Dallas Fort Worth Urban Forum

David, who runs development and construction management for Granite, says Granite leadership is in the midst of creating a development plan for Cedar Maple, a three-building complex across from the Crescent in Uptown. The smaller '80s-era project could see the addition of a nine-story 150k SF building or the firm may wait a few more years to re-examine the market.

Work Schedule: 04/01/2021 to 04/01/2023

Structure Type: Building
Structure Name: Cedar Maple Office building

Site Elevation: 480
Structure Height: 425
Total Height (AMSL): 905

R1070 wrote:I like they they want to incorporate the building next door that currently has Coal Vines, etc. That could be a prominent corner development.

Matt777 wrote:

R1070 wrote:I like they they want to incorporate the building next door that currently has Coal Vines, etc. That could be a prominent corner development.

Where was this mentioned?

The tower looks really good. I hope that the ground level is engaging enough to prevent that green area from becoming a dead zone like some of the 80's office buildings. The buildings that are there now are pleasant but could be vastly improved by just opening up the first floor completely and making it covered in glass, with retail and dining, and then adding a garage and tower in the surface parking lot behind it. The area with the bushes could be combined with the existing sidewalks to make a nice area for patios and a wider pedestrian thoroughfare. This plan obliterates everything on the lot now and starts over.

R1070 wrote:I will miss the French style office buildings right there. They blend in with the neighborhood so well. This building needs to be more street friendly.

eburress wrote: There's more height with this but less density.

tanzoak wrote:

eburress wrote: There's more height with this but less density.

How do you figure? It's about 5x as dense (120k sf vs 600k sf). Agree that the street level interaction is much much worse, though. That needs to be reconceptualized.

eburress wrote:

tanzoak wrote:

eburress wrote: There's more height with this but less density.

How do you figure? It's about 5x as dense (120k sf vs 600k sf). Agree that the street level interaction is much much worse, though. That needs to be reconceptualized.

I probably don't have the vocabulary to adequately say what I'm trying to say. Maybe it's more about the massing, arrangement, and/or utilization of lot. Currently the buildings are positioned towards the sidewalk which from Cedar Springs, makes the property feel more "filled." This new building is taller, obviously, but the lot seems less full...and that's the decreased density I was [trying to] speaking of.

dfwcre8tive wrote:Well, the parking lot behind the existing low-rise buildings was originally intended to house a highrise tower in the 1980s (only the smaller buildings were finished). Maybe they should go back to that plan.

Uptown Dallas office high-rise project will include park and retail buildings

Steve Brown, Real Estate Editor

A new development in the planning stages for Dallas' booming Uptown district would bring the biggest office tower to the neighborhood in decades ... But the standout for the Maple Avenue project are plans for an acre park and open space at one of Uptown's busiest intersections.

...The 26-story, 660,000-square-foot office tower would replace three small office buildings on the property built in 1985.

... Granite Properties will seek zoning changes to allow it to construct a taller building. In return, it will provide the park and open space and move its high-rise away from a next-door residential tower ... all of the parking for Granite's building will be underground.

... Current leases at Cedar Maple Plaza run through 2020, so any new construction is still a ways off.

willyk wrote:Have we seen renderings? Hopefully the developer will take note of the impact that good architecture has had on the success of M&O only a couple of blocks away.

When this building comes on the market it will have to compete with the scads of new inventory that has already been built in this cycle. They would be wise to shoot for something compelling.

eburress wrote:Well it's a pretty building, but I still hate they're planning to knock down the existing buildings - especially since there's room to fit this on the property without doing so.

...At ground level there will be two stand-alone restaurant spaces. The larger one will be a more formal option like a Hillstone or R+D. The smaller building is slated for something the architects call “fast casual” like a La Madeline or an equivalent...

...While architects GFF talked about a sundry-type store in the lobby of the main building,..

... it’s placed all 1,672 parking spaces across seven underground levels...

...the parcels are zoned for 240 feet in height and they want to nearly double that to 425 feet. That translates to 25 stories of office, a two-story lobby, and a top-floor amenity space. They’re also asking for a nearly 50 percent increase to their allowed FAR (floor area ratio) from 4:1 to 6:1.

The reason is simple economics. The cost to dig seven underground stories is enormous – call it $59 million — yes, million. To offset that spend, the building has to go up. The question is whether the acre of green space in the middle of Uptown is worth the height...

...Oak Lawn Committee Secretary Michael Milliken made a very valid point to those afraid of the height, essentially telling members that what Granite and GFF presented is precisely what the OLC has asked developers to bring for years. His point was to remind those wanting to “what if” a shorter, squattier building with far less green space...

...Any way you look at it, you won’t be seeing this crop up next year. These guys wanted to get an early start with approvals, so you won’t see groundbreaking for two years once permits are secured (and the trade war is over?).

cowboyeagle05 wrote:https://candysdirt.com/2018/07/11/oak-lawn-committee-sees-possible-signature-building-near-crescent-court-and-more/

Cedar-Maple-Exterior-1.jpg

...At ground level there will be two stand-alone restaurant spaces. The larger one will be a more formal option like a Hillstone or R+D. The smaller building is slated for something the architects call “fast casual” like a La Madeline or an equivalent...

...While architects GFF talked about a sundry-type store in the lobby of the main building,..

... it’s placed all 1,672 parking spaces across seven underground levels...

...the parcels are zoned for 240 feet in height and they want to nearly double that to 425 feet. That translates to 25 stories of office, a two-story lobby, and a top-floor amenity space. They’re also asking for a nearly 50 percent increase to their allowed FAR (floor area ratio) from 4:1 to 6:1.

The reason is simple economics. The cost to dig seven underground stories is enormous – call it $59 million — yes, million. To offset that spend, the building has to go up. The question is whether the acre of green space in the middle of Uptown is worth the height...

...Oak Lawn Committee Secretary Michael Milliken made a very valid point to those afraid of the height, essentially telling members that what Granite and GFF presented is precisely what the OLC has asked developers to bring for years. His point was to remind those wanting to “what if” a shorter, squattier building with far less green space...

...Any way you look at it, you won’t be seeing this crop up next year. These guys wanted to get an early start with approvals, so you won’t see groundbreaking for two years once permits are secured (and the trade war is over?).

Cbdallas wrote:How else would they valet the cars for the restaurants.