Brian Luenser

Here is my construction video of the two years constructing this Huntley apartment complex. I droned it weekly so this is really a "Best Of" video. 

https://youtu.be/Y0MKDqBfOu0

I'm going to the Paul McCartney concert tonight! I got a resale ticket on Ticketmaster for $400 the other day.

Surely the most significant musician in a century.   Might be worth $400 to be in the same room with him.  There surely has been a lot of Beatles kind of documentaries as of late. Love them all for sure. 

Since the Hilton Hotel Annex has started construction, it made me think about all of the buildings built in the city that were designed with the ability to have more floors added on top at a later date.  Over the course of time, some of these buildings eventually had the upper floors built and they are still standing.  Others did the expansion, but the buildings were later demolished.  Another set of buildings never were expanded vertically and they were eventually demolished without the additions ever happening.  The last group are the buildings that are still standing, yet the planned floors to be added on top were never built.  Below is a list of such structures in the city.  I know that I have missed some, so as I remember them, see photographs of them, or come across the information, I will add it to the list.  Also, if some of you know about these buildings, please add them to the list.

 

Baylor Scott & White All Saints Medical Center 1994 Addition - Built at 4 stories; designed for 7 - Expanded to 7 stories in 2006.

 

Bewley Building - NE Corner 7th & Throckmorton (Sanguinet & Staats) - built at 3 stories in 1907 and designed for an unknown number of extra floors; planned expansion in 1910 for 3 more floors; actual addition of 2 floors; demolished in the 1970s at 5 stories.

 

Biltmore Garage/Hilton Hotel Annex – 815 Commerce – built at 4 stories in 1928; designed for 15 floors; expanded to 13 stories and upper floors built as hotel in 1968.

 

The Cassidy – 407 Throckmorton – 2 level underground parking; designed for 22 story residential; built 6 stories of retail/office/residential penthouse in 2014.

 

Old Civil Courts Building – built at 5 stories in 1958; designed for 10 stories; demolished in 2013 at 5 stories

 

Dunn's "Mansion" Garage/500 Commerce - built at 3 stories in 1924; designed for 6; completed top 3 floors in 1935.  Partial 7th floor added in 1990.

 

Equitable Savings Association – 811 Lamar – built at 3 stories; designed for 10; demolished in 2002 at 3 stories.

 

Fort Worth Press – 501 Jones – built 1 story designed for 2.  Expanded to 2 stories.

 

Fort Worth Public Library - 9th & Throckmorton - built at 3 stories in 1939; designed for more floors to be added on top. Demolished in 1990 at 3 stories.

 

Fort Worth Public Library – 3rd & Lamar – built 2 stories underground in 1978; designed to be expanded above grade; 2 floors added on top in 1994.

 

Fort Worth Star-Telegram Building – 400 W. 7th St. – built 4 stories designed to handle more floors – Today is still 4 stories, but expanded multiple times horizontally.

 

John Peter Smith Hospital Main Entrance Building - built at 2 stories; designed to handle more floors, possibly 12 total; building is currently 2 stories.

 

Lone Star Gas – 908 Monroe – built at 4 stories in 1929; designed for 7; completed at 7 stories in 1957.

 

Leonard’s Department Store – West side of 200 Block of Houston St. - built 3 stories in 1930; designed to be 9 stories; demolished at 3 stories in 1979.

 

Meacham Field Terminal Building - built at 2 stories; designed for 5; remodeled and expanded to 3 stories in 2015.

 

Medical City Fort Worth's ER and Patient Tower - 800 9th Ave. - Built and opened in December 2018 at 3 stories; designed for 7.

 

Miller’s Mutual Insurance – 900 Monroe St. – built at 2 stories; designed for 4; completed at 4 stories in 1946 and is still standing.

 

Monnig's Department Store - 500 Houston St. - Monnig's took over the block of three story buildings one by one.  These buildings were built in the early 1900's and were not designed to have more floors added on top.  By the 1950's, the store needed two more floors.  They were added by reinforcing the foundation of the buildings and retrofitting the existing structure.  The two floors were added on top of all of the buildings and they were demolished at 5 stories in 1991.

 

Mutual Savings and Loan – 815 Throckmorton St. – built at 6 stories; designed for 11; demolished in 1998 at 6 stories.

 

Parker-Browne Co. - 1212 E. Lancaster - built at 3 stories in 1924; designed to have more floors added.  Currently 3 stories.

 

Public Safety & Courts Building - 1000 Throckmorton - built at 4 stories in 1938.  I believe it was designed for 10 stories.  Currently 4 stories.

 

Red Cross – 2nd & Taylor – built at 2 stories; designed to handle more floors; demolished at 2 stories.

 

Sanger-Harris/Foley's/Macy*s Hulen Mall – built 2 stories; designed for 3; currently 2 stories but expanded with a one story addition on the east in 1990.  Third floor exterior walls are already in place.  The building appears to be 3 stories from the exterior.

 

Sanger Brothers Building - 515 Houston St. - built 8 stories in 1925; designed for 10 stories.  Currently still at 8 stories.

 

Sanger Lofts – 410 Houston – built 5 in 1929; designed for 8; currently 6 stories

 

Stripling’s Houston Street Building – SE corner 2nd & Houston – built 3 in 1910; designed for 7; 1918 completed at 7 stories; demolished at 7 stories in 1979

 

Southwestern Bell Telephone/AT&T Building – 1926 Building at 11th & Throckmorton – built at 3 stories; designed for 8; in 1929, 3 stories were added; in 1965, two more floors were added bringing the building to full height of 8 floors.  In 1949, an addition to Southwestern Bell was built in the center of the block, immediately to the north of the 1926 building.  It was built at 4 floors and designed for 12.  In 1965, 4 more floors were added on top, and in 1971, another 4 stories were added.  The building currently exists at 12 stories.  In 1958, a 9 story building expanded the complex to Houston Street.  It was designed to eventually be 16 stories.  In 1965 2 more floors were added on top, and finally in 1971, the building was expanded to its full height of 16 stories with a five story addition. 

 

Southwestern Bell Telephone/Texas A&M Law School – 1515 Commerce – built 2; designed for 16; currently 2 stories.

 

St. Joseph Hospital – 1401 S. Main – 1959 Addition – built at 5; designed for 12; completed at 12 stories in 1965 and demolished in 2012.

 

Tarrant Savings/Star-Telegram Classified Bldg. - 5th & Taylor (Hedrick & Stanley) - built at 4 stories & basement; designed for more floors to be added; demolished in 2009 at 4 stories.

 

Mrs. Dan Waggoner Bldg. - NW Corner of Houston and 6th - built at 4 stories, designed for 9, completed at 9 stories and demolished at that height in the 1970s.

 

Western National Bank/Houston Place Lofts - 910 Houston - built at 6 stories in 1906; designed for 8; top 2 floors added in 1918.  A partial 9th floor was added at some later date.

 

Woolworth Building – 501 Houston – built 3; designed for 10; currently the building is 3 stories.

 

I am not including the old Continental National Bank in this list because it was a special circumstance with the halting of construction of the building during the Korean War, partially completing it, then resuming construction with a new taller design and digital clock.  If you want more information on its history, you can check out the building page on the main site.

I have printed this whole listing as it is amazing.  I am going to take this list and head out for a walk.  

I do think these apartments have a killer view of downtown and are on the river.  The rents seem reasonable to me for these reasons, along with the appeal of living in a brand new apartment. Surely not being walkable to anything but a Shell station is not great, but if I was not very mobile it would be perfect. (elderly, in a wheel chair, no interest in nightlife etc...)  I really like these apartments.   Now that being said, I have never lived in an apartment. In fact have not rented even for one day of my life. Lots of people are renting these days for sure.  Surprising as they are giving away money.  

 

Maybe I'm a bit cynical and I'm sure there's no disputing the structural issues, but that reports reads about like I would expect if the building owner asked the engineer for something that best justifies demolishing the building.

 

The same thing happened with the smokestacks at the old North Fort Worth/TXU Power Plant.  The structural report on that demolition would have led the average person to think that the only alternative was the removal of the smokestacks. 

 

I sure miss the smokestacks from the old power plant. 

Nothing like having the great view of downtown from within panther island brewery to a view of a parking garage wall.

Sure enough. I wondered that same thing. I have lost my great view a few times in my life. I make sure it can't happen again. I was once thinking about a condo in Montgomery Plaza on the 8th floor looking toward downtown. But 10 years ago, all the land between Mont. Plaza and downtown was up in the air and I was afraid they would build a 10 story building between me and downtown. 

A quick update shot on this project.

 

 

The other buildings surely do change the direction of the hood.....

 

 Instead of the Left Bank, it looks like the first crop of residential high rises are going in what might be colloquially called the "Right Bank"; and that is not to mention the new apartments @ Pier One Tower that escape my memory at the moment.  Unexpectedly, this is turning out to be desirable area for a mix of residential projects.

 

I agree that this can become a desirable area but there does need to be some form of retail somewhere in the area (where you don't have to cross Henderson) besides 7-11 and Taco Bell.

 

No doubt.  Maybe as the people move in that will spur more retail. 

A current shot of this project.  Has sure been a lot of work to get to this point.   

Today's construction pic.  Will not be very exciting until we see some floors cooking.   

Want to buy at the tower? 

 

https://www.dallasne...h-landmark-sale

This was a pretty silly article as this building is not for sale. (I know that because I am not selling)  It is just the commercial space, or a very small part of the total building. And this is not the first time in the last 8 years it has sold to new owners. 

Definitely good news.

 

Maybe they added a few slides to their investor presentation for the 1000 W. Weatherford St. and the 901 Commerce St. projects, and it made this feel less risky.

The other buildings surely do change the direction of the hood.  The Worth would definitely look less out of place now and in fact become the perfect fit.  

I have been watching them scrape a house off of this "Worth Residence" lot today.  

Or give Fort Worth a second look.  Panther Island still is in need of a White Knight to come to the rescue. 

 

If only our Leadership had made a sincere effort to bring Amazon to Fort Worth.

I really think Fort Worth put out the exact right amount of effort in attracting amazon.  They worked hard on it without spending $$$ for what seemed like a bit of a longshot. And really, a bit of a longshot just on the number of potential cities named as possibilities. I was at the debrief of the Amazon attempt at a council work session two weeks ago and saw that the effort to snag Amazon was greater than I had believed. In the process, they learned quit a bit about bring big companies in. Already benefitting us in the recent acquisition of the 1.2mm square foot Black and Decker tool factory.  (This is what that Fort Worth Amazon acquisition team told the council in that meeting.)  The Black and Decker announcement is just grand for Fort Worth including 300 good paying jobs.

Will always be grateful that we were smart enough not to fall for the streetcar trap.   Why go back in time more than a century and pay for it with a city strapped for cash and already taxing their residents more than all but a few jurisdictions in Texas.  Add to that a city they would be clogged with wires and tracks and construction of all the above, and they made a wise choice backing away from the whole deal.  TEXrail? Actually meaningful transportation.  A smart choice.  (And goes faster than I can run)