, in part, because of differences between the city and Pembroke Mall, according to e-mails and other documents obtained from the city.

City officials wanted the mall to construct a multi-story building in front of the mall, across from Town Center, to connect the bridge and give pedestrians direct access into the mall.

Mall officials said that was impossible, given lease agreements with a bank and other tenants.

Now, the mall and the city say the bridge could be tied into a new two-story bank that SunTrust Banks plans to build in front of its current facility on Virginia Beach Boulevard. It is not known who would pay to extend the bridge from the bank to the mall.

So suntrust must've renewed their lease when it ran out this year. A little disappointed that they're still there but if the new 2 story structure they build can help get this bridge up then i'm all for it.

[urbanvb]

It's probably a long shot but maybe the bank and city can come to an agreement on financing the bridge. I agree lowering the speed limit is a good start and I am all for having a countdown with longer crossing times. I am glad to hear Suntrust is building a new bank as well as that particular branch is pretty old plus a two story one will be able to accept the bridge to link the mall to TC.

[Padman]

Slowing VB Blvd and improving the crossing would be a very good move. People don't generally like to climb up to a second level to cross a road unless they must. It could be a different situation if there were a more logical connection there, say a crossover from second level shops in a new mall or retail complex to a similar destination across the street.

[urbanvb]

I have crossed the Blvd on a number of times and actually the timing is ok however the signal at the crossing gives the impression one does not have enough time to completely cross the road since it starts blinking about the time you get half way across. The opposing stoplight actually gives those crossing enough time to complete the cross but they don't realize it. A countdown signal is a great idea and I was a little surprised they didn't install those to begin with.

[vaceltic]

I doubt they will ever lower the speed limit on VB Blvd. There is too much congestion during peak hours. Besides, cars on an 8 lane highway will naturally go faster than 25 mph whether the speed is reduced or not...

[vdogg]

I doubt they will ever lower the speed limit on VB Blvd. There is too much congestion during peak hours. Besides, cars on an 8 lane highway will naturally go faster than 25 mph whether the speed is reduced or not...

I really don't see them lowering the speed without employing other "traffic calming" measures first. A simple retiming at key intersections would do a lot to improve that area. If they do lower the speed limit, I think 35 should be as far as they go. 25 would be ridiculous for an 8 lane road and would only serve to impede traffic more.

[vaceltic]

I really don't see them lowering the speed without employing other "traffic calming" measures first. A simple retiming at key intersections would do a lot to improve that area. If they do lower the speed limit, I think 35 should be as far as they go. 25 would be ridiculous for an 8 lane road and would only serve to impede traffic more.

Yeah. Plus, where would they start the speed reduction? You can't just have it begin right after the Independence/Boulevard intersection. It would need to start pretty far east and west of that area to see a significant reduction in speeds. Princess Anne High School helps slow traffic along the eastern side, but I'm not convinced they could make it work on the western side.

[urbanlife]

Pembroke mall is seriously run by cheap idiots.

Anyway, I think they should bury VB and Indy through that (never mind the several billion dollar price tag) think of all the potential developments and park land that could happen on that space.

What? We can dream.

[urbanvb]

There is a cover story on the TC in this week's Beacon in the Pilot. Here are a few things to point out from the article:

* one visitor who has visited VB for 20 yrs was a little dissapointed with the lack of shopping. Further along the article says Blue Taxi (clothing), Daily Grind Unwind and Gordon Biersch brewery are opening this month. Kuhlman and Relax the Back and slated to open later this year.

* 70% of the Comso has been rented out.

* About 62% of the Westin's condos has been sold.

* Divaris envisions a two level retail complex adjacent to the Westin, an area used for the building's construction staging. So much for the mid-rise we thought might be built there.

[vaceltic]

I thought the midrise was planned to be built on the lot east of the Cosmopolitan. The block next to the Westin was always envisioned as a 2-story retail component (theatre) like the ones north of it.

[urbanvb]

The lot east of the Comso is the parking lot which is the future home of the 2nd office tower which will be a high rise, 22 stories I think. The staging area I think they are referring to though is the site of those 2 homes that are still standing in the midst of all the construction.