Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

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Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Tnexster » 26 Oct 2016 23:31

Can Crystal Lagoons' man-made oases wedge Texas vacationers away from golf courses? This guy thinks so

http://www.dallasnews.com/business/econ ... guy-thinks

Acres of Caribbean blue water lined by broad promenades and luxe cabanas. White sand beaches -- some serving as launches for swimmers and kayakers, and some designed for relaxing with a fruity cocktail -- slope into a sparkling sea.

But can you picture all that plunked down in Texas, a state where most of the lakes are man-made?
Executives of Crystal Lagoons, the company building a showpiece eight-acre water feature at the planned $1 billion Bayside development on Lake Ray Hubbard, say it’s not just possible, it’s the future.

“You have a great opportunity to provide beach life to people in driving distance from their homes,” said Uri Man, the U.S. CEO of Chile-based Crystal Lagoons.

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tamtagon
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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby tamtagon » 27 Oct 2016 07:41

Why not include a couple acres of lush jungle under a dome?

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Tnexster » 27 Oct 2016 15:53

Developer behind Cabo-inspired lagoon, $1B project puts Bayside eateries on the menu

http://www.bizjournals.com/dallas/news/ ... er-1b.html

The Dallas-based developer behind the $1 billion Bayside mixed-use project — which will feature a Cabo-like, blue-hued lagoon — has begun cobbling together his restaurant mix that will surround the lagoon adjacent to Lake Ray Hubbard.

By the end of the year, Kent Donahue told the Dallas Business Journal he'd like to start unveiling the restaurants on the menu for the mixed-use development in Rowlett, which sits 15 miles east of downtown Dallas.

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Tnexster » 06 Jan 2017 12:19

Not so much about the Rowlett project but these things are obviously gaining traction in Texas.

The Lone Star State to get two new blue lagoons to anchor master-planned communities

http://www.bizjournals.com/dallas/news/ ... ns-to.html

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby The_Overdog » 06 Jan 2017 16:44

In my opinion, Texas waterfront is a woefully underutilized asset and lake access is even more segregated than North vs South Dallas when compared to oceanfront access in most states. So I think these lagoons, if they catch on and can be maintained, will be one of the biggest game changers Dallas will see in a long time.

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby dollaztx » 09 Jan 2017 10:32

The_Overdog wrote:In my opinion, Texas waterfront is a woefully underutilized asset and lake access is even more segregated than North vs South Dallas when compared to oceanfront access in most states. So I think these lagoons, if they catch on and can be maintained, will be one of the biggest game changers Dallas will see in a long time.


I can see these lagoons eventually being built in most lakes throughout DFW. So many people here without much to do outdoors or nice nearby beaches. Certainly just the Rowlett one isn't going to cut it.

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Tnexster » 10 Jan 2017 16:10

Lagoon-anchored $1B development near Lake Ray Hubbard snags landscape architect

http://www.bizjournals.com/dallas/news/ ... j=77035281

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Tnexster » 13 Mar 2018 21:40

New developer on Rowlett's $1B Bayside project puts Crystal Lagoon plans in flux

https://www.dallasnews.com/business/rea ... plans-flux

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby jrd1964 » 12 Apr 2018 09:18

https://www.bizjournals.com/dallas/news ... ystal.html

Meritage and K.Hovnanian will be building 'affordable (less than $300,000)' housing as part of Bayside's residential area. Just over 100 homes in that price range will be built between the 2 builders.

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Waldozer » 28 Jul 2018 08:22

No game changer in Rowlett, it seems.

https://www.dallasnews.com/news/rowlett ... side-plans

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby itsjrd1964 » 28 Jul 2018 17:27

Ever since seeing the graphics for the Bayside artwork, it makes me think of the artwork on the full-page ads back in the 1980s for Faulkner Point. And most of us know how *that* ended up....

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Tnexster » 28 Jul 2018 19:58

In other words, they can't make the numbers work. The lagoon would have made that a "go to" property for the entire metro. I love it when they come in later and dumb everything down.

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby DAFW » 28 Jul 2018 22:36

this is......wow... I have no words for this.

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby cowboyeagle05 » 30 Jul 2018 09:30

Based on the actual products they have built out so far at the site I could tell it was going differently than the glitz and flash they proposed originally. The architecture and overall feel of what they are actually building right now are close to what we have seen everywhere else in DFW. No real differentiator and not like the concept renderings at all. City councils are always likely to get swayed by flashy renderings that show life as we would like to to be never with any reality. The bank obviously came calling and said no office tenant is gonna care about your lagoon so we aren't paying for it.
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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Warrior2015 » 30 Jul 2018 10:22

cowboyeagle05 wrote:Based on the actual products they have built out so far at the site I could tell it was going differently than the glitz and flash they proposed originally. The architecture and overall feel of what they are actually building right now are close to what we have seen everywhere else in DFW. No real differentiator and not like the concept renderings at all. City councils are always likely to get swayed by flashy renderings that show life as we would like to to be never with any reality. The bank obviously came calling and said no office tenant is gonna care about your lagoon so we aren't paying for it.

This makes alot of sense. I will admit, I was kind of disappointed, but I don't really get my hopes up to high around here anymore sometimes. The mayor and city council seemed upset. I heard of some private partnership agreement or something agreeing on building the lagoon. The mayor said that the new proposal isn't apart of the agreement

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby itsjrd1964 » 21 Sep 2018 22:52

Rowlett leaders formally reject Bayside plans without a show fountain, crystal lagoon at Lake Ray Hubbard

https://www.dallasnews.com/news/rowlett ... ay-hubbard

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby itsjrd1964 » 21 Sep 2018 23:02

Meanwhile, work continues on the Bayside portion of the development, despite the city and developers still working out things.

https://www.dallasnews.com/business/rea ... ay-hubbard

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Dmkflyer » 23 Sep 2018 01:55

At least little Rowlett stands up to developers to do what they think will be better for their community while Dallas must rolls over and let’s developers do whatever they want

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby itsjrd1964 » 04 Jan 2019 22:25

Rowlett sues over Bayside, stands by expectation of 'world-class destination' at Lake Ray Hubbard

https://www.dallasnews.com/news/rowlett ... ay-hubbard

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Tnexster » 05 Jan 2019 11:21

Good for Rowlett, hope they prevail.

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Matt777 » 05 Jan 2019 12:12

itsjrd1964 wrote:Rowlett sues over Bayside, stands by expectation of 'world-class destination' at Lake Ray Hubbard

https://www.dallasnews.com/news/rowlett ... ay-hubbard


Yay, Go Rowlett! Hope they win. If only Dallas held developers responsible the way Rowlett is...

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby R1070 » 06 Jan 2019 13:30

Good job Rowlett. Dallas can learn from this!

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Tnexster » 01 Aug 2019 22:15

Rowlett announces new deal to restart stalled development with Crystal Lagoon along Lake Ray Hubbard

https://www.dallasnews.com/news/rowlett ... ay-hubbard

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Mgreen15 » 02 Aug 2019 09:24

Tnexster wrote:Rowlett announces new deal to restart stalled development with Crystal Lagoon along Lake Ray Hubbard

https://www.dallasnews.com/news/rowlett ... ay-hubbard


Awesome news! As a nearby home owner, I’m curious to see what type of impact this development will have on home values in the next 5 years.

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Tnexster » 02 Aug 2019 12:00

I'm just glad they stuck with it and are getting what they were originally promised.

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Tnexster » 09 Aug 2019 21:29

Surf’s up: Wave pool, Crystal Lagoon among plans unveiled at town hall for new $1B Rowlett development

https://www.dallasnews.com/news/rowlett ... evelopment

Image

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Tnexster » 25 Nov 2019 21:19

Construction starts on Rowlett’s crystal lagoon project on Lake Ray Hubbard

https://www.dallasnews.com/business/rea ... y-hubbard/

Architectural drawings show a smaller lagoon than in previous plans but with a separate wave pool.

“We look forward to building all of the quality amenities that will include a resort hotel, convention center, surf park, and public trail along the beautiful shores of Lake Ray Hubbard,” Marc S. English, the project’s co-developer and president of Sapphire Bay Land Development, said in a statement. “It will be a game changer for Rowlett!”

Sapphire Bay is planned as a 117-acre, $1 billion mixed-use development.

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby tamtagon » 25 Nov 2019 22:53

So, why did Dallas sell this land?

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Thymant » 26 Nov 2019 01:34

tamtagon wrote:So, why did Dallas sell this land?


I think something like this at this location would be more directly beneficial to the residents of Rowlett, Rockwall, and Garland than what it would a majority of Dallas residents so therefore I doubt the City of Dallas would have pushed for such a risky development like this. So maybe they just sold it for the quick cash.

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Tnexster » 26 Nov 2019 10:37

tamtagon wrote:So, why did Dallas sell this land?


Interesting question, I never stopped to think that Dallas could have developed this land much the way Cypress Waters was developed.

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Hannibal Lecter » 26 Nov 2019 17:16

Thymant wrote:So maybe they just sold it for the quick cash.


Bingo.

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby cowboyeagle05 » 30 Nov 2019 11:42

They wanted the cash for the park's budget. It was a trade-off kinda thing. Develop it as a Dallas property and wait on the returns if development ever happens which would feed into the overall taxes or sell it to Rowlett and fund the Dallas Pool system upgrades they were in terrible need of. It was all about the Pool system upgrade plan. Honestly, I am fine with it since it's so disconnected from Dallas in the first place. I think the short return was for a better need.
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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby muncien » 03 Dec 2019 09:44

cowboyeagle05 wrote:They wanted the cash for the park's budget. It was a trade-off kinda thing. Develop it as a Dallas property and wait on the returns if development ever happens which would feed into the overall taxes or sell it to Rowlett and fund the Dallas Pool system upgrades they were in terrible need of. It was all about the Pool system upgrade plan. Honestly, I am fine with it since it's so disconnected from Dallas in the first place. I think the short return was for a better need.


I agree. Even with the massive success of Cypress Waters, a good portion of the $$$ actually flows into Irving, Coppell, Grapevine, Flower Mound, etc. as many of the residents go to those places to shop. Also, many of the workers move to neighboring cities instead of Cypress Waters proper. I suspect similar behavior out in Rowlett.
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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Tnexster » 03 Mar 2021 10:23

Hyatt Hotels joins $1B mixed-use project in Rowlett

https://www.bizjournals.com/dallas/news ... 2#cxrecs_s

Hyatt Hotels Corp. (NYSE: H) has joined the $1 billion Sapphire Bay mixed-use development in Rowlett.

Hyatt will operate the new Sapphire Bay Resort & Conference Center on behalf of a public-private partnership with the City of Rowlett. Set to be located on the Sapphire Bay Peninsula, the resort will join Hyatt’s Destination Hotels brand and include more than 500 guestrooms, all with waterfront views overlooking Lake Ray Hubbard and the seven-acre man-made Sapphire Bay Lagoon.

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Matt777 » 03 Mar 2021 10:41

Looks awesome. I will definitely be doing a staycation here.

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby undefinedprocess » 03 Mar 2021 11:24

So do y'al think that Hyatt joining the project means this is less of a pipe dream, or actually makes it less of one?

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Tnexster » 03 Mar 2021 11:28

undefinedprocess wrote:So do y'al think that Hyatt joining the project means this is less of a pipe dream, or actually makes it less of one?


Let's see if they actually break ground this year as planned. Although I do feel like this stands a better chance now than before.

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Tnexster » 03 Mar 2021 13:52

DMN Story.....

https://www.dallasnews.com/business/rea ... ay-lagoon/

Hotel on the left side.

Image

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby exelone31 » 03 Mar 2021 15:06

Is it weird to anyone else that they seem to have a lot of the water stuff situated without a view of the lake?

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Addison » 03 Mar 2021 15:49

undefinedprocess wrote:So do y'al think that Hyatt joining the project means this is less of a pipe dream, or actually makes it less of one?


Things can always go wrong, but the big hotel chains don't just get on board with any project unless they're confident it's sure thing (especially post-COVID).

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Tnexster » 07 Jan 2022 14:23

Florida developer makes a splash in Rowlett’s lagoon project
Apartments are on the way in the $1 billion Sapphire Bay development on Lake Ray Hubbard.

https://www.dallasnews.com/business/rea ... n-project/

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby CTroyMathis » 16 Dec 2023 16:21

And, just like that, a large new-construction, not occupied or fully completed yet, 5-ish story apartment complex has been on fire for about more than half a day now.

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Tivo_Kenevil » 17 Dec 2023 13:25

CTroyMathis wrote:And, just like that, a large new-construction, not occupied or fully completed yet, 5-ish story apartment complex has been on fire for about more than half a day now.

Well, better to go up in flames unoccupied and incomplete than occupied and completed. Half glass full.

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby zaphod » 17 Dec 2023 14:53

Lots of schadenfreude about this online, like on Reddit. It's unfortunate but it seems like a lot of people were unhappy to lose a lakefront park for a private development like this. Now there is approximately 0 public access points to Lake Ray Hubbard, since Garland closed Windsurf Bay park because there was too much riff-raff.

Lake Ray Hubbard is an example of what not to do with a man-made lake in an urban area. It was built decades ago as a water supply source but there was no planning for how it might be used for recreation, and it also serves as a large barrier to traffic and roadway/infrastructure expansion. It's also very shallow and therefore I'd presume it loses a lot of its volume to evaporation and is at risk of silt build up. I suspect if civil engineers decades ago knew how big Dallas was going to get today, they would have spent the money on an aqueduct for lakes further away.

It actually makes you wonder, if we built enough large reservoirs in East Texas and had large-diameter water tunnels or man-made canals (Houston has one paralleling the San Jacinto River for example), you could just drain Lake RH and free up an abundance of buildable land. Lavon would do flood control duty, there would still be a greenbelt. No more mosquito coast that dries up every drought, Rowlett could grow out on more sides, etc. Probably the same for Mountain Creek Reservoir as well, currently Joe Pool (a much cleaner, deeper lake with a much newer dam, a less urbanized upstream watershed) isn't being fully utilized for drinking water like it was intended for and the redevelopment of Hensley Field would be easier with more elbow room.

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Matt777 » 18 Dec 2023 21:52

Anyone think this fire is a little shady sounding? Apartment demand is softening in most big cities, especially higher end, and the days of free rent for x months is back. The WFAA video on it was weird too, with the firefighters almost sounding like they've just let it burn for days on end. I don't know....

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby northsouth » 18 Dec 2023 22:38

If there's nobody inside to save, and no property inside to grab since it's still unoccupied, then the safest thing to do is to put some water on it but otherwise let it burn itself out. These things are mostly made of engineered lumber like plywood and laminated timbers, which mean they're full of glues, which are often oil-based, so it just makes the whole thing burn even more. It's also already at the upper end of the size range for fully wood-built structures, so there's just so much to burn. Wood's cheaper to build with than concrete/steel, so it's cheaper to re-build with wood as well.

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby I45Tex » 19 Dec 2023 10:42

zaphod wrote:Lots of schadenfreude about this online, like on Reddit. It's unfortunate but it seems like a lot of people were unhappy to lose a lakefront park for a private development like this. Now there is approximately 0 public access points to Lake Ray Hubbard, since Garland closed Windsurf Bay park because there was too much riff-raff.

Lake Ray Hubbard is an example of what not to do with a man-made lake in an urban area. It was built decades ago as a water supply source but there was no planning for how it might be used for recreation, and it also serves as a large barrier to traffic and roadway/infrastructure expansion. It's also very shallow and therefore I'd presume it loses a lot of its volume to evaporation and is at risk of silt build up. I suspect if civil engineers decades ago knew how big Dallas was going to get today, they would have spent the money on an aqueduct for lakes further away.


Terry Park in Rockwall and others ( http://www.garlandparks.com/Facilities/ ... es-Park-49 ?) make public access not approximate zero. I agree that it's not as excellent as it could be but those investments take longer and take taxpayer dollars to create value. Whereas [as a contract document would say] the real appetite here seems to be for property speculation in lakeside housing -- which is faster and makes one feel more in control of one's own dollars -- I just don't know if you could get people onboard to create another kind of value.

Reddit loses a lot of its volume to evaporation and is at risk of silt build up!

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Hannibal Lecter » 20 Dec 2023 10:53

I lived in Rockwall 1997-2022. I never really understood the attitude of the city government and politically powerful residents towards the lakefront. Basically, they wanted it to be 100% privately controlled. Other than the boat ramp near 66 there was pretty much zero public lake access. The city put all of its park budget into parks away from the lake. Historically the city of Dallas owned the shoreline, so (at least in theory) you could walk along it, though access was difficult and nobody did. But the city lobbied Dallas to allow the adjacent property owners to lease the shoreline, so even that access went away.

It was built decades ago as a water supply source but there was no planning for how it might be used for recreation


Actually there was a pretty extensive plan park plan written by Dallas in the 1960's while the lake was being developed, but since the lake was so far from the city proper the plan just gathered dust. Eventually the city sold the only real park at Dalrock Road to Rowlett. That took two city elections to accomplish, as the voters rejected the sale in the first state-required election

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby Addison » 20 Dec 2023 12:59

Hannibal Lecter wrote:I lived in Rockwall 1997-2022. I never really understood the attitude of the city government and politically powerful residents towards the lakefront. Basically, they wanted it to be 100% privately controlled. Other than the boat ramp near 66 there was pretty much zero public lake access. The city put all of its park budget into parks away from the lake...


I have a strong suspicion of what was the driving force behind that, but it's not a comfortable topic.

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Re: Rowlett: Crystal Lagoon

Postby I45Tex » 21 Dec 2023 06:06

I was wrong - Terry Park is a Heath city park, not Rockwall.