Las Colinas/North Irving Development

[Kelley USA]

I will agree with you that town-homes is more desirable than another bland stick and stucco apartment complex, which several of you on here champion, but this is the complete wrong spot for it! Adding 85 town-homes does very little to assure the sustainability of the Urban Center. Considering there are at least 5 additional apartment complexes in the planning phase, the thought of Water Street and The Music factory going away anytime soon just isn't a reality. These developments will attract people far from the Urban Center which will keep them successful for decades to come. I'd rather wait 5 years and hope for an office tower on this lot which would actually do significantly more than town-homes.

[tanzoak]

*Pssst* You guys. Most DFW townhouse developments are just as bland and blah as your typical midrise. They just hold fewer people.

[joshua.dodd]

I'd personally like to see more office towers rising here as well. But that will come in due time. With the residential development, at least it is bringing people and life here.

[Waldozer]

*Pssst* You guys. Most DFW townhouse developments are just as bland and blah as your typical midrise. They just hold fewer people.

The development we are talking about is, to my understanding, a similar build to the one on the other side of Lake Carolyn Parkway. I've toured these townhomes. They are not bland or blah.

[tanzoak]

My point was that the aesthetic appeal of the development has nothing to do with townhouses vs midrise. You can (and do) have bland townhomes just as often as you have bland midrises.

I think it's perfectly legitimate to say "this is a central part of town and an important location, we should push for some high-quality design!" But again, that's not equivalent to saying we need townhouses.

I'm also not particularly blown away by the design of that townhouse development you mentioned. It's fine, but nothing to write home about imo.


Looks to have the same design aesthetic/quality as this place near where I live:

[tanzoak]

That midrise is subsidized low-income housing, by the way. It's what happens when the city demands design.

Though tbh the lack of design review is a godsend for TX, and I wouldn't recommend the tradeoff.

[Waldozer]

That midrise is subsidized low-income housing, by the way. It's what happens when the city demands design.

Though tbh the lack of design review is a godsend for TX, and I wouldn't recommend the tradeoff.

You live in low income housing? That's fine, I've lived in low income housing before. Those townhomes are actually quite beautiful. Those Zillow pictures don't do them justice at all. Before the first phase sold out, they had real photographs on Zillow, not CG and Google Earth style images.

[tanzoak]

You live in low income housing? That's fine, I've lived in low income housing before. Those townhomes are actually quite beautiful. Those Zillow pictures don't do them justice at all. Before the first phase sold out, they had real photographs on Zillow, not CG and Google Earth style images.

No, I said I lived near that development, not in it.

The point was that the product type doesn't define the quality. Defining the options as between blah midrise and nice-looking townhouses is a false choice. There is plenty of equally-attractive midrise.. architects don't suddenly lose their skills, and it can be in a variety of material not just stucco.

Maybe you prefer townhouses there, and that's fine. But it's not because that's what you have to have if you want quality.

[Kelley USA]

I'm not sure how close they actually are, but the Hidden Ridge project is till progressing forward...

https://www.dallasnews.com/business/rea ... ward-start

[I45Tex]

Quite close, if this determination's projected dates are still good:

https://oeaaa.faa.gov/oeaaa/external/se ... 161&row=10

[muncien]

I found some proposals for the expansion of the Las Colinas APT system in the documentation for next weeks city counsel meetings. It looks like they intend to have the APT deviate from it's previous route through the center of the properties along Las Colinas blvd, and instead run along the median of Las Colinas blvd with a station at the Irving Music Factory and the ability to continue towards the convention center and hotel (presumably).
Jump to page 171-173 of the following document for details. Unfortunately, I have no luck in attaching the images directly to the forum...
http://www.cityofirving.org/DocumentCenter/View/26106
Of course... who knows if/when this will ever happen as I don't see that funding for this extension has been obtained yet.

[Kelley USA]

Hey Muncien, that was actually from the May 4th council meeting.... Not much was really said regarding the expansion. I think that would probably still be several years away. If I'm being honest I'm not sure how I feel about having the APT elevated running down Las Colinas Blvd. I think visually speaking it wouldn't be very attractive. I would prefer a landscaped median instead. I'm open to the idea, just wondering how it might look. I know the goal is to eventually connect it with the Convention Center which would be great!

[muncien]

Oh, right... got my dates mixed up. My bad.

I tend to agree with you. I like the concept of grade separated personal transit, but the APT is waaaaaay to bulky in it's current configuration, and this proposal actually makes it more of a monstrosity with it's massive sky bridge and such.
Instead, Las Colinas needs to have more pedestrian friendly crossings to allow folks to safely enjoy walking the area as opposed to soaring above it.

I've gotten to the point that I wouldn't be disappointed to see the APT die a slow death. It's unfortunate, but I just don't think it's current configuration is suitable for it's purpose.

[tamtagon]

I'm not sure Irving could line Las Colinas Blvd with enough trees. I like the people mover hugging the development rather than the road....

[dfwcre8tive]

It's a good idea to upgrade and extend the APT to this development and the Convention Center (and even onward to the DART station), but that median station with skybridges is overkill. The benefits to the current APT layout is that it integrates so well with structures (and is for the most part hidden). It could have been placed along the roofs of the Music Factory for better effect.

[muncien]

It's a good idea to upgrade and extend the APT to this development and the Convention Center (and even onward to the DART station), but that median station with skybridges is overkill. The benefits to the current APT layout is that it integrates so well with structures (and is for the most part hidden). It could have been placed along the roofs of the Music Factory for better effect.

I did see that they are adding a step over at the Clock Tower Station to allow direct transfer from one car to the other without having to exit > go downstairs > cross under tracks > go upstairs > and reboard... That was always cumbersome. The fact that you were just a few feet from where you wanted to be to begin with just made it more annoying.
That improvement was funded and will be completed later this year from what I saw... maybe Q1 of next year.

Something similar at any potential MF or Convention Center station (shouldn't they share a station?) would allow for that proposed station to be drastically downsized as you could then board and cross all on one level.

[Kelley USA]

So I guess Legacy Partners opted not to build their 17+ story apartment tower on Lake Carolyn Las Colinas. The site as of yesterday now has a "For Sale" sign on it... Oh well!

[TXGunLover]

More feet dragging on Whole Foods. No hiring going on, and the corporate HQ now reports "perhaps this fall" as an opening date, per an email inquiry.

[muncien]

More feet dragging on Whole Foods. No hiring going on, and the corporate HQ now reports "perhaps this fall" as an opening date, per an email inquiry.

I was wondering what was going on... All activity seemed to stop a couple of weeks ago. I really don't see how it's more financially beneficial to not open the store once you've already built it and are paying for it. Very weird... Curious if this is a sign of bigger issues for Whole Foods in general.

[TXGunLover]

They definitely have big issues. I wouldn't be surprised if they go belly up before it opens.

[Kelley USA]

On another note, it looks like The Music Factory has added 2 more tenants... Top Round Roast Beef (seems like a very odd place for this) and Nosh & Drink (maybe a wine place?).

[muncien]

https://www.dallasnews.com/business/real-estate/2017/06/14/new-apartment-community-kicks-near-irvings-music-factory
Looks like JPI should be breaking ground in the near future on their Jefferson Eastshore Apartment complex. This will leave only one or two developement sites east of Lake Carolyn available assuming the other recently mentioned projects kick off soon. I think the lot next to Lakeside Urban Center is the only one that hasn't been spoken for.

The Jefferson Eastshore apartments will be built near the Irving Convention Center and the new Music Factory entertainment and retail complex.
The 286-unit development is off Northwest Highway and has access to DART's commuter rail line connecting Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and downtown Dallas.

[TXGunLover]

Whole Foods presented to the city they'd open in October.

[Kelley USA]

I did see a number of trucks out in front of Whole Foods this morning, so they must still be working on something inside. October would seem reasonable giving them time to hire management and staff and get them trained.

[Kelley USA]

It's a go!! Pioneer will kick off the Verizon Hidden Ridge development.

http://www.bizjournals.com/dallas/news/ ... l-for.html

[muncien]

Looking at the agenda for Thursday's city counsel meeting, it appears that city staff have recommended 'denial' for the zoning request to allow town homes on that property at O'Connor and Lake Carolyn parkway. They list a litany of reasons (shown below) that we already brought up here, plus some.
Following the minutes from P&Z, it appears they recommend approving the zoning change. So, I'm not really sure where this will go. Perhaps KELLY USA can provide some insight. But, hopefully the counsel deny the request for the reasons listed by staff...

The property is currently zoned “TOD General Plan” for mixed uses, and is part
of an overall TOD General Plan that allows multifamily uses on Phase 1 (the
adjacent property to the south) and Phase 2 (the subject property). The TOD
General Plan defers most of the nonresidential “mixed use” requirements to
Phase 2 (this subject property).
b. The City Council approved this TOD General Plan – along with the TOD
Detailed Plan for Phase 1 – on the assumption that this subject property would
contain the bulk of the retail and other nonresidential components for the overall
mixed use development, as stated in the TOD General Plan. This also included
significant public open space at the corner of Lake Carolyn Parkway and
O’Connor Boulevard. The City Council also approved the higher density
residential uses due to the proximity of the adjacent DART rail station and to
help support not only the proposed retail uses on this property but also help
energize demand for retail at other nearby properties.
Density. The TOD district requires a minimum of 60 units per acre on property
nearest to a transit station, such as this property. The density of the proposed
development is approximately 19.81 units per acre.
d. Parking. A total of 192 parking spaces are being provided, including 170 garage
spaces (2 spaces per unit) and 22 on-street parking spaces within the 34-ft wide
private street paving.
The applicant’s unit mix includes 68 units that are 21 feet wide or less, including
16 units that are just 16 feet wide. Based on the width of these units, these
garages will have to be designed as tandem spaces (one car parked directly
behind another).
e. Public open space. The current request shows 2,356 square feet of “open
space” within the development which will include trees and park benches with
trash receptacles. However, this will not be accessible to the general public.

[Tnexster]

Groundbreaking next week for Pioneer Natural Resources new Irving HQ

https://www.dallasnews.com/business/rea ... -irving-hq

Developer KDC will break ground next week for its more than $100 million Irving campus for Pioneer Natural Resources.

The 10-story office project will be the first phase of the $1 billion Hidden Ridge development in Las Colinas.

The Pioneer complex is part of the more than 150-acre mixed-use development located west of State Highway 114 and will open in 2019.

[muncien]

^^^
I saw the mowing the grass in preparation about an hour ago... This one will be fun to watch.

[Kelley USA]

Can't wait to see Pioneer take shape! With regards to the town homes, they pulled it from the agenda yet again. It will come before council in about 2 weeks now. I think they're worried they don't have the votes to get it passed so they're trying to do some maneuvering.

Anyone else concerned about the Irving Music Factory? This thing is supposed to open in 2 months and it looks like they have a TON left to do. They started taking down the blue fence covering so now you can see right into the property which is cool. They also started pouring some of the concrete for the streets inside the complex.

[Waldozer]

It'll only partially open for September. The rest won't be finished for several months.

[muncien]

I know they've been on a roll with IMF... Schedule certainly seems tight, but I don't see a lack of work or weather being a cause. Both of those seem to be non-factors. If they don't make it, it's probably more an issue of project planning.
I assume many of the restaurants won't be open for the first concert, but I'm sure they knew that already. I've been surprised before by how much they can knock out in the end, so I'll give them the benefit of the doubt for now. But, its certainly going to be close...

[Kelley USA]

The goal is to have 3 or 4 restaurants open for Labor Day weekend... That's going to be tight considering some of the spots just now have drywall, not to mention getting a staff hired and trained. The majority of the restaurants will roll out into November and December. I was speaking more just about the Pavilion. I'm sure they'll get it done if it means having to work 24hrs. I think the restaurants they're aiming to get open for Labor Day are Bar Louie, Thirsty Lion and perhaps YardHouse.

[NdoorTX]

https://www.dmagazine.com/commercial-re ... etter-day/

[Tnexster]

Nice looking building

[Kelley USA]

I love it! That's a big campus for sure.

[Tnexster]

Houston firm to build $39M 'signature bridge' near former Texas Stadium site

https://www.bizjournals.com/dallas/news ... -near.html

The signature bridge, which is composed of five bridges that merge into one bridge, will span State Highway 114, giving the 78-acre city-owned development site direct access to a proposed Dallas Area Rapid Transit rail station.

Irving's Chief Development Officer Doug Janeway said the bridge is a critical piece to a number of properties, including the Texas Stadium site.

"This will open up the entire area and create a direct link to the property from (State Highway) 114," Janeway said in a previous interview.

The new bridge will replace the famed Texas Plaza Drive Bridge, which was torn down in 2010 to make way for the expansion of Highway 114 and Loop 12 by the Texas Department of Transportation. At that time, Irving also added the DART Orange Line to the city’s landscape.

The bridge will also give the former Texas Stadium site access to a yet-to-be developed DART rail station, tentatively called the Loop 12 Station, and give pedestrians the ability to safely cross Highway 114.

[flyswatter]

Can't get past the paywall, but to me it sounds like a literal bridge to nowhere and a waste of money unless they have someone seriously interested in developing the sites on both sides of 114. That area is totally barren of people and buildings right now and this bridge could quickly become an embarrassment if built with no firm plans of development.

[Tnexster]

I get the impression that the bridge is being put in place to encourage development. Kind of a "build it and they will come" strategy. It is scheduled to start in September.

[TXGunLover]

One more useless misuse of taxpayer money just like the Dallas bridge fiascos. How about fix the roads in Las Colinas instead or kill all the welfare programs draining the city south of Northgate.

[R1070]

Las Colinas Blvd in the older part of the development is absolutely terrible.

[Kelley USA]

Billy Bob Barnett has teamed up with Restaurants Unlimited to open 5-6 venues at the Music Factory... I guess I'll just have to wait and see how these pan out. Restaurants Unlimited also operates Henry's Tavern in Plano and operated the now closed Palomino's in Uptown.

https://www.dallasnews.com/business/res ... ic-factory

www.bigbeatdallas.com

[Tnexster]

$200M Irving Music Factory project coming 'down to the wire,' for Labor Day opening

https://www.bizjournals.com/dallas/news ... wn-to.html

[Kelley USA]

It looks like all the permits were issued in the past 2 weeks for the Valencia Texican Court Hotel (across from the ICC). So, we might see this getting underway in the next month or so.

[Tnexster]

This looks every bit as nice as Legacy West, maybe even better with the added green space and access to light rail.

Verizon unveils plans for new Hidden Ridge corporate magnet in Irving's Las Colinas

https://www.bizjournals.com/dallas/news ... ridge.html

[Tnexster]

Opportunity

With Pioneer's looming departure, Irving's Williams Square sets stage for big relocation, expansion

https://www.bizjournals.com/dallas/news ... liams.html

[Kelley USA]

Nothing really new regarding the Verizon plan... Most of, if not all the info in the article has previously been published. The only difference is I noticed the retail / restaurant portion was increased from 60K sq ft to 80K sq ft. I'm not sure if that's an indication as to how well they think leasing will go or the feedback they've already received from potential tenants. I would say it does look as nice as Legacy West, but I can't see the retail being near as successful or drawing the same type of tenants.

[Tnexster]

There is a ton of residential that is also tied to and connected to other parts of LC by rail so maybe the retail will surprise us here.

[Kelley USA]

A couple of notes today.... Survey crews were out on the site of the Texican Hotel Development planting some sticks today. As I mentioned permits have been issued for this project. Also, The Shops of Las Colinas is going before P&Z tonight requesting a tree removal application for the project. Definitely sounds like this one is creeping towards getting underway soon!

[Kelley USA]

As if on cue, a construction fence is going up around the site of the Texican Court Hotel... I'm actually pretty excited about this one. It'll be nice to have a boutique hotel right in the area. I can see it becoming a very popular place to stay.

[muncien]

Earth Moving is in full force on Pioneer site. Extensive clearing and grating already well underway for the office portion. Meanwhile, the retail/residential/DART station area are untouched. If I'm not mistaken, that was due to some verbiage requested by the city that insisted the office start before anything else does. I know it's nonsensical, but I believe it was done to keep the 'NO MULTI-FAMILY' people at bay...

Man... Gone for two weeks and the whole neighborhood is changing.