Dallas Fort Worth Urban Forum

The_Overdog wrote:I'm not saying Beck is particularly credible, but Sears did just come out of bankruptcy per https://therealdeal.com/2022/11/08/sears-crawls-out-of-bankruptcy-in-tatters/ and per that article, Seritage is looking to sell it's assets individually due to the bankruptcy, because it got 0 offers on an attempt to sell the entire portfolio.

The_Overdog wrote:I'm not saying Beck is particularly credible, but Sears did just come out of bankruptcy per https://therealdeal.com/2022/11/08/sears-crawls-out-of-bankruptcy-in-tatters/ and per that article, Seritage is looking to sell it's assets individually due to the bankruptcy, because it got 0 offers on an attempt to sell the entire portfolio.

Tucy wrote:

The_Overdog wrote:I'm not saying Beck is particularly credible, but Sears did just come out of bankruptcy per https://therealdeal.com/2022/11/08/sears-crawls-out-of-bankruptcy-in-tatters/ and per that article, Seritage is looking to sell it's assets individually due to the bankruptcy, because it got 0 offers on an attempt to sell the entire portfolio.

Sears is not Seritage. Yes, Sears just "came out of" bankruptcy (and is very nearly dead). But Sears has not owned the Valley View property since mid-2015.

Yes, Seritage is trying to sell properties because they didn't find any buyers for the whole company, but that is not really related to the Sears bankruptcy case (which has been going on for years). Bottom line, Seritage owns the property, not Sears (Seritage has not owned it since mid-2015). And Seritage is not in bankruptcy (but the property IS for sale and has been since August). One would presume that Beck is trying to buy it; if not, it tells us a lot.

The_Overdog wrote:Right. Saying Seritage is not Sears when the former Sears CEO spun it off and became CEO of Seritage is kind of quibbling. Beck was speaking for a news article, it's close enough.

How Dallas is this?

Our city’s longest-running hostage crisis involves real estate — the remains of Valley View Center, rotting away on its prime and pricey gravesite at LBJ Freeway and Preston Road.

This monument to urban blight — a crumbling mall and its surrounding asphalt wasteland — has outlasted mayors, council members, even newspaper columnists as majority-owner Beck Ventures and City Hall play round after round of chicken.

Foot-dragging developer Scott Beck has the upper hand in this six-year battle. He’s sitting on a gold mine, a 430-acre property that is among the few remaining large and developable sites left in North Dallas.

Recently comes word of a break in the hostage-taking. At least that’s what they say. We’ve heard this before — many times.

The City Attorney’s Office sent Beck a letter late last month demanding removal of the last hunk of the still-sorta-standing mall. The latest final deadlines to avoid going back to court: Get the asbestos abatement finished by March 16 and the site completely cleared by July 28, 2023.

“We’re looking for partners, not opportunists,” is how Assistant City Manager Majed Al-Ghafry assessed the state of when he returned my call Sunday...

Tucy wrote:LOL That article reminds me of one of the more hilarious clips from the prior story we were discussing up-thread -- where Beck claimed the project is ahead of schedule. ROFLMAO

willyk wrote:This is a serious question: What more can a city do to get a derelict site under development when the owner refuses to act? The City has given him great zoning already. I fear that we are in a situation where private property rights will prevail.

And I have to say that as attractive as this site is, the Galleria market is not really a top market office anymore. Lately the highest and best use has been stick wraps. The big investments northward along the Tollroad are being made at Preston Center and 121. Valley View is taking a big chance on missing the window of opportunity for this site.

In November, the city told developer Beck Ventures it had until July 28 to have the structure completely torn down and removed, or face going back to court. But after 50 firefighters spent four hours putting out two fires there, the city attorney’s office bumped up the demolition deadline to June 1, Dallas City Council member Jaynie Schultz told us.

IcedCowboyCoffee wrote:"Valley View mall site is a disaster, and City Hall is responsible" - Dallas Morning News

In November, the city told developer Beck Ventures it had until July 28 to have the structure completely torn down and removed, or face going back to court. But after 50 firefighters spent four hours putting out two fires there, the city attorney’s office bumped up the demolition deadline to June 1, Dallas City Council member Jaynie Schultz told us.

https://www.dallasnews.com/opinion/editorials/2023/02/15/valley-view-mall-site-is-a-disaster-and-city-hall-is-responsible/

rono3849 wrote:What a massive failure by the City of Dallas to allow this horror to continue to plague one of the most prominent sites in the city. It's a disgrace to see that virtually nothing good has happened here for years. It's an open wound that has festered to just ugliness. No excuses are acceptable.

tamtagon wrote:

rono3849 wrote:What a massive failure by the City of Dallas to allow this horror to continue to plague one of the most prominent sites in the city. It's a disgrace to see that virtually nothing good has happened here for years. It's an open wound that has festered to just ugliness. No excuses are acceptable.

Word

Addison wrote:Dallas slaps Valley View Center owners with habitual criminal property designation

https://www.dallasnews.com/news/comment ... signation/

dallaz wrote:According to this NBC 5 news clip, the project is moving forward. Scott Beck said this many times before, I’ll believe it when I see it. What do y’all think?

https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/final ... d/3217508/

Addison wrote:

dallaz wrote:According to this NBC 5 news clip, the project is moving forward. Scott Beck said this many times before, I’ll believe it when I see it. What do y’all think?

https://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/final ... d/3217508/

Scott Beck is full of shit.

Addison wrote:What's next for the site of the former Valley View Mall?

https://www.cbsnews.com/texas/news/what ... view-mall/

"Beck Ventures CEO Scott Beck said the first build will be a nearly 250,000-square-foot mixed-use project with luxury apartments, amenities, and ground-floor retail."

"It does feel great to finally have the project take shape. Because as I mentioned, it's really been a long haul. Because not only do you need the zoning for projects like this, you need the sanitary, the sewer, the water, the electric. And ultimately you need to tear down the building," Beck said. "It's a bittersweet moment to see the mall come down and I'm really energized and excited to see what's to come for the city of Dallas."

Beck said the project is currently in the design phase. He plans to submit building permits in a few months.

The first phase of construction is expected to take about 30 months to complete.

rono3849 wrote:Dallas Midtown will take years to develop.

Addison wrote:

rono3849 wrote:Dallas Midtown will take years to develop.

That would have a lot more meaning if we hadn't already been waiting 13 years for anything to happen...

Dallas_Uptown wrote:Candy's Dirt has a fawning piece about Scott Beck's plan for the Valley View site:

https://candysdirt.com/2024/02/19/after ... -9_COPY_01)

I'm not holding my breath.