Is this foundation work for the new apartment building?  Or, for something else?

Is this foundation work for the new apartment building?  Or, for something else?

 

I would be surprised if they have the building permits already, as their requests for variances were on BZA's docket just this past Monday....

 

http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php/topic,1823.msg687942.html#msg687942

 

....And I still haven't heard if that meeting was held on account of the weather, let alone what if anything happened.

were is they 5 story office building on top of a parking garage going to be built? it could fit inside the RTA rail loop or, the were the parking lot is right across from the waterfront line.

were is they 5 story office building on top of a parking garage going to be built? it could fit inside the RTA rail loop or, the were the parking lot is right across from the waterfront line.

 

Are they going to build the office building on top of the garage? Or will it be next to the garage? I never heard back from FEB on what the plan is, and no news articles have shed light on this.

 

But I'm pretty sure the office and garage will be built along Front Street, south of the freight tracks between the Waterfront Line and East 9th.

A couple of FEB projects are on the docket this week, but no graphics yet....

 

http://planning.city.cleveland.oh.us/designreview/drcagenda/2014/01162014/011614DRACagenda.pdf

Here is a cool aerial from these guys  https://www.facebook.com/aerialaspect

It will be nice to see a building on that surface parking lot in the next phase.

 

Awesome angle.  I applaud the architects for meshing such a large complex, particularly the office tower, into a difficult topographic area that is further hemmed in by the Main Ave. bridge.

A couple of FEB projects are on the docket this week, but no graphics yet....

 

http://planning.city.cleveland.oh.us/designreview/drcagenda/2014/01162014/011614DRACagenda.pdf

 

 

I like the "FLATS" sign.

I think it's a good building design, but I really don't like the big "Flats East Bank" sign.

Architecture is pretty decent.  I like the sign.  Seems timeless and will look cool decades down the road.

I'm fine with the design.  The red brick and indented balconies kind of mimics River Bend down the river which is pretty cool in my book... The sign is a bit garish; it's like those old factory billboard signs.  But I understand the need to give the development a sense of place in visitors minds.  I don't have a big problem with it.

^That huge "FLATS" sign is atrocious. Its no different than a building Downtown that has a huge sign on it that says, "Downtown Cleveland". It just looks ridiculous. Flats East Bank is the subneighborhood of the neighborhood called the Flats. No one building should have a huge sign on it suggesting that that building is the whole neighborhood. How arrogant and presumptuous. And ugly--both visually and behaviorally.

I am fin e with the old school signage.  What I am not crazy about is the overall new flats east bank logo which was posted on their facebook page

I am fine with the throwback neon can sign. I am not sure if I like the new Flats East Bank logo unveiled on Facebook. 

^That huge "FLATS" sign is atrocious. Its no different than a building Downtown that has a huge sign on it that says, "Downtown Cleveland". It just looks ridiculous. Flats East Bank is the subneighborhood of the neighborhood called the Flats. No one building should have a huge sign on it suggesting that that building is the whole neighborhood. How arrogant and presumptuous. And ugly--both visually and behaviorally.

 

Almost reminds me of the now famous (and doubly redundant) "Portland Oregon" sign, which sits in front of the Old Town section...a la Cleveland Flats... when entering Downtown.

 

It's really not that bad.  Certainly not "arrogant and presumptuous".  I think any reasonable person realizes that one single building is not proclaiming itself to be the entirety of the Flats East Bank. That's absurd. Isn't there currently or soon to be a sign that says Playhouse Square?  Is the building that PS sign is attached to proclaiming itself to be the entirety of Playhouse Square?  I think not. It's simple place making as is done in most cities, whether there are signs proclaiming "Chinatown"  in many cities or "Gaslamp  District"  in San Diego or the "Short North" in Columbus.

^The place is already made. You don't need a cheezey sign to tell people what they already know. The same is true for Playhouse Square---except that Playhouse Sq is an official square/location---therefore, there should be sign at the corner of 14th and Euclid, like a REGULAR STREET SIGN (not the new ugly giant ones) that says, "Playhouse Sq.".  Similarly, if you want to physically label a place, place a "Welcome to..." or "Entering..." sign at one of the street entrances to Flats East, such as you have signs when you enter a municipality.

^The place is already made. You don't need a cheezey sign to tell people what they already know. The same is true for Playhouse Square---except that Playhouse Sq is an official square/location---therefore, there should be sign at the corner of 14th and Euclid, like a REGULAR STREET SIGN (not the new ugly giant ones) that says, "Playhouse Sq.".  Similarly, if you want to physically label a place, place a "Welcome to..." or "Entering..." sign at one of the street entrances to Flats East, such as you have signs when you enter a municipality.

 

mountain, meet molehill

^The place is already made. You don't need a cheezey sign to tell people what they already know. The same is true for Playhouse Square---except that Playhouse Sq is an official square/location---therefore, there should be sign at the corner of 14th and Euclid, like a REGULAR STREET SIGN (not the new ugly giant ones) that says, "Playhouse Sq.".  Similarly, if you want to physically label a place, place a "Welcome to..." or "Entering..." sign at one of the street entrances to Flats East, such as you have signs when you enter a municipality.

 

I actually agree with this.  I think placemaking is running slightly amok these days, especially this extremely literal kind. I don't feel all that strongly though. I'm already resigned to not loving the design of FEB, so the sign doesn't bother me all that much.

Love the sign, about time some large scale signage came into this town.  For the naysayers, not everything has to be reserved and conservative to be inserted into the cityscape.  Cleveland needs more moments of expressive images like this.

I also think the FLATS part of the sign is bit over the top.  I'd be ok if Flats East Bank was all the same size but the size of the East Bank letters.  I'm all for expressive images but not when they tend to dominate the building.  Maybe with the giant Playhouse Square signage, this is all part of a larger way-finding scheme.  Next up, massive OHIO CITY letters atop the WSM and a giant rubber ducky above the new duck island development. 

If any development could get away with such a garish sign, it's Flats East Bank. The whole thing is garish. :)

I'm OK with it.  If Cleveland really is going to be the next Brooklyn, let's go for it.  Let's get edgy and arty.  No need to be conservative.  In fact, maybe some digital signage on new buildings can help subsidize construction costs and offset our non-Brooklyn rents!

I like the building and the sign.

I love the huge sign. Why bother blending into the background? Why not call yourself out and make your presence known to anything within a visible range? I've always felt Cleveland was lacking in crazy things like this and it seems like the city is finally, for lack of better word, growing some balls and doing something out of the ordinary with things like this massive sign, the huge chandelier in Playhouse Square, etc. Huge signs were a part of the industrial past and this recalls that albeit in a modern way. I'm in support.

^^^I don't think that sign is edgy or artsy.  It's just off the shelf "place making" at this point.  I think I'd prefer it if it were a little edgier.

 

The Flats east bank sign I would really like to see is a giant, colorful, animated Sherwin Williams sign with logo on top of its research buildings by Tower City.  That would have a much better chance of becoming a beloved local beacon, IMHO.

^^^I don't think that sign is edgy or artsy.  It's just off the shelf "place making" at this point.  I think I'd prefer it if it were a little edgier.

 

I should have quoted Firenze's comment about Ohio City and Duck signs.  I'm not a fan of the Flats sign depicted in the rendering either and would prefer more edge.

UrbanOhio, you never let me down with your in-depth sign commentary.  :)

^UrbanOhio is the authority on world class signage.

Sign looks fine to me. We are definitely establishing a theme of slightly outsized lighting displays in downtown with this and the chandelier. I guess that's fine. Destroy the darkness!

Foundation work on 243-unit Flats East Bank apartment building could start within weeks

By Michelle Jarboe McFee, The Plain Dealer

on January 17, 2014 at 11:30 AM, updated January 17, 2014 at 11:32 AM

 

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The developers behind the Flats East Bank project expect to break ground within weeks on their first residential building, the centerpiece of the waterfront neighborhood's second phase.

 

The Cleveland City Planning Commission and a downtown-focused design review committee gave the thumbs-up this week to the footprint for an eight-story, 243-unit apartment building facing the Cuyahoga River. The Wolstein Group and Fairmount Properties have applied for a building permit for the foundation and needed the commission's approval before the city would sign off.

 

Adam Fishman of Fairmount, which is developing the project with Scott and Iris Wolstein, said the team is on the verge of closing on financing for phase two. Fishman wouldn't discuss the details, but the final package is sure to include a blend of public and private money.

 

READ MORE AT:

http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2014/01/foundation_work_on_243-unit_fl.html

^Let me grab a shovel and join in!  I've been waiting for this for years (on eggshells).

Sounds as though the Phase 2 office building is still pretty iffy at this point.

^I imagine that, unlike residential, they need a certain percentage of tenant commitments to get financing for an office building.

Unless I missed it, the article also doesn't describe how the office building would be designed -- ie: office building next to or on top of parking deck. I think urbanists would prefer it on top of the parking, much like the second-floor layer of parking in the apartment building. Maybe that's an indication of how the developer would like it to be built -- but that will probably depend more on an anchor tenant's wishes.

is the groundbreaking also for the free standing restaurants and the office building?

^did you read the article?  It explains all.  Like I posted above the office building is still in the planning stages and is contingent on tenants for financing.

With construction starting back up for Phase II, does that mean that the FEB webcam will be fired back up??

 

http://www.flatseast.com/webcam.htm

Sounds as though the Phase 2 office building is still pretty iffy at this point.

 

Just like any new office construction downtown these days.  But as the article notes, Fishman probably has a leg up just because of his track record with the E&Y building, which folks thought he was crazy for building such a new building in a totally new (for offices) and untested site.  Now he's at almost 100% capacity.... If I were the bank, I roll the dice with this guy.

Sounds as though the Phase 2 office building is still pretty iffy at this point.

 

it's not iffy.  They are actively marketing it & looking for tenants.  I'd say they will announce something by summer.

 

The site is a flurry of activity right now along the waterfront.  At least half a dozen dozers & excavators working, trucks laying out stone, hauling out material....

^^Plus, this office building was not in the revised plan, executed some time before Phase I was approved.  My understanding is that it wouldn't exist at all but for the potential spillover market as the result of the demand on E&Y.

Has anyone heard anything about Toby Keith pulling out of phase 2?? Someone texted me saying he pulled out of the lease agreement but I can't find anything anywhere. If true, that's a pretty big blow.

"Someone"?

It's only a big blow if FEB simply replaces his restaurant with another with the same footprint.  But if it leads to a re-thinking of the plans for the riverfront, I'd chalk it down as a positive.  Speculation at this point I guess

Hmm..The one in Dallas closed last month, maybe they are in trouble, idk.

"Someone"?

 

Sorry... One of my friends who knows someone related to the Flats development. Don't want to start a rumor! I just want to know if anyone has heard anything.

Hmm..The one in Dallas closed last month, maybe they are in trouble, idk.

 

For what it's worth.

 

Toby Keith’s ‘I Love this Bar & Grill’ to open in Bossier City

http://www.arklatexhomepage.com/story/toby-keiths-i-love-this-bar-grill-to-open-in-bossi/d/story/fqdA6ReTikWnAafim8Tn9w

Flats East Bank Phase II: Ready to roll - Per the video on the 6 o'clock news Toby Keith's is still a go

http://www.wkyc.com/story/news/local/2014/01/22/flats-phase-ii-ready-to-roll/4782573/

in the video it showed many more cranes doing the pilot driving and footers.

Screenshot from the video of the proposed office building. This would be the spot north of the EY tower.