39 replies to this topic

[Austin55]

branching this off the Southside Developments thread,

 

Bryan Flats - 451 & 455 Bryan Ave

Going before UDC seeking a few waivers

 

 

 

The applicant requests a Certificate of Appropriateness for a waiver from the Near Southside Development Standards and Guidelines for the following items:

 

a. A recommendation to the Board of Adjustment for Construction within the 3’ minimum rear setback;

 

b. A recommendation to the Board of Adjustment for building height (roof terraces, elevator lobby, stair access, etc.); and

 

c. A waiver from the requirement to provide pedestrian entrances to ground floor units.

The project has a whooping 95 units onto a fifth of an acre (perhaps the densest building in the entire city). It does this by packing 20 micro-untis per floor, each of which are under 280 sqft. There's a rooftop patio overlooking downtown and S. Main. The project contains no parking. How very urban!

You can view the UDC packet here.

[roverone]

Those really are quite micro -- like 2/3 the size of some of the smallest downtown hotel rooms.

[Stadtplan]

So we're talking somewhere between a dorm room and an efficiency apartment.  I'm assuming they each will have a small bathroom with shower and kitchenette?  Is the space labeled "L+K" for lounge and kitchen?

[rriojas71]

I like the concept however I don't know if the time is right for these types of units in FW.  Most cities that build this type of apartment building are places that are dense and where land is at a premium.  Something that FW offers neither of; especially in that area of town.

[Jeriat]

I like the concept however I don't know if the time is right for these types of units in FW.  Most cities that build this type of apartment building are places that are dense and where land is at a premium.  Something that FW offers neither of; especially in that area of town.

Could be nice for college students... This is kind of a midway point between TCU and Wesleyan.

[Stadtplan]

The NEZ Applications for 451 and 455 (from 2018).  

[Austin55]

Bryan Lofts has hit TDLR. 95 units for $7M!

https://www.tdlr.tex.../TABS2022015250

[txbornviking]

with a heavy focus on micro units I wonder if this will turn out to have a heavy VRBO/AirBnB type focus once opened

[Stadtplan]

Would they be required to pay a H.O.T. (Hotel Occupancy Tax)?

[steave]

I like it! The only thing is no parking.

 

Given the location and absence of parking, I wonder if the primary audience for something like this would be a retired or disabled person who is not necessary qualified for government subsidized affordable housing but needs something similar.

[elpingüino]

with a heavy focus on micro units I wonder if this will turn out to have a heavy VRBO/AirBnB type focus once opened

Fort Worth doesn't allow short-term rentals in residential areas, so the city ordinance would have to change first
https://www.fwweekly.../home-or-hotel/

[rriojas71]

 

with a heavy focus on micro units I wonder if this will turn out to have a heavy VRBO/AirBnB type focus once opened

Fort Worth doesn't allow short-term rentals in residential areas, so the city ordinance would have to change first
https://www.fwweekly.../home-or-hotel/

 

That is coming to an end very soon.

[Doohickie]

Fort Worth doesn't allow short-term rentals in residential areas

 

doesn't "allow"

 

There are Air B&Bs all over the place.
 

[Urbndwlr]

That isn't a residential are, so AirBNB would be allowed?  Have had a few friends who have owned and have mostly adjusted to longer term leases b/c of labor intensity of operating the AirBNB (frequent cleaning).   Havent heard of an apartment building that has put a bunch of them in but admittedly I havent been searching for them either.

 

And now a hotel is on the way just off South Main, which has been missing. 

[JBB]

Rules governing short term rentals like VRBO and AirBNB are wildly inconsistent between cities and inconsistently enforced in cities.  I imagine more owners than not get away with it as long as they stay low key and aren't used for hosting large parties.

[elpingüino]

Top story in the Fort Worth Report today,
Neighborhood coalition rallies against short-term rentals, sends recommendations to Fort Worth council

[Stadtplan]

Top story in the Fort Worth Report today,
Neighborhood coalition rallies against short-term rentals, sends recommendations to Fort Worth council

 

What if you were to replace the words "short term rental" with "recreational use marijuana?"  It would read nearly the same as far as how this argument is framed.  I'm not saying that I'm advocating for either one, but it's the classic case of: do we legalize something that's already seen as only mildly illegal, then tax the crap out of it?  Is this another form of government opportunism?  Seems like a weak case to even present the hotel occupancy tax comparison at this point with only 20 registered short term rentals on the books.  I thought STR's were illegal according to the city ordinance? So then why is it they are 20 uber-honest, registered short term rental owners paying the H.O.T.?  Maybe I'm just having trouble following the logic here.  The STR owners are just going to pass a H.O.T. onto the customer just like every other business. 

[Stadtplan]

Bryan Lofts has hit TDLR. 95 units for $7M!

https://www.tdlr.tex.../TABS2022015250

 

https://accela.fortw...ShowInspection=

 

Record PB22-05850: 

Commercial New Building Permit

Record Status: Plan Review

 

Project Description:

Bryan Flats

R-2 dormitory with Sleeping Units

 

CONSTRUCTION INFORMATION

Total Job Value: $7,000,000

Total Square Footage: N/A

Estimated Cost: $4,500,000

Housing Units:94

[johnfwd]

Can someone explain what the difference is between a short-term rental and a "bed and breakfast?"

[Stadtplan]

Can someone explain what the difference is between a short-term rental and a "bed and breakfast?"

 

Not sure if this answers your question completely, but perhaps sheds some light on it.  Perhaps the answer according to the comptroller is there is no difference unless someone is staying longer than 30-days.

 

Who has to collect hotel taxes?

 

A hotel's owner, operator or manager must collect hotel taxes from their guests. For the purposes of the state tax, a hotel is considered to be any building in which members of the public rent sleeping accommodations for $15 or more per day. Local hotel taxes apply to sleeping rooms costing $2 or more per day.

 

The tax covers hotels, motels, and bed and breakfasts, as well as condominiums, apartments and houses rented for less than 30 consecutive days. Hotel tax does not apply to hospitals, sanitariums, nursing homes, student dormitories operated by colleges and universities, or condominiums, apartments and houses leased for more than 30 consecutive days.

 

https://comptroller..../airbnb-faq.php

As of May 1, 2017, Airbnb began collecting and remitting the 6 percent state hotel occupancy tax on Texas short-term rentals booked through the Airbnb website.

[elpingüino]

I've continued the conversation about Airbnbs in its own thread here, https://www.fortwort...?showtopic=7378

[Presidio Interests]

Just to clarify, the design intent/business plan for Bryan Flats is not for short term rentals. 

 

It is a slightly different housing typology than what has been historically offered in Fort Worth, but has been built in various forms successfully in other cities.   I think we could benefit from more types than just a ton of 1 and 2 BR apartments that are essentially identical.

 

This is admittedly a niche of the housing market, and won't work for everyone, which is okay.  I would not expect to see a lot of the small studio units appear all over the place since they are challenging to design, build, and finance and they require a very specific kind of location to work well. 

 

One of the things that has made the Near Southside so interesting for the last 20+ years is that it has offered affordable places to live, which has been important to its creative and interesting spirit.  Most apartment buildings that used to be pretty cheap have sold in recent years.  The new owners, who had to pay a lot for those buildings, can't afford to keep them as cheap as they used to be.

 

The goal of this project is to offer a nice-looking, well-designed* building in the best, most walkable location for lower total monthly cost vs typical newer apartment buildings in the Near Southside.  The location is important: it is possibly the best location in Fort Worth for a good % of residents to realistically get around to many daily destinations by means other than car (cycle, walk, scooter, transit).  S. Main Village is within 1-1.5 miles (< 10 min bike ride) of tons of employment (NSS & Downtown) and growing higher ed (TX A&M, TCU Med, TCC).  We do expect many/most residents will own cars, but likely some will not.

 

Finally, it will bring another 94 residents to the heart of the S. Main village, adding support for the street-level retail, restaurant and bar businesses with more customers who arrive on foot.  I think that is a good thing for an urban neighborhood to not have to import so many of its customers by car to succeed.

 

*I hope people like it and that its design and materials age gracefully over many decades.

[rriojas71]

I noticed that the site has construction fencing around it and may possibly break ground soon.  I really hope more buildings like this get built.  I think not having dedicated parking will make these a bit more affordable.

[Stadtplan]

There's been a lot of activity on their building permit application:

 

I thought this letter from the city was interesting (excerpt) regarding the dwelling unit counts:

 

Dwelling units count in this project

 

Dwelling unit as a main use is defined in Article 9 of the Zoning Ordinance as...

DWELLING UNIT. A building, or any portion thereof, containing a complete set of independent living facilities for occupancy and use by one family, including permanent provisions for living, sleeping, eating, sanitation and cooking within a kitchen for the exclusive use of the occupants whose intent is to habitat the dwelling unit (main use).

 

It is my professional interpretation that, in this unconventional form of dormitory/multifamily, a dwelling unit as a main use shall be counted as the kitchen and all sleeping units depending on it, and the corridors necessary to reach to it. Access to permanent facilities for cooking -alongside with other areas for sleeping, sanitation, etc.- is the key determinant that allows for the structure to be able to provide independent living. Also, a dwelling unit (main use) can be any portion or arrangement of the overall structure.

 

Therefore, for the project described above, I am able to determine that the project is comprised of five (5) dwelling units as main use, as described by the Zoning Ordinance, and ninety-four (94) sleeping units or dwelling units as accessory use.

 

Thus, for the purpose of the calculation of the city Neighborhood and Park Dedication Fees, the above mentioned project contains five (5) dwelling units.

 

 

 

[rriojas71]

I was at Funky Picnic this weekend and the more I thought about the site the more I realized that they probably have it fenced is to have to a location nearby for building material storage for the new retail/commercial building going up on S Main and Peter Smith.   Maybe I'm wrong but I didn't hear of any news of a ground breaking on Bryan Flats.

[Presidio Interests]

Rriojas71, you are correct that the fenced lot at Crawford & E. Tucker is being used for material storage/staging for our Bryan Flats project.

Our general contractor, Fort Construction, leased it from the property owner during our construction.  

 

We didn't hold a ground-breaking event.  We usually don't do them.  While I, personally, am open to them, it always feels premature to me to celebrate starting construction when the the more meaningful milestones are when the building opens, when residents move in, and especially when residents tell you that they're happy.

 

The dwelling unit topic gets into some fine grained nuance of IBC, which might put everyone to sleep.

 

We're excited about the continued positive evolution of the South Main Village:  1) more residential density, 2) more interesting street retail, 3) the improvement of the South Main underpass, 4) the arrival of a hotel (assuming it is designed and operated well).

 

On residential density: the immediate SMV neighborhood really needs an increased number of people living (ideally) within a 5 minute walk to sustain and support an economically viable, more complete street-level retail environment (including rest, bar, & day-to-day offerings like bodega/market*).  These three new projects are not enough to get the neighborhood to the promised land.  We'll need more residential units over time which hopefully will include some additional typology diversity a bit such as townhouses, for-sale condos, and 3 BR units designed for multi-gen families, etc.

 

 

*I'd love to see the existing bodega on South Main thrive and expand b/c of so many residents within walking distance use it daily/weekly.  If anyone hasn't been in there yet, I'd encourage you to visit them - they have a good deli, some groceries, etc.

[rriojas71]

Rriojas71, you are correct that the fenced lot at Crawford & E. Tucker is being used for material storage/staging for our Bryan Flats project.

Our general contractor, Fort Construction, leased it from the property owner during our construction.  

 

We didn't hold a ground-breaking event.  We usually don't do them.  While I, personally, am open to them, it always feels premature to me to celebrate starting construction when the the more meaningful milestones are when the building opens, when residents move in, and especially when residents tell you that they're happy.

 

The dwelling unit topic gets into some fine grained nuance of IBC, which might put everyone to sleep.

Well I applaud this development and hope your project succeeds.  I understand your comment about not doing a ceremonial ground breaking.  I was trying to say that I had not heard that it was "officially" moving forward and the project had broken ground.  Usually people on here are on top of things like this so I was just surprised.

 

Thank you for taking the time to participate on the forum.  We all truly appreciate it.

[Stadtplan]

Even though ceremonial ground breakings tend to be reserved for bigger institutional type projects, I don't see any harm in having one even if it is low-key.  Makes for great PR and social content as well as community engagement.  You can get four or five shovels at the hardware store and a can of gold spray paint and a few hard hats with decals on them for not a lot of extra cost.  I bet Fort Construction probably even has some on-hand to use for such an occasion.

[Stadtplan]

Record PB23-02744: 

Commercial New Building Permit

Record Status: Incomplete Submittal

https://aca-prod.acc...ShowInspection=

 

Project Description:

Bryan Flats

Job Trailer for Office

[Stadtplan]

UDC Cases for Bryan Flat Signage:

 

https://aca-prod.acc...ShowInspection=

Project Description:

Bryan Flats Blade Sign

Bryan Flats Illuminated Blade Sign West Elevation

Install (1) 2' x 10' illuminated blade sign on West elevation of building 18.33' above grade BRYAN FLATS Double Faced

 

https://aca-prod.acc...ShowInspection=

Project Description:

Bryan Flats Letter Sign

Non-Illuminate Flat Cut Out Letters

Attach Non-Illuminated Flat Cut Out letters "BRYAN FLATS" to the existing awning on West Elevation

[TLA]

Took advantage of the beautiful weather this week to walk around Near Southside.

 

 

Streetscape looking North:

 

Facing West towards Bryan Flats. 90 units, really shows its density:

[John T Roberts]

Nice shots.

[Jeriat]

Up close, it's much larger than I originally thought it would be.

They're getting this up pretty quick, too.

[Crestline]

This is an SRO with about 20 units per floor sharing a common per-floor kitchen, with zero parking? Awesome, Fort Worth should build more of these; they're much-needed for people with limited income who still want to live close to the city center, etc. 

[Stadtplan]

20+ occupants per floor sharing a single kitchen?  Do you store your food in your own fridge in your room or how do you plan ahead if you need the oven for an hour or two?  I wonder if there's a limit on occupants per room...is it 1 plus guest or do they put restrictions on pets and children?  200 SQFT includes restroom, that's really tight quarters.

[Austin55]

Real life plan view shot I got a few days before the roof went on

 

[Stadtplan]

It's amazing they can fit a toilet, shower and sink in those bathrooms.

[Urbndwlr]

Took advantage of the beautiful weather this week to walk around Near Southside.

 

 

Streetscape looking North:

 

Facing West towards Bryan Flats. 90 units, really shows its density:

Kinda like the blue.  Often I see buildings under construction and kind of prefer the colors that are going to be covered up.  For the record, I dont think blue windows are generally a good idea.  Just caught my eye?

[JBB]

I would go out on a limb and say the blue is a protective covering from the manufacturer.  Someone can correct me if I'm wrong.

[Stadtplan]

I would go out on a limb and say the blue is a protective covering from the manufacturer.  Someone can correct me if I'm wrong.

 

yeah, I was thinking it was tape, film or weather-stripping.  The blue tone on a charcoal gray would look cool though in an ultra minimalist look, adds a nice little pop.