LAS VEGAS | Union Park Development News

[Superfish]

Union Park Development
Las Vegas's New Master Planned Downtown Core

For decades, a 61-acre plot of land sat vacant and forgotten directly in the heart of Downtown Las Vegas. Formerly owned by the Union Pacific Railroad (hence the name) and thus unable to be developed, it was all but forgotten.

Now Las Vegas and its self proclaimed "happiest mayor" Oscar B. Goodman seeks to cement his legacy by finally developing this increasingly valuable land by commencing the Union Park Master Plan.

Consisting of numerous parcels of land, it will be home to a variety of civic, cultural, retail, office and residential uses, including high rise offices, a hotel, performing arts center and possibly a new city hall.

Summoned from far away lands, the gathering of vastly different personalities, including a celebrity chef who wants his own hotel, an architect known for his twisted building styles, and a bunch of jewelry fanatics make it clear the Union Park is serious business.

Upon its completion Union Park will be a city in itself as well as a gathering place for the 2 million residents of the Vegas Metropolitan Area and catapult Downtown Vegas into the future.

http://img479.imageshack.us/img479/6199/titledt1me2.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
*The above is a building massing, not actual final plans. The approximate heights are accurate as well as location, but designs and uses are not. If all the buildings looked exactly the same like that it would be pretty boring!

Looking Southeast
http://img462.imageshack.us/img462/5268/y7y7cx4.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Downtown Overview:
World Market Center (http://www.lasvegasmarket.com/) - Massive Furniture Trade and Convention Complex.
JUHL (http://www.juhl-lv.com/) - Midrise Condo
SOHO (http://www.soholoftslv.com/) - Highrise Condo *There is a webcam on top of this building that you can control! - SOHO WEBCAM (http://live6.truelook.com/face/newface.jsp?func=live&name=/ecodb/lvsoho&overlay=default&skin=Juhl&useapplet=true&time=1160157439314&width=640&height=480&quality=65&catalogname=catalog&preset=LIVE/Juhl)
Newport (http://www.newportloftslv.com/) - Highrise Condo
Molasky Corp Center (http://www.molaskyco.com/gov-srv/molasky-cc.html) - recently completed office building, first one for downtown in quite a while, LEED certified.
Streamline Tower (http://streamlinetower.com/) - Highrise Condo

* The three long tents to the right of the World Market Center are temporary space for the Market Center. They are some of the largest tents in the world.

Looking Directly North
http://img528.imageshack.us/img528/194/downtownpanoyd3.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Project Details
This is a master plan project by many developers and not a singular project, thus facts and figures are subject to change as new project components are announced.

Union Park is a 61-acre mixed-use urban development in downtown Las Vegas, located east
of I-15, north of Charleston Boulevard.The site is bordered on the east by the Union Pacific
railroad tracks,west and north by Grand Central Parkway, and south by Bonneville Avenue.
Spurred by rapid development already taking place on the strip the Union Park project is considered by the development community as the single most
important element of the current and future revitalization and redevelopment of downtown
Las Vegas. An infill site, the 61-acre Union Park land is surrounded by existing major
development, including the World Market Center (12 million square feet at build-out), Las
Vegas Premium Outlets (435,000 square feet) and the Clark County Government Center
(385,000 square feet). While an extension of existing downtown Las Vegas,Union Park is
being designed as its own destination, a place that will appeal to those seeking an urban
experience or lifestyle in an authentic downtown environment.

Divided into 4 "districts. The project core is anchored by the proposed Smith Center for Performing Arts, to be envisioned in an iconic structure similar to the Sydney Opera House. Next to it is the aptly named Symphony park, a plaza at the center of the plan. Directly to the east is the site of the proposed new city hall. Across from the arts center is the location of the Palmer hotel. At the northern end the 57 story jewelry Center will stand. The Lou Ruvo Alzheimer's Institute will anchor the southern end.

Districts:
Civic District
• Organized around a civic sized park; to serve as focal point for civic and cultural uses,
including The Smith Center for the Performing Arts and future arts-related venues
and experiences.
Specialty District
• Hospitality, specialty retail, hotel and entertainment uses.
Residential District
• Planned as true urban neighborhood with variety of housing types, including
apartments, condominiums in both low- and high-rise configurations; street-level
brownstones,walk-ups and mid-rise mixed-use with retail on the first level.
Medical/Office District
• Anchored by Lou Ruvo Brain Institute with office and clinic space to support medical
and general uses

Purpose: The site is planned as a progressive, pedestrian-oriented,mixed-use urban center.
Size: 61 acres
Location: Google Map Centered on Park Location (http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=las+vegas&ie=UTF8&ll=36.1701,-115.151042&spn=0.00382,0.007296&t=k&z=17&om=1)
Land Owner: City of Las Vegas
Master Plan Manager: Newland Communities
Proposed Usages:
* 1.9 million square feet of Class A office space
* 363,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space
* 3,100 high-rise residential units
* 15,800 parking spaces contained within vertical structures
* New hotel/casino
* 1,750 hotel rooms
Websites:
http://www.lasvegasnevada.gov/Government/7598.htm
http://www.unionparkvegas.com/


Maps
Master Plan
http://img479.imageshack.us/img479/3333/parkmapni8.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

District Layout
http://img49.imageshack.us/img49/2899/image1qn5.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Symphony Park
http://img413.imageshack.us/img413/7756/image10xp7.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Other Renderings

Symphony Park Looking east... This is Vegas, Palm Trees are god and will Proliferate.
http://img440.imageshack.us/img440/6181/2rw17ghxg8.jpg (http://imageshack.us)http://img413.imageshack.us/img413/4575/40bed7aey0.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

A Quiet Walkway..with Palm Trees
http://img402.imageshack.us/img402/9231/2evqhedzf7.jpg (http://imageshack.us)


Project Lineup

World Jewelry Center (http://www.worldjewelrycenter.com/)
A trade center for jewelry in a 57 floor iconic tower.
http://i18.tinypic.com/6t4rmzk.jpghttp://i17.tinypic.com/6wpdehh.jpg

Status: Proposed
Location: Parcel E
Type: Retail and Trade/Office Tower/with Condominiums
Architect: Altoon + Porter
Interior Area: ~1 million sq. ft.
Height: 800ft/57 story


Lou Ruvo Alzheimer's Institute (http://www.keepmemoryalive.org)
A state of the art research center designed by Frank Gehry.
http://img236.imageshack.us/img236/2977/brainnm7.jpg (http://imageshack.us)http://img489.imageshack.us/img489/502/ruvocntermb0.jpg (http://imageshack.us)http://img236.imageshack.us/img236/3050/keepmemoryalivecenterby6.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Status: Under Construction
Location: On its own parcel, next to Parcel A on map.
Type: Medical Research Center
Architect: Frank Gehry
Interior Area: 67,000 sq. ft.
Height: 5 story


Smith Center for the Performing Arts (http://www.lvpacfoundation.org/)
A signature center for performing arts and a new symbol of downtown Las Vegas.
http://i24.tinypic.com/o5ug54.jpghttp://i20.tinypic.com/34e57y0.jpg

Status: Proposed
Location: Parcel H
Architects: (Building) David M. Schwarz / Architectural Services, Inc., (Interior) HKS Architects Inc.
Type: Performing Arts Center, Centerpiece of Union Park Master Plan


The Charlie Palmer Hotel (http://www.charliepalmer.com/palmerhotel/home.html)
A boutique luxury non-gaming hotel by the famous chef.
http://i24.tinypic.com/358ubg2.jpg

Status: Proposed
Location: Parcel G
Type: Boutique Hotel
Rooms: ~400
Height: N/A
Features: Two Charlie Palmer Restaurants, spa...

[Vrysxy]

one of my favorite proyects in Las Vegas.

[mdiederi]

Lou Ruvo building.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/Gehry/Gehry1-1.jpg

[Superfish]

To this day I still wonder why Gehry was allowed to put his twisted designs on an Alzheimer's center. A museum or office is one thing but this seems counterintuitive.

Interior shots of the model by mdiederi a while ago....


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/gehry-hp.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/Gehry/186275647345630be8c32d1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/Gehry/79331699745630c527207a.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/Gehry/13538703545630cd924c75.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/Gehry/209199775745630db83139c.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/Gehry/149760241545630eb06bd58.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/Gehry/71171442345630d485f885.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/Gehry/41095508345630dda4457c.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/Gehry/32863053645630d111670d.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/Gehry/1245014945630e249a0df.jpg

[DrT]

^^
This design will help the researchers.
If you can find your way around in this building, it is proof that you DON'T have Alzheimer's.:lol:

[Superfish]

wow never thought of it like that.

Perhaps Gehry...a genius ahead of his time in more fields then one? ha!

[mdiederi]

The side that the patients will enter looks like this.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/Gehry/11642108645630f57916a2.jpg

Those photos of the interior model aren't mine, found them on the keep memory alive website
http://www.keepmemoryalive.org/about_us.php?sub=gallery&PHPSESSID=1c3d16b9e134dffa7b1ff57b03b92e4c

I did take these photos though of an early Gehry model of the Union Park site back when it still had an arena in the plans.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/renders/UP3.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/renders/UP2.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/renders/UP1.jpg

[Sbz2ifc]

Interesting project. I'm looking forward to seeing more of the particular building designs.

Btw, SOHO Lofts looks horrible. What's with the bottom part? Parking space?

[mdiederi]

Interesting project. I'm looking forward to seeing more of the particular building designs.

Btw, SOHO Lofts looks horrible. What's with the bottom part? Parking space?
Yeah, parking. It's supposed to be art deco, but the art deco embellishments are almost invisible even when you're standing right in front of it, and they forgot to paint the bottoms of the balconies.

[Superfish]

Interesting project. I'm looking forward to seeing more of the particular building designs.

Btw, SOHO Lofts looks horrible. What's with the bottom part? Parking space?

I would have to agree it's pretty ugly as well but guess you got to give it credit for being downtown's first new high rise condo. Sam Cherry the developer was ahead of this time in taking the chance to build downtown as opposed to on the strip like the other highrises.

SOHO was first followed by Newport and Streamline just topped some weeks ago.

The boom of highrises on the strip is mostly for tourists and out of towners. Many strip condo towers are empty most of the time even. The downtown condos are geared towards locals more and will be occupied by full time residents.

His third tower, (will be next to Newport) - Stanhi is actually quite nice.

http://www.stanhi.com/

[Sbz2ifc]

I agree... Stanhi looks ok, but it would look better if they used glass cladding on the bottom part. I guess it's Sam's way of saving some money :)

[zerokarma]

Looks interesting

[Chris85]

This is a great project! I really like the look of the World Jewelry Center. I don't think it's stated in this thread, but does anyone know approximately how long its going to take for this project to be completed as a whole?

[Superfish]

This is a great project! I really like the look of the World Jewelry Center. I don't think it's stated in this thread, but does anyone know approximately how long its going to take for this project to be completed as a whole?

Here you go, read up. This is a more in depth overview brochure of Union park. Warning - PDF file.
http://www.unionparkvegas.com/UPMediaKit022307.pdf

As common sense dictates, Union Park can't be completed if developers don't add more projects to it. The last one was the Palmer Hotel announcement which was a while ago.

[Chris85]

^^ Thanks for the link, Superfish. I'll take a look at it.

[Jim856796]

The plans for Union Park show that the Plaza Hotel and Casino (both towers) should be destroyed. They've lived 22 years and now they must go.

[Superfish]

Article About Downtown, the Mayor's Involvement in it and Union Park.

Well if indeed 14 parcels have been "spoken for" that's incredible. They must have been doing stuff behind the scenes, we didn't hear about it. Union park is practically filled up already.


Today: July 28, 2007 at 7:16:57 PDT

Development's big man on campus

Investors say they're writing big checks because of Oscar Goodman

By Joe Schoenmann
Las Vegas Sun

There was a time, less than six years ago, when downtown Las Vegas residents had to sidestep spent condoms near the curb outside their homes.

Many too were the stories of hookers who, taking on the persona of Blanche DuBois, would go door to door, offering their services in a "I have always depended upon the kindness of strangers" demeanor.

And in the summer of 2001, 9/11 ring leader Mohammad Atta must have so appreciated the isolation and obscurity of downtown that he spent a few comfortable nights in the EconoLodge on Las Vegas Boulevard, just south of Charleston.

Downtown Las Vegas seemed to always be an official afterthought, an unofficial dumping ground. Carson Avenue and Seventh Street was hooker central. Walking through the now-boarded up El Cid, you'd be lucky not to step on a spent hypodermic needle. No one knew or cared what happened anywhere east of the Fremont Street Experience.

And then this happened.

Somehow the city created believers in downtown. Maybe not yet believers of the Summerliners or the Green Valleyites. But perhaps more important at this stage of the city's redevelopment, people with bushels full of money to invest are believers.

And to a person , this is what they say:

None of it would have happened without the man holding the bottle of Bombay Sapphire gin, Mayor Oscar Goodman.

"It's Oscar and the team he put together . And, in terms of cheerleading or boosting, he's nonpareil . He is the best."

Those are the words of Barnet L. Liberman, a New York financier who says he is bound not to talk about projects he is working on in downtown Las Vegas, but acknowledges that the amount he is investing goes way beyond first intentions.

"I don't think I would have invested half the money I invested in Las Vegas were it not for the confidence I have in the institutions ( Goodman) leads," Liberman said. "He's just built a terrific team over there."

It's impossible to deny the transformation that downtown Las Vegas is undergoing.

Last week, the city began negotiating with REI Neon, which wants to buy 85 acres of radiator shops, furniture stores, art galleries and other businesses southwest of Main Street and Charleston Boulevard.

Though some are skeptical - even Goodman still sees it as a long shot - REI Neon wants to build an arena to house a basketball or hockey team, along with a casino, condos, retail space and exhibition halls. The announced price tag was $9.5 billion until Goodman said on a radio program Friday it had risen to $10.5 billion.

Then there's Union Park, on the so-called 61 acres site just west of the Plaza hotel. Just a few weeks ago, steel girders forming the frame of the Lou Ruvo Brain Institute, designed by Frank Gehry, began rising from the southwest corner of that property.

Dan Van Epp who, as president of Newland Communities' Mountain Region, is tasked with managing and developing Union Park, says 14 of 16 parcels of Union Park "have been spoken for."

"And the development effort on all of Union Park begins in earnest in November," Van Epp said. "A half-dozen buildings will be under construction by this time next year."

But it's not just the mega-projects that downtown Las Vegas is seeing. SoHo Lofts, the first high-rise condo project, is done and sold near Charleston and Las Vegas boulevards. Another high rise by the same developer is almost finished just a few blocks away.

Streamline tower, another condo project, is going up almost directly across the street from City Hall on Las Vegas Boulevard. Juhl is another high rise midway through construction.

And even Fremont Street East - or the Fremont East Party District or Fremont East Entertainment District, whatever you prefer to call that part of Fremont east of Las Vegas Boulevard that isn't under an electrified canopy - is getting new life.

Tiny bars like The Griffin and Downtown Cocktail Room opened this year and are seeing a lot of business. A sign on a vacant store across the street from The Griffin says a franchise coffee shop will be there soon (though the coffee shop owner said talks have stalled), and the V Club is being built inside the former Metro fingerprinting building at Sixth and Fremont.

True, Neonopolis remains the big orange three-story dream that is now an empty eyesore . You'll also struggle to find a grocery store within a few miles of this burgeoning area, despite the city's best efforts to almost give away land for that purpose.

"Naysayers," as Goodman calls them, might point to the failure of Neonopolis as downtown's failure - and Goodman's failure.

But Liberman tells another story.

Last fall, Liberman invited Goodman to New York to talk to some of the biggest money people in the world about "the real story in the city of Las Vegas."

Lehman Br s . , Bear Stearns, The Carlyle Group, "all the major banks and financial houses," as Liberman puts it.

"These are some pretty tough, savvy financial people, probably the toughest and most savvy in the world," he said.

And Goodman wowed them.

"Everyone walked away with a new impression of what's really happening and understood the dynamics, and all of it was because of his presentation and the support of the professionals he has working in City Hall," Liberman said.

Liberman, 61, has worked in real estate since 1969. He's credited with being the first to see the potential and investing in the then-new concept of lofts in the then-rundown SoHo District in Manhattan. He said he works all over the country . But in his decades in the business, he's never worked with anyone as accommodating or with a city with fewer turf battles among agencies than Las Vegas.

"And what people may not understand or know is, he really listens. It would appear that he really talks," Liberman said , adding that he was talking on the phone while holding a paper fan adorned with Goodman's face on one side and the logo of the city's business development office on the other. "But he really listens."

When asked whether that's different from his experience in other cities, Liberman laughed .

"I've done this in many cities and I have actually given his phone number to other mayors as an example of how they should organize themselves to encourage development," Liberman said. "And that includes New York."

Liberman is not alone in his sentiments. Developer after developer contacted by the Sun said the same thing, even those who publicly rued the day Goodman became mayor.

Like Van Epp.

"He said I'd set back Las Vegas 100 years," Goodman said of Van Epp. "Now he's my greatest supporter."

Van Epp, the former president of Howard Hughes Corp., admits that he "was not one who believed that his prior practice as a defense attorney largely for Mafia clients was necessarily a good thing for Las Vegas."

But Goodman's enthusiasm was infectious.

"I don't know how more fundamentally I can say it, but I believe he made a difference," Van Epp said. "He has a message about downtown and he has stayed on that message."

And still, some are bound not to give the mayor credit. Of course developers are lavishly praising the mayor, they say. They smell the money to be made downtown.

Jeremy Aguerro isn't a developer, though. He's the guy developers turn to when trying to decide whether the projects that look so promising on paper will succeed if they are built. His company, Applied Analysis, is one of the most respected sifters of economic indicators and trends in the state.

And this is what Aguerro said about the mayor and his staff :

"As weird as this sounds, and beyond financing and economic requirements, he has put together a brilliant team that understands business," Aguerro said. "As well as any city in the country, they get it. Oscar gets it.

"I don't think you can understate how important that is to the community and to businesses developing and relocating."

But is it Goodman? Is he really "the man," as many developers call him?

"When the history is written, it will probably come down to a fine line between right place/right time and right guy/right time," Aguerro said.

"That said, and with the group the mayor has down there, and from a guy who works with businesses who want to relocate, you'd be hard pressed to find someone who's done it better."

[Superfish]

Drove by today.

Lou Ruvo - 4 floors up. Note the elevator to the right.
http://img380.imageshack.us/img380/6404/stevedsci0085ri1.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

The fence around the site is now covered with lots of nice Union Park banners too. (No new renders though)

[VegasCharlie]

[QUOTE=Superfish;14451569]
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/gehry-hp.jpg


This is by far my favorite new building for Vegas. It's nice to see something other then 600+ ft square boxes comeing out of the ground.
In 10 years this will be, with the addition of a completed Union Park, an amazingly full area, and I believe the Alzheimer's center will be the cherry on the top!!!

[Superfish]

I agree I love seeing it go up, it's only four stories tall but what it lacks in height it gains from being the first project to be realized at Union Park as well as its worthy cause of researching an important disease affecting many people. The fact that it looks like a cheese grater designed by Gehry is icing on the cake.

The Ruvo Center is certainly an architecturally significant project and a welcome change from hotel towers.

But then again, Union Park is much more than just another megaresort. As the Ruvo center shows, it is more than a focus on gambling and other tourist oriented activity as strip resorts do so well; instead it will be providing medical research, art via the performing center as well as provide residential, to mostly locals. Tourists will visit too of course but it will also be a place for residents of this suburban metropolis to experience (or even call home) a slice of the urban environment that people in other older cities take for granted as second nature.

[Superfish]

Related note, I have been checking the main Union park site for a while, the site that is now shown on banners on the fencing around the Ruvo site. nothing yet but I am expecting them to update it soon on more recent renders of the projects and site, seeing that the Sun article said 14 parcels were already accounted for.

http://www.unionparkvegas.com/

It says website coming soon and it's already halfway thru the summer.

[Superfish]

Going Green


Mayor Goodman Announces The Acceptance Of Union Park Into The Pilot Program For LEED For Neighborhood Development


Las Vegas Mayor Oscar B. Goodman and Steve Rypka, member, board of directors, U.S. Green Building Council - Nevada Chapter, announce today the acceptance of Union Park into the LEED for Neighborhood Development pilot program developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). Union Park is the 61-acre, mixed-use master-planned urban center currently under development on land owned by the city of Las Vegas in the heart of downtown. Union Park is the only project in Las Vegas participating in this national pilot program.

The LEED for Neighborhood Development rating system integrates the principles of smart growth, urbanism, and green building into the first national rating system for neighborhood design. The program is a collaboration between the U.S. Green Building Council, the Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU), and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC).

“We are pleased to be a part of the LEED for Neighborhood Development pilot program, particularly as Union Park is the only such Las Vegas project announced to date,” said Las Vegas Mayor Oscar B. Goodman.“Union Park is a development whose time has come in Las Vegas. It is playing a central role in the revitalization of downtown Las Vegas and by embracing environmentally sound development practices, is forging new ground for ‘green’ neighborhood development in our valley.

According to Rita Brandin, vice president and development director for Newland Communities, the national real estate development firm retained by the city of Las Vegas to act as development manager for Union Park, the 10-million-square-foot,mixed-use project is creating an in-town culture, entertainment, working and living environment on currently unused railroad lands. “Not only will Union Park embrace environmentally sensitive development practices going forward, it embodies the very essence of land recycling,” she said.

The LEED for Neighborhood Development rating system evaluates communities on criteria related to smart location and linkage to the community at large; neighborhood pattern and design; green construction and technology; and water and energy conservation. It is a tool to help planners and developers create communities that not only protect the environment, but also address important public health issues such as physical activity, traffic accidents, respiratory illnesses, and affordable housing. The LEED certification process includes independent, third-party verification that a development's design, construction and performance meet accepted high standards for environmentally responsible, sustainable, development.

The pilot program is expected to conclude in 2008. Based on feedback gathered during the pilot, the rating system will be revised to improve its effectiveness and applicability to the marketplace. The revised rating system will then be balloted according to USGBC's consensus process and undergo approval by CNU and NRDC.

“Communities can play a tremendous role in mitigating global climate change,” said Rick Fedrizzi, President, CEO & Founding Chair, U.S. Green Building Council. “Buildings and the infrastructure that surround them are major sources of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions. The LEED for Neighborhood Development program will enable us to make efficient use of our natural resources and design communities that make an immediate, positive impact on our planet.”

About Union Park
Union Park is a 61-acre mixed-use master-planned urban center located in the heart of downtown Las Vegas on land owned by the city of Las Vegas. Situated just east of I-15, Union Park is bounded on the east by the historic Union Park rail yards across the street from World Market Center, Clark County Government Center and the Las Vegas Premium Outlets shopping center. Newland Communities, a privately owned national real estate developer with offices in more than 20 U.S. cities and more than 40 developments underway in 14 states, was retained by the city of Las Vegas as development manager to oversee day-to-day development of Union Park. Considered the single most important element of the revitalization of downtown Las Vegas, Union Park is anchored by two key public facilities: the Lou Ruvo Brain Institute designed by famed architect, Frank Gehry; and The Smith Center for the Performing Arts, designed by architect David Schwarz. Planned to encompass more than 10 million square feet of office, medical, residential, retail, civic and hotel/hospitality space, Union Park has a value of more than $6 billion and a build-out of approximately 11 years (2018). http://www.unionparkvegas.com/.

About LEED
The LEED® Green Building Rating System is a voluntary third party rating system where credits are earned for satisfying specified green building criteria. Projects are evaluated within six environmental categories: Sustainable Sites, Water Efficiency, Energy and Atmosphere, Materials and Resources, and Indoor Environmental Quality. Certified, Silver, Gold, and Platinum levels of green building certification are awarded based on the total credits earned. The LEED standard has been adopted nationwide by federal agencies, state and local governments, and interested private companies as the industry standard of measurement for green building.

About the U.S. Green Building Council
The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) is a non-profit composed of leaders from every sector of the building industry; including corporations, builders, universities, government agencies, and non-profit organizations; working together to transform the way buildings are designed, built and operated. Green buildings are environmentally responsible, profitable and healthy places to live and work. Since its founding in 1993, the Council has grown to more than 10,000 member companies and organizations, a 90-person professional staff, a broad portfolio of LEED® green building products and services, and produces the industry's popular Greenbuild International Conference and Expo (http://www.greenbuildexpo.org/). The USGBC’s network of over 75 local chapters, affiliates and organizing groups are united to advance their mission of transforming the building industry to sustainability.

[mdiederi]

Here's a new news story about it.
http://inbusinesslasvegas.com/2007/08/17/retail.html

[Ho-Dog]

^^ Nice article Mark, the developer seems quite confident regarding the second phase which includes the world Jewelry Center.

Union Park just needs to hit that elusive "critical mass" and it should start buzzing with activity! IMO

[Superfish]

The talk of the new City Hall is intriguing...

I haven't been the greatest fan to the current city hall, if ever. We should get something a bit newer. I don't need something revolutionary, or extravagant. It should be a modern structure that serves its purpose well. Although the desert themed Clark County Gov Center is one of my favorites too.

They state how important residential units are, rightfully saying without people, it'll be just another office core with no one there at night.

I also like Oscar restating the important fact that new and modern Union Park isn't supposed to suddenly make the rest of old downtown seem old and obs elate or inferior, but will link with it and be a part of it.

[mdiederi]

I haven't been the greatest fan to the current city hall, if ever.
Yeah, I don't think anyone is seeing as how several of those recent arena proposals were contingent on getting the land the current city hall is on.

[Superfish]

The talk of the new city hall isn't new. Even before Union Park, they thought about selling it off and possibly turning it into condos, or making it become the new HQ building of Metro Police who are short on office space.

Still up in the air is of course the money they will need to build the new hall. Selling old city hall off may indeed help.

[Ho-Dog]

Newland Communities has a bit more info on Union Park, and a nice artist conceptual rendering not found on the first page.

http://www.newlandcommunities.com/ourcommunities/communityDetail.aspx?communityID=48#

[samsonyuen]

This is great! It sounds like Vegas is getting its downtown act ogether. Is it relatively sprawled right now (the metro area)?

[Superfish]

What do you mean by relatively sprawled?

Vegas is sprawled, no question but we also have a boundary (called the blm disposal) that pretty much restricts us from going beyond it since it's federal land. We're pretty much about there now and thus the need to finally get some more high density and infill development within the metro area.


Newland Communities has a bit more info on Union Park, and a nice artist conceptual rendering not found on the first page.

http://www.newlandcommunities.com/ourcommunities/communityDetail.aspx?communityID=48#

Good link, havn't seen that one. However it appears to be an older rendering, as it doesn't show the Ruvo center at all and puts a large building on that corner. Interesting to see no doubt.

[mdiederi]

Here are some recent progress shots of the Frank Gehry designed Lou Ruvo Brain Institute, which is the first building on the Union Park site.

From the north looking south.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/Gehry/Brain1.jpg

From the west looking east.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/Gehry/Brain2.jpg

And they started on the southern part of the building where the melted cheese grater shaped thing will go.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/Gehry/Brain3.jpg

[mdiederi]

http://www.globest.com/news/996_996/lasvegas/164170-1.html
"The planned one-million-sf World Jewelry Center here is now officially a Foreign Trade Zone. The designation, which means significant savings for major jewelry industry players, enhances the center’s appeal as a place from which to operate, making the 60-story tower more likely to be completed as planned."

[mdiederi]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/Picture-1.jpg

Story about the Smith Center for the Performing Arts.
http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/do/2007/oct/24/566612154.html

More than a year after winning the commission for the Smith Center for the Performing Arts, Schwarz and his Washington, D.C., team presented a scale model at the Las Vegas Performing Arts Center Foundation offices on Monday....

The three-building Smith campus includes a large hall, a small hall and an education complex. The carillon bell tower juts from the northeast corner of the main building and could provide concerts for people in what is, at least tentatively, called Symphony Park. A pedestrian alley leads into outdoor public space, a courtyard between the three structures. The ground floor of the main building has a grand lobby. Above that is an upper lobby that could seat 300 for dinner or serve as reception space. A spacious veranda overlooks Symphony Park.

The design team is testing stone found near Jean. Myron Martin, president of the Las Vegas Performing Arts Center Foundation, says the stone, called Nevada metaquartzite , costs more than limestone but is indigenous and wouldn't need to be transported across county. That could help the building earn a LEED certification from the U.S. Green Building Council, Martin said.

The $250 million main building, with a 2,050-seat performance hall with four-tiered balcony and wood floors , is expected to break ground in 13 months and be completed in mid-2011. ...

[Superfish]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/Picture-1.jpg

Story about the Smith Center for the Performing Arts.
http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/do/2007/oct/24/566612154.html

Very interesting they would model it after Hoover Dam's art deco. Well we already have SOHO Lofts which is art deco so nothing really surprising. And I was thinking all this time they would have some abstract modern design.

You have any better shots of the model? The two on that page show only a part of it.


Went by the Ruvo Center today and it's making fast progress. I think they are clearly starting on the curvy "cheese grater" portion of it.

[xXFallenXx]

great project for vegas!

[mdiederi]

You have any better shots of the model? The two on that page show only a part of it.
That's all I've been able to find. Went to the architect's website but there was nothing about it there, but it seems to be a similar style to some of his other things.

[Bond James Bond]

Holy moly what a project!

Only in Vegas. ;) (Or Dubai :D)

[mdiederi]

New story about Union Park's LEED pilot program

http://www.globest.com/news/1035_1035/lasvegas/165975-1.html


.

[mdiederi]

News story about the site.
http://www.lvrj.com/news/11569526.html

Action on three potential anchor tenants could come as soon as the first three months of next year:

• The World Jewelry Center, a 50-plus-story tower that would house jewelry designers, manufacturers, whole- salers and retailers, is expected to present its final plans to the Las Vegas City Council in January.

• They're expected to be followed in February by the proposed five-star Charlie Palmer boutique hotel, slated for 400 rooms and one of the chef's signature restaurants.

• Then, in March, the council should hear from Access Medical, which has plans for a 400-room business hotel (negotiations are ongoing with Kimpton Hotels, a four-star brand) and a medical office building anchored by a surgical training center.

Newland will be developing residential properties on the site, and talks have started for a casino-hotel on another parcel, which will be the development's only gaming component.

Of the 21 parcels within the city-owned Union Park, all but three have been spoken for or are under negotiation.

[Architek]

random question but is the gehry building only research related or will it treat patients also, because if that thing is for treating patients I can see gehry getting more lawsuits, because i'm sure no person with alzheimers would feel comfortable going into that thing.

[Slartibartfas]

Wow, thats so cool to see how they try to create something urban there. I mean something that deserves the label "urban".

I also love the model of the smith center. Will this central building really be built in that style that looks like art deco in my eyes? That would be a great eye catcher.

Moreover I find the idea to fill the space between the towers with small city house like buildings very good as well. I think that might make the difference between sterile spread out highrise district and real urban down town.


What hurts my eyes though is that immense space those parking decks make up. I mean credits to the planners that they banned them to periphery of that area but I think its frightening. Are those unbelievable huge amounts of parking spots needed? Well probably they are. Which leads me to a last question: Whats the Public Transport concept for that area? Is there one? Or is there a mentionworthy network in Las Vegas at all?

[VegasCharlie]

random question but is the gehry building only research related or will it treat patients also, because if that thing is for treating patients I can see gehry getting more lawsuits, because i'm sure no person with alzheimers would feel comfortable going into that thing.

But they would forget 5 minutes later that they didn't like it...

I know thats wrong!!! My family has a history, making fun makes it easier!!!

Back on topic:

http://www.lvrj.com/news/11569526.html - Same link as mdiederi, found this map:
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u270/heyyoucharlie/UnionPark.jpg

[mdiederi]

Smith Center

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/smith.jpg

[Superfish]

But they would forget 5 minutes later that they didn't like it...

I know thats wrong!!! My family has a history, making fun makes it easier!!!



heh that was just... well laughter is the best medicine as they say.

Their website shows that main uses:

* Clinical Services - diagnosis, treatment and care
* Education & Technology Transfer - translation and dissemination of new knowledge on care and treatment
* Public Policy Forums - ‘Think-Tank’ meetings
* Research

http://www.keepmemoryalive.org/about_us.php?sub=institute

So yes patients will be treated there.


http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u270/heyyoucharlie/UnionPark.jpg
Looking at this map you see that ALL of the residential is accounted for, the only 3 parcels left are business/medical parcels which you would assume take longer to find suitable tenants for.

The casino/hotel plot is also a mystery, something keeps telling me it could be an expansion of the Plaza if they still want to connect it to Fremont Street but a new one isn't out of the question.

[mdiederi]

These plans for the World Jewelry Center are on the city agenda for Thursday.

Site plan
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/WJC/WJCsite.jpg

Basement
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/WJC/WJCbasement.jpg

Lobby
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/WJC/WJClobbyfloor.jpg

3rd floor
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/WJC/WJC3rdlevel.jpg

North elevation
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/WJC/WJCelevation.jpg

East elevation
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/WJC/WJCelevationE.jpg

800 foot tower elevation
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/WJC/WJCtowerelevation.jpg

Tower floor plans
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/WJC/WJCtowerfloors.jpg

[Superfish]

thanks for posting the diagrams mdiederi.

Height reduced to 800ft eh, well 15ft is barely notable as it is. I will change the height on the first page.

all the renders we've seen had it as looking brownish almost, but now these show the glass to be the usual blue/white variety. Any color elevations of the top of the tower?

Podium is nice as well. Overall a great tower and soon to be icon for downtown.

[Superfish]

Latest WJC Rendering, looks fanatastic.

http://i18.tinypic.com/6t4rmzk.jpg

yea the original had that neat multi level chevron thing but I guess this is a more conservative yet still modern look. Still not sure about the crown on top, I guess it isn't that bad. It will look great if it's lit up. Assuming those black lines are balconies for the condo portion, making them possibly the highest condo units and balconies in the city. Glass color is similar to CityCenter's. Overall it actually looks like a streamlined office tower now.

[mdiederi]

Looks nice!

[VegasCharlie]

I think it looks much better then the first render!!!

Union Park is going to be amazing!!!

[Superfish]

That render is at ground level. Perhaps the only way to appreciate the size of the WJC is with a model :) Location and tower shape is accurate...

http://i9.tinypic.com/6xbjgi0.jpg

http://i19.tinypic.com/89htnrd.jpg

http://i2.tinypic.com/7xv1kxe.jpg

I-15 Northbound View
http://i16.tinypic.com/6jq1q20.jpg

US95 East
http://i4.tinypic.com/8eivr6u.jpg

Plaza...
http://i6.tinypic.com/72gkpqt.jpg

[Beware]

http://i18.tinypic.com/6t4rmzk.jpg

:) " Ooooooh, Vegas.... I LIKE! "

[mdiederi]

Dang, that is tall. The models really put it in perspectve.

[mdiederi]

New progress shots of Gehry's Ruvo building.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/Gehry/Ruvo1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/Gehry/Ruvo2.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/Gehry/Ruvo.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/Gehry/Ruvo3.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v120/mdiederi/buildings/Gehry/Ruvo4.jpg

[Superfish]

Ruvo is progressing quite nicely.

[mdiederi]

World Jewelry Center opening date move back to 2011. I don't think this means they will start later, just that it's going to take a little longer to build then they originally thought.
http://lvbusinesspress.com/articles/2007/12/21/news/iq_18596133.txt

[mdiederi]

There's a lot of ground preparation work going on at the Union Park site, but it doesn't look like any buildings are starting, just infrastructure work.