Posted On: November 11, 2008 By: admin

Novare Group’s president, Tony Skillbeck, said in a Charlotte Observer article last Friday that he is considering the possibility of converting the Catalyst Condominiums located in Uptown Charlotte in the Third Ward into apartments.

Skillbeck notes an unstable housing market and stricter lending requirements as reasons he is considering apartment conversion as an option for the Catalyst Condominiums.  Earlier in the year The Enclave made the transition from Condos to Apartments.
 
The One Charlotte Condos developed by Portman Holdings and 300 South Tryon Condos both located in Uptown Charlotte have faced similar plights because of the slowing housing market and sluggish economy, but unlike the Catalyst Condos, have been put on hold.
 
The article also notes Wells Fargo’s takeover of Wachovia as a contributing factor to decreasing condo sales in Uptown.
 
The 27-story Catalyst Condos, located at Church Street and Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard in Uptown Charlotte is slated to have 462 units and 20,000 square feet of ground-level retail space.  It is scheduled to open in Spring 2009.

Category: Third Ward

Posted On: November 5, 2008 By: admin

According to an October 31, 2008 article found in the Charlotte Business Journal, real estate developer, David Furman, has postponed the TreHouse Condominiums project in Dilworth due to declining condominium sales in Mecklenburg County this year. Furman hopes to reignite the TreHouse Condos project when the housing market corrects itself, which he hopes will be in 2009.
 
The TreHouse Condos, which was scheduled to be located on the corners of Euclid and Tremont Avenues, was slated to be a 50-unit, four-story, multifamily building in the heart of the Dilworth community.
 
Furman’s building of the Trehouse Condos went against recommendations from the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Planning Department (CMPD) since they recommend building multifamily buildings holding 22 units per acre. In December 2007, however, Charlotte City Council members approved Furman’s project to be built at 50 units on 1.5 acres of land, which is above what the CMPD recommends.
 
In addition, the Charlotte Historic District Commission disagreed with Furman’s plans to demolish several buildings in Dilworth in order to make room for the TreHouse and gave Furman a one year hold on building the condo. After the hold expired, Furman continued to build, but sales slowed down and the current project is now on hold until the economy and the Uptown Charlotte housing market improves.

David Furman who’s company Centro City Works has also built TradeMark Condos, Courtside Condos and Gateway Lofts.  They recently just finished a first ward project The Ledge Condos and The Row Condos.  The Garrison at Graham Condominiums which is a fourth ward project, is still under construction. 

Category: Uncategorized

Posted On: October 30, 2008 By: admin

Chima Brazilian Steakhouse, an elegant Brazilian restaurant will have its grand opening on Monday, November 10, 2008 in Uptown Charlotte. Chima, (pronounced She-ma), serves over 15 different meats, including Brazilian pork sausage, filet mignon, smoked salmon and a plethora of salads, fine wines and deserts. Diners are served by a wait staff dressed in authentic Brazilian attire. Bruno Silva, Owner and Managing Partner, says, “Chima is more than just a restaurant, it’s a passion.

The Brazilian culture is intoxicating and vibrant. I wanted to share this excitement with everybody and the best way to do this was to create an authentic Brazilian Steak house. I am proud to have another Chima opening – Charlotte is the perfect city to enhance all that Chima has to offer.” With locations in Atlanta, Fort Lauderdale and Philadelphia, Chima has been featured on Fox Good Day Atlanta, CBS Better Mornings and the Miami Herald. Atlanta Falcon’s, Ovie Mughelli, touts Chima’s as one of his favorite restaurants:

The restaurant is named after chimarrao, an authentic drink from Brazil and its first location opened in Uberlandia, Brazil. Chima will be located on the first floor of The Trust Condominiums which is located on the corner of Trade Street at 139 South Tryon in the Second Ward and will serve dinner nightly.

Category: Restaurants, Second Ward

Posted On: October 2, 2008 By: admin

The first luxury boutique residence in Charlotte, known as The Trust Condominiums, will combine exclusivity and luxury in one address. The Trust Condominiums will offer eight one of kind units in the former historical building once known as The Home Federal Savings and Loan Building, located at 4th and S.Tryon. This building, erected in 1967, illustrated at the time Charlotte’s growing significance as an urban city and major financial center, in the decades following WWII. This building is a combination of history and a completely modern approach to good uptown living.

This seven story building will house only the best amenities, starting with the grand marble mezzanine entrance that will welcome you to this elegant residence. One thing that The Trust Condominiums will have that other buildings will not, is a wine cellar and lounge in the authentic bank vault leftover from it’s saving and loan days. Each residence will include recessed outdoor living space with sliding walls and gas grills, 360 degree pivoting window walls, home automation system, Viking Designer Series appliances including gas cook tops, imported granite counter tops, hardwood floors, and secure private parking with extensive storage space. There is only one unit left to purchase.

So, if it’s that extra special luxury life you’re looking for, then The Trust Condominiums is the uptown address for you.

Category: Second Ward

Posted On: September 26, 2008 By: admin

According to the Charlotte Business Journal, construction began this week on a $12 million office building at 700 East Morehead Street.  The 35,000 square foot, 4 stories building, built by the Harris Development Group, is already more than half leased. The accounting firm of Elliot Davis, of Greenville SC, has leased 20,000 square feet for their offices alone. Harris is still out there marketing 5,000 square feet for ground floor retail space, and that leaves 10,000 square feet for other offices.

With uptown’s tight office space availability, more companies have been forced to look outside Interstate 277. The East Morehead area, which is only ½ mile from uptown, is easily accessible from neighborhoods around the area. With all the new construction on residential buildings like Encore Condominiums, The Vue Condominiums, and Catalyst Condominiums living and working around Uptown Charlotte makes perfect sense.

Lease rates for the new office building are $32 per square foot, which is 46% higher than the average. Midtown rates have steadily increased over the years, and will more than likely keep on increasing as new office space is created. There are several new projects either proposed or underway that will add about 520,000 square feet of space in the mid town area. These will almost double the areas office inventory. The vacancy rate in this area is the second lowest at 5.9%. The 1.5 mile area from South Tryon to South Kings is well on its way to becoming one of the hottest spots for office space in Charlotte.

Category: Uncategorized

Posted On: September 19, 2008 By: admin

The new 27 story building going up in the Third Ward, the Catalyst Condominiums, is promising to be one of the most innovated sites in Charlotte. The name chosen for the project signifies that the building will be a literal catalyst for the re-development of the Third Ward. The building will contain 462 units, one and two bedroom, sitting on top of 20,000 square feet of retail space when it is completed in 2009.

The Catalyst Condominiums will combine the old and new aspects of the Third Ward, with plenty of green space, to create an ideal place to live and work. There will be a 5.5 acre urban park right out the front door. The hope is that this park will attract special events, festivals, and concerts to become the heart of the community.

The cherry on the sundae seems to be a new innovation called HALO (Home Automation Lifestyle Organization). Think of it as a concierge or a personal assistant. The builders, Novare Group, have promised HALO to be the latest in technology.  It is a state-of-the-art system that allows the homeowners to interact with their home, the building, and the community.

HALO is an easy efficient system that works on a PC, laptop, or any wireless device with internet capabilities. It will connect residents to all kinds of information, from home maintenance scheduling to having your dry cleaning picked up to dinner reservations. It can also monitor your home environment from heat to water conservation. Sounds like a great way to ease some of the stresses in running your daily life.

Besides HALO, the Catalyst Condominiums will have an outdoor living area, pool, 1,600 square ft. fitness center, media room, club room with floating bar, gaming area, and gas grills. All these great amenities along with the great location will allow the resident one of the best urban environments around.

Category: Third Ward

Posted On: September 15, 2008 By: admin

Only 10 units remain at the Trademark Condos in Charlotte, NC.  Trademark is a 28 story condo development located Charlotte’s 3rd ward.  The Trademark contains 202 modern residential units designed for the way you actually live, in open loft-like plans, as well as ground level retail including PRESS Wine/Food.  A 330 car parking garage is capped by an elevated pool terrace with exercise room and community facilities overlooking the Panther’s Stadium in the center of game-day action.

Developers are always motivated to strike deals to finish selling remaining inventory.  If you have ever thought about wanting to live at The Trademark please contact us today!

To view availble units please click here

Features of the Common Areas include:

• Sleek marble & granite lobby
• Glass sculpture water wall in lobby
• Dry cleaning and package drop off location
• Seventh floor pool terrace
• Heated pool
• Walk-through poolside waterfall
• Gas grill
• Outdoor pool table
• Outdoor fire pit
• Tree lined lawn area
• Community room with Plasma TV
• Exercise facility with state of the art equipment and Plasma TV
• Park and enter the building directly from the same level

Features of the Residential Condominiums include:

• Floor to ceiling glass in the living rooms of most condos
• Secured building
• Open, flowing loft floorplans
• Private balcony for most condos
• 10’ ceilings throughout main living areas
• Granite countertops in kitchens & baths, standard in all condos
• Chrome hardware
• Fluted glass dividing walls in several floorplans
• Tile foyers in most condos
• Wood flooring in main living areas of all condos
• Carpet in sleeping areas
• Ceramic tile bathroom floor and shower surround, standard
• Ceiling fan (at least two) pre-wires in all condos
• Cable connection (at least two) in all condos
• Secured parking
• Appliance package which includes dishwasher, disposal, built-in cooktop, combination microwave/convection/bake/broil oven
• Energy efficient heat pump
• Monthly homeowner’s dues that include water, sewer, common area maintenance, long-term building maintenance, and garbage collection
• Residential condos are accessible to residents and their guests only

Category: Third Ward

Posted On: September 10, 2008 By: admin

There are so many new development projects for uptown it’s hard to keep up with them all. While some are pretty successful, some aren’t. Unfortunately the venture attracting the most attention this week is the NASCAR Hall of Fame, but I don’t think this is the attention it was looking for.

The NASCAR Hall of Fame is running 20 percent over the projected cost presented to the city in its original plans. Charlotte needs to come up with $32 million additional dollars to build the actual building. The building material will cost at least $11 million more than anticipated, and $30 million beyond that to make the museum better and more environmentally friendly. This would make the total cost of the NASCAR Hall of Fame $195 million dollars.

This announcement was a surprise to the Charlotte City Council members, who said they should have been informed of this sooner. In two weeks, the Charlotte City Council will be asked to approve a guaranteed a maximum price tag with the NASCAR Hall of Fame’s construction manager.

The project managers have promised that the taxpayers won’t have to pay the difference. They feel that private sponsors and the hotel-motel tax will cover the growing bill. According to WSOCTV.com, Assistant City Manager Jim Schumacher said, “There’s no property tax. No general fund taxes going to this project, it’s all from the 2 percent hotel tax.”

I think maybe some taxpayers are a bit skeptical.

Category: Third Ward

Posted On: August 26, 2008 By: admin

The options in Uptown Charlotte seem numerous although as soon as they start, they seem to run into problems. With projects like the 210 Trade at EpiCentre, which is bogged down in lawsuits between developer and contractor, 300 South Tryon and One Charlotte all of which are postponed, you wonder what is left.

It seems one address is having very few issues in meeting their intended commitment to start closing in mid 2010. The VUE Charlotte has no anticipated delays according to Brie McNamara, Sales and Marketing Coordinator at The VUE Charlotte. “We continue to receive strong interest from Charlotte area residents as our building goes up. We have received full support from organizations such as Center City Partners and The Friends of the Fourth Ward neighborhood association.” McNamara explained that they are proponents for Uptown growth in general; the delays have helped to boost interest in their project and have brought them several new buyers.

What sets The VUE Charlotte apart? According to McNamara this condo is truly a luxury building. “Our resort-style amenities boast a multi-sport, 25 yard heated pool, 4000 square foot health club, pet park, business center and ClubVUE which includes a giant cinema screen and a recreation center w/pool tables and dart boards. Our security is unmatched with biometric finger print access throughout the building, and a 24 hour doorman. The building is 100 percent residential and we also have a high percentage of $1 million + homes, so the building will truly be upscale. We believe the Fourth Ward location in itself sets us apart. A luxury high rise building in a true residential neighborhood while only several blocks from center city can’t be beat! It has been said on a clear day one can see the Blue Ridge Mountains from the northwestern side of The View.” 

Category: Fourth Ward

Posted On: August 18, 2008 By: admin

Some contract holders of the The Park Condos and local businessman watched with special interest at the Mecklenburg Superior Courthouse on August 8^th, 2008 222 South Caldwell Street Ltd. Partnership, owes BB Syndication more than $27 million on the development’s $30.7 million construction loan.

At the foreclosure proceedings, was the highest bidder at $17.9 Million for The Park development. With this bid, Summit Shores resets the window of time for another suitor for The Park.

The Park was one of Uptown Charlotte’s first pre construction condos during the Uptown Charlotte Condo boom, but has been beleaguered with delays since the start. Accounting to the Charlotte Business Journal the developer had 87 of the project’s 107 units, which had been priced from $450,000 to $750,000.

Category: Second Ward