johnfwd

Crescent may be more attractive, not so much for its intrinsic value, but the fact that it's closer to the cultural amenities and shopping/eating choices than is Deco.

Over the past few years, some of us thought our downtown was being converted into a residential and hospitality location.  Remodeling of old office buildings into hotels gave us a clue.  The Bluffs and other horizontal apartment projects on the periphery, and the new Deco residential tower, gave further clues.

Now, I read in this thread that our downtown's night life may be waning.  In another thread, I read leasing is slow at the Deco, which is only about a third occupied.  My guess is that more people living downtown means more sales downtown, at lounges and restaurants, if not at specialty outlets and small grocery stores.  I've always found it difficult to find a parking space downtown, so if I lived there, it would be easy to walk to bars and restaurants.

I wish our downtown could attract the office market.  It did concern me that an entire floor at 300 Burnett was vacant.  But the good news for downtown is the growth of the Texas A&M campus.

Believe it or not, the Tarrant County Bar Association occupied the Public Market before the bar association moved into its new headquarters on Calhoun.  Must have been around 2006.  I visited the bar association there.  I remember walking carefully on board planks from one part of the office to another.

Judging by the portfolio of the company, they seem like the type that might be content to sit on them for a while...

Usually, but not often, when lots are re-paved and re-striped, it means they're going stay that awhile for a good while.

 

From Arts Fort Worth: https://www.artsfort...org/arts-center

 

After 22 years of incubating arts initiatives and empowering local artists and performers in Fort Worth’s historic Cultural District, Arts Fort Worth will wind down its management of the Fort Worth Community Arts Center at 1300 Gendy Street. Through its programming and services, Arts Fort Worth created a space for thousands of visual and performing artists to share their voice, deepen their practice, and grow their careers. The galleries, offices, theaters, and studios became vital spaces for the community to gather, produce, perform, connect to and experience the arts

This is bad news.

A large part of my perception of the state of a downtown is the regularity of people traffic.  I have noticed, of late, that the number of pedestrians and the frequency of their presence along downtown Fort Worth sidewalks has increased.  Just this past Saturday, I had difficulty finding a parking place downtown during the early afternoon.  Of course, the night crowd is particularly evident on Fridays and Saturdays.

I read an article the other day about the housing market slowdown in Austin.  Either it's a decline in demand or less supply because of high costs and interest rates.  I'm wondering if Fort Worth, too, is experiencing a slowdown.  An additional concern is that other investors were studying how the Deco tower would fare in terms of market demand.  That very low occupancy percentage at Deco does not bode well for future high-rise residential towers here, at least the short term.

The limelight of Fort Worth is often forsaken by the public at large, many of whom view our city as being "in the shadow" of Dallas.  No pun intended, but news coverage of the solar eclipse mostly highlighted Dallas as the focal point of solar eclipse viewing in north Texas.  For me, the media's Dallas focus was so overdone that I thought there would not be solar eclipse viewing in Fort Worth.  Then I went on Google to see the path of totality across the country.  With all Google maps, Dallas appears first, then you have zoom in to get Fort Worth and Arlington.  So, I saw our city (and Arlington and surrounding communities) was 100% for viewing.  As it turned out, the clouds parted enough to allow us a true period of darkness.

Here's a Dallas Morning News article, posted by MSN, on a planned Class AA office tower of comparatively smaller dimensions in this growing area of the city.

https://www.msn.com/...46235ea58&ei=24

I hope the grass lawn, trees, and sidewalks become a reality.  This, and the new buildings, will perk up a really drab part of downtown.

Rode my bike on the Trails from southwest to downtown, very early this morning.  I saw two pedestrians and two bicyclists along the way, which surprised me.  I guess the feeling of an early spring is increasing outdoor activity.  I also passed what was either a lame dog or coyote.

Yes.  I agree they should be painted yellow for greater visibility, particularly at night.

Fort Worth, Inc. has an interesting article on the diminishing live music scene in Fort Worth.  See link below.

https://fortworthinc...2026E7643790G2W

 I was particularly distraught by the closing of The Twilite Lounge, because our little group would go on Tuesday nights for trivia and karaoke, not just music.  And an attorney friend of mine, who was a frequent attendee, would use this venue to promote fund-raising for area charities.

Maybe this thread should read the next area of Fort Worth that should be revitalized.  My choice would be the west Camp Bowie Boulevard strip from, maybe, Alta Mere to 820.  Of course, this kind of dismal-looking commercial strip is not unique in Fort Worth. But the same could have been said about West Seventh before its 2010-era renaissance.  What brought this to mind was the other day when my client and I had lunch in the vicinity.  My client owns commercial property in the area and he was looking to buy a building for sale.  I showed him the old Gentleman's Cabaret & Restaurant.  He wasn't impressed.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 2024!