^ It seems that the Roberts Bros still own it. We don't have the details yet, but seems likely that new investors have an equity stake.
From the post dispatch:
" UrbanStreet Group, of Chicago, is leading the effort to complete the 25-story tower. Businessmen brothers Mike and Steve Roberts, of St. Louis, began the tower's construction in 2007. Except for a restaurant that went out of business within months, the building has been empty.
The Roberts had hoped to fill the building with 55 luxury condos. Under the lead of UrbanStreet Group, the sleek glass-and-concrete tower is set to get 132 apartments.
Reaching a redevelopment agreement with the LCRA will qualify the tower for 10-year tax abatement."
" UrbanStreet Group, of Chicago, is leading the effort to complete the 25-story tower. Businessmen brothers Mike and Steve Roberts, of St. Louis, began the tower's construction in 2007. Except for a restaurant that went out of business within months, the building has been empty.
The Roberts had hoped to fill the building with 55 luxury condos. Under the lead of UrbanStreet Group, the sleek glass-and-concrete tower is set to get 132 apartments.
Reaching a redevelopment agreement with the LCRA will qualify the tower for 10-year tax abatement."
UrbanStreet Group already has the Roberts Brothers properties on its website.
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Yep. The new news is that the they're getting tax abatement - which was anticipated, but it's another hurdle cleared.
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Updated information in today's Post. Looks good and the added density will be a welcome boost.
http://www.stltoday.com/business/local/ ... 902b9.html
http://www.stltoday.com/business/local/ ... 902b9.html
Great news! From the article: "work should begin in March to put 132 luxury apartments in the tower."
Granted they will have to put a lot of money into these buildings, but man they got a bargin. I would like to see them sell the theater to someone who knows a bit about booking shows, totally under used since re-opening
Also - think about this -
Chemical - 115 units
Arcade - 185 units
Roberts - 132 units
total - 432 new units by 2015
Add that to the existing Paul Brown units, BoE and Syndicate you have over 800 units within about 800 feet of OPO - that is starting to be serious density
Chemical - 115 units
Arcade - 185 units
Roberts - 132 units
total - 432 new units by 2015
Add that to the existing Paul Brown units, BoE and Syndicate you have over 800 units within about 800 feet of OPO - that is starting to be serious density
Arcade - 254beer city wrote:Also - think about this -
Chemical - 115 units
Arcade - 185 units
Roberts - 132 units
total - 432 new units by 2015
Add that to the existing Paul Brown units, BoE and Syndicate you have over 800 units within about 800 feet of OPO - that is starting to be serious density
Chemical - 132
While the downtown residential population is growing, I hope this will signal an uptick in the employment population. I'd guess that the majority of downtown dwellers do not work downtown, which would account for the incredibly sparse traffic on most weekdays (even during rush hours). On top of that, many of the new residences coming online were formerly office buildings (Paul Brown, Chemical, Board of Education, Syndicate Trust, Marquette and dozens more), which explains why the streets and sidewalks are pretty dead even compared to the early 2000s when I used to work downtown. I definitely remember a lot more pedestrian activity on Olive and Locust in the CBD back when I worked in the Metropolitan Square building. Lots of people walking around at lunchtime, and I even remember the downtown bike couriers which I imagine are long gone (although Griffin Delivery recently entered the downtown market).
That said, Washington Avenue is much busier than it used to be, even though it's also more sanitized.
That said, Washington Avenue is much busier than it used to be, even though it's also more sanitized.
I totally agree, such a waste! I'd love to see the Orpheum start screening the Webster Film Series downtown, and become the main venue for the International Film Festival, with the MX theatres and perhaps the Central Library's new auditorium as additional venues.beer city wrote:Granted they will have to put a lot of money into these buildings, but man they got a bargin. I would like to see them sell the theater to someone who knows a bit about booking shows, totally under used since re-opening
I stand correctedstlien wrote:Arcade - 254beer city wrote:Also - think about this -
Chemical - 115 units
Arcade - 185 units
Roberts - 132 units
total - 432 new units by 2015
Add that to the existing Paul Brown units, BoE and Syndicate you have over 800 units within about 800 feet of OPO - that is starting to be serious density
Chemical - 132
The other cool thing about this - Right now the Chemical, Arcade and where SLU Law is going all show up on the class B and C vacancy rolls, which are really high, like almost 30% - those buildings added together are probably around 1 mill SF - will put a dent in that vacancy number - and brokers love those kind of stats in talking about the health of a region.
That be said downtown could easily absorb another 3,000 day jobs, without straining any systems or exisitng SF
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^The last report I looked at (Colliers from a year ago) indicated 27.5 million s.f. of total office inventory (A, B or C, including owner-occupied buildings) in 192 buildings in the Central Business District. Vacancy was 18.7% ... about 5 million vacant square feet.
If you're right in assuming that the Arcade and Chemical buildings have still been counted as vacant Class C space (almost 700,000 s.f. of space), then their renovation could move the combined downtown vacancy rate down by a couple percentage points. Vacancy rates for Class A and B space wouldn't change, but the overall picture might improve.
If you're right in assuming that the Arcade and Chemical buildings have still been counted as vacant Class C space (almost 700,000 s.f. of space), then their renovation could move the combined downtown vacancy rate down by a couple percentage points. Vacancy rates for Class A and B space wouldn't change, but the overall picture might improve.
I just looked up 100 N. Tucker (future SLU Law) and see that it was considered Class B space, about 230,000 rentable s.f. of it. That should make a nice little dent in the Class B vacancy numbers.
As residential space, though, Roberts won't shift the numbers.
As residential space, though, Roberts won't shift the numbers.
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Does anyone have a good sense about this Chicago company's track record? The Post-Dispatch article is surprisingly unhelpful in this regard. Website says they've been around since 1996. On the other hand, their portfolio is awfully modest, and news articles suggested that they fumbled the redevelopment of the tower on Wabash in Chicago.
It's hard not to think that they might possibly be in over their heads with so many properties in downtown St. Louis.
It's hard not to think that they might possibly be in over their heads with so many properties in downtown St. Louis.
They're not "in over their heads." They're priority is the tower and they'll get it done.
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UrbanStreet bought the building on Wabash for $6 million, failed to get financing for a renovation, and then sold it to Virgin Hotels two years later for $14.8 million. I suspect the project was just too big for them, and the timing wasn't good for the financing. It sounds like they now have the cash to finance Roberts Tower themselves.
From the Business Journal last November:
"UrbanStreet has developed a handful of properties in Chicago as well as one in Indiana, while North American has developed and managed more than $4 billion in real estate and manages nearly 5,500 apartment units and 4.2 million square feet of retail space. The partners are financing the Roberts project internally."
http://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/prin ... l?page=all
From the Business Journal last November:
"UrbanStreet has developed a handful of properties in Chicago as well as one in Indiana, while North American has developed and managed more than $4 billion in real estate and manages nearly 5,500 apartment units and 4.2 million square feet of retail space. The partners are financing the Roberts project internally."
http://www.bizjournals.com/stlouis/prin ... l?page=all
In the meantime, I hope UrbanStreets takes proper measures to mothball the other Locust Street properties -- in particular 919 W. Locust, which had its windows removed as the Roberts planned to demo it for a new Hotel Indogo. It's been open to the elements for 3+ years now. I'd like to see what this building has under its ground-level 70's-shell.
And I don't imagine it'd take too much to get my favorite downtown three-story (well, two-and-a-half) -- 921 W. Locust (also was up on the chopping block by the Roberts) back into shape for a bar/restaurant lease. With that faux (?) Tudor facade, it's just screaming for an English pub with a darts parlor on the second floor.
The Rusty Nail? Houndstooth? Downtown Abbey?
And I don't imagine it'd take too much to get my favorite downtown three-story (well, two-and-a-half) -- 921 W. Locust (also was up on the chopping block by the Roberts) back into shape for a bar/restaurant lease. With that faux (?) Tudor facade, it's just screaming for an English pub with a darts parlor on the second floor.
The Rusty Nail? Houndstooth? Downtown Abbey?
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From the article:downtown2007 wrote:Updated information in today's Post. Looks good and the added density will be a welcome boost.
http://www.stltoday.com/business/local/ ... 902b9.html
...Chris Grus, a real estate agent who focuses on downtown, said that even with the large number of new apartments in the pipeline, demand was likely to keep up with supply for the next three or four years. The Roberts Tower’s sleek style, floor-to-ceiling windows and party room should lure renters looking for luxury, he said.
“The open-glass look is something we don’t have in downtown St. Louis,and I think it will catch on,” Grus said. “When people live downtown, they want amenities for the premium price that building will fetch.”...
It will be very cool to see the pipeline projects fill up in the next few years and then see more high-rises constructed. Assuming the trend of slow but steady progress on the national economy, look for the last half of the decade to be a good time for downtown infill.
this!
As Burk stood last week on the tower’s penthouse level, he said the “excitement” of downtown was “fantastic,” adding that lack of “density is your biggest issue here.”
Completely OT:stlgasm wrote:The streets and sidewalks are pretty dead even compared to the early 2000s when I used to work downtown. I definitely remember a lot more pedestrian activity on Olive and Locust in the CBD back when I worked in the Metropolitan Square building. Lots of people walking around at lunchtime, and I even remember the downtown bike couriers which I imagine are long gone (although Griffin Delivery recently entered the downtown market).
That said, Washington Avenue is much busier than it used to be, even though it's also more sanitized.
I like your nuanced perspective on downtown's transformation. It seems that generally it is hailed as a great success in urban redevelopment, or denigrated for being crime filled and reliant on government subsidy. But clearly the transition from day-time employment center to residential neighborhood has some more subtle and significant effects.
Would you say that the lunch/day time crowd has suffered in the last decade and that the evening and weekend crowd has improved (just in terms of activity)? Have family friendly attractions like City Garden and City Museum off-set any of the business oriented amenities of the late 90's early 2000's (in terms of daytime activity)?
I remember downtown basically being boarded up except for Gus's Fashions (RIP). Although I was generally only down there on weekends during the day (wasn't old enough to go to the Wash. Ave. club scene), and while we would venture around DT, most of our time was spent in the Union Station arcades and movie theater.
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My only experience with downtown living was in the first half of 2003 and my god was it a ghost town, especially on weekends. Good luck trying to buy a Sunday paper (yes, people used to read papers back in the day) except from a hotel lobby. From my perception, downtown as a whole has come so far since then but it is probably true that downtown does have fewer workers. I wonder what the weekday daytime population comparisons are between 2003 and 2013.
Relatedly, on another thread, Alex and I had a discussion about how downtown Cleveland could have 2 CVSs and we have none and that he thought no way they had the same daytime population. My response was I thought as a former Clevelander that the mistake on the lake did have a comparable if not greater population and that it never seemed to be desolate like I felt about Saint Louis at times. But driving around downtown last week, it also came to mind, "Where are the core nodes of downtown Saint Louis?" It seems like things are spread all around, while in a city like Cleveland, there seem to be particular core nodes with high daytime foot traffic.... for example Public Square and lower Euclid (CVS is at E. 9th and Euclid) which can help sustain business.
I can see OPO becoming such an area, but its not quite there yet on a consistent basis. The Roberts Tower and Arcade will help for sure.
Relatedly, on another thread, Alex and I had a discussion about how downtown Cleveland could have 2 CVSs and we have none and that he thought no way they had the same daytime population. My response was I thought as a former Clevelander that the mistake on the lake did have a comparable if not greater population and that it never seemed to be desolate like I felt about Saint Louis at times. But driving around downtown last week, it also came to mind, "Where are the core nodes of downtown Saint Louis?" It seems like things are spread all around, while in a city like Cleveland, there seem to be particular core nodes with high daytime foot traffic.... for example Public Square and lower Euclid (CVS is at E. 9th and Euclid) which can help sustain business.
I can see OPO becoming such an area, but its not quite there yet on a consistent basis. The Roberts Tower and Arcade will help for sure.
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I would say yes to both.wabash wrote:Would you say that the lunch/day time crowd has suffered in the last decade and that the evening and weekend crowd has improved (just in terms of activity)?
It's crazy how much nicer Washington Avenue is now than it was when I was started working downtown (99). The MX, the Laurel, the Renaissance Hotel and all the loft developments have really transformed Washington into something to be proud of. It used to be so desolate, which is really hard to believe. Whenever I'm downtown on a weekend evening, I'm always struck by how bustling it is now - it's wonderful.
The renovation of older office buildings like the Paul Brown and Century have added lots of life as well. On the other hand, the Chemical Building was still an active office building and the Jefferson Arms was a fully occupied senior apartment building. It was cool to have the Mercantile Library downtown before it moved to the UMSL campus.
Cupples Station has been a rousing success. Firms like Peabody and Stifel have expanded downtown. Then again, we've lost Armstrong Teasdale, Ernst & Young and Husch, to name a few. IMO, the biggest loss was the May Company headquarters. The Railway Exchange was such an active, interesting building while May and its hundreds of employees were there.
It seems to me that the residential market is doing so well that it will take care of itself. The focus needs to be on the office market now. Hopefully the many startups in incubators like the TRex will continue to grow and open permanent offices downtown. Perhaps we can continue to lure new businesses like Hudson's Bay and Unisys. And maybe we'll attract some new tenants from elsewhere in the region, like LarsonAllen. We just need more tenants and more workers at this point.
I agree that OPO is becoming a "core node". I think Washington (running west from MX), Olive (running west from Macy's), and Spruce (running west through Cupples Station) have the best potential for becoming the kinds of dense destination streets you're talking about. A few more businesses, especially on Olive or Spruce, would go a long way.roger wyoming II wrote:"Where are the core nodes of downtown Saint Louis?"... I can see OPO becoming such an area, but its not quite there yet on a consistent basis. The Roberts Tower and Arcade will help for sure.
debaliviere wrote:It seems to me that the residential market is doing so well that it will take care of itself.
Hopefully to some extent the residential market will also "take care" of the office market. Just in that having 10-12,000 people living downtown will enable the types of amenities (ie Culinaria) that businesses increasingly (or at least should) want to be near.