Two story dream home in Lavaca priced to move quickly. Completely renovated home sits on large lot and features a contemporary kitchen with Bosch appliances, tankless water heater, insulated walls, spray foam insulated attic and sub-floor, high efficiency HVAC system, new concrete pier foundation, new electric system, new plumbing, and more. Private master suite upstairs is stunning with cedar added to mimic exposed rafters. Seller renovated 123 Panama and many others in Southtown. Come take a look.
Click on the photo for more pictures and information about the home.
This op-ed piece was recently posted in The New York Times. I see San Antonio moving in the direction he speaks of with our city, county, and VIA electing to move forward with their light rail plans and also with the continued work of the HemisFair Park Area Redevelopment Corporation as they finish their master plan that will lay out the future renewal of HemisFair.
The Death of the Fringe Suburb
By CHRISTOPHER B. LEINBERGER Published: November 25, 2011 in The New York Times
DRIVE through any number of outer-ring suburbs in America, and you’ll see boarded-up and vacant strip malls, surrounded by vast seas of empty parking spaces. These forlorn monuments to the real estate crash are not going to come back to life, even when the economy recovers. And that’s because the demand for the housing that once supported commercial activity in many exurbs isn’t coming back, either.
By now, nearly five years after the housing crash, most Americans understand that a mortgage meltdown was the catalyst for the Great Recession, facilitated by underregulation of finance and reckless risk-taking. Less understood is the divergence between center cities and inner-ring suburbs on one hand, and the suburban fringe on the other.
It was predominantly the collapse of the car-dependent suburban fringe that caused the mortgage collapse.
Every year I look forward to attending Artpace’s Chalk It Up. Each year they are successful in showcasing great artists, providing a venue for budding child artists, bringing life to Houston Street, and overall creating a great space to visit.
Yesterday Mother Nature threw them a curve ball with some of the strongest rains San Antonio has seen in months. Below are a few shots I took.
Come Out this Friday to help support La Tuna Grill and buy some Brisket Tacos ($3) along with Chips & Queso ($3). Also, will be selling $5.00 Raffle Tickets with a lot of Great Prizes. Dont Forget CASH ONLY! Hope to see you there! Your support is APPRECIATED, donations welcome! 5pm-10pm.
The event will be held at La Tuna to support the rebuilding of La Tuna Grill that was recently destroyed by a fire. Come down and show your support for local businesses! I’ll see you there.
I drove down Broadway this morning after having my car washed at The Wash Tub and passed by the start of construction on The Mosaic on Broadway. The Express-News wrote about the project last week. Below is their article.
I’m excited to see even more residential construction along the Broadway corridor. This site is near The Pearl and Sam’s Burger Joint. If VIA moves forward with the Mayor’s suggestion there may soon be a light rail line running from The Pearl down to HemisFair Park. All good things for San Antonio’s growing center city.
More downtown residents expected with Mosaic project
Mixed-use Mosaic will add 120 residential units to growing tally.
It’s going to become a bit easier to find an apartment near downtown in the coming year.
Next week, work will begin on the Mosaic, a mixed-use development that is expected to add to the Midtown urbanization that is occurring around the northern stretch of the San Antonio River Walk.
I’ve recently opened my own agency and today the new signs are out. Let me know your thoughts on the new (albeit temporary) design. I’m working with my Graphic Designer on a whole branding and design package. More to follow.
Drove by the intersection of Cesar Chavez (Durango Blvd) and Labor St this afternoon. This picture shows they are well on their way to hosting tomorrow’s inaugural Farmers’ Market. The event begins at 3pm and goes to 7pm. They plan to have the market every First Friday of each month. This will be a wonderful addition for Lavaca, Southtown, and all of Downtown.
The vacant building at 1221 Broadway now has new life. The first residents began moving in on Friday. Welcome new neighbors!
New life for longtime eyesore
First residents are moving into a long-unfinished, mixed-use development on Broadway.
By Valentino Lucio – San Antonio Express-News Monday 8/1/11
The 1221 Broadway Building is seen in this Friday July 29, 2011 aerial pictures. I-35 is seen at the left of the frame going top to bottom. US 281 is seen at the top of the frame going left to right. Photo: Express-News, WILLIAM LUTHER
After sitting vacant for half a decade, the 1221 Broadway now has signs of life as its first apartment residents began moving in on Friday.
On its opening day, 72 people had signed leases and only five units were left.
The mixed-use project, which has an industrial urban style, will be released in five phases, and the first four are expected to be on line by October, said David Adelman, a principal at Cross & Co., which controls a partnership that owns the property.
The last phase, which will be a commercial front along Broadway, is expected to be completed by February. Those spaces will house the leasing office and could possibly accommodate a restaurant, Adelman added.
If you’re new to my blog or haven’t really been following the recent media about downtown redevelopment this is the perfect article for you. In this week’s Current writer Michael Barajas has written a very strong article defining the key players, the issues, and the history of the push for increased downtown development and revitalization of HemisFair.
I highly recommend reading this very well written and researched article. Thanks for writing it, Michael.
Will efforts to revitalize the city core draw locals back or simply extend the Disneyfication of the River Walk?
By Michael Barajas
Published: July 20, 2011
HemisFair Park Area Redevelopment Corporation CEO Andres Andujar Photos: Michael Barajas
Justin Arecchi remembers brainstorming with local developers and pioneers like Hap Veltman and downtown jazz staple Jim Cullum for hours at a stretch at the long-since shuttered Kangaroo Court restaurant and bar along the River Walk. A popular topic was how to make downtown world-class, a vibrant place for locals to live, work, and play. Even during those 1970s-era chats, Arecchi and the gang kept returning to one central issue, one that still swirls about today’s discussions as millions in taxpayer dollars pour into another round of planning to revive downtown. “We’d each get on top of our soapboxes to make our pitch,” Arecchi said. “And what was clear is that even back then, we all thought we just needed more people living downtown.”
Construction begins tomorrow on Steel House Lofts apartments and it could possibly bring a restaurant from La Gloria’s owner, Johnny Hernandez. I’m really watching the SoFlo area transform into the next great place to live in downtown. I completely agree with Hernandez’s quote, “I see that neighborhood really coming to life in the next couple of years.” I have several friends that call SoFlo home and are happy to see the area become the next hot spot.
Earlier this week I attended the Centro Partnership’s first Downtown Strategy Workshop that is working to fulfill the Vision 2020 desire for increased downtown living. A lot of discussion was had about the great opportunities for development and revitalization in the neighborhoods that edge downtown. Steel House Lofts is a great example of what our city needs to satisfy our desire for increased urban living.
Steel House Lofts project
Construction on rental units will begin Monday.
By Valentino Lucio
San Antonio Express-News Sunday July 24, 2011
Renderings for the Steel House Lofts, located just south of downtown near South Flores and Alamo streets. Photo: COURTESY PHOTO Alamo Architects
Construction will begin Monday on the long-awaited Steel House Lofts, a project that will turn a nearly 100-year-old building that once housed iron and steel into a modern living space just south of downtown in the South Flores area.
Austin-based developer Dennis McDaniel bought the 73,000-square-foot building in 2006 with the idea of creating condos and townhomes. But the collapse of the economy and the real estate market put that plan on the back burner and the plan then morphed into rental units.
