Discovery Green: If there is such thing as an urban oasis, then
Discovery Green is the standard by which they should be created and measured. The George R Brown Foundation purchased 30 city blocks in the blighted urban area. Now home to the
George R Brown Convention Center, the park has redefined the area as a Houston destination. The attention to detail and clarity is evident everywhere you look and William Flowers, our tour guide, was familiar with all of it. The large colorful box like art work house the stairway to underground parking, park of the use agreement forged by the George R Brown foundation to allow for ample parking in the area. The park is naturally divided into a number of usable spaces including an outdoor amphitheater complete with sound connections buried in the lawn. The only building in the central part of the property is a multi-use building housing a small library, a green room for performers, and a cafe for visitors. The fountain area doubles as a water park in the summer and an ice rink in the winter. Beautiful gardens cared for by different botanical groups offer diversity and variety. William also spoke about the development paradigm of the Power of 10 - the idea that you must have diversity to build a viable dynamic to an area that is sustainable. Discovery Green has endeavored to incorporate a power of 10 philosophy on their park and as a result have positively impacted the lives of many Houstonians.
City Centre & Midway Development: Located in west Houston,
City Centre was developed by
Midway as a premier live-work-play community. Built on the 37 acre site of an old shopping mall, the land was purchased and the buildings demolished with the exception of the three existing parking garages which are still in use. The savings from not having to build the parking garages virtually covered the cost of the land. The layout of the development was modeled after a European walkable market area and is home to high end retailers and unique dining establishments. As a private developer, Midway was able to make decisions and choices that coincided with the organizational goals of their company and have created a retail, commercial, and residential experience that is enjoying great success.
New Hope: The mission of
New Hope Housing, Inc. is to create life stabilizing, affordable housing for single adults. They offer 5 single resident occupancy, SRO, complexes in Houston with the one we visited on Sakowitz being the first LEED certified SRO project with 635 units. The property offers reasonable rental rates all bills paid, so the low operating costs have contributed to the ongoing success of their work. Joy Horak-Brown, Executive Director of the community, showed us around the property and shares not only the physical features of the complex, but also the services they offer residents in hopes of allowing them to create a sustainable lifestyle. The reminder that sustainability is not just about energy and materials, but also choices and relationships was a powerful one. The non-profit developer raises all equity before beginning construction with city and federal tax credits making up a large part of their financing. The remaining funding is done through private donations. The property then runs off collected rents, making energy cost and efficiency essential.
ARGUS: The real estate software developer,
ARGUS is headquartered in Houston. Kari Mayfield and Erica Hohl visited with us about the company's products and gave us a tour of their office, made up primarily of technical support. The company has over 90,000 users in 45 countries and offers a number of different commercial development and modeling software.
AmREIT: AmREIT officers Charles Scoville and Chad Braun visited with us about their company's projects and investments. Their investment goal in a nutshell is to find and acquire "irreplaceable corners" primarily in the form of strip shopping centers. They acknowledged that retail has been lagging in their adoption of sustainability, but that they are starting to see increased demand from both an operational and environmental perspective. Their model when tenanting a shopping center is first to not put in competing businesses, but more than that they seek to find business that will compliment each other and drive business to other tenants. The importance of collective good for a small to medium sized shopping center is clearly a large element of their success.
TAKE AWAY OF THE DAY: Working together is as relevant in a shopping center as it is in a residential apartment complex. Creating a park that works in harmony with its many uses is only slightly different from strategically planning the tenants of a mixed-use or retail development. Having a sense of how each group can contribute to the success of the whole project is an important element to a successful development.
Discovery Green: If there is such thing as an urban oasis, then Discovery Green is the standard by which they should be created and measured. The George R Brown Foundation purchased 30 city blocks in the blighted urban area. Now home to the George R Brown Convention Center, the park has redefined the area as a Houston destination. The attention to detail and clarity is evident everywhere you look and William Flowers, our tour guide, was familiar with all of it. The large colorful box like art work house the stairway to underground parking, park of the use agreement forged by the George R Brown foundation to allow for ample parking in the area. The park is naturally divided into a number of usable spaces including an outdoor amphitheater complete with sound connections buried in the lawn. The only building in the central part of the property is a multi-use building housing a small library, a green room for performers, and a cafe for visitors. The fountain area doubles as a water park in the summer and an ice rink in the winter. Beautiful gardens cared for by different botanical groups offer diversity and variety. William also spoke about the development paradigm of the Power of 10 - the idea that you must have diversity to build a viable dynamic to an area that is sustainable. Discovery Green has endeavored to incorporate a power of 10 philosophy on their park and as a result have positively impacted the lives of many Houstonians.
City Centre & Midway Development: Located in west Houston, City Centre was developed by Midway as a premier live-work-play community. Built on the 37 acre site of an old shopping mall, the land was purchased and the buildings demolished with the exception of the three existing parking garages which are still in use. The savings from not having to build the parking garages virtually covered the cost of the land. The layout of the development was modeled after a European walkable market area and is home to high end retailers and unique dining establishments. As a private developer, Midway was able to make decisions and choices that coincided with the organizational goals of their company and have created a retail, commercial, and residential experience that is enjoying great success.
New Hope: The mission of New Hope Housing, Inc. is to create life stabilizing, affordable housing for single adults. They offer 5 single resident occupancy, SRO, complexes in Houston with the one we visited on Sakowitz being the first LEED certified SRO project with 635 units. The property offers reasonable rental rates all bills paid, so the low operating costs have contributed to the ongoing success of their work. Joy Horak-Brown, Executive Director of the community, showed us around the property and shares not only the physical features of the complex, but also the services they offer residents in hopes of allowing them to create a sustainable lifestyle. The reminder that sustainability is not just about energy and materials, but also choices and relationships was a powerful one. The non-profit developer raises all equity before beginning construction with city and federal tax credits making up a large part of their financing. The remaining funding is done through private donations. The property then runs off collected rents, making energy cost and efficiency essential.
AmREIT: AmREIT officers Charles Scoville and Chad Braun visited with us about their company's projects and investments. Their investment goal in a nutshell is to find and acquire "irreplaceable corners" primarily in the form of strip shopping centers. They acknowledged that retail has been lagging in their adoption of sustainability, but that they are starting to see increased demand from both an operational and environmental perspective. Their model when tenanting a shopping center is first to not put in competing businesses, but more than that they seek to find business that will compliment each other and drive business to other tenants. The importance of collective good for a small to medium sized shopping center is clearly a large element of their success.
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