155 replies to this topic

[renamerusk]

Fort Worth Business is reporting.  Its on! -

 

http://www.fortworth...35fd536105.html

[Jeriat]

Construction to begin next year... 

 

 

 

 

 

[Austin55]

Great stuff! I'm getting excited now!

 

It's a great design, vibrant, exciting and colorful.   Hopefully the whole district follows that lead. There appears to be a skybridge which is a bummer, and I do wish it had retail along Main, but otherwise, this looks amazing. Cant wait to see what follows...

 

300 down, 9,700 to go....

 

 

Edit- This also leads to the "does it deserve it's own thread" conundrum. Seems like a project this big and independent would work better with its own thread, while this one remain about the infrastructure, canals, funding etc of the TRV. 

[AndyN]

It looks good but I'm not seeing any retail component mentioned. I realize this is just the first project of many, but hopefully the developers will embrace the mixed use goals for this area.

[BlueMound]

Fantastic news!

[AndyN]

http://www.star-tele...e109399137.html

 

Proposed 300 unit apartment community scheduled to begin construction in the summer of 2017 with completion 12 months later.

[Dylan]

Those renderings look fantastic!

[johnfwd]

The building design for this apartment community is great!  But I would hardly call a 5-story building a "dynamic vertical growth," as Robert Francis wrote in the Fort Worth Business article.  To me, vertical means a high-rise.  The TRV's master plan has artist drawings that feature some high-rise construction, which I guess means a Class-A office tower or two.  I hope that does happen on Panther Island...for the sake of variety.  Surely the whole island will not be populated by sprawling 5-story apartment housing projects and small-scale retail establishments?

[Austin55]

The building design for this apartment community is great!  But I would hardly call a 5-story building a "dynamic vertical growth," as Robert Francis wrote in the Fort Worth Business article.  To me, vertical means a high-rise.  The TRV's master plan has artist drawings that feature some high-rise construction, which I guess means a Class-A office tower or two.  I hope that does happen on Panther Island...for the sake of variety.  Surely the whole island will not be populated by sprawling 5-story apartment housing projects and small-scale retail establishments?

 

PI has zoning which specifies a minimum and maximum height. Most of the island around N. Main is capped at 6-8 floors, but some areas around the edges allow 20+ floors. I think it's mostly meant to be residential, however. 

 

[Jimmy]

A few questions I have:

 

-Does this mean that Throckmorton will be extended south?  Looking at the map, it seems as if the location of this project isn't currently along Throckmorton, as the plans seem to indicate.

 

-Will construction of the apartments begin before the canal is dug?

[rriojas71]

Really excellent looking project and design. If this is the start then I can't wait to see the other ones start popping up. With the emphasis on "up".

The thing I'm not understanding is the canal running through the middle. If this project is going to be ready in mid 2018 how is the canal going to work when there is currently no Town Lake to connect with. Is it being built with the idea of dredging a canal in the middle of the development 5 years from now? Or is it just going to be a waterless trench until the connection is made.

Something else perplexing to me about the project, which is something that came to mind as I looked at the model and renderings of the entire Panther Island project as well. Who is going to be responsible for all the bridges that need to be built on streets that cross the canal? The developer? The city? TRWD? It just seems like a hidden cost in the project that no one has discussed or brought up.

[Volare]

Not at all a fan of the mandated low-rise nature of this, the most expensive plot of land in the entire city.

[johnfwd]

Not at all a fan of the mandated low-rise nature of this, the most expensive plot of land in the entire city.

Good point.  I'm not against 5-story apartment complexes.  But Panther Island is too valuable a tourist attraction to be wasted on multi-family housing, if such housing encompasses most of the Island.

 

Also wondering...will the annual July 4 fireworks display be affected by these building projects?

[Austin55]

I'm curious what you'd propose as a better use for the land than housing?

[johnfwd]

I'm curious what you'd propose as a better use for the land than housing?

Depending on land availability, two high-rise Class A Office towers, two high-rise condominiums, a major high-rise hotel, the proposed 5-story apartment complex, maybe a public institutional building for arts and culture, and a number of retail establishments, including high-class restaurants with bars...all properly spaced to allow for the river walk.

 

[It would have been great if the legislature had allowed for a public referendum on casino gambling, as I would have wanted the hotel to include a casino.]

[JBB]

Both of these designs would make much better set pieces to the billion dollar flood control project than multi-family housing.

[Jeriat]

It's just the first project. 

I'm more than positive that the "sexy" projects and buildings will come along closer to the river and urban lake, but I think it's ok to have a few multi-family developments here and there, first. 

[rriojas71]

I'm curious what you'd propose as a better use for the land than housing?

Depending on land availability, two high-rise Class A Office towers, two high-rise condominiums, a major high-rise hotel, the proposed 5-story apartment complex, maybe a public institutional building for arts and culture, and a number of retail establishments, including high-class restaurants with bars...all properly spaced to allow for the river walk.
 
[It would have been great if the legislature had allowed for a public referendum on casino gambling, as I would have wanted the hotel to include a casino.]

I agree with Jeriat from his last post... this is just the first step and we will start to see more diverse projects once the area starts to fill in. Also, I don't believe that the entire Panther Island district is going to be strictly residential, but it is definitely going to make up the majority of the development. I think a good amount of the buildings will be multi-use, but I never got the feeling from the renderings and the model that this was going to be anything other than resindential with some mixed use. Class A office towers would be nice, but I don't think that was ever the goal. Maybe it could evolve into that if/when the area becomes a destination.

According to the zoning map and building heights for each zone there doesn't seem to be any high rises planned for the area. 288ft is the maximum height for Panther Island which suggests that taller mid rise towers are all we will get. Something resembling River Tower which is about the max height.

Also, I was at a meeting with representatives from DT FW Inc. recently and they said that there are not going to be any major high rises within the Panther Island district. According to them Downtown is the only area the city will allow high rise construction.

[johnfwd]

When I used the term "high-rise" I didn't necessarily mean a 50-story skyscraper.  As Austin55 pointed out, the area building heights regulations do allow for a 20-story building.  In my estimation, that's a high-rise building.

 

I guess nobody knows what's going to happen to the annual July 4 fireworks display?  Surely, the city won't allow fireworks in the vicinity of residential and commercial buildings.

[Volare]

...  Surely, the city won't allow fireworks in the vicinity of residential and commercial buildings.

 

Especially since, given their high restrictions, they will no doubt be built from cheap wood!

 

It should be housing. It shouldn't be the type of cheap low-rise junk you can find anywhere else in this city.

 

Since we are supposedly building this to become the Vancouver of the South, a little reminder of what that looks like:

 

 

[johnfwd]

I share your concern about high-rise overkill.  One wonders how Vancouver (or, for that matter, Manhattan island) can stay afloat.  I wasn't suggesting all of Panther Island resemble Vancouver.  In fact, our local office and housing markets are not strong enough to support such development.  Just a little variety in size and design of the building projects.

[Volare]

I have no concern for high-rise overkill on PI. In fact my concern is the opposite- a huge lack of areas where mid or high rise building will be allowed under the master plan.

[Mr_Brightside526]

I agree w/Volare. I have no concern for overkill on PI, it's a master planned development, it has the potential to be a proper high density urban core. Areas like Southside and Race St should be the areas with warehouse size living quarters.

[Austin55]

Saw this in TDLR

 

 

New wood construction of 2 (two) multi-level, multi-family apartment buildings with 4 and 5 levels respectively and a 5 level, above ground, concrete parking garage. The building and garage footprint is 90,613 square foot. The buildings will be wrapped with fiber cement siding and metal panel. The buildings will be sprinklered throughout

 

Scheduled start time is listed as October 1st. 

[Jeriat]

Saw this in TDLR

 

 

New wood construction of 2 (two) multi-level, multi-family apartment buildings with 4 and 5 levels respectively and a 5 level, above ground, concrete parking garage. The building and garage footprint is 90,613 square foot. The buildings will be wrapped with fiber cement siding and metal panel. The buildings will be sprinklered throughout

 

Scheduled start time is listed as October 1st. 

 

So... this is what they're sticking with?

[johnfwd]

I guess some of us were wrong when we thought Panther Island would be a tourist attraction along with commercial development.  Tourists will stay away if they think this is an ordinary residential subdivision.  Makes no difference if this multi-family apartment complex has a canal running through it.

 

I'm reminded of the old New York adage, "great place to visit but I wouldn't want to live there."  I hope we don't say this backward about PI...great place to live but I wouldn't want to visit there.

[Jeriat]

It's the first piece of development. I'm not going to go so far as to say that it will be just some "ordinary residential subdivision", and even Uptown Dallas has a few of these.

 

...it's just that, I wouldn't want THIS development right along Main St. It seems like it would be more suitable for one of the side corridors. 

 

I have no problem with Encore, but still, it seems like it would be better next to LaGrave. At least, that's where I'd put it.

[Mr_Brightside526]

As long as it has a flat roof over shingles, I'll take it as "urban by contrast." (see leftbank aerial)

[Austin55]

There's something like 80 blocks on the island itself, and we've only seen plans for 1. Lots of time for new things to come along.

[Austin55]

Groundbreaking set for December.

 

http://www.nbcdfw.co...-438424123.html

[Jeriat]

Groundbreaking set for December.

 

http://www.nbcdfw.co...-438424123.html

 

...man, I completely forgot about this.

[Austin55]

Permits are in. Should be a go very shortly.

[Austin55]

Here's a PDF with detailed floor plans.

 

https://odenhughes-w...chanical_DD.pdf

 

Not much sign of construction yet...

 

 

[Austin55]

Signs and fence are up, at very minimum anyway.

 

[johnfwd]

At the risk of repeating myself from an earlier post, I hope this low-profile apartment complex is not the model for future development on Panther Island.  I hope a variety of buildings, residential, office, and commercial, high-rise and low-rise, populate this valuable tract of land.  But not in the manner of the West Seventh Street development, which has taken on a mediocrity on account of repetitive looking low-rise mixed-use projects.

[John T Roberts]

Hopefully, if there is a good mix of projects, Encore will fit in.  It's also really early to make quick judgments.

[Austin55]

Dirt is turning !

[John T Roberts]

That's good news!

[Austin55]

Dirt is turning !

[Brian Luenser]

Current shot of this project. 

 

[txbornviking]

Current shot of this project. 

 

 

Having Panther Island Brewing as ones "backyard" could be some serious good news/bad news.

Yum.

[Doohickie]

 

Current shot of this project. 

 

 

Having Panther Island Brewing as ones "backyard" could be some serious good news/bad news.

Yum.

 

 

Kind of like people who live in the Miller Lofts (next to HopFusion).

[Austin55]

Officially broken ground

http://fortworthtexa...Panther-Island/

[renamerusk]

Officially broken ground

http://fortworthtexa...Panther-Island/

 

Please leave enough room for Amazon.

[Austin55]

So, with the central lake and canals several years from being completed, anyone else wondering how the canal through this development will work? Will they just leave an empty ROW? Dig a ditch? Build a 100 foot section of it right now and dam it?

[rriojas71]

I also wondered how are the going to go to tunnel under Main Street. Especially with a tunnel that is going to big large enough and deep enough the create a passage for bikers and pedestrians.

[Austin55]

So, with the central lake and canals several years from being completed, anyone else wondering how the canal through this development will work? Will they just leave an empty ROW? Dig a ditch? Build a 100 foot section of it right now and dam it?

 

It looks like they are excavating the canal right now. Guess it'll be a ditch for now.

[Austin55]

Anyone know why this still isn't going vertical? Everytime I pass there's activity but still just turning dirt, 9 months later. I'm wondering if there's contamination issues with the soil or something?

[txbornviking]

Anyone know why this still isn't going vertical? Everytime I pass there's activity but still just turning dirt, 9 months later. I'm wondering if there's contamination issues with the soil or something?

 

If soil contamination is the hold up that pretty much sounds like a death-nail for any other development...

[rriojas71]

Anyone know why this still isn't going vertical? Everytime I pass there's activity but still just turning dirt, 9 months later. I'm wondering if there's contamination issues with the soil or something?

Yeah I thought the same a few weeks back.  I was thinking it had to do with the canal portion... or maybe it's the investors slowing things down due to the uncertainty of the whole Panther Island project.  If it feels like a bad investment then most investors will cut off or slow down funding so they can move that money elsewhere.  Let's hope it's not due to any contamination issues.