real estate journals

San Diego Business Journal (8/27): STR ranking puts San Diego at #1 in hotel occupancy

Los Angeles Business Journal (8/27): South Broadway high-rent retail may be pushed out for lower-rent, national chains as high-end residential reuse takes over the upper stories of historic buildings; L.A. Mayor planning to lure more big box retail

Crain's Chicago Business (8/20): lifestyle center tenancy; residential sales; Rosemont waterpark plans

San Fernando Valley Business Journal (8/20): film equipment firms opening offices in NC and SC

California Real Estate Journal (8/27): San Diego housing state of emergency; City of San Diego offering land for city hall development

real estate journals

San Diego college economic impact study released

from this afternoon's San Diego Business Journal:

Study: SDSU to Have $4.5B Impact on Region
8/31/2007

"Officials at San Diego State University announced results of a study examining the economic impact of the school on the region.

By 2025, the university’s annual economic impact will increase from $2.4 billion to $4.5 billion because of growing enrollment, which is expected to increase from 25,000 full-time students to 35,000 during the next 20 years." ....

"Researchers at Fairfax, Va.-based ICF International conducted the two-part study during a three-month span for a cost of $53,000, according to Jack Beresford, an SDSU spokesman.

Results of the study concluded that there are 100,000 alums living in the San Diego region. Two-thirds of local teachers are SDSU grads as well as 50 percent of local engineers and the majority of local nurses with bachelor’s degrees. Tax revenue generated by SDSU students will nearly double during the next two decades from $308.3 million to $587.7 million in 2025.

Scott Alevy, vice president of public policy at the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce, also announced the chamber’s formal support for SDSU’s campus master plan revision, which will increase academic space, student housing and services and faculty housing."
by Jaimy Lee

for the complete story see: http://sdbj.com/enews_article.asp?aID=27321405.9827587.1520272.4566733.5451224.186&aID2=116935&lid=30&sid=&cID=Z

for links to the complete economic impact report and the campus' masterplan see: http://advancement.sdsu.edu/masterplan/

misc news

Retail Traffic (Aug): retail developers moving into Mexico and Latin America; area focus on FL

Business Week Small Biz (Aug-Sept): Harry Potter theme park in FL

Tradeshow Week (8/13): Las Vegas getting new venues

Tradeshow Week (8/6): Jamaica getting its first convention center

Nation's Restaurant News (8/13): stadium food policies

planning and real estate news

Journal of Planning Literature (Aug): housing and disasters (featuring Katrina)

California Real Estate Journal (8/20): CRA L.A. on Chinatown

San Diego Business Journal (8/20): Del Mar racetrack visitation up

National Real Estate Investor (Aug): Dracula's castle for sale; Las Vegas hotel construction on the rise; city review of St. Louis; mixed-use development; outlet mall retail developments

misc news

Shopping Center Business (Aug): focus on FL

Hotels (Aug): Blackstone review; feature report on the North American hotel market

Dick McElyea

July's Urban Land has a very nice memorial for Dick on page 28.

misc news

Tradeshow Week (7/16); Gaylord abandons Chula Vista (CA) plans; CVB developments in Fort Worth and Baltimore; Tucson closing in on a CC hotel; area feature on the Southwest (TX, AZ, NM, and OK)


Tradeshow Week (7/30): Kansas City, MO convention business on the rise

Tradeshow Week (7/9): IN CC details announced

World Waterpark (July-Aug): Kool Runnings Water Park, Jamaica; CoCo Key Water Resort, Rockford, IL; Great Wolf Lodge, OH; Sun-N-Fun Lagoon, Collier County, FL

AZA Connect (June): aquariums online -- Shedd, Monterey Bay, and Vancouver

Fortune (8/20): Yankees; lengthy feature on New Orleans redevelopment "progress"

real estate and planning news

Urban Land (July): sustainable spa in Thailand; riverfront redevelopment case studies (includes, Davenport and Dubuque, IO; Little Rock, AR; Milwaukee, WI; Minneapolis and St. Paul, MN; Newport, KY; Pittsburgh, PA; Providence, RI; Tacoma, WA); London economics; Berlin transport; Tokyo building boom; affordable housing; aging college stadiums (Rose Bowl, Cotton Bowl, and Orange Bowl); development in Vietnam; regional spotlight on CA (includes a nice piece on the Great Park); feature on Cordoba, Argentina; retirement communities in Japan; redevelopment in India

CP&DR (Aug): disposition of tribal casino cases; Fresno planning

San Diego Business Journal (8/13); San Diego Chargers ticket sales

California Real Estate Journal (8/13): Wild Rivers waterpark (Irvine, CA) under threat of demolition and development as residences by Irvine Co.: downtown L.A. lofts

New Orleans City Business (8/6); St. Charles and the tourism shortfall

misc articles

Funworld (Aug): Universal Studios parks planned for South Korea and UAE; Kennywood purchase of Story Land (NH); Harbour Park (England); FECs and holiday events; feature on upcoming rides and attractions; Dollywood developments; new coasters for 2007; new waterparks; Cedar Fair developments; Europa Park's 4th themed hotel

M&C (Aug): Javits expansion plans; location features on -- PA; South FL; TX; VA; Savannah, GA

gaming and Indian development articles

IGWB (Aug): Macau revenues up; Hard Rock Biloxi; Detroit-area casinos expanding; Vietnam on rise as resort destination

Indian Country Today (8/8): Mashpee Wampanoags (MA) casino plans; Kalispel Tribe (WA) facility expansion; Gun Lake (MI) compact approved; road improvements announced for road to Skywalk (AZ)

Native American Casino (Aug): feature on Kiowa Casino (OK) articles on golf course developments

business journal news

Economic Development Quarterly (Aug): universities and high-tech centers; inner-city neighborhoods; BIDs -- San Diego's BID program

Business Week (8/13): misunderstanding demographics and the housing over supply

Orange County Business Journal (8/6); the annual list of OC cities including population, revenues, and largest employers

Crain's Chicago Business (7/30): map of existing and planned Chicago hotels; McCormick Place meetings market plan; feature section of 'second string" sports

California Real Estate Journal (8/6): Bass Pro Shop/Outdoor World opening in Rancho Cucamonga; San Diego v WalMart

Orange County Business Journal (7/23): OC tourism's top cities

New Orleans City Business (7/16): listing of the largest French Quarter hotels with room numbers, ADR, etc.

California Real Estate Journal (7/30): CA home sales falling; Sacramento riverfront development; Pleasanton TOD

Los Angeles Business Journal (7/30): real estate and development trends in East L.A.; annual list of public golf courses ranked by rounds played (includes greens fees)

Give a warm, ERA welcome to the 2007 BOMA

new tourism project for North Korea

from Yonhap News 8/2:

Hyundai Asan plans to spend US$3 billion for new tourism project in North Korea

"SEOUL, Aug. 2 (Yonhap) -- A South Korean company operating businesses in North Korea said Thursday it plans to spend US$3 billion by 2025 to develop an area on the North's east coast as a new tourist destination.

Yoon Man-joon, chief executive officer of Hyundai Asan, the North Korean business arm of Hyundai Group, said the company submitted the proposal to the North's authorities in June and that North Korea is expected to make a final decision as early as next month.

The new project calls for Hyundai Asan to develop the costal area from the North's eastern port city of Wonsan to Haegeumgang near Mt. Geumgang, where the South Korean company built a mountain resort in 1998.

If North Korea approves the proposal, it would be Hyundai Asan's third major economic project in the North, following the mountain resort and an industrial complex in the city of Kaesong near the inter-Korean border." ....

" Mount Geumgang, located just north of the border between the two Koreas near the east coast, has attracted more than 1.5 million visitors since 1998, Yoon said.

In the first seven months of this year, some 150,000, mostly South Korean guests, visited the scenic mountain.

Yoon said the company will make efforts to meet this year's target of 400,000 visitors as the North recently opened an inner side of the mountain.

The North's approval to open a wider part of Mount Geumgang and its surrounding area to tourists "indicated a normalization in relations between Hyundai and North Korea," Yoon said." ....

for the complete story see: http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/northkorea/2007/08/02/19/0401000000AEN20070802006300320F.HTML

Chicago convention center hotel plans

from the Chicago Tribune 8/3:

McPier floats new hotel plan
Project would double lodging at McCormick Place
By Kathy Bergen
Tribune staff reporter
August 3, 2007

A"fter trumpeting the completion of the $882 million West Building addition Thursday, a top McCormick Place official disclosed preliminary plans for another jumbo expansion that could include a 1,500-room hotel located on the block directly north of the newly opened hall.

The Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority board on Tuesday is expected to consider exercising its eminent domain powers to condemn the block, clearing the way for a project that would more than double the convention center's on-site hotel offerings, Ted Tetzlaff, chairman of the board, said in an interview. Other elements could include more parking for McCormick Place, restaurants and other businesses.

This bold but risk-laden project would be in addition to the planned 600-room expansion of the Hyatt Regency McCormick Place, an 800-room property owned by the authority, which is known as McPier. The agency is expected to request development proposals for the Hyatt expansion shortly, with a contract likely to be awarded late this year or early next." ....

"A manager of one of Chicago's largest trade shows says she thinks the show is losing attendance due to tight hotel supply. "We use 16,000 rooms on peak, and we could use another 2,000 to 3,000," said Mary Pat Heftman, of the National Restaurant Association's annual show at McCormick Place.

Potential attendees who cannot find rooms "either don't come or they stay out by the airport," she said, "and I'm confident many are choosing not to come, which limits growth for the city." .....

"At least some of the parcel is owned by Maine-based developers Pam Gleichman and Karl Norberg, who last fall had proposed their own mixed use for the property, including 350 residential units, a 200-room hotel and a 475-spot parking garage, according to a posted notice of a zoning change request." ....

"Pulling off a hotel expansion at McCormick Place will be anything but a cakewalk, observers say. South Loop redevelopment is expanding southward rapidly, but the immediate McCormick Place area remains devoid of restaurants, night spots and retail." .....

"Others note that on-campus hotels are becoming de rigueur for convention centers. "They are competing against other convention centers that have attached hotels," said Mark Eble, regional vice president for PKF Consulting.

And the existing Hyatt Regency, despite a feast-or-famine business cycle, is a cash cow for McPier, in part because public financing kept borrowing costs below what they would have been in the private market.

The hotel "averages $18 million to $20 million a year in operating income for us, which is very significant," McPier Chief Executive Juan Ochoa said." .....

for the complete story see: http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi-fri_mccormick0803aug03,0,4975147.story
****************


and From the Chicago Tribune 8/2:

McCormick may add 1,500-room hotel

By Kathy Bergen
Tribune staff reporter
1:21 PM CDT, August 2, 2007

"Even as McCormick Place officials unveiled the $882 million West Building addition Thursday, they are moving swiftly toward another massive expansion, this one a potential mixed-use development that could include a new 1,500-room hotel directly north of the newly opened hall.

The Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority board on Tuesday is expected to consider exercising its eminent domain powers to condemn the block, clearing the way for a project that would more than double the convention center's on-site hotel offerings, said Ted Tetzlaff, chairman of the board.

This project would be in addition to the planned 600-room expansion of the McCormick Place Hyatt Regency, which now has 800 rooms. The authority, known as McPier, is expected to request development proposals for the Hyatt expansion shortly." ....

for the complete story see: http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi-070802-mccormick-new-hotel,0,2861997.story

Asian hotel rates on rise

from today's Hotels enewsletter


Hoteliers Across Asia See Room Rates Soar
Deloitte
August 6, 2007


"Half year results from the HotelBenchmark™ Survey by Deloitte show that the hotel market in Asia Pacific is seeing much stronger growth this year than last.

Room revenue per available room (revPAR) across the region is up 14.1% to US$97 – outperforming the 9.4% growth achieved in 2006. Improvements have been driven by double-digit increases in average room rates, which now stand at US$137.

Asia Pacific continues to build on, and benefit from its position as the world’s second most visited region after Europe. For the first time last year, Asia’s volume of international tourism receipts equalised with the Americas. And the region is not stopping there. Latest figures from the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) show that it has seen the strongest growth in international tourist arrivals during the first four months of 2007 – clearly great news for hotel industry.

The key winners in 2007 have been Asia’s resort destinations. Bali has continued to recover despite fresh travel warnings and achieved the region’s highest revPAR growth at 58.6% in the first half of 2007. This marks an incredible turnaround for the resort island, which has struggled since the bomb attacks in 2002 and 2005. Improvements have been largely driven by a 37.6% occupancy rise, underlining returning public confidence – with direct foreign arrivals reaching an all time high in the first quarter.

Indonesia wasn’t alone in seeing the fortunes of its island resorts improving; Penang experienced revPAR growth of 18.4%, driven by rising average room rates. Meanwhile further up the coast in Thailand, Phuket is booming. Double-digit rises in both occupancy levels and average room rates have caused revPAR to swell by 39.6% to US$111 – considerably higher than its Indonesian and Malaysian rivals. This is largely due to the increased accessibility of the islands, as low-cost airlines connect these resorts to the region’s gateway cities.

This trend also allows developed resorts such as Phuket to take business tourism away from cities. Bangkok has struggled with this, while the uncertain political situation and the New Year bombings have also discouraged visitors. There have also been problems at Bangkok’s new Suvarnabhumi Airport with cracks on the runway which have restricted international flights. Occupancy in the Thai capital is down 7.8% compared to last year, curbing revPAR at US$82.

Rival cities are also benefiting; in Vietnam Ho Chi Minh City recorded 49.0% revPAR growth - the region’s second highest - while Hanoi grew 34.4%. A shortage of hotel rooms in Vietnam is also enabling hoteliers to drive up performance. Singapore and Manila also continued their impressive form, with strong revPAR rises driven by average room rates.

Much has been reported about China’s growth, but their heavyweight partner India is shining in 2007. With a limited supply of rooms and increased demand in the business travel sector, Mumbai saw the region’s third highest revPAR growth, an impressive 46.7% increase to US$197. This was again driven by soaring average room rates, which at US$253 are the highest in Asia.

China meanwhile is seeing huge developments in its hotel industry. New hotel openings in all sectors of the market have diluted occupancy levels and slowed performance growth. Shanghai, which will see its supply grow by over 6,000 rooms in 2007, has seen revPAR fall 1.2% to US$97 in the first half of 2007, although this remains on a par with the regional average." ....

for the complete story see: http://www6.lexisnexis.com/publisher/EndUser?Action=UserDisplayFullDocument&orgId=616&topicId=12552&docId=u:651672407&start=1&nid=3457

also see the Deloitte newswire for further info: http://www.hotelbenchmark.com/pressroom/pressreleases/06082007AsiaPacific-EN.aspx

Costa Rican resort plans

from today's GlobeSt:

Last updated: August 6, 2007 11:58am
Revolution Plans $800M Costa Rican Resort
By Erika Morphy

"WASHINGTON, DC-Steve Case's real estate venture, Revolution Places--launched to develop sustainable, high-end, resort communities--has selected its first destination, Cacique, Costa Rica. The 650-acre, $800-million development is scheduled to open in 2010.

Revolution was unable to be reached for comment by press time. The resort group is a unit of Case's holding company, Revolution LLC, which he seeded with $500 million in 2005 when he founded the company. The goal embellishes the traditional concept of sustainable development to take advantage of a handful of emerging trends in global travel, including ecotourism, condo ownership at resort locations and green building standards." ....

"Located on the northwest coast of Guanacaste, the Cacique resort, for instance, will be built with environmentally friendly designs to reduce energy and water demand. Spatial, wind and solar patterns also will be taken into account in order to maximize natural ventilation, shade and daylight. The resort will establish a recycling and solid waste management program as well as create on-site treatment facilities to reuse wastewater. Finally, electrical power will be purchased from renewable sources.

At the same time the resort is geared to the luxury travel set, including the planned condos. The resort will include estate sites, custom and semi-custom whole ownership residences, resort-loft living and Exclusive Resorts club memberships.

Amenities will be provided by a handful of companies known for their high end services. One&Only Resorts will develop a 120-unit, all-villa property, with each room situated on its own compound with an Pacific Ocean view. The resort will include a Miraval: Life in Balance, a top-ranked destination spa that's marking its first exotic location expansion for this brand. It will offer 100 programs for 120 rooms and 60 villas on 50 acres of private grounds. Exclusive Resorts, another top luxury destination club, has committed to custom design and purchase 30 residences in a private enclave. Also coming is a Tom Doak 18-hole golf course, and the first Agassi-Graf Tennis and Fitness Centers, personally designed and programmed by Andre Agassi and Stefi Graf." ...

For the complete story see: http://www.globest.com/news/964_964/washington/162909-1.html

San Diego airport expansion

from today's San Diego Business Journal

Agency Trying to Get $650M Airport Project Off the Ground
By MIKE ALLEN - 8/6/2007
San Diego Business Journal Staff

"Constrained on all sides, the single-runway Lindbergh Field has seen passenger traffic grow to the point that it needs at least two more gates to handle it. In addition, traffic going into and out of the airport continues to create bottlenecks.

“We are already behind the eight ball. Today we’re short by two gates,” said Keith Wilschetz, director of airport planning for the San Diego County Regional Airport Authority, the agency that manages the downtown airport. “And every year we’re going to be behind by another gate or two.” .....

"Airport managers say a short-term remedy is to expand Terminal 2 or the farthest west terminal by 10 gates from its current total of 41.

The expansion plan that is still being examined also calls for constructing an elevated road to the terminal for easier traffic access, a possible five-story parking garage, and an overnight parking area for passenger jets that must be grounded to comply with a no-fly curfew from 11:30 p.m. to 6:30 a.m.

The latest cost estimate on the project is $650 million, Wilschetz said." ...

"However, not everyone is convinced that the airport authority’s plans are best for Lindbergh and the region.

Fourth District Supervisor Ron Roberts is adamantly opposed to the gate expansion project, saying the authority’s immediate action plan makes no sense in light of the agency’s earlier plans to build additional gates at the northeastern side of the airport.

More than 10 years ago, Roberts said the airport plans were to construct a mass transit center at Pacific Highway, along with ramps that would take traffic from Interstate 5 into the airport. Also, there were plans to acquire land from the Marine Corps Recruit Depot to enlarge the airport’s taxiways, and possibly build another runway.

Roberts said he and other members of the San Diego Association of Governments’ transportation committee will be taking a hard look at the airport’s environmental report. Sandag is a regional planning agency." ...

"Passenger Counts Soaring

As more carriers, particularly regional airlines such as ExpressJet and Frontier, provide direct service to certain cities, the airport has seen its passenger counts rise annually in the last four years. Last year, 17.5 million passengers flew from and into the airport, up only 0.6 percent from 2005. But that number was up 6.7 percent from 2004.

In the first half of 2007, more than 8.6 million passengers came through Lindbergh, with the heaviest travel months, July and August, still to be counted.

Airport managers are also intent on using 44 acres of land just east of the existing commuter terminal the agency will get that formerly belonged to Teledyne Ryan. This year, the authority has begun assessing the extent of the site’s contamination in advance of cleaning it up. Teledyne Ryan used hazardous materials on the site during decades of aerospace manufacturing.

The gate expansion project was initially planned for the late 1990s when the airport expanded and improved Terminal 2, then called the West Terminal. At the time, the project included installing utilities and other infrastructure at the terminal that would permit adding a row of 10 new gates at a future date." ........

for the complete story see: http://sdbj.com/enews_article.asp?aID=18211637.7737948.1508871.4092485.210346.122&aID2=116058&lid=30&sid=&cID=Z

San Diego-Gaylord hotel/Convention center deal still may be in the works

from today's San Diego Business Journal:


Gaylord May Still Move Ahead on $1B Chula Vista Hotel/Convention Center
By MIKE ALLEN - 8/6/2007
San Diego Business Journal Staff

"Local labor leaders dismissed a proposal by Gaylord Entertainment on a $1 billion Chula Vista hotel/convention center project last week. But some observers say the Tennessee-based developer may still move ahead with plans.

At a news conference Aug. 1, union officials said a proposal made by Gaylord in late July was a “nonstarter” because it failed to provide for hiring local workers first." ....

"In July 2006, Chula Vista, the port and Gaylord entered into a development agreement on 32 acres of prime bay front land to build a 2,000-room hotel and a 400,000-square-foot convention center. The city and port agreed to invest $308 million into the $1 billion project that was said to create 6,500 construction jobs and 2,500 permanent hotel jobs." ....

"Chula Vista Mayor Cheryl Cox said the unions’ decision to stop talking robbed the city of “the opportunity to work with this established and successful company.”

“Gaylord promised to give first dibs to local union contractors and said the company would use their best faith efforts to hire people from Chula Vista and surrounding areas,” Cox said.

Despite the apparent demise of the Gaylord project, some said the developer may still go forward on the Chula Vista project, but without a project labor agreement, or PLA.

Not Legally Required

The pacts are not legally required but have become common on large projects when public funding is involved.

PLAs are usually negotiated with unions as a way to nail down all the various aspects of constructing a major project, including the union scale wages, starting times, and whether nonunion contractors can bid on contracts." ....

"Gaylord may have wanted to avoid having the unions and other parties challenge the project as it moves through regulatory approvals.

Raising environmental and legal objections to the project would increase the cost, and possibly derail it entirely, said George Hawkins, president of Associated Builders and Contractors of San Diego, another trade association for local contractors.

Gaylord agreed to negotiate with labor on a PLA because with an agreement in hand, regulatory approval would likely be easier to obtain, Hawkins said.

Besides challenges during the environmental review process, parties could also file legal challenges in the courts. That tactic caused two years of delays in building Petco Park." ....


for complete story see: http://sdbj.com/enews_article.asp?aID=38211536.5682585.1508923.1425568.1603234.322&aID2=116062&lid=30&sid=&cID=Z

San Diego hottel/vacation rates

from this morning's San Diego Business Journal

San Diego on $7,000 a Night or $200 a Day
By CONNIE LEWIS - 8/6/2007
San Diego Business Journal Staff

"Thanks to successful marketing and promotion, along with a great climate, attractions and proximity to Mexico, San Diego has gone from a sleepy Navy town in the 1950s to one of the nation’s top tourism destinations today.

However, some would argue that it has yet to achieve the status of a world-class destination, and if they’re using hotel room rates as the measure, they’re right. This year, San Diego’s rates average $137 per day compared with New York at $254, London at $217 and Paris at $229, according to industry analysts." ...

"Traveling In The Lap Of Luxury

One of Bob and Carol’s main reasons for coming to town is to watch the Arizona Diamondbacks play the Padres on the evening of Aug. 27 and they’ve opted for the two-night “Opulence Redefined” package at the U.S. Grant Hotel. For $15,000, plus $1,500 extra for a third night, they’ll stay in one of the Grant’s two 1,500-square-foot presidential suites with a view of downtown and San Diego Bay. That price includes gratuities, but not taxes.

The package includes dining “al fresco” on the suite’s balcony with a meal for two prepared to order by the hotel’s top chef. It also includes a private butler, a chauffeured Bentley at their disposal, sailing aboard a private yacht and being served a “gourmet” luncheon, a four-hour treatment by Spa Velia, either in their room or at the spa’s downtown location, and a couple of plush robes and two pairs of slippers to take with them when they leave." .....

"First up on their places-to-go list is the horse races. Clubhouse admission at the Del Mar Race Track plus seating costs $20 per person. The track has no elite seating other than the Turf Club, but you have to be a member or a member’s guest to enter." ...

"Two seats in Petco Park’s Toyota Terrace will run $60 each. Altogether, the cost of Bob and Carol’s mini-vacation, including the city’s 10.5 percent hotel room tax of $1,732.50, comes to $21,115, or about $7,000 per night, a far cry from the $160 that the average leisure visitor staying in a hotel spent per night in 2006, according to the San Diego Convention & Visitors Bureau. In 2006, 32.2 million visitors came to the county and spent $7.7 billion while they were here, ConVis says.

The Other Side Of The Coin

Ted and Alice, another hypothetical couple coming to San Diego from Phoenix, are an entirely different story.

For starters, they’re driving and bringing groceries with them. Gas for their economy car would cost $160, considering they’d fill up four times during the 360-mile trip." ....

They will stay at the Hotel Occidental, a recent renovation of a historic building on Bankers Hill between Hillcrest and downtown, in a $79-a-night room that has a full-size bed, kitchenette, fridge and microwave, phone with voice mail, TV and DVD player, according to a reservations clerk. The restroom and shower are shared facilities outside the room. For three nights, their hotel bill will be $237 and the room tax is an additional $24.89." .....

"They’ll walk or bike to the game and watch from the Park at the Park, the grassy area behind the outfield fence. Cost for two tickets: $10." ...

for complete story see: http://sdbj.com/enews_article.asp?aID=58211517.9100611.1508845.17583702.3888906.408&aID2=116056&lid=30&sid=&cID=Z

San Diego Civic Center revision out for bid

from today's San Diego Business Journal newsletter:


CCDC Puts Out Call for Civic Center Makeover
By - 7/31/2007
San Diego Business Journal Staff

"The Centre City Development Corp. announced July 31 that it has issued a nationwide request for qualifications for the possible redevelopment of the Civic Center Complex in downtown San Diego.

The site is bounded by Third and Fourth avenues, and A and C streets, and includes the city’s administration building, development services center, city concourse building, Civic Theatre and Evan Jones Parkade." ...

"The city has had to lease privately owned space for more than 15 years to supplement what is provided in the administration building, which accommodates only 600 employees, according to CCDC, which oversees downtown redevelopment for the city.

Some tidbits from CCDC:

• City offices are located within eight downtown buildings — four of them leased — representing more than 500,000 square feet of leased space.

• Collectively, more than 3,000 employees work in these properties, which include annual leasing costs of $13.5 million.

• Deferred maintenance on the administration building alone is estimated to exceed $10 million.

• With the majority of leases coming due in 2013 and 2014, and rates projected to significantly rise, the RFQ is seen as a “proactive approach” to evaluate possible savings through redevelopment.

Responses are due Oct. 12. A pre-bid conference has been scheduled for 10 a.m. Sept. 6 in the Silver Room of the Community Concourse, 202 C St.

The RFQ can be downloaded from CCDC’s Web site at www.ccdc.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/rfp.home.

— Pat Broderick"

see next weeks San Diego Business Journal for the entire article

future retail trends

from the North Jersey Record 7/28:

How we'll shop in year 2015
Saturday, July 28, 2007

By JOAN VERDON
STAFF WRITER
AP

"In the future, Smart carts such as this one would be able to virtually steer themselves to sale items in the stores — and offer a reminder that you forgot to pick up a gallon of milk, according to predictions offered by the TNS Retail Forward consulting group." ...

Get ready for the future of retail. And that future could be as near as eight years away.

Gallo and Mary Brett Whitfield, senior vice president of TNS Retail Forward, urged retailers to be receptive to change, and warned that those who don't stay knowledgeable about new technologies could be left behind by the competition."
.....

"Technology is integrated into the social fabric and has become a fundamental driver of change," Gallo said. "It is clearly changing the economics of all the business models for anybody that's in the business of creating or satisfying demand."

Here are some of the ways technology will change retailing by 2015, said Gallo:

Privacy will become optional. "Would you rather stand in line at the airport, or would you rather give up some information in order to get a card that lets you breeze through security? Or looking at retail, do you want to give up some information in exchange for all sorts of high-value offers, exclusively for you? Increasingly it will become a choice."

Shopping ''avatars'' or agents will be online shopping assistants. Intelligent software will track shopping suggestions, inventory levels and unique promotions for frequent shoppers.

Cellphones and computers will come equipped with instant translation devices. "Eventually, it will be possible for people who don't speak the same language to communicate in real time without the need of a human translator."

A company called Speech Gear is already working on this technology.

Niche marketing will replace mass marketing. "Niche-casting will allow us to cost-effectively reach niches heretofore unable to reach and it will have a huge effect on the mass marketing model that many business are currently built upon."

Cellphones will replace credit cards. Sony is already working on technology that would allow shoppers to use their cellphones to authorize payments.

Smart carts. "There are people coming out with grocery carts with video interfaces. The idea is to get you to buy what they want you to buy." A cereal maker, for example, could contract with the cart maker to have the cart play a video featuring a certain cereal as the cart turns into the cereal aisle.

Hologram store clerks. "You'll be able to use them to access information, look at pictures, and using your cellphone you'll be able to talk to someone and even conduct transactions."

Interactive mirrors. "The mirror, a high-resolution digital screen with a camera, can relay live video. When a customer tries on an item, she can send live video to her friends for feedback." The customer can try on other clothes projected on the screen as holograms. "This technology is available today, and it won't be long, looking to 2015, before you have a version of it available to you in your home."

Pay by touch. "People can steal your credit cards, but they can't steal your finger."

for the full story see: http://www.northjersey.com/page.php?qstr=eXJpcnk3ZjczN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXkxOTcmZmdiZWw3Zjd2cWVlRUV5eTcxNzQ1ODkmeXJpcnk3ZjcxN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXkyMg

mixed-use museum project breaks ground in TX

from GlobeSt (7/31)

UPDATE Last updated: July 31, 2007 09:58pm
Allegiance-Led JV Begins $850M Rayzor Ranch
By Connie Gore

"DENTON, TX-A Texas-bred development joint venture is breaking ground this morning on the $850-million Rayzor Ranch, a 410-acre mixed-use project with a new Museum of Texas Art and Culture as its centerpiece. Infrastructure costs alone total $135 million for the Interstate 35-fronting site in the two-university town.
"The project is really the leading development in Denton County and North Texas for the next 24 months. The magnitude is much larger than anything that anyone else has under way," says C. Joseph Gampper, president of Dallas-based Allegiance Development LP, which is teaming with Torreon Capital LP of Austin for the undertaking. Nearly 400 business leaders are expected to attend Rayzor Ranch's groundbreaking.

The massive development will rise over seven years. First out of the ground will be the $320-million retail component: a 1.2-million-sf town center, 885,000-sf marketplace and 430,000 sf of inline and street retail. It will be complemented by 300 to 500 multifamily units, 700 townhouses and brownstones, roughly 250,000 sf of office and a hotel and 90,000-sf convention center. The museum's first phase will be 35,000 sf, but is planned to eventually rival Austin's Texas heritage museum in size and scope.

The Greater Denton Arts Council this month will kick off a fund drive to raise $20 million to $25 million for the museum and subsequent phases, which include a sculpture garden, permanent library and corporate-sponsored galleries. The museum project is being seeded by $800,000 from the Rayzor family of Denton and a five-acre donation, valued at $2.2 million, from Allegiance." ...

"The museum is slated to open in late 2009.

Rayzor Ranch's first space will come on line in November 2008 and the balance in March 2009. Randy Holcombe, Allegiance's executive vice president of retail, tells GlobeSt.com that the town center is 40% preleased and the marketplace is 70% preleased."
......

"The declared anchors are Dillard's and corporate-owned sites for a 200,000-sf Wal-mart Supercenter and 130,000-sf Sam's Club." ...

"Holcombe estimates site work will take four months. The $135 million of infrastructure upgrades include adding two lanes to US Hwy. 380 or University Drive, which should be completed by fall 2008." ....

for the complete story see: http://www.globest.com/news/961_961/gsrsouthwest/162778-1.html

travel spending up

released today by PRnewswire from comScore

Retail E-Commerce Climbs 23 Percent in Q2 Versus Year Ago
Total E-Commerce Reaches $95 Billion during First Half of 2007

"RESTON, Va., July 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- comScore (Nasdaq: SCOR),
a leader in measuring the digital world, today released a report on U.S.
e-commerce spending for the second quarter of 2007, which showed that
non-travel (retail) e-commerce grew 23 percent versus year ago to $27.2
billion, while online travel spending increased 14 percent to $20.3
billion. Total U.S. e-commerce spending climbed 19 percent to $47.5 billion
during the period." ....
Billions ($)
Percent
E-Commerce Spending Q2 2006 Q2 2007 Change
Total $40.0 $47.5 19 %
Non-Travel (Retail) $22.2 $27.2 23 %
Travel $17.8 $20.3 14 %"
......

"Top Gaining E-Commerce Categories
Q2 2007 vs. Q2 2006
Total U.S. - Home/Work/University
Locations
Source: comScore, Inc.

Category Q2 2007 vs. Q2 2006
Percent Change
Video Games, Consoles & Accessories 159 %
Sport & Fitness 58 %
Consumer Electronics (excl. PC Peripherals) 51 %
Event Tickets 44 %
Jewelry & Watches 32 %
Furniture, Appliances & Equipment 25 %
Music, Movies & Videos 24 %
Computer Software (excl. PC Games) 23 %
Books & Magazines 22 %
Apparel & Accessories 20 %

U.S Online Consumer Spending Likely to Reach $200 Billion in 2007
Total U.S. online consumer spending reached $170.8 billion in 2006,
with non-travel spending accounting for $102.1 billion and travel spending
accounting for $68.8 billion. Based on the first-half growth rates, total
U.S. online consumer spending is on track to reach $200 billion in 2007." ....

Billions ($)
Percent
Q1+Q2 2006 Q1+Q2 2007 Change
E-Commerce Spending
Total $80.8 $94.7 17 %
Non-Travel (Retail) $46.1 $55.1 20 %
Travel $34.7 $39.6 14 %
"

for the complete story see: http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/07-30-2007/0004635442&EDATE=

Chicago waterfornt development

from today's Crain's Chicago Business:

Kennedys, developer plan big Wolf Point project
By Alby Gallun
July 30, 2007

"(Crain’s) – A joint venture including the Kennedy family and a Texas developer aims to transform a long-vacant riverside property just west of the Merchandise Mart into a massive hotel, residential and office project anchored by an 89-story skyscraper.

The development on the four-acre parcel known as Wolf Point would reshape the skyline along the Chicago River, creating a bookend to the 92-story tower Donald Trump is building farther east.

The project includes three high-rises containing 850 condominiums, 650 apartments, 350 hotel rooms and about 1 million square feet of office space, according to a person familiar with the plan." ...

"Though the Kennedys sold the Merchandise Mart and neighboring Apparel Center in 1998, they retained ownership of Wolf Point, teaming up later with Chicago-based Jones Lang LaSalle Inc. on a proposed 3-million-square-foot mixed-use complex on the site. Yet that plan, which included the Mart’s owner, New York-based Vornado Realty Trust, never came to fruition.

The current proposal would include an 89-story tower on the southern tip of Wolf Point with 400 condominium units, 650 apartments and about 350 hotel rooms, according to the person familiar with the plan. A roughly 40-story office building with 1 million square feet of office space would rise on the east end of the site, and a 56-story, 450-unit condo high-rise would stand on the west end, the person says." ...

"The joint venture faces a slumping condo market and apartment, hotel and office sectors that are on the path to being overbuilt. But with planning in the preliminary stages, it's likely that construction wouldn't start for a few years, when market conditions could be different."

for complete story see: http://chicagobusiness.com/cgi-bin/news.pl?id=25853

new China and convention/event journals in --

China Tourism Research arrives roughly quarterly and covers topics like hotels, visitor numbers/destinations/origins, rural tourism, etc. It has a semi-academic bent to it, but still has useful data or leads on data nonetheless.

Convention and Event Tourism is also roughly quarterly and covers such topics as venue refurbishment, economics impacts of conventions and special events, World Cup economic impacts, county fair marketing, etc. It too has a semi-academic slant, but it still has much cool info to offer.

new theme park book in

new planning books in !!!!!!!!!

new TOD books in!

$300million resort planned for Ontario, Canada

from the Toronto Star (7/28):

Massive resort planned for Rice Lake TheStar.com - living - Massive resort planned for Rice Lake
July 28, 2007
Tracy Hanes

"BEWDLEY, ONT.–A resort that began as a simple fishing camp on Rice Lake in the 1940s is slated for a $300 million redevelopment into a deluxe, four-season facility with condo hotel units, full-ownership cottages and fractional ownership resort homes.

The plan for Golden Beach Resort, which sits on the south shore of the lake in Northumberland County, about a 90-minute drive east of Toronto, also calls for construction of an 18-hole golf course, a Victorian-inspired village with boutiques and cafes, a snow tubing hill and an equestrian centre." ....

"It currently has 300 seasonal trailer sites, 57 rental waterfront cottages, resort homes for sale, a restaurant, conference centre and 350-slip harbour.

Lang said the redevelopment plan, one of the largest of its kind in Ontario, was sparked by the need to adapt to the marketplace and respond to changing demographics. The redevelopment will echo a trend set by other Ontario resorts such as the Village at Blue Mountain and Red Leaves in Muskoka." .....

"The Golden Beach plan was developed with Sean Kelly of Stempski Kelly Associates Inc. of Guelph, one of the top resort planners in North America, who has been a consultant for resorts across North America, including several by Intrawest.

The redevelopment plan will take 10 to 15 years, says Le Marchant, with the first phase to be launched within the next 12 to 18 months, including condo hotel suites, full ownership seasonal cottages and fractional ownership resort homes." .....

for the full story see: http://www.thestar.com/article/239886

Biloxi's Margaritaville plans

from the Biloxi Sun Herald 7/28:

Sat, Jul. 28, 2007
MARGARITAVILLE ON THE WAY
By MARY PEREZ

"BILOXI -- A tropical breeze blew into Biloxi this week when the City Council approved plans for Margaritaville Casino.

"Pending permit approvals, groundbreaking on Margaritaville in Biloxi will be in August," said Jacqueline Peterson, senior corporate manager of communications for Harrah's Entertainment.

Harrah's, which owns the Grand Biloxi and Casino Magic, is building the $700 million resort on the beach in partnership with Pascagoula-born, world-renowned singer Jimmy Buffett. The resort is targeted to open in 2010.

Councilman George Lawrence still has questions about traffic but made the vote unanimous to approve an amended master plan and conditional use for the resort. Margaritaville Casino cleared both the Biloxi Architectural Review Commission and Planning Commission on July 5." .....

"When Margaritaville is built, there will be less casino space in the area than before Hurricane Katrina, said Jonathan Kiser of Neel-Schaffer in Gulfport, which did traffic projections." .....

"The investment is the largest in South Mississippi since Katrina, and Harrah's is also expanding worldwide.

Peterson said the company just announced a $1 billion expansion of their flagship resort, Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. Harrah's also recently announced new hotels at Harrah's Atlantic City and Harrah's New Orleans and an expansion of Horseshoe Casino in Indiana. Already the largest casino company in the world, Harrah's continues to develop its brand abroad. The purchase of London Clubs International included nine casinos in the U.K. plus three in Egypt and one in South Africa. The company is also building a casino in Spain and is looking to build in Slovenia." ....

for the complete story see: http://www.sunherald.com/casinos/story/108154.html

condo hotel failure in FL

from yesterday's Orlando Sentinel:

Lofty dreams for condo hotels come crashing down

Christopher Boyd
July 29, 2007

"Condominium hotels may go down as one of the briefest fads ever to sweep the real-estate industry as the market slumps in Central Florida -- only a year after it peaked.

Potential buyers are disappearing and financing commitments are falling flat, leaving condo-hotel developers with an uncertain future.

Last week, the first such hotel to open in downtown Orlando filed for bankruptcy protection, a failure the developer blamed on a rapidly changing market.

"Our sales were good in the beginning, but it got bad, bad, bad and then even worse," said Barry Greer, an owner of The Lexington at Orlando CityPlace. "The market was red-hot when we started this, but it folded up before we could close it out."

Greer said nearly 100 people placed deposits on rooms in the 227-unit hotel but then backed out. According to the bankruptcy filing, just 31 units were sold." ...

"Plans for condo hotels rained upon Central Florida with the force of a summer downpour last year. Nearly 15,000 condo-hotel rooms were proposed, including two big resorts not far from the Orange County Convention Center.

Developers of both resorts -- The Blue Rose on Universal Boulevard and the InterContinental Resort & Residences Orlando at Palazzo Del Lago on International Drive -- say they are moving ahead, though neither has broken ground. In both cases, projected openings have moved from 2009 to 2010." .....

"We see Orlando as the Achilles' heel of the condo-hotel market," said Dante Alexander, president and chief executive officer of the National Association of Condo Hotel Owners, a group that represents both developers and buyers." ....

"Today, the projects that stand a chance are the ones that have it all, said Alexander. They must be new, have a plethora of resort amenities and be affiliated with well-known hotel brands to attract interest." .....

"But some projects are moving ahead. Neil Scott, vice president of Floridays Resort on International Drive, said this condo-hotel resort is about to break ground on a 360-unit expansion after selling out a first phase." .....

for the complete story see: http://www.orlandosentinel.com/orl-condohotel2907jul29,0,3103020.story

misc news

New Urban News (Jul-Aug): focus on TOD (especially in D.C.); LA planning process; Vancouver Olympic Village in the works

M&C (July): special secondary issue on golf meetings; eccentric hotels; Gulf Coast rebound; small airlines and meetings market; convention facilities and headquarters hotels; garden venues for events; location guides: Oahu, NYC, Fort Lauderdale, CO, and Lisbon

Nation's Restaurant News (7/23): second-tier restaurant growth rate slowing; GameWorks World Sports Grille

business magazine news

Fortune (8/6): Wal-Mart's Japan woes

Economist (7/28): Indian Country coal debate

Crain's Chicago Business (7/2): city Olympics' insurance debate continues; special focus section on Chicago-, 6-county area demographics


Crain's Chicago Business (7/16): office skyscrapers on sale; McCormick Place-Navy Pier report

Orange County Business Journal (7/16); Disneyland's new attractions

Los Angeles Business Journal (7/23): Culver City, mixed-use debate; L.A. Galaxy and Beckham's impact on pro soccer franchise; Connery Sherwood Country Club suit over golf membership; L.A. Galaxy soccer team owner interview

minor league stadium opens in southern IL

from yesterday's Globe St --

NOTE: The name of the team is the Southern Illinois Miners not Minors


Last updated: July 22, 2007 11:11pm
Construction Completed on $25M Baseball Park
By Gina Kenny

"MARION, IL-Seven Illinois Baseball Group, with main investors John and Jayne Simmons, has completed construction of a minor league baseball stadium, located northwest of Highway 13 and I-57. The $25 million Rent One Park was constructed by Holland Construction Services, based in Swansea, IL. The Southern Illinois Minors, with the Frontier League, will play at the stadium.

The 40,000 sf masonry stadium, which has a sculptural steel canopy, has seating for 3,450 people. The stadium has lawn seating, a picnic area, a “party deck” and a children’s playground. There are also 14 enclosed suites that have air conditioning, carpet and cabinets, says Michael Marchal, director of construction operations with Holland Construction Services. The park has a team store which is accessible from both inside and outside of the ball park, multiple concession stands and a “club house” which has the locker room, changing areas and training rooms, Marchal says. Additionally, the park has a 2,800 sf banquet room and a maintenance building.

The ball park has an artificial turf field which will be home field for the Minors and will also be used by college baseball teams and high school baseball, football and soccer teams. The stadium will also be used for concerts and other non-sporting events and hosted the Pops at the Park concert on July 1.

The Simmons decided to construct a baseball stadium in Marion and sought out baseball teams because they felt there was a void in the area with the closest minor league teams being about a 90-minute drive away" .....

for complete article see: http://www.globest.com/news/954_954/gsrmidwest/162491-1.html

New arena for Toledo

from today's GlobeSt

Last updated: July 23, 2007 06:36am

County Buys Land for New $85M Arena
By Robert Carr

"TOLEDO, OH-The Lucas County Improvement Corp. has made its $8 million payment for the assemblage of downtown properties for a new, $85 million arena, which will connect to the SeaGate Convention Center. The corporation, an arm of the county, plans to build an up-to-10,000-seat arena on Superior Street, bordered by Jefferson and Madison avenues, and Huron Street. The county hopes to move its current International Hockey Team, the Toledo Storm, to the new facility, which could also host an arena football league, concerts and events.

The current IHL stadium is too old for more use, says Shawn Ferguson, CEO of the corporation. The stadium would be torn down in a plan by developer Larry Dillin to build a $60 million mixed-use project, as well as a new park and riverside road, in the Marina District. Dillin is reportedly talking to tenants for condominium, retail and hotels for the project." ....

"The new arena is slated to be complete by 2009. The site is just a block away from the Toledo Mudhens stadium. According to the county’s “Arena Action Plan,” the hope is that the new facility will add to the current convention center and stadium to lead to “related development of restaurants, specialty retail and innovative housing options in the Warehouse District and the area north and west of the convention center.” Funding for the project can be attained by extending the hotel-motel tax, the early retirement of debt on the convention center, state and federal grants, and the sale of naming rights for the entire complex, according to the action plan."

for the complete story see: http://www.globest.com/news/954_954/gsrmidwest/162488-1.html

PA funding convention center expansion with gaming revenues

from today's GlobeSt

UPDATE Last updated: July 23, 2007 07:22am

State OKs $880M for Convention Center
By Marita Thomas

"PHILADELPHIA-The Pennsylvania legislature has included a total of $880 million for expansion of the Pennsylvania Convention Center here in its budget. Gov. Ed Rendell has agreed to sign the bill." ...

"The state funding will come from taxes on casino revenues from throughout the Commonwealth. Just three Pennsylvania casinos, all at racetracks, are currently open, and not all of them have been open all year. According to the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board, the combined year-to-date revenues from Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs in Wilkes-Barre, Philadelphia Park in Bensalem, and Harrah’s Chester Downs in Chester is approximately $4.3 billion, and revenues are taxed at 55%.

The Philadelphia Redevelopment Authority has acquired the 27 parcels that extend two blocks west to Broad Street between Race and Arch streets. Plans for the expansion began nearly eight years ago and became mired in the existing center’s myriad problems with trade unions and management. The Convention Center Authority approved an initial design and the $700-million budget in December 2006.

Expansion will add approximately 300,000 sf to the center’s existing 640,000 sf, raise the number of exhibit halls from four to seven, and add 60,000 sf of ballroom space and 72,000 sf of additional meeting-room space. It is expected to open in 2010. " ....

for the complete story see: http://www.globest.com/news/954_954/philadelphia/162471-1.html

Jekyl Island, GA (state park/resort) planning deal/debacle?

from today's Atlanta Journal Constitution:

'Sweetheart deal' alleged at Jekyll
Plum for developer: Critics say state's $10 million rent break on such valuable land is absurd.

By Dan Chapman
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 07/23/07

The board that runs Jekyll Island, the financially strapped state park that's in line for billions of dollars of new hotels and condos, recently granted one of the nation's largest developers a rent break that could top $10 million.

The Jekyll Island Authority board approved a passel of incentives last month for Trammell Crow Co. and partners that is scheduled to run through 2020. Local and state governments routinely offer subsidies to spur development, particularly in little-developed, undesirable locales.

But critics counter that Jekyll is potentially a red-hot property and special subsidies aren't needed to further its development." ....

"Meanwhile, other developers planning big hotel and condo projects on Jekyll said last week they too would seek similar subsidies from the Authority, which could hinder the state park's ability to fix its historic district or renourish its beaches. The authority, which rarely receives state funds, doesn't have enough money for all upgrades.

Ben Porter, chairman of the authority board, defends the incentives, saying they are necessary to ensure Trammell Crow moves forward quickly with the proposed $90 million hotel and condo project." ....

"Jekyll's latest turn in the spotlight comes as the Authority revs up development of the state park/residential enclave/convention destination/beach resort. After a contentious session of the Georgia Legislature that pitted island preservationists against those who favor development, Gov. Sonny Perdue signed a bill to prohibit construction on the island's south end.

The state bought Jekyll in 1947 and designated it "a state park for the plain people of Georgia." By law, 65 percent of the island must remain undeveloped.

Developers are keen to build hotels, condos, restaurants and more on the remaining 35 percent. Big-time developers, including Trammell Crow, The Jacoby Group and Mercer Reynolds, seek to become the authority's development partner, responsible for coordinating an estimated $3 billion in new construction on the island." ....

"The Dallas-based real-estate conglomerate, along with two partners, proposes a $90 million project on 9.7 oceanfront acres where the rundown Buccaneer Beach Resort now sits. Trammell Crow plans to build 300 hotel rooms, 120 condos, a restaurant, spa and meeting rooms." ....
"RENT BREAK

The Jekyll Island Authority runs the state park and collects revenue from hotels, food and beverage sales, parking fees and more. It sometimes gives incentives for new development. The incentives for Trammell Crow Co. will kick in once the hotel opens, scheduled for 2010. According to an analysis by the authority:

In the first year of operation, Trammell Crow will get a break on the rent and food and beverage fees it pays the authority, worth an estimated $828,000.

Incentives reach $1.06 million in the sixth year.

By 2020, the authority will have relinquished $10.03 million in subsidies. The state park will have received $4.9 million in rent.

That year, Trammell Crow will start paying full rent.

Note: Estimates could change depending on the eventual size and success of the project."

for the full story see: http://www.ajc.com/search/content/jekyll.html

rec, hotels, and gaming news

Hotels (July): Orlando hotel beginning bunk-bed suites for kids; Manhattan market profiled; Fort Lauderdale transformed to upscale resort destination; annual top hotel chains report

IGWB (July): South African casino market; Win-River Indian casino (CA) to expand; Penn-National Gaming buyout; Harrah's Biloxi plan; Singapore resorts; Korean market; Gulf Coast gaming redevelopment

Funworld (July): Bearfire Ski Resort planned for Fort Worth, TX; WI Dells' Mt. Olympus Theme Park expanding; Creation Museum opens in KY; new rides for Hard Rock Park, Myrtle Beach, SC; Charles Dickens theme park opened in Kent, England; new World of Coca-Cola opens in Atlanta, GA; CA Academy of Science (San Francisco) opens new planetarium; Simpsons rides opening at Universal Studios FL and Hollywood; Marvel Comics theme park planned for Dubai; Cedar Fair in transition; Six Flags VIP passes; Gardaland (Itlay) opens its own Mount Rushmore; Michigan Space Science Center opens simulator

Indian development/gaming

American Indian Report (July): best practices analysis of co-managing Indian resources

Indian Country Today (7/18): Congress attempting to regulate casinos

business news

Economist (7/14): troubles for circuses

Business Week (7/23): Google and govt incentives for business location

real estate news

National Real Estate Investor (July): Boston's Ames Building becoming boutique hotel; Ontario, CA office space booming; brownfield redevelopment; city review of Toronto; apartment market problems; mixed-use retail; hotel room supply trends

California Real Estate Journal (7/16): retail market trends; hotel trends and room rates; downtown L.A. grocery starts; Blackstone-Hilton; value-added multi-family housing; green affordable housing; Lake Tahoe

San Diego Business Journal (7/16): Del Mar Race Track; special feature on the Old Globe

New Orleans City Business (7/9): restaurants and tourism

Los Angeles Business Journal (7/16): Disney named L.A. biggest company; developers moving in on Orange Line station areas

retail news

Retail Traffic (July): some centers are banning city buses from entering mall parking areas; mall acquisition and cap rates trends; area review on Boston

Shopping Center Business (July): retail design development trends; retail in Boston and MI

Ceasar's Palace expansion in Las Vegas

from this morning's GlobeSt

Last updated: July 20, 2007 08:17am
Harrah’s Planning $1B Caesars Palace Expansion
By Brian K. Miler

"LAS VEGAS-Harrah’s Entertainment today announced a $1-billion expansion of its flagship Caesars Palace hotel and casino on the Las Vegas Strip. Completion is slated for early 2009.

The centerpiece of the expansion is Octavius Tower, a new $375-million, 23-story hotel building that will adjoin Augustus Tower, which opened in 2005. The second floor of the new 665-room hotel tower will be lined with pool suites overlooking three new swimming pools that will rim an expanded outdoor whirlpool spa retreat, a poolside cafe and a nearby garden wedding venue. Adjacent to the new tower will be a new 263,000-sf meeting and convention facility.

As part of the expansion, the resort's existing 512-room Forum Tower will undergo an $83-million refurbishment. Improvements will include a new front entrance and expanded valet parking, a remodeled buffet restaurant, a redesigned Cypress Street Marketplace casual restaurant and an enlarged Race & Sports Book.

Scheduled to open in the first quarter of 2009, Octavius Tower will push the Caesars Palace room count to more than 4,000. The pool expansion is slated for completion in the second quarter of 2009. The Forum Tower renovation is scheduled to be completed in January 2008."....

for the complete story and related news see: http://www.globest.com/news/953_953/lasvegas/162449-1.html

Yankee stadium fuss

From this morning's GlobeSt

Last updated: July 20, 2007 08:31am
Group Cries Foul Ball in Yankee Stadium Project
By Natalie Dolce

"NEW YORK CITY-A lineup of former city officials were employed by the New York Yankees organization to help push through a new baseball stadium even though the project won’t benefit taxpayers or community members, claims a new report by Good Jobs New York." ...

"The report, Insider Baseball: How Current and Former Public Officials Pitched a Community Shutout for the New York Yankees, also reveals cost increases of nearly $100 million for a total taxpayer hit of $655 million." ....

"Damiani tells GlobeSt.com that the project is costing taxpayers over half a billion dollars and the costing community 22 acres of heavily used parks. She adds that public officials involved in the project directly violate Bloomberg’s plaNYC2030, an initiative by the Bloomberg administration to make the city a more environmentally sustainable city by 2030. " ....

"The report says that, “Taxpayer subsidies for the project are still flowing: the city is offering to further subsidize thousands of stadium parking spaces on the former park lands by allocating $190 million in civic facility bonds. The IDA has held a public hearing on the garage financing but has yet to vote on the project.”
In order to do this, Damiani explains, when referring to the seizing of public parklands, win rapid permitting, and land massive taxpayer subsidies for their new stadium in the South Bronx, “the New York Yankees hired numerous former public officials and benefited from the actions of a few current elected officials to play insider baseball, shutting out Bronx residents and New York City taxpayers.” ....

“The fiscal benefits for the Yankee project are worse than a zero-sum game,” says Dan Steinberg, Good Jobs New York’s research analyst. “The flawed development process belittled the community and created a mirage of economic benefits for taxpayers.” ....

"A spokesperson for the Yankees organization tells GlobeSt.com that, “The report is not worth responding to. It is a rehash of the same failed arguments and inaccuracies that 'No Jobs NY' has already presented in nine public hearings, and in countless reports as well as state and federal courts--all of which were rejected in the most transparent political and legal process. It is disgraceful that 'No Jobs NY' continues to attempt to garner publicity by attaching themselves to the Yankee name."
They explain that, "As promised, the new Yankee Stadium has created thousands of construction jobs and the New York Yankees have kept their commitment to hiring Bronx based workers and vendors. More than 31% of the contracts have been let to Bronx based businesses at a value of $100 million and 26% of the work force are Bronx residents. Of the total work force that has been hired 43% are minority workers. In addition, when the stadium is completed there will be 1,000 new jobs created.”
The report said that, “The new Yankee stadium project undermined democratic planning principles and benefited the Yankee’s profit margin over the employment, recreational and public health needs of the community. Despite the opposition of the local community board and a ‘no’ vote from the city council member representing the neighborhood around the stadium, the project was rammed through so hurriedly that community members were only allowed to weigh in after major decisions had been made.”
GJNY is a joint project of the Fiscal Policy Institute and Good Jobs First. FPI focuses on tax, budget, economic and related public policy issues. Good Jobs First is a nonprofit, nonpartisan national resource center for constituency-based groups and public officials that promotes corporate and government accountability in economic development and smart growth for working families, according to the company’s websites."

for the complete story go to: http://www.globest.com/news/953_953/newyork/162441-1.html

Yonkers waterfront development

from today's GlobeSt

Last updated: July 19, 2007 08:17am
Waterfront Redevelopment Could Begin Next Spring
By John Jordan
"YONKERS-As the city begins the review of the partnership’s recently submitted 3,000-page environmental review of the city’s waterfront, an official with the venture says that if all approvals are received in the time frame expected, construction could begin on the first phase of the waterfront redevelopment project by spring 2008.

On July 11 Struever Fidelco Cappelli LLC submitted a 3,000-page Draft Environmental Impact Statement covering several million square feet of possible development for a section of the Downtown waterfront district." ...

"The DEIS is part of the partnership’s proposed $1.5-billion first phase of a projected more than $3-billion cleanup and redevelopment of the Yonkers waterfront district. " ...

"The DEIS also includes a section on Tax Incremental Financing that would utilize projected future tax gains from the property to help finance property improvements. The developers are looking for the city to issue a $200-million bond that would include $112 million earmarked for road and sewer and traffic infrastructure work. A portion of the tax revenue generated by the project would go toward paying off the bonds." ...

"The four main components of the phase one development include: River Park Center, Cacace Center, Palisades Point and the reopening of the Saw Mill River.

River Park Center, which is located in the area known as the Gateway District, includes development of two city blocks in the heart of downtown just east of City Hall. River Park Center will feature a mix of retail, office, residential and entertainment components including: 465,000 sf of retail space; 325,000 sf of office space in multiple buildings; 80,000 sf of restaurant space with restaurants opening onto a new riverwalk along the reopened Saw Mill River; a 15-screen, 80,000-sf movie theater; a 6,500-seat ballpark located on the roof of the River Park Center for a new team in the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball Clubs; 950 residential apartments in two buildings and parking facilities with approximately 4,340 spaces.

Other facets of phase one call for a new 150,000-sf office building; a new 75,000-sf 150-room hotel; a new 1,470-space parking structure; a new 50,000-sf, six-bay fire headquarters; two 25-story residential buildings with a total of 436 condominium residences featuring 9,000 sf of ground-level retail/restaurant or office space and two parking facilities with 725 spaces and the re-opening of the Saw Mill River that now runs underneath parts of downtown or is inaccessible to the public near Getty Square and in Larkin Plaza."

for the complete story see: http://www.globest.com/news/952_952/westchester/162403-1.html

Sacramento airport expansion

From this morning's Sacramento Bee

Airport expansion plans move ahead
By Tony Bizjak - Bee Staff Writer
Published 12:00 am PDT Wednesday, July 18, 2007
"The Sacramento County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday unanimously endorsed environmental plans for a $1 billion-plus expansion of the region's crowded Sacramento International Airport.

The approval appears to keep airport officials on a tight timeline to build a new parking lot south of Interstate 5 next year in preparation for construction of a major new terminal building by 2011 to replace the outdated Terminal B facilities." ...

"Fish and Game official Todd Gardner said he is still reviewing the county's analysis of the impact its expansion may have on nearly two dozen endangered species that live in the environmentally sensitive surrounding area".....

"The airport, which hit the million-flier mark for the first time in June, is planning the biggest overhaul and expansion in its history.

Officials said the airport is on its way to hitting its 12-million passenger annual capacity. The planned expansion should expand capacity to 21 million.

That expansion is expected to start next year with construction of a 13,800-space parking lot and a car rental complex south of Interstate 5.

Officials say the parking area will compensate for parking spaces lost when a new terminal is built on existing Terminal B parking areas.

The centerpiece of the airport expansion is a three-story, glass-walled central terminal, connected by a tram to a new jet concourse at the end of the airport.

Also planned are a second parking garage, a high-rise hotel attached to the new terminal, and eventually a third runway.

The plan also includes room for a light-rail station, although Regional Transit officials say it doesn't appear they will be able to afford to extend light rail to the airport until after 2020."

for the complete story go to: http://www.sacbee.com/101/story/278431.html



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Las Vegas property deal

From this morning's Globe St.

Prime Vegas Land Could Top $1B
By Brian K. Miller
"LAS VEGAS-A 38-acre site across Las Vegas Boulevard from Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino is coming to market. Landowner Howard Bulloch, a local real estate executive, has retained the global gaming groups of CB Richard Ellis and Goldman Sachs to market the property. Given recent comparables, the purchase price could hit $1 billion.

The site is located at the south end of the six-mile stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard known as the Las Vegas Strip. CB Richard Ellis says the property will be marketed to the world’s largest development and gaming companies as the last opportunity on the Strip to control enough land for a large mixed-use project." ...

"Land with Strip frontage has recently been sold or put under contract for between $17 million and $35 million per acre. Most recently, earlier this month, FX Luxury Realty paid $36.7 million per acre ($180 million plus assumed debt) for the 50% interest it did not already own in 17.7 acres fronting the east side of the Las Vegas Strip immediately south of Harmon Avenue. The interest was acquired from Africa-Israel Investments Ltd. An Elvis-themed resort is expected, if not a sure thing.

In May, Elad Properties agreed to acquire the 34.5-acre New Frontier property on the Strip from Wichita billionaire Phil Ruffin for $34.8 million per acre. Elad plans to raze the existing casino and spend an additional $3.5 billion on a new resort that is to include a 3,500-room ultra-luxury hotel, condominiums, retail shops, restaurants and convention space.

Also in May, MGM Mirage paid two different owners approximately $17 million per acre for 33.5 contiguous acres that abut both its Circus Circus resort as well as Las Vegas Boulevard, giving the company a total of 102 acres to master plan. MGM is now talking with Kerzner International Holdings Ltd. about a joint venture to develop a multibillion resort.

In June, Christopher Milam paid $40 million to maintain his option to acquire 27 acres fronting the Las Vegas Strip south of Sahara Resort for $475 million, or $17.6 million per acre. The Texas developer is planning a $5-billion development for the site that would include the tallest building in the Western hemisphere. Milam has one year to exercise the option as long as he starts making monthly $2-million option payments beginning in October. "

For complete story see: http://www.globest.com/news/951_951/lasvegas/162374-1.html

The Korpacz is here! The Korpacz in here!

2007 2nd quarter Korpacz has arrived. Try to contain your enthusiasm.

new NSGAs are in !

I know this will excite you beyond measure.... the 2006 Series I, Series II, Lifecycle, and State-by-state volumes of the NSGA arrived today.

Ahhh the joy!

The NAICS is out!!!!!!!!!!!!

Try not to hyperventilate in excitement, but it's here!!!!



Also, for those phobic of paper, you can check out selections of the code online at: http://www.census.gov/epcd/www/naics.html
I have found at least one of the links there non-functioning, but for what it's worth you can play there. Also, for those of you who hocked your older editions, previous editions are online at the same link.

real estate journals news

Crain's Chicago Business (5/28): Chicago/Cook County foreclosures up

San Diego Business Journal (6/4): Del Mar luxury home sets sale price record; Oceanside lofts

New Orleans City Business (5/28): post-Katrina economic boom a no show

L.A. Business Journal (6/4): filming and L.A.; assigned seats in movie theaters

California Real Estate Journal (6/4): Huntington Beach tourist area linkage development

business magazine news

ForbesLife (June): revitalization of Spruce Peak all-weather resort (with golf) in Stowe, VT

Fortune (6/11); for those of you in the pool the "final" answer to the Warren-Jimmy Buffet genealogy puzzle

misc news

Business Week (6/11): kids hotels -- Marriott-Nickelodeon partnership

World Waterpark (May): games at indoor waterparks; Ray's Splash Planet Charlotte, NC; Schlitterbahn Galveston Island; waterpark food and beverage concessions; Splash Mountain, Ocean City, MD

Nation's Restaurant News (5/21): restaurants and sports teams

IGWB (May): new Seneca casino opened in NY

planning and real estate journals

Planning (May): transportation special issue -- high-speed rail; Kansas City, MO transit; city planning programs in Atlanta, Denver, St. Louis; local airports

California Real Estate Journal (5/29): Anaheim named developers for stadium-area redevelopment; prefab affordable housing; Escondido redevelopment; Sacramento retail

Crain's Chicago Business (5/14): Chicago Magnificent Mile seeing problems

San Fernando Valley Business Journal (5/28): North Hollywood lofts sale; Palmdale airport