Archive for the ‘Think Outside The Box’ Category

At First & First, A Focus on Creative Real Estate

Thursday, February 28th, 2013

First & First and its President Peter Remes take an outside-the-box approach to real estate development. The company’s tagline is “Creative Real Estate,” and Mr. Remes and his colleagues are clearly committed to their mission to build inspired environments. The two-year old company has already experienced success with the redevelopment of Ice House Court at 26th & Nicollet in Minneapolis. The project renovated several buildings and brought in new tenants, including a Vertical Endeavors indoor rock climbing gym that went into the namesake building of the project, a tall warehouse originally used by the Cedar Fuel and Ice Company to store ice blocks in the early 20th century. With Ice House Court, First & First established principles which it has carried forward to additional projects, including the preservation of cultural heritage, making a difference in neighborhoods, and bringing new life to old buildings.

Ice House Redevelopment (photo credit: Vertical Endeavors)

Ice House Redevelopment (photo credit: Vertical Endeavors)

The centerpiece of the Ice House Court project is a brand new public plaza fronting Nicollet Avenue. The plaza is constructed in part from stones from the Metropolitan Building, a landmark building in downtown Minneapolis that was torn down in the 1960′s during urban renewal. The plaza is also unique in that it is a public space developed by a private entity, which is uncommon in the Twin Cities. It has quickly become a popular gathering spot, exemplifying First & First’s attention to improving neighborhoods, but also adding value to the real estate by creating an appealing environment for customers of the new retail tenants First & First brought into the project, like Dunn Brothers Coffee.

Ice House Plaza (photo credit: Twin Cities Daily Planet)

At a recent ULI Young Leaders Group event, Mr. Remes and his colleagues shared insights into First & First’s most recent project, The Broadway.  The Broadway is a 60,000 s.f. building in Northeast Minneapolis, formerly occupied by a paper warehouser. True to their mission, First & First is infusing old space with new life, restoring the character of the building while adding features that enhance peoples’ experience, such as a central open staircase linking the building’s two floors. Remes likes to think of real estate as an environment rather than merely as “space”, and he believes creative tenants are willing to pay to be in an inspiring place. The approach has worked well thus far; despite having no tenants signed when the property was acquired, First & First is well on the way to leasing up the building, having brought in a mix of retail and office tenants including 612 Brew, Spyhouse Coffee, and digital creative firm Sevnthsin.

The Broadway (photo credit: Minneapolis – St. Paul Business Journal)

Renovated Space for Creative Firm Sevnthsin at The Broadway

 

While First & First continues work on the final stages of renovating The Broadway, the company has already acquired its next major project: a 5 acre site off Vandalia and I-94 and St. Paul. While plans are still in the works, it seems safe to say that the project will seek to reinvigorate old buildings, attract creative industry tenants, and have a primary focus on creating memorable places.

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UST Team to Compete in the Gerald D. Hines / ULI Student Urban Design Competition

Thursday, February 7th, 2013

photo source: Minnesota Vikings

The 2013 Hines Competition is underway!

One hundred sixty teams from 70 universities in the United States and Canada are currently developing solutions for a site in Minneapolis’s Downtown East neighborhood, near the site of the new Minnesota Vikings stadium

The ULI/Gerald D. Hines Student Urban Design Competition, now in its 11th year, is an urban design and development challenge for graduate students. The Hines Competition challenges multidisciplinary student teams to devise a comprehensive development program for a real, large-scale site. Teams of five students representing at least three disciplines have two weeks to develop solutions that include drawings, site plans, tables, and market-feasible financial data.

The University of St Thomas team members are  Thomas McElroy, full time MBA student; Thomas Strohm, MSRE student, Michael Richardson, Master of Urban and Regional Planning  student at the University of Minnesota; Amber Hill, Master of Landscape Architecture student at the University of Minnesota; and John Briel, Master of Urban and Regional Planning  student at the University of Minnesota.

This is an ideas competition; there is no expectation that any of the submitted schemes will be applied to the site. The winning team will receive $50,000 and the finalist teams $10,000 each.

The ULI/Gerald D. Hines Student Urban Design Competition is part of the Institute’s ongoing effort to raise interest among young people in creating better communities, improving development patterns, and increasing awareness of the need for multidisciplinary solutions to development and design challenges. This competition is an ideas competition; there is no expectation that any of the submitted schemes will be applied to the site. The winning team will receive $50,000 and the finalist teams $10,000 each. Winners that will advance to the next round of the competition will be announced by the end of February.

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Posted in Commercial Real Estate, Contest, Development, Economics, Industry News, Real Estate Trends, Residential Real Estate, Retail Real Estate, Think Outside The Box, Urban Planning, UST Program News, UST Real Estate in the News | No Comments »

St. Paul Union Depot: Gateway to what’s ahead

Thursday, December 13th, 2012

This post was written by Dan Jackson, a 2012 UST MBA graduate.

So I have a confession to make about myself that I have only shared with a few people (apparently this post is most appropriate to make it known to all)…I have always had a life-long fascination (and somewhat of an obsession) with trains.  This fascination was so strong, that one of my dream jobs as a child was to be a train conductor or train engineer.  Ever since I can remember, I always became excited when I was in the car with my parents and we would come to a train crossing right as a train passed through the intersection.  Instead of getting bored and irritated with the amount of time it took for the train to pass, I would get excited and would count the number of cars, imagining myself on the train taking me to its next destination.  I still get excited at railroad crossings today if a train passes by!

Photo credit: St. Paul Union Depot

I also remember my first train set that I received at Christmas.  I would frequently set this up in our basement and spend countless hours watching the train progress through its large figure-eight track system.  The train had a functioning headlight, and whistle!

Moving forward into my adult life, the fascination with trains continues.  As you can imagine, I was super excited when the Hiawatha light-rail line opened for business and I was also elated when I heard about the construction and opening of one of the first commuter rail systems for Minnesota, the Northstar Commuter Rail.   Over the years I’ve come to understand that this love for trains contributes to my overall excitement about the New Urbanism concept (which I’ve discussed in previous posts), as well as place-making principles.  All of these points came together once again in an article in Finance and Commerce that discussed the recent restoration and grand re-opening of the St. Paul Union Depot.  The article talks about the complexities and surprises that were encountered during the restoration of the building that first opened in 1923.  The building saw its last passenger train in 1971, but still housed a restaurant and operated as a meeting space for weddings, parties and other business functions.  The restoration and re-opening of this space allows me to reminisce about the days when the Union Depot was the gateway for many people coming into the Twin Cities area, the first stop in the cities for many who were accustomed to travelling via train at the time.

Today, the Union Depot will once again serve as a transit hub to passenger trains, as well as light-rail transit and bus service.  In addition to serving as a connection point for many metro transit busses and Jefferson Bus Lines, the Union Depot will serve Amtrak trains, as well as be the final (or beginning – depending on which way you are headed) stop for the Central Corridor light rail system.

While the re-opening of the Union Depot allows me to indulge myself in the variety of possible transit options that will be available here in the Twin Cities (especially options via train), I want to focus more on what a transit station itself means in terms of development opportunities for the Twin Cities area.   I reflect on an assignment that I completed during one of my classes at St. Thomas, REAL 746: Real Estate Market Analysis and Feasibility.  The class focuses on the role of market analysis and feasibility studies in real estate decision making and valuation.  For the final project, we were to perform a market analysis for a particular site that we would like to see developed in the Twin Cities area.  Given the focus and direction of the course, I chose to look at the feasibility of a transit terminal station near Target Field in Minneapolis, home of the Minnesota Twins.  While the Union Depot is not located in Minneapolis, there were many elements that I focused on within my project for REAL 746 that relate well to the revival of the Union Depot as a transportation hub.  Listed below are just a few examples that I found through research that highlight the importance of a transit hub in the Twin Cities metro area. (more…)

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CityTarget: Steps towards New Urbanism

Wednesday, September 12th, 2012

This post was written by Dan Jackson, a 2012 UST MBA graduate.

With the recent economic downturn and rising costs of fuel prices, many Americans have started to re-consider their living and personal lifestyle options.  Many families and individuals have been moving back into the city, to be closer to work, to have access to public transportation and to be able to walk to city entertainment and shopping venues.  Mixed-use developments, consisting of spaces that allow people to live, work, play and stay have become popular and are on the rise in many urban cities.

Photo Credit: Racked Chicago

According to the Congress for New Urbanism, mixed-use urban form was the standard before 1950, but separate-use zoning codes and high-volume road standards subsequently helped to make suburban sprawl today’s default development option.  New urbanism provides an opportunity to reverse the course of this sprawl and strengthen the character, livability, and diversity of urban communities.  According to the New Urbanism website, this concept promotes the creation and restoration of diverse, walkable, compact, vibrant, mixed-use communities composed of the same components as conventional development, but assembled in a more integrated fashion, in the form of complete communities. These contain housing, work places, shops, entertainment, schools, parks, and civic facilities essential to the daily lives of the residents, all within easy walking distance of each other.

While the new urbanism concept is not new, many retailers and real estate developers have been re-adapting skills and resources to be able to find ways to appeal to this new urban audience.  Retailers have been able to better incorporate elements from new urbanism into design plans. 

Target Corporation is one example of a handful of retailers who are responding to the demands of the growing urban communities.  July 2012 saw the retailer rolling out their new concept, CityTarget, in a few select urban cities across the U.S.  The introduction of CityTarget has allowed the retailer to introduce elements of new urbanism into the market while maintaining its well-known Target brand. (more…)

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IKEA expands into new territory: International property development

Tuesday, September 4th, 2012

This post was written by Dan Jackson, a 2012 UST MBA graduate. Dan completed many of his electives in real estate including participation in the spring 2012 REAL 714 International Real Estate Development course in the Cayman Islands.

Photo credit: IKEA

The Big Blue Box… furniture products that are easy to assemble… cheap and affordable, yet chic items… Swedish meatballs and cheap meals are all items that remind people of the retail giant IKEA.  But the retailer now wants to get you to think outside of the big blue box.

The popular Swedish home furniture products company IKEA has its sights set on expanding its well-known footprint.  The next endeavor for the company, which already has a large international presence, revolves around building entire communities where people will be able to live, work, stay and play.  According to the Globe and Mail  IKEA is “launching a bold push into the business of designing, building and operating entire urban neighbourhoods.”  The Globe continues to state that while this is a new and bold endeavor for the furniture icon they still want these new neighborhoods to have an emphasis on the traditional affordability concept that IKEA is well-known for with its furniture products model.  One of IKEA’s current slogans is “Affordable solutions for living better,” and this is the type of slogan that the property development division anticipates as they move forward into the first phase of development of these new communities.  The property development team wants to create communities that are beautiful, well-maintained and allow for a maximum lifestyle benefit, but yet still affordable for families and individuals. (more…)

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Will Micro Apartments Go Macro?

Tuesday, August 14th, 2012

Several urban job centers have committed to building tiny, affordable housing units.

There is a new multi-family housing trend beginning to appear in some of the higher priced housing markets around the country.  Ultra small “mirco-apartments” are one answer that can make apartments affordable to young renters in these high priced areas.  Will this trend find it’s way to the Minneapolis / St. Paul Market?  This article by John Caulfield recently appeared in BUILDER

From: BUILDER 2012

By John Caulfield 

An 11,775-square-foot building with 23 micro apartments is being wedged onto a 3,750-square-foot lot between two other buildings in San Francisco’s SoMa district.

Construction has begun on an infill project at 38 Harriet Street in San Francisco that its developer, builder, and module supplier believe could determine whether micro apartments remain a highly publicized curiosity or are seen as legitimate housing alternatives for young urban professionals seeking cheaper, greener, and walkable living spaces.

“There are a lot of eyes on this project, a lot of interest,” says Naomi Porat, president and co-founder of Zeta Communities, whose factory in Sacramento, Calif., is close to completing the 12- by 65-foot modules that will be used to construct an 11,775-square-foot four-story wood-framed building squeezed onto a 3,750-square-foot lot in this city’s South of Market Street (SoMa) district. That building will contain 23 micro apartments measuring around 300 square feet each, with nine-foot ceilings, kitchens and baths, washers and dryers, and multipurpose built-ins for storage and workspaces that can convert to sleeping areas.

These apartments reflect a “Smart Space” concept that the project’s developer, Panoramic Interests, created with a team of architects and designers to address the needs of millenials poring into urban job centers where affordable housing is perennially in short supply.

“In San Francisco, 8,000 new tech workers have been hired this year alone,” says Patrick Kennedy, the owner of Panoramic Interests, to illustrate the potential demand for micro apartments. His firm test-drove its Smart Space design with a 160-square-foot prototype it built in a warehouse in Berkeley, Calif., and housed an MIT grad student for three weeks who provided feedback about what he thought did and didn’t work.

Kennedy told the San Francisco Chronicle that prospective residents of micro apartments are looking for a “launching space as they get established.” In an interview with Builder, he described micro apartments as “a return to more collaborative communal living.” He observed that millenials view apartments in the context of a lifestyle that is more socially and technologically defined. “They’ll trade 100 square feet of space for 100 more megabytes of Internet,” he quips.

And with monthly rents expected to start at $1,500 (with five of the 23 apartments being offered at a below-market rate of $910 per month), these micro apartments should be available for significantly less than the $2,000-plus per month an under-500-square-foot studio apartment fetches, on average, in San Francisco.

Read the entire article: http://www.builderonline.com/construction-trends/will-micro-apartments-go-macro-.aspx

John Caulfield is senior editor for Builder magazine.

 

The 300-square-foot apartments will feature 9-foot ceilings, kitchens and baths, storage, and flexible built-ins.

Panoramic Interests

These renderings show how renters can manipulate the space inside the apartments to turn a sleeping area into a work or eating space.

  • Panoramic InterestsLarge windows and high ceilings give these tiny spaces a more capacious feeling.

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A Sense of Place: Spaces Designed For People

Monday, July 9th, 2012

This is a reposting of a blog entry that appeared recently on The Cornerstone Group blog(see link below).  It presents an interesting look at how project planners, architects, and developers can make cities a better place a better place to live.

http://www.tcgmn.com/blog/

Imagine a perfect day in your city or hometown.  What does it look like?  Where would you go?  How would you get there?  What would you do?  Who might you see along the way?

Place making, an evolving multi-disciplinary approach to planning, design, and management of public spaces, seeks to transform average spaces into high-quality places where people can relax, interact, collaborate, and participate.

After years of designing cities for the automobile, astute planners and developers are once again designing for people.

Cornerstone staff recently attended a Project for Public Spaces (PPS) event, where instructors gave participants insights about how great public spaces take shape.   

“Value created by the public realm will drive the success of a city.”

“How do we get from inadequate to extraordinary?”  The process starts with listening to the community, because neighborhood residents truly are the experts.  They know what is needed and what will or won’t work.

New York City has witnessed the redesign of several public spaces for greater pedestrian visibility and accessibility, which promotes increased activity and improves levels of public safety and comfort.  Setting back corners from the street edge, away from cars, can be an important aspect to the design.

Recognizing that cities and developers alike are strapped for cash, PPS advises for the “lighter, quicker, cheaper” approach.  Adding simple elements to plazas such as moveable furniture encourages people to customize a space for their specific use and group size, enabling collaboration.

Programming public spaces with a variety of activities from markets to fitness and games to performance arts and crafts
brings life to a place and attracts even more people to a neighborhood.  In New York City, Bryant Park was formerly home to several drug-dealing gangs and underwent a major renovation.  Committed to change, business owners supported redevelopment of the plaza through a special taxing district and created a more welcoming, accessible design, with the park booked morning, noon, and night with activities for all ages and cultural backgrounds.

Candy Chang, an artist and urban planner, recently spoke at the Walker Art Center and shared her vision for community spaces as inspiring places where citizens are both contemplative and engaged.  One of Chang’s most successful projects, a wall that encourages passerby’s to fill in the blank answering the question “Before I die I want to…” has expanded to cities on several continents.  A “Before I die” wall launched in Minneapolis in the Whittier neighborhood just hours before Chang’s arrival and was completely filled by eager citizens on the first day.

(more…)

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A little fun.

Thursday, December 1st, 2011

drawastickmanReally, this post is related to real estate - or at least the general idea is. Before you read more, take five minutes to visit and follow the directions on: www.drawastickman.com

Now, what do keys, balloons, swords, and clouds have to do with real estate? Read the rest of this post to find out why I think it does. Let me know if you agree, disagree or could add to my reasoning.  

(more…)

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