LEXINGTON | CentrePointe | 388 FT | 30 FL | Pro

[superflymike]

Originally Posted by gt7834a

BTW, why is the Blue Grass Trust still on this, there are no longer any historic buildings. Their opposition seem vindictive at this point. They lost the battle to save the buildings so they are against the project. That ship has sailed, at this point building something is clearly in the best interest of everyone. Also, why on earth would the city need to know if the Webbs have financing? I understand if they were want to demolish buildings but again, that ship has sailed so what does approving the plans have to do with the financing? Do they ask if Ball Homes has financing before approving an apartment building in the suburbs?

Look across the street there is still historic buildings. They aren't only concerned with the buildings on that block but the area as a whole. Also that Ball Homes argument is actually relevant. Look up the Miller House on Chilesburg Rd. and you'll see what I mean. It is an architectural masterpiece and was almost destroyed but was saved because people saw its relevance.

[gt7834a]

There is a 30 story office building right beside it and a 20 story apartment building on the other side. There is also a 15+ story historic office building on the side of the street you are talking about.I am glad the part that borders the street is only going to be 3-4 stories and think that it will be an appropriate scale for what is around it. If we are going to build up in Lexington and not out this is by far the most logical place. If you go north or south from there you are bordering historic residential areas with 2 story buildings.

I am glad they saved the Miller House but that isn't actually relevant because there are no buildings on the Centerpoint block, just grass, so why does the city need to know if the Webbs have financing?

[Beware]

It really IS a nice design, even though it's " downsized " ! If it's ANY consolation to disappointed Centrepointe fans, many grand project's throughout the USA are experiencing similar changes. A major hotel expansion, in my own (Illinois) hometown, also underwent a controversial redesign and overall reduction. Let's face it! The market's nothing like it was, for luxury condos and hotel projects, before the Great Recession hit. With so much economic instability, still in existence, potential financiers and lenders are not taking risks with few buyers. Nevertheless, the revised Centrepointe's STILL a great addition to Lexington's skyline. It, sure as hell, beats nothing!

[Ian604]

Eblen: Will the saga of CentrePointe have a fairy tale ending?

Keep your fingers crossed. There seems to be a real possibility that the ugly duckling proposed for that vacant lot downtown could be replaced by a swan.

Developer Dudley Webb, unable to finance the 1980s-style tower he proposed to replace the block of old buildings he demolished, has taken a new approach. With help from Mayor Jim Gray, Webb has hired one of the world's best up-and-coming architects to rethink the design of his hotel-condo-office-retail project, CentrePointe.

Jeanne Gang of Studio Gang in Chicago will present her initial site plan Thursday at the first of at least two public meetings in Lexington. Stop by the Lexington History Museum at 4 p.m. to hear from her, Webb and Gray — and contribute your thoughts.

Gang said in a telephone interview Wednesday that her design is rough and flexible at this point because she wants input from more people who live in Lexington. She also wants help from Kentucky architects to give the block variety and local flavor.

I found Gang's concepts for the development encouraging. She wants it to be pedestrian-friendly, compatible with its surroundings, unique to Lexington and "a place that is interesting to be."

Gang envisions a cluster of buildings along Main Street — like there used to be — rather than a single edifice. The buildings would include a variety of locally designed, contemporary architecture that complements in scale and design the 19th and 20th century buildings across the street. "It will give it that authenticity and feel without it being forced," she said.

The new CentrePointe — it really needs a new name, by the way — would have two towers instead of one. The shorter tower would house offices and the taller one would have a hotel and condos. The size of the towers would depend on the tenants Webb secures, but Gang said she would use computer models to show where the shadows would fall to help place the towers so they don't hulk over Main Street or neighboring buildings.

Gang has designed amazing buildings all over the world, so why is she bothering to work in Lexington? Gang said she was familiar with the controversy surrounding CentrePointe from her visits to the University of Kentucky's College of Design, and she sensed a opportunity to create something special.

She was impressed by Lexington's rural land preservation efforts and historic downtown architecture, she said, which together offered the possibility for creating vibrant urban space on the block. "It is truly a livable city," she said. "And this is truly the heart of Lexington."

Also, Gang said, she was impressed by the mayor's commitment to design excellence. "He gets it," she said. "That makes a huge difference in deciding where we want to work. So many places don't get it."

Gang's creativity and reputation may well be the key to Webb securing the financing and tenants he needs to transform CentrePointe from a failure into a success. And for the city, it could mean the difference between another generic concrete box and a landmark Lexingtonians will be proud to have at their city's heart.

[lexc5812]

New centrepointe rendering of the two towers with the tallest being 388 ft! http://tomeblen.bloginky.com/2011/07...ns-here/#lexky

[Dale]

Now, what's not to like about that ? I'm sure someone will find something.

[Ian604]

I am seriously loving this design.

[lexc5812]

This is EXACTLY what Lexington needs but of course people will always complain just to complain. Now you'll hear it's too modern when before it was too big and bland...what you gonna do. Oh well I'm gonna stay positive and hope construction starts this fall!

[Ian604]

It''s just a matter of "you can't please everybody" With a project like this, that will be such a part of Lexington's identity, a lot of people are going to have strong feelings about it.

I like that the height is about 30'-40' shy of LFC. It'll keep us from having a crescendo and drop-off effect on the skyline like the old 550' design would have done.

With the addition of all this new housing to the urban core (not just Centrepointe but the last boomlet that brought us the 500's, Nunn building, MLK condos, Centercourt, Main & Rose, etc... a modest but noticable increase) and the addition of a couple grocery stores, some good upscale restaurants and soon a new-title bookstore in addition to all the used bookstores peppered around the periphery of downtown I think we're building a solid groundwork for the next uptick in downtown construction.

I'm encouraged that we're not just seeing new retail establishments but new kinds of retail and not just new restaurants but new kinds of restaurants.

I think a new hotel two blocks further from the convention center will give tourists more access to the rest of downtown, especially to the South Hill and North Limestone districts which have a lot of local character that a tourist may have been less likely to stumble upon previously.

[desertpunk]

I went ahead and changed the title

The design is amazing!

[Whosville]

I like it, but it does seem a costly concept. I hope the Webb's go for it and do not scale it down.

Still need to give the Webb's a lot of credit through this process. That we arrived at this day is just as much a credit to the Webb's as it is to Gray.

Hope the hotel commitment holds. Really, 10 floors of this building is a rather small hotel, so perhaps the hotel could be talked into taking a few more floors. Anyone have a sense of whether J. W. Marriott is still on board?

The condo component is rather small (7 floors), it seems, so getting enough commitments for them shouldn't be too difficult in Lexington's improving real estate market.

I could certainly see this one happening soon with the improving economic picture. Starting construction by the end of the year is probably too optimistic, but I could see this starting up in the Spring.

[cartomanlex]

How long did it take to sell out the condos in the now Hilton Hotel building and how many of them were to locals?

I have been told that the condo commitments for the original design were strong despite the high price. Those commitments have not wavered, even with the current economy. There are still some who will pay for the privilege of owning such a place with that kind of view.

I would guess the the Marriott is still in the game, otherwise their name would have been removed from the existing signs a while back. being a smaller hotel allow them to be much more upscale.

I still expect foundation work by the first of the year.

[Ian604]

Link to a skyline sketch with the new tower incuded

http://www.smileypete.com/LargeImage...2C99EA9.lg.jpg

[Ian604]

Another angle on the model from the Main Street side.

[StevenW]

Sweet. Lexington is getting a great structure with this tower. Awesome design. Can't say enough good things about it, really.

[TU 'cane]

Superb design and very awesome for Lexington!

[eweezerinc]

Nooooooow we're talking. More of this:



and this:



and this:



because Kentucky can do better...

than this:

image hosted on flickr

[Ian604]

Totally agree!

[g-man430]

Originally Posted by g-man430

Where are the developers going to get financing? The couldn't get it then. How are they going to get it now? The new design of the building looks okay, but I still don't expect it to get built sadly in this economy. I've seen proposals like this from local developers in other cities including Greenville where the plans have been down-sized numerous times and the projects still haven't gotten built. Fool me once: shame on you. Fool me twice: shame on me.

A year and a half later....nothing has changed with this opinion of mine. Here is one reason why: http://www.kentucky.com/2011/10/27/1...no-longer.html

[Dallas star]

Oh my have the renderings changed since the 1st page. I really like the first design, I think the base looks great.