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John F
January 24th, 2005, 05:16 AM
Well, lets stop talking about making official threads for Tampa and start doing it... (as you wanted, Jason)
http://www.sptimes.com/2005/01/14/images/graphics/trumptampa.jpg
Trump looks at Tampa tower
At more than 50 stories, the tower would be the tallest on the west coast of Florida.
SAUNDRA AMRHEIN and JAMIE THOMPSON
Published January 8, 2005
TAMPA - Real estate mogul Donald Trump, star of the hit reality show The Apprentice, may be putting his name on Tampa's skyline.
A proposed condominium tower to be built downtown along Tampa's waterfront would be more than 50 stories high, making it the tallest on Florida's west coast, WTVT-Ch. 13 reported Friday night.
Brochures for the condo at Ashley Drive and Whiting Street have gone out and promise the ultimate in luxury and so-called "Trump style."
"I think that's indicative of what an attractive market Tampa is," Mayor Pam Iorio told WTVT on Friday.
She added: "I'm not at all surprised. He's very high profile of course, and that will make a big splash. But the fact is, we're getting more and more interest from national investors who see Tampa as a quality place to invest, and that speaks well of our city."
An official announcement is expected Monday.
Tampa developer Al Austin said he had only heard some rumors about such a plan.
"Where are they going to park?" he wondered, speculating that the building would need to include a substantial number of floors devoted to a parking garage.
But he welcomed such an enterprise.
"Any time there's something good for Tampa, I'm for it," he said.
Christine Burdick, president of Tampa Downtown Partnership, said she heard rumors months ago that Trump might involved in the project. However, the developers denied it at the time, Burdick said.
Last week, several people inquired about whether Trump was involved, Burdick said, but she had not been able to confirm it.
Trump made headlines in late November when his casino empire filed for bankruptcy protection after months of negotiations with bondholders over restructuring a crushing debt.
Trump Hotels & Casino Resorts Inc. and numerous related operations filed for protection from its creditors under Chapter 11 of the bankruptcy code.
The casino business consists mainly of three Atlantic City properties and a riverboat casino in Indiana and are only a small part of Trump's real estate empire.
The filings come even as Trump, the celebrity developer and best-selling author, has returned to the spotlight with the television show The Apprentice, which turned "You're fired" into a national catch phrase.
Trump said he will remain chairman and chief executive of Trump Hotels & Casino Resorts, but his share would be reduced to 27 percent from 47 percent under a proposed restructuring plan reached with bondholders last month.
Times staff writer Scott Long contributed to this report.
MIAballinboi
January 24th, 2005, 05:34 AM
how tall in feet is this? and how does it compare with 100 north tampa and boa?
doesnt seem to be more than like 30 feet taller, not a big difference in height by that rendering
John F
January 24th, 2005, 03:58 PM
593 ft or so....
Jasonhouse
January 24th, 2005, 05:41 PM
Yeah, rumor is between 593ft and 603ft. What's wierd is that the number of floors reported in articles went up by two floors, while the hieght went down 10ft. Kinda confusing.
smiley
January 24th, 2005, 08:52 PM
Saw an ad in the paper where they had a nice rendering. It looked much more substantial - I think I will like it once built. It owuld be nice if they start in april.
The Mad Hatter!!
January 25th, 2005, 12:10 AM
when does it breakground?is it already approved,and if not is there opposition to it?
Jasonhouse
January 25th, 2005, 03:48 AM
Yeah, already approved and has nothing but the support of the city.
Smiley? today's paper, or Sunday's real estate section?
smiley
January 25th, 2005, 05:23 AM
Sunday - front page inside - it is a little rendering in a photo with teh money men, but I liked it - the rendering. The ad was cheesy.
Dale
January 25th, 2005, 05:35 AM
There's a massive (and I mean massive foldout) in the new Florida Trend.
Still, large as it is, the rendering has a rough quality to it.
jzquince69
January 25th, 2005, 04:27 PM
this building made the Daytona Beach News Journal last week.
sarasotan
January 26th, 2005, 02:22 AM
The apprentice stumps for Trump
By Jay Cridlin
Donald Trump is pulling out all the stops to hype his new condo project, Trump Tower Tampa -- as if the building's 52 stories, $6-million-per-unit price tags and inevitable gold-plated bathroom fixtures weren't enough.
Word is, Trump is sending Kelly Perdew -- the 37-year-old California software exec plucked from relative obscurity to win The Apprentice 2 -- to promote the uber-luxury complex planned for downtown Tampa.
For Perdew, who lived in and around Tampa and Sarasota for about eight years growing up, the project will offer a chance to reconnect to his roots.
"I'm just excited to see it," he said, "and get reacquainted with Tampa."
Perdew recently talked Trump, the tower and Tampa with tbt*s Jay Cridlin. Here's what he had to say:
See, I thought you chose to work in New York. But you're coming to Tampa. I guess whatever Donald wants, Donald gets. Oh yeah. I won't be living in Tampa, but I'll be actively involved in the promotion. I'll be in and out. My father lives in Englewood, just south of Sarasota, and I've got friends who live in Tampa. And I know the area really well -- I lived in Tampa for a year.
What do you remember about the area?
Ybor City. The pirate ship. I've fished in the gulf before, and I'm looking forward to it while I'm there. I tell you what I miss the most, having lived in Southern California for 12 years -- I really miss the 3 p.m., massive downpour thunderstorms. Then an hour later, it's all humid and steamy. I'm sure that over the past year, nobody in Florida was excited about bad weather. But there is something I miss about the storms.
How would Trump's hair hold up in a hurricane?
(laughs) Well, I've seen him get out of a helicopter, and it holds up just fine. It'll fly around and get messed up, and he'll run his hand through it, and it'll be right back looking just like it does.
Tell me about Trump Tower Tampa.
It looks phenomenal in the drawings. A hundred ninety units, and they've sold a significant number of those in advance. The attention to detail and the quality that are Trump trademarks are definitely in existence here. One of those no-expense-spared, gorgeous facilities. And the partners that are involved are top-notch. I'm sure it's going to be a big success.
Yeah, but you've lived here, you've seen downtown Tampa. It ain't exactly Marvin Gardens. Who's buying these condos?
People who want to live in the highest-quality, best place they can. Those are in every city. Tampa's a significant city, and it's got a good size. With all the sports teams, the real estate and everything else, there's definitely people who are interested in owning something like a place in one of the Trump buildings.
You may not be aware of this, but Tampa's got a reputation as a strip club capital.
I wasn't aware of that. I have heard it's a party town, but I didn't realize that it was a strip club capital. You learn something new every day.
I guess that's not going to be a problem, though, because we all know Donald's views on beautiful women.
Which is, he doesn't have a problem with beautiful women.
Exactly. Who's more powerful, Donald Trump or Mark Burnett?
I think they're both incredibly good at what they do. Burnett's phenomenal in the television production industry. Talk about a genius -- what's Survivor on, No. 11? Twelve? And what is a reality show, especially something like The Apprentice or Survivor? It's an hour of television with unpaid talent. It's commercials broken up by commercials. From a business model, it's pretty powerful, right?
Mr. Trump -- I mean, he's a walking brand. Just having his name involved with something increases the value. Look at how he's performed from a real estate standpoint -- he's an expert.
Final question. Carolyn Kepcher: One-piece or bikini?
Oh! Probably bikini. She comes across as pretty severe -- I don't know if "cold" is the right word -- but Carolyn is fantastic. She's a great businesswoman, and I've enjoyed the time that I have gotten to spend with her.
Jasonhouse
February 8th, 2005, 08:16 PM
So I was wondering, how much do you think that the realtor (Toni Everett) is making by being a realtor for this project?
zimna8080
February 8th, 2005, 10:31 PM
So I was wondering, how much do you think that the realtor (Toni Everett) is making by being a realtor for this project?
She got 6% out of me when I dealt with her (about $17K)
Probably something similar for this project.
texasboy
February 11th, 2005, 02:40 AM
You all have probably already seen this one, but just in case
http://www.sptimes.com/2005/01/10/images/TRUMP_TOWER_TAMPA_TP101.jpg
The Mad Hatter!!
February 11th, 2005, 03:19 AM
^^is that the color
VansTripp
February 11th, 2005, 04:03 AM
^^is that the color
Please check your name on near avator, someone puts dumbass on your name. It called "reistgered dumbass". You need changes it.
MIAballinboi
February 12th, 2005, 05:28 AM
well looks like there a giant popup ad in ocean drive magazine for this tower,
its a 4 page ad, and heres pics i took of it :cheers:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v227/wrestlechamp316/21105/trump1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v227/wrestlechamp316/21105/trump2.jpg
MIAballinboi
February 12th, 2005, 05:29 AM
oh yeah and the site is,
www.TrumpTowerTampa.com
Tampa610
February 16th, 2005, 06:10 AM
Nice view: Cities of all sizes embracing high-rise living
Tue Feb 15,10:12 AM ET Top Stories - USATODAY.com
By Larry Copeland, USA TODAY
Within an hour of learning that billionaire real estate mogul Donald Trump had signed on to build a luxury high-rise downtown, Stephen Page was ready to buy in.
Page and his wife, Linda, paid "close to $1 million" for a 34th-floor, two-bedroom condominium in Trump Tower Tampa, a 52-story, $220 million edifice to elegance that will be the tallest residential building on Florida's Gulf Coast when it opens in 2007.
This city of 321,000 is perhaps best known nationally for its Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who won the Super Bowl two years ago, and tourist attractions such as Busch Gardens. It might be the last place one would expect to find people living among the clouds, in digs outfitted with valet services, exotic wood finishes and imported marble floors with inlaid onyx.
But 3½ years after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks - when the images of passenger jets slamming into New York City's landmark skyscrapers seemed to underscore the nation's vulnerability - high-rise living is enormously popular. And not just in New York, Chicago and other places long known for it. High-rise condominiums are under construction or planned in dozens of cities.
Cities across the country are witnessing a renaissance of downtown living, and, in every center-city ZIP code, some of the most sought-after addresses tower above the urban landscape. The buildings often include on-site amenities such as concierge service, restaurants, pools and spas. Some are combined with luxury hotels, and some cater to the very well-heeled - Trump Tower Tampa units range from $700,000 to more than $6 million.
"We're seeing only a few (high-rise) office buildings, but dozens and dozens of high-rise residential, mostly condos," says Ron Klemencic, chairman of the Chicago-based Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat. The group monitors skyscraper construction worldwide.
"Immediately after 9/11, there was a lot of concern for tall buildings," Klemencic says. "That, for residential buildings, has gone by the wayside. There still is concern over very tall, prominent office buildings. But people have realized that we live in this free and open society, and we have to maintain our lifestyle as before, and that means living and working in tall buildings."
The lure of luxury
Sharing that sentiment is Trump, who is known to millions as the blunt boss of TV's The Apprentice. His holdings include some of Manhattan's most prestigious residential towers, a luxury condo tower in Las Vegas and hotels and casinos in Atlantic City.
"There is no doubt that Sept. 11 had a big impact on high-rise living," Trump says. "At the time, I was planning to build the world's tallest building in Chicago, but then scaled back the plans to a 90-story tower. However, I think one of the reasons that people have decided to live in tall towers once again is the luxury services and amenities they receive, not to mention the great views they see."
For Page, the possibility of a terrorist attack wasn't really a consideration. "I feel very comfortable," he says of his Trump Tower Tampa condo. "It's not going to stick up 1,000 feet high."
"When I saw it was a project of (Tampa Bay developers) SimDag-RoBEL and Trump, I just knew it was going to be the best address in town. I had to have one," says Page, 40. "Everybody's talking about it. I think it's going to be phenomenal."
It's not surprising that 9/11 fears have eased, because other nations have endured repeated terrorist assaults without people altering their lives, says housing expert John McIlwain of the Urban Land Institute, a Washington, D.C., research group that tracks land-use trends.
Neither ULI nor Klemencic's organization keeps statistics on the boom in high-rise living. But anecdotal evidence is plentiful:
• Denver developers plan to begin construction this year on a 50-story downtown skyscraper that will house a five-star Four Seasons hotel and the most expensive condos in city history. It will be one of the city's tallest buildings.
• In downtown Milwaukee, construction is underway on two luxury condo projects, the 33-story Kilbourn Tower, with units reportedly selling for $700,000-$2.8 million, and the 34-story University Club Tower, with most units over $1.5 million. They will be Wisconsin's tallest residential buildings.
• Portland, Maine, has its own downtown condo boom, including the proposed 12-story Waterview, which will have 94 units priced from $250,000 to $475,000 when it opens in 2007.
• Just 16 years ago, Seattle voters banned skyscrapers over 45 stories. Now, Mayor Greg Nickels is calling for new high-rise residential buildings, part of an effort to double the downtown residential population over the next 20 years.
• Miami, no stranger to downtown high-rises, is seeing explosive growth in the market, with 70 projects either built, under construction or planned. If all the projects materialize, about 55,000 condominium units would be built in the city over the next 10 years.
• Las Vegas is in the middle of an unprecedented surge in high-rise condos, with 1,000 people a month plunking down deposits on units. About 20,000 units in 122 buildings have been approved, and nine buildings are under construction. "We're undergoing the Manhattan-ization of Las Vegas," real estate consultant Stephen Bottfeld says.
Even quintessentially suburban places are cashing in on the trend. In Orange County, Calif., south of Los Angeles, more than 6,500 high-rise condos are under construction or on the drawing board. And on Long Island - one of America's first suburbs - Charles Wang, founder of Computer Associates and owner of the New York Islanders hockey franchise, wants to build a 60-story hotel/condo project that would be Nassau County's tallest skyscraper.
Many projects around the nation aren't "high-rise" by Manhattan or Chicago standards, but they often dwarf local norms.
Boomers feed the demand
Real estate and land-use analysts say many factors are driving the nation's high-rise condo-mania:
• A major demographic shift. Baby boomers are inheriting wealth at the same time that they're becoming empty nesters. "We're retiring earlier, and we want to be able to lock and leave," Bottfeld says. "For people in their 50s to their 70s, their most precious commodity is time."
People don't want to spend time mowing lawns, sitting in rush-hour traffic or getting in their cars to pick up the dry-cleaning. If they live in a downtown high-rise, there's no grass to cut, they often can walk to work and cultural events, and many high-rises have on-site concierge service to take care of life's every little need.
• Real estate as an investment. Many high-rise condo buyers are young professionals of both sexes and single women who purchase them as homes - and as their primary investment vehicles.
• An emphasis in some cities on "smart growth." These principles, which promote the protection of open space by concentrating development close to jobs and services and connecting it with mass transit, fit perfectly with high-rise living.
Page, a developer who lives near Clearwater, about 20 miles from Tampa, says that one attraction for him was access to the city's nightlife. "We love Tampa," he says. "We go there almost every single weekend. We'll sometimes stay at one of the nicer hotels there. Well, now, we can just stay at our own place."
'Never get in the car'
Trump Tower Tampa, which will adorn a revitalized Riverwalk on the Hillsborough River in downtown's financial and cultural districts, is attracting buyers who live on Harbour Island, a tony residential enclave near downtown.
"It's the convenience of downtown living," says Jody Simon, a managing partner of SimDag-RoBEL. "You'll see more restaurants and shops. To be able to walk out your door and take a stroll down to your office and never get in the car - that's what people want."
Trump Tower Tampa will be the city's tallest - and most luxurious - high-rise residential building. But Mayor Pam Iorio, who has made downtown residential development a priority of her administration, says three other sets of twin-tower condominiums are planned.
More than 5,000 downtown housing units, many of them high-rise condominiums, have been approved, says Christine Burdick, president of Tampa Downtown Partnership, a non-profit organization that represents downtown property owners and others.
Burdick discounts questions about whether there are enough people here who can afford Trump Tower Tampa. "There is money in this area," she says. "There are people who want to invest in a quality housing product."
Trump, responding to e-mailed questions, says his building will pump energy into Tampa's revitalized downtown.
"A livable city needs downtown residential development," he says. "It's one of the reasons that Manhattan is so great. I believe high-rise living is here to stay."
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=676&e=3&u=/usatoday/20050215/ts_usatoday/niceviewcitiesofallsizesembracinghighriseliving
smiley
February 16th, 2005, 03:13 PM
A reputation built on selling Tampa's biggest buildings
Toni Everett made her name selling some of the area's luxury real estate. Now she sells the biggest name in real estate.
By KRIS HUNDLEY, Times Staff Writer
Published February 16, 2005
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[
TAMPA - Toni Everett, real estate agent to the rich, talks fast, walks fast and whips a laser pointer through a sales presentation like a gunslinger at high noon.
For the past three decades, the south Tampa native has made a name selling multimillion-dollar homes and condos. Buzzing down Bayshore Boulevard in her gold Mercedes, she passes her work history writ large: about a dozen high-rises that she had a hand in bringing to full occupancy - and continues to resell.
With a portfolio ranging from the Pinnacle in 1975, which she bluntly describes as having "awful floor plans," to the Alagon, now under construction and nearly sold out, Everett ranks among a handful of local agents able to sell luxury condos at record prices and record pace when they are nothing more than architects' models and thin air.
Now that she has the exclusive on the hottest property in town, Trump Tower Tampa, Everett's pace has gone from frenzied to dead-run.
On Jan.10, the Monday after plans for the 52-story project at 111 S Ashley Drive became public, people were standing in line at Everett's office, handing over $100,000 certified checks just to hold a unit. Everett and two salespeople scrambled to take reservations while another staffer tracked deals on a master spreadsheet, ensuring the same unit wasn't reserved by multiple clients. Meanwhile, phone messages and e-mails from interested buyers piled up.
A month later, Everett and agents at the Toni Everett Co. on the north end of Bayshore Boulevard still were wading through the backlog of messages, returning calls, setting up appointments. The best they could do in most cases was put people on a waiting list: All but four penthouses in the 190-unit project have been reserved with 10 percent refundable deposits. (Just taken: a $6-million, two-floor unit with spa.)
A more concrete measure of interest will come in a few weeks, when the deals go to hard contract. Reservation-holders will be required to kick in another 10 percent and the total deposit becomes non-refundable. If experience holds, 10 to 20 percent of those holding reservations will drop out at contract time, but Everett isn't too worried about the fallout.
"We've probably got backup orders for 80 percent of the units," she said, with a real estate broker's innate optimism. "We have people who were talking to us long ago and we were not able to get them in."
But Everett - jet-black hair contrasting with a pale complexion and firmly lipsticked smile - has not stopped selling. Presenting the Trump project to a Tampa doctor recently, she moved assuredly through a well-practiced pitch. Flicking her laser pointer over an enlarged photo of downtown Tampa, Everett highlighted the project's site and the surrounding neighborhoods, then let the red dot hover over the word "sunsets" printed on the horizon.
"The living areas start at the 11th floor," she said of the project, which has parking from the second to the ninth floors and communal space on the 10th. "From the front of the building, the view is all the way to Anna Maria Island."
Flipping through a big sheaf of blueprints in her cramped conference room, Everett emphasized the Trump Tower's amenities: two pools, a wine cellar, conference center, fitness center, spa. The doctor asked about tennis courts and Everett said, "No, but..." then quickly moved along to descriptions of the project's floor plans.
When the doctor said he was interested in the lowest-priced units, Everett replied that all the standard units, priced from the high $700,000s to $1.5-million, have been reserved. Lowest priced available was a $1.9-million unit on the 12th floor.
The doctor, late for work, plucked up a photocopied brochure on the Trump project and promised to return. As he left, Everett's tiny silver cell phone rang with a call from an agent with the Trump organization: Someone in New York wanted to reserve one of the remaining penthouses.
"We thought most of the reservations would be coming from out of town, but it's been mostly local or from the surrounding areas," said Everett, as she raced to fax the reservation agreement to New York. "Out-of-towners have shown interest, but it was all reserved before they could sign up."
If reservation-holders become residents when the Trump project is completed in about three years, the high-rise will be occupied by young to middle-age business people, some of whom have moved from as nearby as Harbour Island. Everett said none of her buyers have been retirees, and only a handful intend to use it as an investment.
"On my sites, I like to have more users than investors," she said, doodling in perfect penmanship (thanks to her training at Tampa's Academy of the Holy Names) during an unusual lull in the action. "I ask them certain questions that qualify them and when you've been in the business as long as I have, you know immediately."
It was about a year ago when Everett first heard of the project planned for the dirt lot along the Hillsborough River. She interviewed with SimDag/RoBEL LLC, the local developers who brought Trump into the deal. Though she's used to sitting down with developers who are looking for an agent to market and sell their high-priced dreams, Everett said this meeting was different.
"There were about 10 people in the room, asking me questions," she said, showing only a hint of lingering discomfort. "But they were asking about the market and competitive information, and I can spout that stuff out really fast."
In June she got the assignment, agreeing to keep mum about Trump's involvement. Dr. Howard Howell, one of SimDag/RoBEL's five managing partners, said Everett was one of a handful of real estate agents considered.
"She's familiar with the market and has demonstrated a track record," he said. "Plus she had the ability and client base to sell these units."
Everett, whose business is based on discretion, declined to discuss the nature of her contract with the developers. But she said condo presales generally have lower commission rates than the 6 percent traditionally received from residential sales.
"There's less commission per unit, because you're doing it in bulk," Everett said. "And you put out a lot of upfront time and expenses because you don't get paid until the project is built. But I do development sites because I enjoy it. It's fun."
With Trump, Everett has been involved in everything from helping develop the marketing strategy, critiquing the condo documents and reviewing the floor plans, to designing and staffing the sales center that will open next week on the fifth floor of the office building abutting the site . She also has been closely involved with planning for the invitation-only launch party there on Friday, where Donald Trump will be schmoozing with potential buyers.
Everett has about 35 site agents assigned to her assorted developments - in addition to Trump, she's handling the Plaza on Harbour Island (with Tampa's Smith & Associates), the O2 condos in Channelside, Hyde Park Walk in Tampa and Porto Bellagio in South Florida. Another 35 general agents handle residential and condo resales through her office.
Everett's sister, Patty Clark, handles office operations. Her daughter, Henderson Everett Lee, an agent, is working with her mom on the Trump project. Son Anthony Everett, who is vice president of the Toni Everett Co. as well as developer for Atlanta's Post Properties in Florida, is handling the apartment-to-condo conversion at Hyde Park Walk.
Everett, meanwhile, acts as a slightly scattered ringmaster, flitting from one sales office to the next, blowing into the office for appointments, keeping all the balls in the air.
"I like making sure sales happen," said Everett, who repeatedly ranks among the area's top real estate agents in sales. "The variety of people you're dealing with makes the job interesting."
Having pushed well into middle age without coming up for air, Everett detests talking about her age. "People like young," she said, firmly ending the discussion. Named for her father, Dr. Anthony P. Perzia who died in January, Everett learned early about long hours and love of work.
"My grandfather (an ophthalmologist) would start operating at 2 a.m. in the morning and work until 5 p.m.," Anthony Everett said. "My mom is the same way; she can live on three or four hours of sleep a night. In my teens, when she started working real estate, I remember her always being on the phone. Now she's got two or three cell phones with her at all times."
Everett, who graduated from Rollins College and worked for a few years in the fashion business in New York, started in real estate in the mid 1970s as her marriage to Sonny Everett was ending. One of her early projects was the Pinnacle on Bayshore, where out-of-town developers were trying to salvage the development after the construction company went bankrupt.
"I helped finish and sell out that building," Everett said. "Then a bank came and asked me to help with another building on Bayshore and it just boomeranged."
Pace of sales was steady for decades. Then, about two years ago, condo sales started accelerating.
The Alagon on Bayshore, with 50 units, sold out in three months at prices from $700,000 to $2.5-million. The Plaza on Harbour Island, announced in late summer, has sold 75 percent of its 114 units, at prices up to $3-million, and plans construction in the spring.
Hyde Park Walk, with 134 units being converted to condo, had buyers for all but a few of the units, most priced at under $500,000, within a matter of days.
Such indicators make Everett unwilling to give Donald Trump entire credit for the frenzy surrounding his Tampa project.
"It's a market that was moving anyway," she said, although admitting Trump's high profile may have added some fuel to the fire. "Buyers were already consuming anything that came on the market. There's been so much hype about downtown for so long, it's finally hit."
--Kris Hundley can be reached at hundley@sptimes.com or 727892-2996.
[Last modified February 16, 2005, 03:03:03]
http://www.sptimes.com/2005/02/16/Business/A_reputation_built_on.shtml
Jasonhouse
February 16th, 2005, 04:06 PM
That's an extremely informative article. It basically proves that the TTT and Plaza are indeed going to be getting built sooner, rather than later.
CBR3
February 17th, 2005, 04:24 PM
Some good background, some fluff.
They brought Trump to Tampa
Trying to figure out how to spur interest in their project, one brainstormed: What if we called it Trump Tower?
By KRIS HUNDLEY, Times Staff Writer
Published February 17, 2005
Before they landed Donald Trump as their partner in developing the tallest high-rise in the Tampa Bay area, the five principals of SimDag/RoBEL LLC had been dabbling in local real estate and accumulating wealth in relative obscurity.
Jody Simon and Frank Dagostino made a windfall from the sale of a medical education company seven years ago, then parlayed it into even greater riches through development of gulffront condos. Robert E. Lyons, who once had a company called Cookie Cutter Properties, became their exclusive builder and partner about a year ago.
Dr. Howard L. Howell, an orthodontist with three offices in the Tampa Bay area, has been developing commercial properties with Clearwater entrepreneur and commercial real estate agent Patrick J. Sheppard for 15 years. Together the pair has completed nearly 30 properties between Tampa and Orlando and one in Destin.
A few years ago, the five men joined to propose a mixed-use project on Clearwater Beach. That deal fell apart when land values skyrocketed, but the men kept in touch and by 2003 they were working on another idea.
Howell and Sheppard had found a promising parcel along the Hillsborough River in the heart of downtown Tampa. Dagostino, Simon and Lyons, partners in SimDag LLC, were intrigued.
Jointly as SimDag/RoBEL (formed from a compilation of family names), the five men purchased the existin g six-floor office building and parking lot a t 102 W Whiting St. Next they added the vacant lot at S Ashley Drive and W Brorein Street. Total purchase price of the properties: $16-million.
The men decided to renovate the office building and then considered several options for the empty space next door: offices, hotel, retail. Despite the modest height of their previous endeavors, none of which topped 10 stories, they decided the location called for something big. Their proposal: a 52-story luxury condo project on 1.5 acres.
Once they had the concept and a working model, the partners began tossing around ideas to give their project some pizazz and distinguish it from other residential towers being planned around Tampa's urban core. At one weekly meeting, Dagostino, at 34 the youngest of the group, brashly suggested, "What if we call it Trump Tower?"
The partners laughed, left and returned a week later convinced it wasn't such a dumb idea after all. Through some of Dagostino's real estate contacts in New Jersey, they sent out feelers to the Trump organization.
Initial response from Trump's representatives was encouraging. Trump, who had visited Tampa with George Steinbrenner in the past, liked the market and the idea of putting his name on the tallest building on the city's skyline.
The project's architectural design, by Tampa's Alcides Santiesteban, was on par with Trump's other properties.
"We had exceeded even Trump's standards in some areas," boasted Howell of the New York developer's initial response. "That went a long way to getting his attention."
Last summer, after SimDag/RoBEL's partners made their first trip to Trump's headquarters - riding up in the elevator with the winner of the first Apprentice series - they came away fairly confident a deal could be done.
"Then it was just a matter of the deal making its way through the details," said Simon, managing partner of SimDag LLC.
For the next several months, there was nearly daily phone contact between the local developers and Trump's senior counsel and property management team. Trump representatives flew down on several occasions to walk the site and meet with the project's architect, contractors and marketers.
Once they came to terms on an agreement, Trump's people didn't hesitate to tweak SimDag/RoBEL's initial plans: adjusting the traffic flow through the lobby, approving high-end finishes and fixtures, helping to design everything from elevator entrances to the wine cellar to the guest suites.
Among the amenities added for residents with professional-grade kitchens but no time or interest in cooking: computer touch screens in each condo that allow owners to reach the building's concierge and valet, as well as order room service from the restaurant on the ground level.
Simon, who, with Dagostino and Lyons, 47, has completed 129 waterfront condos, said Trump's team did not flinch at the local development group's lack of experience with high-rise construction.
"It's not like we're going to be doing this by ourselves," Simon said, adding that experienced contractors, engineers and builders have joined the development team.
Nor did the New Yorkers doubt that the Tampa market could absorb high-end urban condos at record-setting price levels of up to $6-million.
"You're talking about people who pushed the limits far beyond where we would have pushed them," Simon said of the Trump group.
Despite the heavy involvement of Trump's executives in hammering out details of the project, SimDag/RoBEL's partners did not meet the man himself until they signed their agreement in New York City on Jan.10.
Their second meeting is planned for Friday, when Trump will come to Tampa to open the project's sales office.
The local partners refuse to go into detail about their arrangement with Trump.
"We all have a financial obligation and we all receive financial remuneration," Howell said. "He is an active and participating partner."
Responding to reports that Trump is simply receiving a payment for the use of his name on the project, Dagostino, whose throw-away suggestion became a reality, said, "It probably would be a lot easier if w e were only using his name."
The partners in SimDag/RoBEL, hardly a household name locally, credit Trump with bringing their project unparalleled publicity when it is still nothing more than an architect's model.
"It has far exceeded our expectations," Simon said of the 190-unit project, which is nearly 100 percent reserved. Nor is he worried that buyers will get cold feet when they're forced to put down a nonrefundable, 20 percent deposit.
"If buyers fall out, they're going to lose, because we're immediately going to raise the prices," Simon said. "We've got so many buyers on backup, it won't be a problem."
Despite the magnitude of the Trump project, which is slated to break ground in the spring and be completed in three years, the partners all remain busy on other projects. Howell, 57, continues to see patients four days a week, and he and Sheppard, 58, have 29 units of townhomes under construction on Clearwater Beach, with additional condo projects planned in Tarpon Springs and north Clearwater.
The three partners in SimDag have three condo projects under construction on waterfront in Pinellas County, with an additional seven planned for groundbreaking this year. They also are involved in an apartment conversion project in Maryland and two condo developments on the New Jersey shore, where they own a construction and two real estate companies.
Simon, who is a licensed pharmacist, and Dagostino, whose background is in sales, also own a medical communications business, a marketing company, a biotech startup and a clinical research network.
"We don't just develop buildings, we develop companies," Dagostino said. "We invest in companies and help them grow."
Simon, 48, appears to be a master at juggling vastly diverse interests. The son of "The Great Malenko," professional wrestling's pre-eminent bad boy in the 1960s and '70s, Simon himself spent time on the pro wrestling circuit, mostly in Japan.
He and Dagostino met a decade ago while both were both working for a medical publisher in Tampa. The duo decided to launch their own company, Cortex Communications, in 1995, catering to the lucrative market for medical education and publications.
With an abundance of chutzpah, hard work and a high-tech answering machine that made potential clients think the business was more than a kitchen-table startup, the two men landed deep-pocket drugmakers as clients. By 1998, the company had 75 employees and $11.5-million in revenues. Late that year they hit the jackpot when Cortex was acquired by HealthAnswers Inc., a Pennsylvania company backed by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen.
Neither Simon nor Dagostino will say how much money they cleared in the sale, but they still marvel at their timing.
"Soon after the sale, the tech bubble burst and it was ugly, to say the least," said Simon, who remained with HealthAnswers for a short time while Dagostino, who had no medical background, was released immediately. "But that deal gave us the seed for everything we're doing today."
Right now the focus is on preparing for the next stage of Trump-mania. This week, SimDag/RoBEL had employees scurrying to spruce up the site for their big-name partner's scheduled visit on Friday.
In the sales center on W Whiting, a worker was painting an electrical outlet with an artist's brush, trying to match the mottled wash on the wall. Window-washers dangled outside the fifth-floor sales center, making sure the view of the river sparkled. Trump's representatives and marketing reps were mapping out access to the site for their boss' limo.
Though the partners try to take the frenzy surrounding Trump in stride, they admit there are times when they are somewhat daunted at the scope of what they've undertaken.
"If you don't feel that way," Howell said, "you're not being honest."
--Times news researcher Kitty Bennett contributed to this report. Kris Hundley can be reached at hundley@sptimes.com or 727 892-2996.
www.sptimes.com/2005/02/17/Business/They_brought_Trump_to.shtml
Jasonhouse
February 18th, 2005, 03:35 AM
btw, wasn't this site once proposed for like a 8-10 story office building?
TTT, is definitely better than that. The TTT getting built is good, if only because another piece of the riverwalk gets built.
smiley
February 18th, 2005, 04:23 AM
Yes it was and Yes it is.
I just want dirt to start moving on these things.
FLHawk
February 19th, 2005, 03:19 AM
The Donald was in town tonight for the grand gala kickoff, or whatever. I saw a snippet of his speech on Bay News 9, and he mentioned that not only would TTT be the tallest tower on the Gulf Coast, but that "it's not even close," or something to that effect. If I'm not mistaken, it's not going to be ALL that much taller than 100 N Tampa, our current tallest.
jvance75
February 19th, 2005, 04:48 AM
http://www.trumptowertampa.com/images/side_content/section_2.gif
smiley
February 19th, 2005, 04:49 AM
With the sales as they are tehy may add a few floors - theoretically. There was a reporter who said it would be over 600', but that may just be that the reporter is an idiot. I would take that as the likely explanation. And, in fact, I would rather they build this thing (but add 7 feet to it, dammit) and then build another fancy tower downtown.
tonyff67
February 19th, 2005, 05:35 AM
I really like the way the building looks with it plugged in to the skyline like that. Very cool pic!
Dale
February 19th, 2005, 05:49 AM
http://www.trumptowertampa.com/images/side_content/section_2.gif
Now *that's* what I'm talking about ! :)
Looks well over 600 ft. too.
jvance75
February 19th, 2005, 06:14 AM
in color....yet not the best angle to show downtown as a whole at all...i just hope the parking lots are gone within the next few years and connects with channelside...talk about dense then.
http://www.trumptowertampa.com/images/gallery/model/model_1.jpg
jvance75
February 19th, 2005, 06:55 AM
Trump Fires Up Tampa Project With A Couple Of Surprises
By DAVE SIMANOFF dsimanoff@tampatrib.com
Published: Feb 19, 2005
TAMPA - Billionaire developer Donald Trump came to Tampa on Friday night to open the sales center for his newest project, Trump Tower Tampa, and to deliver two surprises:
First, he said nearly every condominium in the 52-story, 190-unit tower is reserved.
Second, his development group will donate $100,000 to The Tampa Museum of Art.
``Maybe we'll just stay in Tampa,'' he joked after arriving with his new wife, Melania. ``Who needs Palm Beach?''
Trump Tower Tampa, announced last month, will sit at the northwest corner of Ashley Drive and Brorein Street along the Hillsborough River. The $220 million building promises to be Tampa's tallest. At 593 feet, it will be at least 10 feet taller than Bank of America Plaza and 100 North Tampa, the area's two tallest.
Construction is scheduled to begin in April or May, Trump said. Condos are expected to open to residents in 2007.
Trump Tower Tampa boasts some of the highest condominium prices seen in Tampa, with units starting at $700,000 and running to more than $6 million. Most units will cost $1 million to $2 million. Sizes range from 1,991 square feet to 6,150 square feet.
All but 2 percent of the condominiums have been reserved. The remaining units are spoken for, but the people making the reservations haven't fully paid deposits yet, said Toni Everett, head of The Toni Everett Co., the Tampa- based brokerage handling sales for Trump Tower Tampa.
Reservations, which are 10 percent of the sales price, are refundable. When construction begins, buyers will be asked to make nonrefundable down payments on their units.
There is a waiting list of potential buyers in case any of the people making reservations back out, Everett said.
Trump said many of the buyers are Tampa residents who plan to make Trump Tower Tampa their primary residence. He said some New Yorkers, including some athletes, have made reservations for condominiums.
``I think you're going to see a lot of Yankees living here,'' he said. ``They certainly have the money.''
Trump said he and his wife may buy a small unit.
Trump Tower Tampa bears Trump's name, but credit for the project falls mainly to SimDag-RoBEL LLC, a local development group that has been planning a high-rise luxury condominium at the corner since January 2003.
The tower will be billed as a Donald J. Trump Signature Property because it represents a partnership between the Trump Organization and a local developer. The Trump Organization has similar partnerships with other development groups working on projects in Miami-Dade County's Sunny Isles Beach, Fort Lauderdale's beachfront and downtown Toronto.
Trump said his partnership with SimDag-RoBEL is more than a licensing or marketing arrangement. He said he owns less than 50 percent of the project, which he called ``a substantial stake'' he wouldn't mind increasing.
SimDag-RoBEL partners were ecstatic to host Trump and show off their sales center. The center, in Suite 502 at 102 W. Whiting St. in downtown Tampa, opens to the public Monday.
Jody Simon, one of the managing partners of SimDag-RoBEL, said the response to Trump Tower Tampa exceeded his expectations. ``It's overwhelming.''
The donation to The Tampa Museum of Art will come in three phases: one-third now, one-third when workers reach the top floor of the new building, and the final one-third at the grand opening.
Museum backers are $2 million shy of the $46.5 million they need to start construction of a new museum. The total cost of the museum, designed by architect Rafael Vinoly, is approximately $76 million.
Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio applauded the donation.
``It's wonderful that you have someone who's new to Tampa investing in our downtown and in our cultural institutions,'' she said.
http://www.tampatrib.com/MGBU26LBD5E.html
Dale
February 19th, 2005, 06:56 AM
So beige with green glass ?
And will Skypoint be just behind and to the right of the beercan in this pic ?
jvance75
February 19th, 2005, 07:09 AM
yes, in that area
Jasonhouse
February 19th, 2005, 08:02 AM
TTT's interaction with the river appears to be quite lame.
smiley
February 19th, 2005, 03:05 PM
Yea, but I like the rendering - even if it is exaggerrated - that doesn't look like a 15 foot differencei n that rednering, but, so be it.
Jasonhouse
February 19th, 2005, 05:06 PM
Renderings are ALWAYS overscaled, but especially on landmark highrises. I've never yet in my entire life seen a rendering of a new 'tallest' that was accurate.
I can remember one for a NYC condo a few years ago where the renderings and marketing claimed the tower would be the "3rd" skyline landmark in Midtown, after ESB and Chrysler... In the renderings (and they were numerous) the building looked like it was easily 900-1000ft tall... And when built, the building wasn't even 650ft tall!.
loureed
February 19th, 2005, 05:19 PM
I can't believe how much surface parking lots take up in many American downtowns.
brickell
February 19th, 2005, 05:22 PM
I love the renderings. It looks like it'll fit in with the city much better than I originally thought. I don't think the river walk looks too bad. At least it's there. Are all new developments required to have public access like that? I would assume that this being Trump there'd be some gold plated art installations installed there eventually.
Dale
February 19th, 2005, 07:32 PM
Why is Trump saying "tallest" and "nothing is even close" if only 14 ft. Is it the Trumpology factor of equating height with number of floors I wonder ?
smiley
February 19th, 2005, 07:41 PM
I can't believe how much surface parking lots take up in many American downtowns.
Those lots really should be the location of the next boom - the alleged Four Seasons, if ever built, is supposed to go in there - but that much open land right between the CBD (as it were) and Channelside (O2 will be just accross the highway from those lots) - should draw something interesting relatively soon - unless the property owners are complete idiots - which they may be.
loureed
February 19th, 2005, 07:47 PM
^^^
Cool. The tower's donation to the art museum sounds more promising. I have this renewed love for Tampa all of a sudden. She ain't so bad after all.
Dale
February 19th, 2005, 07:55 PM
^^^
Cool. The tower's donation to the art museum sounds more promising. I have this renewed love for Tampa all of a sudden. She ain't so bad after all.
So you won't be moving to England ? :wink2:
Dale
February 19th, 2005, 07:56 PM
Those lots really should be the location of the next boom - the alleged Four Seasons, if ever built, is supposed to go in there - but that much open land right between the CBD (as it were) and Channelside (O2 will be just accross the highway from those lots) - should draw something interesting relatively soon - unless the property owners are complete idiots - which they may be.
I take it the Hogan proposal died a while back ?
smiley
February 19th, 2005, 08:01 PM
Hogan office plan is dead - hass been for a couple of years, but, like I said, I would not be surprised to see some sort of mixed thingy pop again.
CBR3
April 25th, 2005, 02:56 PM
Trump Tower development team puts ruins expert on site
Ken Salgat
Staff Writer
TAMPA -- The $220-million Trump Tower Tampa project has cleared another obstacle.
In March, The Tampa Bay Business Journal discovered the development team of billionaire New York City developer Donald Trump and Tampa-based SimDag/RoBEL LLC had yet to conduct an archeological survey on its property at the southwest corner of Whiting Street and Ashley Drive.
While the project may not be as close to breaking ground as Donald Trump led reporters to believe in a Feb. 18 press conference, the development team now has its expert on ruins in place, as required by the city.
"They hired the archaeologist and conducted a thorough survey in March," said Susan Johnson, a Tampa urban planner. "The state has signed off on it, and my office received the documentation April 6."
Developers are required to retain an archeologist if there's a belief artifacts could be present at a development site. Because of its proximity to past projects where artifacts were found, the city had precedent to make it a requirement.
A penthouse for $6 million
Located on 1.5-acres at 111 S. Ashley Drive, the 51-story building would include 192 condominium and penthouse units ranging from 1,991 square feet to 6,150 square feet. Prices range from $700,000 to more than $6 million for the penthouse and other top units.
Steve Erdmann, chief plans examiner in the city's commercial services division, said the developer has been working with the city to keep the project moving forward. However, a timeframe for going to vertical construction could still be weeks away.
"The complexity, size, impact to the surrounding community and the sensitivity of the project are all factors that can affect when it's approved," said Erdmann. "They have not filed for a building permit, but they have filed for a foundation permit and site review."
David Hooks, a spokesman for the developers, said the group expects to request a building permit in late May, not early May as originally planned.
"You have to go down before you can go up, and the foundation permit is in (requested)," said Hooks. "We're still working on a construction date, but with all the players in this it is difficult to get all your ducks in a row."
ksalgat@bizjournals.com | 813.342.2477
© 2005 American City Business Journals Inc.
http://tampabay.bizjournals.com/tampabay/stories/2005/04/25/story7.html
John F
April 25th, 2005, 09:56 PM
post to be deleted :p
MIAballinboi
April 25th, 2005, 09:58 PM
^thats good news,
good thing they didnt find no "tampa circle" or some ruins that would have ruined this project, but no one can stop the donald ne way, theres one less obstacle for this tower
Jasonhouse
April 25th, 2005, 10:28 PM
^Right?
We all knew that the project wasn't going to start as soon as Trump was trumpeting... But sitework continues, and it looks like they will indeed begin working on the foundation in a month or less.
John F
May 24th, 2005, 10:11 PM
Any chance soemoen coudl be able to snap some photos of the work being done on teh site now?
randommichael
May 24th, 2005, 10:19 PM
Any chance soemoen coudl be able to snap some photos of the work being done on teh site now?
All they have done so far is put small stakes in the ground...and set up a portapotty. Not much to see. In fact, today there are some cars parked over there where the parking lot they ripped up used to be...
randommichael
May 25th, 2005, 05:43 PM
I just looked over at the site and there is a bulldozer there doing some digging today. I would think the official groundbreaking would be coming soon.
Jasonhouse
May 25th, 2005, 05:59 PM
^Grading, which is what the stakes were for. This doesn't necessarily imply groundbreaking, but it is usually a precursor.
smiley
May 25th, 2005, 07:56 PM
I beleive, given the activity and the trailer (which is missing at the Towers at Channelside site (last time I checked)) give a pretty good indication that something will get going relatively soon - will it be next week - who knows. But soon enough.
FLHawk
May 25th, 2005, 09:00 PM
This summer promises to be a hotbed of construction activity in downtown Tampa.
Already started -
- The Meridian
- Grand Central
- Residences at Franklin Street
- Ventana
- The Arlington
- 1000 Channelside
- Embassy Suites
Starting soon -
- Trump Tower Tampa
- SkyPoint
- The Place
- UT Dorms
- The Plaza Harbour Island
- Towers of Channelside (?)
moxwax
May 25th, 2005, 09:35 PM
Add O2 to that list as well (hopefully!)
matttampa
May 25th, 2005, 09:51 PM
There looks to be some trucks and steel on the skypoint location. Go to www.tecocam.com for a look.
smiley
May 25th, 2005, 11:45 PM
Sweet - soil testing . . . preliminary drilling . . . ahhhhh . . .
It will be nice to watch the construction through this web cam
smiley
May 25th, 2005, 11:47 PM
Man you can zoom with that cam - that looks like rebar
kazpmk
June 21st, 2005, 04:39 AM
update anyone??
Jasonhouse
June 21st, 2005, 05:06 AM
^Still scrounging around with dirt pushing.
smiley
June 21st, 2005, 06:56 PM
The Trib - in the article on the riverwalk - referred to it as "under cosntruction"- but whatever - they are getting there.
Jasonhouse
June 22nd, 2005, 12:17 AM
I walked by the site today... They are doing site clearing still. Definitely not what most industry pros would consider "under construction"... But it's clear it will be very soon.
The Mad Hatter!!
June 22nd, 2005, 12:28 AM
so did they ever sell the 6million dollar penthouse
Dale
June 22nd, 2005, 12:37 AM
so did they ever sell the 6million dollar penthouse
Yes, I purchased it. :cheers:
smiley
June 22nd, 2005, 03:51 AM
In fact they did, but the buyer already lives in Tampa.
SDK4
June 22nd, 2005, 06:30 AM
I wonder how often Trump will be down here to visit his tower considering he loves spending most of his time at his Mir-Mar castle on the East Coast.
FloridaFuture
July 2nd, 2005, 04:26 PM
I guess TTT will be 591 feet, this article also talks about the Pinnacle project
Trump Tower Tampa To Be Trimmed By 2 Feet
Published: Jul 2, 2005
TAMPA - Trump Tower Tampa won't reach the 593 feet originally planned.
Although the tower at the southwest corner of Whiting Street and Ashley Drive still will become downtown's tallest building, it will be 2 feet shorter because of a recommendation by the Federal Aviation Administration.
The FAA conducts air space studies to make sure the structure doesn't interfere with radar or flight paths.
In the downtown core, height restrictions don't exist unless the building or tower creates a hazard. Outside this core, the height zoning is 120 feet. In the Channel District, the height allowance is 60 feet.
Frank DeBose plans The Pinnacle of Tampa Bay in the Channel District as a four- block complex of condominiums including a 624-foot observation tower. He said he is working through the FAA recommendation. ``We'll have everything we need,'' he said, ``when the time comes.''
The FAA doesn't tell developers outright to limit the height of buildings, spokeswoman Kathleen Berger said.
``Our air space recommendation just carries a lot of weight with insurers,'' she said.
Janis D. Froelich
http://tampatrib.com/floridametronews/MGBTYISCNAE.html
smiley
July 2nd, 2005, 07:59 PM
2 feet - msot bizarre - nothing flies there except the helicopters to the hospital - like 2 feet will make a difference.
Jasonhouse
July 2nd, 2005, 10:06 PM
^The FAA is so full of shit. yeah, because 2ft matters to aircraft...
John F
July 2nd, 2005, 10:09 PM
http://img34.imageshack.us/img34/5223/dsc000264li.jpg
From Brobinson's post on the "Picture fo Downtown Tampa" thread....
Dale
July 3rd, 2005, 05:54 AM
^The FAA is so full of shit. yeah, because 2ft matters to aircraft...
"Fight 290, you're at 591 ft. Dangerously low. Pull up ! Pull up ! ... Uh, Flight 290, we have you at 593 ft. now. Looking good."
FloridaFuture
July 3rd, 2005, 03:18 PM
"Fight 290, you're at 591 ft. Dangerously low. Pull up ! Pull up ! ... Uh, Flight 290, we have you at 593 ft. now. Looking good."
But according to the article that won't clear the Pinnacle at 624 feet!!
Gotta pull up 32 more feet! :)
randommichael
July 28th, 2005, 06:18 PM
Looking over at the Trump Tower site from my window...there is alot of activity there today. There is a small crane and several trucks. Lots of people. I think we should be seeing an official groundbreaking soon!
CBR3
July 29th, 2005, 03:15 PM
Digging to begin Monday but.........
Costs Soar For Trump Tower
By SHANNON BEHNKEN sbehnken@tampatrib.com
Published: Jul 29, 2005
advertisement
Click Here!
TAMPA - If you have a reservation for Trump Tower Tampa, you may have to dig deeper to pay for it.
Developers say they underestimated the cost of building the 52-story, 190-unit tower under construction downtown along the Hillsborough River.
``There's obviously been an increase in construction costs, and we're going to have to charge more,'' David Hooks, spokesman for the complex, said Thursday. ``It's up to the [the buyers] to accept or not. We hope they stay with us, but if they don't, we know there are a lot of people who want these units.''
Hooks would not say how much more the complex would cost to build or how much more buyers would have to pay.
When asked whether the increase could be as high as $1 million, he said it wouldn't be that much.
``Some of the units will have no increase, some will,'' Hooks said. ``Some will go up more than others. We need more discussions between the buyers and the developers before we get into more details.''
The criteria used to determine the increase, Hooks said, includes the unit size and floor.
When the Trump project was announced earlier this year, developers said the building would cost $220 million to build. The complex includes some of Tampa's highest condominium prices. Units were originally priced between $700,000 and more than $6 million, with most costing $1 million to $2 million.
The local development company building the complex is SimDag-RoBEL LLC. The tower is a Donald J. Trump Signature Property because of a partnership between the Trump Organization and the local developer.
All of the condo units are spoken for, and the buyers of the 32 penthouses already have signed formal contracts, said real estate agent Toni Everett.
The Toni Everett Company is handling the reservations and is in the middle of informing reservation holders of the news. Although not everyone has been notified, most buyers seem understanding, said Eric Panico, on-site agent.
``Everybody has been anticipating this because construction prices have gone up,'' Panico said. ``A reservation is just a reservation. If [buyers] don't pay, we have people who will.''
There are more than 270 people on a waiting list to purchase units in the complex, Panico said.
Initial reservations required a 10 percent holding fee. Buyers will be expected to pay an additional 10 percent down payment upon signing the final contract. That amount will be adjusted to reflect the new purchase price, Panico said. Once the contract is signed, Hooks said, the price won't change.
More than two dozen other downtown condo projects have either recently opened, started construction or are in the planning stages. None of the others have reported raising prices from the initial reservation price.
But Hooks said others probably will.
``This is not something directed only to Trump Tower,'' he said. ``If this wasn't necessary, it wouldn't happen.''
Hooks said the company has a financing commitment to fund construction and expects to execute it soon. He would not identify the lender.
Workers at the Trump Tower Tampa site at the corner of South Ashley Drive and East Brorein Street said late Wednesday that they had not been notified of any slowdown or work stoppage. Digging for the 591-foot tower's foundation is set to begin Monday, they said.
Reporter Anthony McCartney contributed to this report. Reporter Shannon Behnken can be reached at (813) 259-7804.
www.tampatrib.com/MGBRX1VPPBE.html
Jasonhouse
July 29th, 2005, 03:23 PM
That article is totally innaccurate when it says that other projects haven't changed their prices to reflect higher construction costs.... Several projects have done that, including doing it when people had already reserved units.
Sometimes, these reporters drive me nuts.
CBR3
July 29th, 2005, 07:20 PM
I guess the Apprentice couldn't keep a lid on the costs!! Your fired!!! And I do remember some other projects increasing pricing although I do not remeber which ones.
robbie
July 29th, 2005, 08:34 PM
If the people in TTT have a problem with the increase, then they don't need to be there to begin with. I mean somebody that can afford a 6 million dollar penthouse is probably worth a lot more than that.
FLHawk
July 29th, 2005, 08:37 PM
The Meridian did for sure. Heard the Towers of Channelside were considering at one point, but no confirmation on whether or not they did.
SDK4
August 8th, 2005, 05:22 AM
I know this is off topic, but I just saw the Donald Trump Domino's Pizza comercial for the first time and hahahahahahaha is all I can say!!! :)
John F
August 8th, 2005, 03:16 PM
I don't know if that commercial is a step up or a step down for The Donald...
I mean, he WAS doing Pizza Hut commercials in the 1990's....
SDK4
August 9th, 2005, 04:12 AM
He's obviously getting ready to drum up support for the new season of the Apprentice, even if that means making himself look like a dummy on TV.
channelside.us
August 21st, 2005, 02:58 PM
here is the current construction situation of TTT:
http://www.channelside.us/projects.cfm?pic=at
smiley
August 21st, 2005, 05:48 PM
Sure is a busy place for a project that hasn't "broken ground" yet
http://www.channelside.us/images/at.png
FloridaFuture
August 21st, 2005, 07:48 PM
Yep, I think that will be breaking ground within a weak. That land is flatter then Skypoints and Skypoint is U/C.
smiley
August 21st, 2005, 07:51 PM
I'm taking wagers on how fast they will crack the seawall . . . though I don't think they have URS (or whoever the crosstown guys were) doing the work, so it may take a little while.
FloridaFuture
August 21st, 2005, 07:58 PM
I'm taking wagers on how fast they will crack the seawall . . . though I don't think they have URS (or whoever the crosstown guys were) doing the work, so it may take a little while.
Ew, your right. That seawall looks pretty un stable with random damged polls sticking out of the water. BTW, what is that yellow tubing in the water?
John F
August 21st, 2005, 08:26 PM
that's to keep debrit from spreading from the shore (and construction) into the rest of the water... YOu see those things around every construction project on the water and you also see them surrounding oil spills in an attempt to contain them
smiley
August 21st, 2005, 08:43 PM
Yes, but they only stop what floats . . .anyway, maybe by Christmas we can have the big party cranes (with Christmas lights like in the 80's) up for all to see.
FloridaFuture
August 21st, 2005, 10:22 PM
Thanks guys. Its better to stop the floating stuff then no stuff. :cheers:
BRobinson
August 21st, 2005, 10:48 PM
Passed by the TTT site Friday and there was a huge cylindrical piece of equipment there..... Has anyone seen this? Or know what this is used for?
Jasonhouse
August 21st, 2005, 10:55 PM
^Placing caissons.
John F
August 22nd, 2005, 01:12 AM
Freedum Columns
jvance75
August 22nd, 2005, 01:45 AM
really getting sick of that post everytime someone posts caissons
FloridaFuture
August 22nd, 2005, 02:36 AM
really getting sick of that post everytime someone posts caissons
lol :lol:
smiley
August 22nd, 2005, 10:29 PM
Can anyone identify the big yellow thing on the NE corner of the lot?
Jasonhouse
August 23rd, 2005, 04:28 PM
^I'll drive by later today and try to figure it out. I can't tell from the pic.
BRobinson
August 24th, 2005, 01:13 AM
^This is what i was referring to (huge cylindrical piece of equipment).... It is not on the pic
smiley
August 24th, 2005, 01:57 AM
Ah, now I see the confusion - there is a yellow caisson related thing there, but there is also the big yellow thing of unknown utility
robbie
August 25th, 2005, 04:50 AM
Another thing here is: Will Ashley be closed when it starts getting vertical or will Ashley be one way? Any thoughts?
FloridaFuture
August 25th, 2005, 01:22 PM
Another thing here is: Will Ashley be closed when it starts getting vertical or will Ashley be one way? Any thoughts?
Well, thats a question for all deveolpments in Downtown. However with Skypoint when they are working on Ahsley, they only have had to close 1 out of 2 (so far) of Ashley Northbound lanes. Hopefully (maybe) thats all they'll have to do for TTT. :)
SDK4
August 27th, 2005, 06:28 AM
Any traffic concerns?
smiley
September 1st, 2005, 11:05 PM
Ok, now I am really fascinated as they were pouring concrete into something inside the very large yellow thing on the NE corner of the lot. Really odd stuff . . . any explanation would be appreciated.
John F
September 1st, 2005, 11:15 PM
Taking a stab here Smiley:
Now, i don't know WHAT is being done as I have not seen it but LAST time we saw early-processes Concrete pouring, it was just a "This is how you do it" type of application going on at Skypoint (the arch).
That may be the case at the Trump site, with whatever they are doing. I'm curious what is going on too - espectially with your posts.
Jasonhouse
September 2nd, 2005, 07:19 AM
I saw them dumping the concrete in there today too. I saw the yellow thing last week, and it was obviously a form for a cylinder. I'm not sure what would be that big though.
It looks like all of the projects u/c are doing well, and making good progress. Only 1000 Channelside seems to be going slowly IMO.
smiley
September 2nd, 2005, 03:18 PM
From what I can tell of the rendering - that area is supposed to not have anything built on it, which is why I think it may be a base for a crane - why would you possibly make any practice run on something so big.
Casey
September 21st, 2005, 06:34 PM
Trump Shores Up
The developers of Trump Tower Tampa said Tuesday that they are reinforcing the sea wall that abuts their property along the Hillsborough River. Spokesman David Hooks said the wall was not strong enough to support the 52-foot condominium tower. Hooks said he did not know how long the work would take and would not set a date for the tower's completion. Developers still need final permit approval for the tower.
http://www.tampatribune.com/Business/MGBV7QMVUDE.html
Jasonhouse
September 21st, 2005, 09:06 PM
Sorry, I haven't been paying any attention to this project's site for a couple weeks...
is it actually u/c, or are they still doing site work (seawall)?
Casey
September 21st, 2005, 09:18 PM
^ As of last weekend when I was downtown, they are still doing sitework.
robbie
October 5th, 2005, 09:45 PM
Now it's hard to tell what's going on with the tall fence up. You can park somewhere and look at it from Brorein over the river. Other than that, you can't see clearly from Ashley.
Jasonhouse
October 6th, 2005, 12:44 AM
^I prefer going to the top of the Wachovia garage, as I did today.
Nope, nothing worth mention is coming out of the ground yet.
randommichael
October 6th, 2005, 06:36 PM
I have a great view from 400 N. Ashely (AKA Rivergate Tower). It looks like they are moving some dirt and mostly working on the sea wall. Nothing exciting yet.
robbie
October 11th, 2005, 08:44 PM
Since you are right there, could you be willing to give us updates? At least twice a month?
Jasonhouse
October 11th, 2005, 09:54 PM
^I will be checking it at least that frequently, as will others, I'm sure.
robbie
October 12th, 2005, 03:05 AM
Thanks Jason. Where do you think the next hot property will be in the big T?
robbie
October 12th, 2005, 03:11 AM
Sounds like fun! Maybe that's what I should do. Actually, in the spring I'd like to ride my bike around DT and Bayshore. Just don't want to get burned by the blazing sun. What the hell...
Jasonhouse
October 12th, 2005, 03:15 AM
^???
I thought it might be where that riverside hotel (or whatever it's called) near Ashley/Kennedy, but someone already bought that, and is dumping several million into a renovation.
basically 'any' underdeveloped waterfront property in Tampa is going get very hot in the coming years. However, I don't think it will be very soon, since there are already thousands of units already planned or under development on several sites around the city.
robbie
October 12th, 2005, 03:39 AM
What do you think the chances of this hotel's survival is? Do you think a condo will do better on this site?
smiley
October 12th, 2005, 04:02 AM
The Trump lot was unique in the core of Tampa as it had been discussed as a high rise lot for decades. There are no other riverfront lots that will be high rise in the core for a while.
TPAMAN
October 14th, 2005, 05:12 PM
Did anyone read about two of the original partners selling their interest in the project? Think this will slow it down?
Jasonhouse
October 14th, 2005, 11:54 PM
No. It's basically u/c.
They probably wanted to cash out to move on to something else, where they could hae a higher stake and stand to make more.
biga1968
October 15th, 2005, 01:31 AM
It is pretty typical...for developers to cash out while the getting is good. Not bad especially when T.T.T. not even broken ground yet.
CBR3
October 17th, 2005, 05:10 PM
Seems that this is going to take a while longer to go vertical. At least until the end of the year.
Partners sell out, builder tapped for Trump condo tower
TAMPA -- Two fewer people are sitting at Donald Trump's boardroom table concerning his proposal for a 52-story condominium tower in downtown Tampa.
Dr. Howard Howell and Patrick Sheppard, two of the original five local partners in the Trump Tower Tampa development announced earlier this year, have sold their interests in the project to remaining partners Jody Simon, Frank Dagostino and Robert E. Lyons for an undisclosed price.
Previously published reports had the costs at $220 million for the planned residential high-rise at the south end of Ashley Drive near the Hillsborough River, though rising costs for building materials could inflate that number.
Meanwhile, the project's owner, developer SimDag LLC, has all but wrapped up a deal with its builder -- and it's not Bovis Lend Lease, which had been vying for the work before the partnership arrangement changed.
Turner Construction Co. confirmed it is working closely with the owners of the project to get a price nailed down, said Scott Skidelsky, VP and GM of Florida for New York-based Turner Construction.
The final price and a signed deal should come by the end of the year, Skidelsky said.
"SimDag is a great owner to work with They really understand the construction industry, and we're looking forward to getting the best pricing available," he said.
Final details are also being worked out on a building permit from the City of Tampa, while at the same time the project is trying to reconcile construction materials costs that have escalated since Trump visited Tampa on Feb. 18 to announce his condo tower plans.
"Once these are done, we'll have a groundbreaking and keep going," said David Hooks, a Clearwater public relations consultant serving as spokesman for Trump Tower Tampa. "We're in good shape. It just takes the time it takes."
Getting the job done
Turner wants to give as much work to Bay area contractors, Skidelsky said, but is willing to look beyond the region to find the best deals.
"We're bringing the most qualified local subcontractors in the industry available," he said. "But we're not against bringing in outside subs from different parts of the Southeast."
It's a challenging cost climate right now, he said.
With published reports that the Federal Emergency Management Agency is taking 20 percent of the available drywall for the rebuilding efforts in the hurricane-ravaged Gulf Coast, it, along with masonry, will be in short supply, Skidelsky said.
"It's important to make sure you are using firms that can in fact secure and guarantee delivery of those products," he said.
Turner brings national might and a substantial track record, including a twin 11-story condo project it is working on with SimDag in Clearwater and 20 years working in Tampa on projects that included The Florida Aquarium.
Turner is able to limit risk on projects because it finances its own insurance and sub-bonding, as opposed to a builder who goes to each subcontractor and asks for individual bonds.
"We're self-insured and use our $7.8 billion in purchasing power," Skidelsky said.
Longer than first expected
Trump, the New York-based developer and star of NBC's hit show "The Apprentice," announced during a news conference eight months ago that the project would break ground in either late April or early May, with a 2007 completion target. The announcement attracted a groundswell of media coverage, much of which favored Trump, given his billionaire celebrity status.
The local partnership, originally SimDag-RoBEL LLC, identified its architect, real estate agent and mortgage lender at the news conference, but no general contractor. Since that time, the project has encountered other delays and unforeseen circumstances, ranging from the hiring of an archaeological expert to surveying for potential Indian remains to the making a Hillsborough River sea wall strong enough to support the project.
Site preparation continued earlier this week on the 1.5-acre tract next to SimDag's six-story building at 102 W. Whiting St.
A permit for the preparation was issued the same day as Trump's visit to Tampa, Hooks said.
Also during the past few months, some prospective residents of the 190-unit tower were notified that they would be required to pay higher prices to offset the costs of building materials. Pricing at Trump Tower originally ranged from $700,000 to more than $6 million.
Not all of the units will be affected by the price hikes, and those who paid deposits to reserve units were allowed to back out without any penalties, according to Hooks. Potential buyers with backup reservations were contacted to take up those spots, he said.
"Those that did not stay in, and frankly there were not that many, were quickly picked up so it wasn't that big a deal," Hooks said.
ccronan@bizjournals.com | 813.342.2468 amuellner@bizjournals.com | 813.342.2472
http://tampabay.bizjournals.com/tampabay/stories/2005/10/17/story1.html
NewPortRicheyGuy
October 17th, 2005, 09:21 PM
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Jasonhouse
October 17th, 2005, 09:56 PM
Don't worry, Projects are always taking longer than they first say. it's very rare for this kind of project to just fly out of the ground, following the ambitious schedule of marketers.
robbie
October 18th, 2005, 03:10 AM
People on the site today but it looked like they were getting ready to more work on the river. Do you know if the riverwalk needs to be complete before they actulally start building TTT?
CBR3
December 5th, 2005, 04:26 PM
Design architect added to Trump Tower team
IBA Consultants has been selected to provide expertise on the building envelope, glass and waterproofing for the new Trump Tower Tampa.
The $220 million, 52-story tower will have 190 condominium and penthouse residences on the Hillsborough River in downtown Tampa. SimDag LLC is the developer.
IBA will provide the project's architect, Smith Barnes Santiesteban Architecture, with design development, construction document review, shop drawing and submittal review, site inspection and testing services for glass and glazing, waterproofing and roofing.
"With so much on the line for luxury buildings - money, time, reputation - no one wants the building to leak after construction," said Mark Baker, president of IBA, in a release.
That's why more architects are getting involved early in the design process to ensure the integrity of the building envelope is done right the first time, he said.
IBA's Sarasota office will provide the consulting services for the project and be led by Wayne Offerman, vice president and john Mauldin, senior consultant.
http://tampabay.bizjournals.com/tampabay/stories/2005/11/28/daily54.html?jst=b_ln_hl
Casey
December 16th, 2005, 12:19 AM
Trump tells Turner, 'You're hired!'
The man behind "The Apprentice" has finally made a decision regarding the general contractor for his new 52-story condominium tower in downtown Tampa.
Turner Construction Co. was named Thursday to build Trump Tower Tampa nearly a year after Donald Trump announced plans to develop the $270-million project on a 1.5-acre site along the Hillsborough River at the south end of Ashley Drive. The Tampa Bay Business Journal reported in October that Turner would win the contract.
Trump, who made the announcement the same day that NBC will telecast this season's "Apprentice" finale, cited Turner's proven track record of building high-rise developments in Florida as the reason for selecting the Dallas-based company.
"Selecting the right general contractor for a Trump project, one that will also be the tallest residential building on the Gulf of Mexico and a signature property in its market, demands the very best talent for this massive responsibility," Trump stated in a media release.
Kevin Glenn, Turner's business development manager in Tampa, said the company plans to hire 92 percent of its subcontractors from the Tampa Bay area. "We understand the magnitude of this project and the impact it will have on the city of Tampa and the downtown area," Glenn said.
Trump and his local development partner, SimDag LLC, plan to begin construction of Trump Tower Tampa once construction of a new sea wall and deep foundation work are completed in the next few months. They estimate that the 190-unit condo tower will be finished by late 2008.
Trump Tower Tampa will feature ultra-luxury condos and penthouse residences ranging from 1,991 to 6,150 square feet, and priced between $700,000 and at least $6.5 million. Trump formally introduced the project during a Feb. 18 press conference and reception at the construction site.
http://tampabay.bizjournals.com/tampabay/stories/2005/12/12/daily48.html
smiley
December 16th, 2005, 04:07 AM
As far as I am concerned, if they are doing or have started foundation work - deep or otherwise - that is under construction. And by the way - the new sea wall sure looks more secure than the old one did.
John F
January 31st, 2006, 08:08 PM
Bump because people keep asking about it on other threads.
Jason, is it possible to sticky official construction threads for popular projects?
Jasonhouse
January 31st, 2006, 08:20 PM
^I would rather not... The stickies for the development lists is enough stickying imo.
Too many stickies, and then there's no room for other threads to be viewed.
John F
January 31st, 2006, 08:55 PM
understandable... Though I wish some people would look for a thread on a certain topic before just lumping a post in with a convient thread near the top...
robbie
January 31st, 2006, 10:26 PM
Saw the site today. It was a beautiful day to go for a joyride. No clouds at all, blue skies and balmy temperature. Anyway, there were two workers on site with some kind of machinerey running. There were a couple of pallots on site with bags on them (probably cement mix) so there are still signs of life at TTT. Channelside Drive looking good. I'll go to "Twin Towerside" next.
FloridaFuture
January 31st, 2006, 10:30 PM
Maybe a Tampa/Tampa Bay Area sub forum would be of use in this situation. Most of this foum is Tampa dominated.
NewPortRicheyGuy
February 1st, 2006, 12:12 AM
Agree, Tampa needs a Sub-forum. 75% of the stuff on the Florida forum contains to Tampa.
The Mad Hatter!!
February 1st, 2006, 12:48 AM
i really dont think so...after miami left the florida forum,the florida forum slumped for a bit but thanks to tampa it rose again,if tampa is taken away then there is no need for florida forum,tampa just doesn't have that much of a crowd yet..maybe by next year it might;.
NewPortRicheyGuy
February 1st, 2006, 01:00 AM
You still have Jacksonville and all that
smiley
February 1st, 2006, 03:10 PM
When will Trump Tower rise?
The luxury condo tower and The Donald have missed expectations for a ceremonial start. If delays persist, it might not open in 2008.
By JAMES THORNER, Times Staff Writer
Published February 1, 2006
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TAMPA - A year ago this month, billionaire developer Donald Trump swept into downtown Tampa touting a $220-million condo tower that at 52 stories would outstretch any skyscraper in the region.
"You'll be amazed how fast we go from here," Patrick Sheppard, a local partner in what was being billed as Trump Tower Tampa, told the media at the time.
Today, to the casual eye, the 11/2-acre lot at 111 S Ashley Drive looks no more likely to sprout a luxury high-rise than it was a year ago. It's cleared, flattened, shrouded in construction fencing. Promises for a formal groundbreaking have been shoved back since early fall, along with the projected completion date, while the skyscraper's cost and price per condo have jumped. Some buyers, while captivated by the Trump mystique, hanker for explanations as delay succeeds delay.
"They haven't really said why it hasn't broken ground, and we don't know either," said Alex Petro, a St. Petersburg chiropractor who has bought a $1.9-million, 12th-floor Trump penthouse.
Contractors pledge to begin laying steel pilings for the tower's foundation within two or three weeks. Then comes 33 months of vertical construction as Trump Tower rises to heights unmatched in West Florida.
"Things are still going very much forward," said Kevin Glenn of Turner Construction Co., the project's general contractor.
If developers are to make the proposed late 2008 grand opening, they can't afford many more postponements. If the project doesn't begin before April, it may not be finished until 2009.
The condominium's charter cites a 2008 completion, but it's unclear what effect a postponed opening would have on developers' obligations to buyers.
Slowing progress has been the largely invisible job of sinking drills underground to find stable bedrock for the pilings, Glenn said, though the sea wall on the Hillsborough is complete.
Delays in delivering The Donald for a symbolic but media-grabbing groundbreaking ceremony have added to the complications.
The New York mogul has been unable to fit the event into his schedule. If it isn't a big dig in another city that needs attention, it's personal stuff like the wedding of Trump's son, Donald Jr.
"We may not have a press event," Jill Cremer, vice president of development for the Trump organization in New York, said Tuesday. "Everyone's schedule is so tight."
From the outset, Tampa business and government leaders have held up the Trump project as a barometer for the redevelopment of the city center.
The tower isn't the first or even the biggest condo complex proposed. But Trump's national reputation means instant clout for a city conscious of living in Miami's shadow.
Located where the Hillsborough River meets the brackish channels leading to the Gulf of Mexico, the Trump site is a pivot point between business-heavy downtown and the up-and-coming Channelside entertainment and residential district.
Marvin Rose, who publishes a newsletter for residential developers, has been glum about a growing glut of condos in the Tampa Bay market.
But Trump's project, whose high-end buyers aren't as hurt by higher interest rates, looks more promising, Rose said.
"Just the Trump name alone was just a brilliant marketing move," Rose said. "It really separated them from the crowd."
Less smitten is Warren Weathers, Hillsborough County's deputy property appraiser. He sees investors driving most condo sales.
Until buyers emerge who want to live in the apartments, Weathers remains a skeptic.
"You've got to have an end user, not just speculation and hype," Weathers said.
Financially, Trump Tower looks to be a winner, even though the rising cost of labor and materials has jacked up its cost from about $220-million to $260-million.
Roughly three-quarters of the 190 units have sold, developers said. Buyers plunked down nonrefundable deposits representing 20 percent of purchase prices ranging from $1-million to $6.2-million.
Those sales pale in comparison to the near-sellout numbers announced during last year's reservation phase. But developers insist they're holding back units so they don't sell too cheaply.
The business team behind Trump Tower changed the past year. Of the five initial local investors, known collectively as SimDag/RoBel LLC, three remain.
Sheppard and Dr. Howard Howell, the "RoBel" part of the partnership, sold their stake to SimDag last fall.
"We never had any intention of getting out of the project," Sheppard said.
"SimDag wanted to manage and take control of the project and made us a very generous and fair offer, and we were agreeable to that."
Petro, the penthouse buyer, is watching and waiting, along with dozens of other buyers.
Some plan to live at what could be one of the region's most opulent addresses. Others, like Petro, are investors hoping Trump's brand generates big property appreciation.
"Will they finish? They'd better finish," Petro said. "They have a ton of money of ours."
James Thorner can be reached at 813 226-3313 or thorner@sptimes.com
[Last modified February 1, 2006, 07:31:16]http://www.sptimes.com/2006/02/01/Business/When_will_Trump_Tower.shtml
Dale
February 1st, 2006, 05:41 PM
Maybe Trump should get pointers from Cantor, just across the bay, who has a much better-looking tower going up, on time.
TampaTower
February 2nd, 2006, 02:06 AM
Any guess to when they will officially start construction to go vert.
It would be nice to see the project complete by the 2009 superbowl.
John F
February 2nd, 2006, 03:22 AM
comparing to what Skypoint just did - it took about 3 months to get the pilings and caps done (from June till August/September) and went verticle from there. Depending on how much the construction varies - I'd guess they'd start verticle work (33 months of it, from what hte article said) in summer... If gorundbreaking is by March...
Afguy1985
February 2nd, 2006, 03:31 AM
Has anyone seen the Condo high-rise (Spire In Atlanta) is this going to be pretty much the same concept at Skypoint in Tampa?
Jasonhouse
February 2nd, 2006, 05:55 AM
^You should really discuss Skypoint in the thread where Skypoint is being discussed (in its own dedicated thread).
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=216916
This thread is specifically dedicated to Trump Tower Tampa.
robbie
February 2nd, 2006, 10:08 PM
"Invisible" job of sinking drills underground to find stable bedrock??? I'm no expert on this. Could somebody explain.
When I first saw the title of the article I thought it would be another negative by the Times, but in this case it was very informational so this article answers the questions of "What's holding up TTT" and the people at the Times seem to know how and whom to get the info. from.
Jasonhouse
February 3rd, 2006, 04:25 AM
^They sink an auger bit (3"-6" dia) into the ground until they hit bedrock, and then they keep drilling a little, to make sure that it's really the true bedrock, and not some porous shit that will subside under load. They do this wherever there will be a caisson, to ensure that what's going to ultimately bear the load of the building is "rock solid". If they hit a particularly bad spot, sometimes they even have to rework the foundation system a bit...
From what I understand from an aquaintance of mine who is a structural engineer, this has become a major issue to everyone lately, because of issues on the Selmon project and the Embassy Suites project DT (one of the caissons had to be ripped out and redone like 11ft deeper, because it was on a porous bed, and had sunk from just its own wieght)...In both cases, test bores located "bedrock" at a certain depth and the foundation structure was set, only later to have those structures fail.
smiley
February 3rd, 2006, 04:37 AM
Indeed - they also have some of the conical caisson mesh laying around on the site. They are getting there. Just relax.
robbie
February 3rd, 2006, 11:36 PM
Just glad to get the real news about TTT. Also, there's an article in the Trib. today. They want to keep testing the soil until they are 100% sure it's ready.
SDK4
February 4th, 2006, 05:06 AM
Heres the article:
Builder: Trump Tower On Track
By SHANNON BEHNKEN sbehnken@tampatrib.com
Published: Feb 3, 2006
http://www.tbo.com/news/money/MGBM4WCU7JE.html
TAMPA - A year after Trump Tower Tampa was announced, its developers acknowledge project costs have gone up 50 percent and they've passed along a $40 million increase to buyers with reservations.
Even so, they say, 80 percent of the 192 units are spoken for, meaning the majority of those buyers have contracts and have put down 20 percent nonrefundable deposits to live in the 600-foot tall building. The city also says initial permits to start vertical construction should be approved in a few weeks.
Getting to this point has been a roller coaster ride for developers, potential buyers and contractors during the past 12 months. Some buyers backed out, construction deadlines lapsed and the project has been the focus of rumors that the tower is in trouble. Developers said Thursday that even though they had to take a $35 million cut in profit, the tower is on track and will be better than dozens of other condos planned for downtown.
"We did have people fall out because of prices," said Frank Dagostino, chief executive officer of SimDag LLC, the Tampa-based developers of the project. "But those people were replaced within hours. We're not going away. We're absolutely going to build this building."
Developers plan to begin driving pilings within two weeks, Dagostino said. That will take four months, followed by another 28 months of vertical construction on the $225 million building.
The higher costs and tedious soil testing - to ascertain the ground can support the 52-story skyscraper - has pushed the estimated completion date back until at least December 2008. That is a year after the original completion date.
The on-again, off-again appearance of work at the site, along the Hillsborough River at Ashley Drive and Brorein Street, has fueled rumors that the tower won't be built. Some other condominium projects have had trouble filling vacancies after raising sales prices, but the prestige of Donald Trump's name seems to be driving its success.
"The Trump name is associated with the best possible quality in everything from the carpet and glass to the construction," said Patrick Berman, a commercial real estate broker with Cushman & Wakefield in Tampa. "And 80 percent means break even. Your risk is zero. What this means to me is that this project will move forward."
Dagostino said that's why his group sought out Trump: They knew the power the Trump name would have. "That's why we're not in the trouble of some of the other condos in the area."
When the project was announced this time last year, it was reserved almost immediately. Potential buyers put down a 10 percent refundable deposit to hold a unit. The original prices ranged from $700,000 to $6 million. Last fall, many of those buyers were informed they had to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars more to keep their condos.
For several months, developers have converted reservations to "hard contract," meaning buyers fork over another deposit, for a total of 20 percent. Buyers who back out now won't get a refund.
One buyer, Clearwater developer Stephen Page, didn't hesitate to pay more for the 2-bedroom condo he wants on the 34th floor. He said he'll pay just under $1 million.
Page, who has built small condo projects along Pinellas County beaches, said he knows what rising construction costs can do to overall building prices. Still, he said, if it were another condominium developer, he'd be more leery of the increased sales price. However, for the Trump name, he said, he's willing to pay.
"I feel that no matter what, that will be the top tower in Tampa and the quality of the his name will ensure the value of the investment," said Page, who plans to use the condo on weekends. "If any condo is going to go in downtown Tampa that will be a safe bet, I feel it will be Trump."
Observers haven't seen much work going on at the Trump site, but Bob Lyons, president of SimDag, said that's because much of the work isn't plainly seen. First, the seawall had to be reinforced to support the massive tower and the city's riverwalk.
Then, Dagostino said, drilling began to test whether the ground can support the pilings. In typical condo projects, he said, three or four pilings are tested this way, but he doesn't want to take chances.
"I don't want to be in the paper 15 years from now about the Trump tower leaning," Dagostino said. "This isn't a 15-story building. We have to make sure we test enough."
The developers say they plan to release 19 units for sale later this month or in early March. Those units will cost between $1 million and $1.7 million, Dagostino said.
To make up for the construction cost increases, he said, another 19 units will be sold at completion when they can charge more.
I-275westcoastfl
February 4th, 2006, 05:12 AM
Good to see they are finally going to start the building i mean face it is gonna be the centerpiece tower in tampa unless Tampa Towers is built or somebody randomly announces a 72 story tower here.
Dale
February 4th, 2006, 05:17 AM
I guess my question is why have the initial permits not been obtained ? Is this a Trump problem or a Tampa problem ?
Jasonhouse
February 4th, 2006, 06:50 AM
Good to see they are finally going to start the building i mean face it is gonna be the centerpiece tower in tampa unless Tampa Towers is built or somebody randomly announces a 72 story tower here.
You mean 62 story tower....;)
SDK4
February 5th, 2006, 06:11 AM
Trump will get this project going soon. I don't think he wants anymore bad publicity after his painful financial reorganization a few years ago.
envane
February 5th, 2006, 06:05 PM
Trump was never the genius he portrayed himself to be and the tower will be DOA if he bothers to finish building it.
Dale
February 5th, 2006, 07:57 PM
Trump was never the genius he portrayed himself to be and the tower will be DOA if he bothers to finish building it.
Huh ?
Hannibal
February 5th, 2006, 08:54 PM
He's extremely wealthy and I'm not. I'll just leave it at that... :doh:
smiley
February 5th, 2006, 10:57 PM
Kind of hard to get a foundation permit until you know where you are putting the foundation elements and what it consists of. . . I would not worry too much.
envane
February 5th, 2006, 11:43 PM
Huh ?
The housing bubble will have completely popped by the time the Tower is finished, he won't be able to sell the unsold units, the flippers who reserved units will run like hell from it.
Jasonhouse
February 6th, 2006, 02:20 AM
^Flippers who run like hell will help to cover SimDag's ass anyways, as they will lose the 20% in deposits they have put down.
smiley
February 6th, 2006, 04:45 AM
Envane, you do not seem to quite understand the dynamics of the upper end market in Florida. The bubble will kill the middle, not the top. There may be slight deflation, but not that much.
envane
February 6th, 2006, 03:35 PM
Envane, you do not seem to quite understand the dynamics of the upper end market in Florida. The bubble will kill the middle, not the top. There may be slight deflation, but not that much.
Irrelevant. You can overbuild the upper end like the rest of the market. How many rich people want to and can afford to live in the Trump Tower? The project has attracted mostly speculators. Reread the St Pete Times article upthread.
Afguy1985
February 7th, 2006, 07:19 AM
I do not believe the downtown condo market in Tampa will be hit hard. The area is prime for growth and people keep flocking to Florida. However, I don't see great appreciation in the next few years. What does everyone else think this year will bring to? ...and if we are expecting a bust then why do developers keep proposing more and more Condos???
youngkg
February 7th, 2006, 05:39 PM
Florida has and will continue to have very high demand. If you look at the projected census data (http://www.census.gov/population/projections/PressTab1.xls), Florida is expected to almost double in population (15 million residents to 28 million residents) by 2030. Compared to other metropolitian areas, Tampa still remains relatively inexpensive. I think these corporations know what they are doing by building more highrise condos...
Dale
February 7th, 2006, 05:51 PM
I agree with you, youngkg.
Don't be apocalyptic. Be optimistic !
robbie
February 7th, 2006, 06:31 PM
I really don't think rich people that actually want to live in these condo's care about the fluctuations in the housing market. I don't have all the statistics but I'm sure the housing market in the DT, Channelside and other trendy areas is not in the same category with all the other "suburban" and multi-family development.
renner01
February 14th, 2006, 12:27 AM
Has anyone been by the site lately? I heard from a contractor bidding on the job that the general contractor has changed from bovis to turner back to bovis and now there is trailor at the site....I also heard (just rumor) that the developer is short 48 million .
smiley
February 14th, 2006, 12:42 AM
There is a big "TURNER" sign on the fence and people doing soil testing or boring. Turner was the only announced GC in my recollection
You guys need to worry more about the building where nothing ever happened at the site. . . There are enough projects that will fail . . .
Quegiebo
February 14th, 2006, 05:54 AM
I'm still waiting on a response as to whether or not they'll have a videocam -- not a word from them as of yet.
I have absolutely no faith in this group at this point in time.
robbie
February 14th, 2006, 09:51 PM
We just want proof that it's real. We are sick of all the baby steps. They have been testing for almost a year now. I know the bigger the building, the longer it takes but this is ridiculous. It's going to be interesting to see the crane operator work all sqeezed in next to the river. Seems like there won't be much space to work with.
zerobullchip
February 16th, 2006, 03:24 AM
I have a good view of this project from the opposite side of the river. I'm thinking of doing a progressive photo shoot of it.
renner01
February 16th, 2006, 06:25 PM
well do it
Quegiebo
February 16th, 2006, 08:20 PM
I have a good view of this project from the opposite side of the river. I'm thinking of doing a progressive photo shoot of it.
That would be awesome! :)
zerobullchip
February 16th, 2006, 11:56 PM
well do it
Well, when they starrt pushing dirt, I will!
Miami as in Perfect
February 17th, 2006, 12:57 AM
lol; hostility. heh. i would take pictures, too; but i doubt if the view from pembroke pines (miami/ft. lauderdale) would be so great.
John F
February 17th, 2006, 01:38 AM
^^ But you gotta admit, those would be some REALLY F'n original photographs of the project! :D
LuvHighrisers
February 18th, 2006, 03:51 PM
Is real construction on TTT actually going to begin this week or not? A couple weeks ago an article in the Trib said that construction was set to begin in 2 weeks.
gstolze
February 19th, 2006, 06:10 PM
There are some aerial pics of the site and the preparation work on the SimDag web page.
http://simdag.com/flash/trumptowertampa.shtml
click on details and then photos and scroll down.
thehappysmith
February 27th, 2006, 01:11 AM
There's a crane on the site for the first time in months, though it's in pieces awaiting assembly. Not very big, will be used I assume in some way for footers. Could be an auger, I suppose; tough to tell from the pieces though there was no auger bit in evidence. Infill dirt still needed behind the southern end of the seawall. They still have a little ways to go, but it's moving along.
SDK4
February 27th, 2006, 05:00 AM
At least we know Trump still knows he's supposed to be building a skyscraper in Tampa. :)
Jasonhouse
February 28th, 2006, 07:30 AM
The official groundbreaking is Thursday...
smiley
February 28th, 2006, 04:43 PM
His absence will tower over event
Donald Trump won't be on hand Thursday when the 52-story Trump Tower Tampa breaks ground.
By JAMES THORNER, Times Staff Writer
Published February 28, 2006
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The architect will be there. So will the Realtor, the mayor, the contractor and the local money men.
But when Trump Tower Tampa ceremonially breaks ground on Thursday, a certain brash-talking New Yorker will be conspicuous by his absence: Donald Trump himself.
A year after he swooped into town to kick off sales of the quarter-billion-dollar condo tower, Trump won't attend the birth of his 52-story namesake. "Mr. Trump cannot attend but he will be represented," project spokesman David Hooks said without elaboration.
A slate of dignitaries, including Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio, will gather at S Ashley Drive and Brorein Street along the Hillsborough River for the 2 p.m. ceremony.
West Florida's tallest skyscraper has remained mostly a rumor the past year as developers sold most of the tower's 192 units but construction never got off the ground.
The local developers, SimDag LLC, have promised to start laying the building's foundation toward a completion in 33 months.
The name of one key player remains as elusive as The Donald: Who will lend Trump Tower money to finance construction?
Hooks promised that "news about the financing arrangement is forthcoming."
- James Thorner can be reached at thorner@sptimes.com or 813 226-3313.
[Last modified February 28, 2006, 09:46:02]
http://www.sptimes.com/2006/02/28/Business/His_absence_will_towe.shtml
Dave01walk
March 2nd, 2006, 11:33 AM
Here's a little more on today's event.....
TAMPA - The Donald and his famous coif won't be at today's groundbreaking for the city's newest luxury condo tower.
His name, however, will be all over the $225 million riverfront project: Trump Tower Tampa. As the 52-story skyscraper rises on the city's skyline, Donald Trump's "brand" and all it stands for will be stamped on Tampa's economic image.
The New York real estate mogul is best known for luxury high rises, casinos and resorts named after himself. Since his emergence as a reality TV icon on "The Apprentice," though, Trump also has endorsed using his name on board games, men's cologne and even bottled water.
The spillover of that image could affect Tampa in ways bad and good. Some think that if promoted right, Trump Tower Tampa can help transform Tampa's downtown into a place where the rich and famous would want to live.
"It puts Tampa a little above the pack," Ron Kuntze, a University of Tampa assistant marketing professor said of the 52-story downtown project he sees as a boost for the city. "It's kind of like the Good Housekeeping seal of approval for real estate and upscale living."
Despite high-profile financial struggles and bankruptcy, Trump's name and his projects still create immediate assumptions of business success and wealth, Kuntze said.
"I think he's positioned himself as the ultimate business icon," he said.
His name likely had an impact on how many people signed up for Trump Tower Tampa condos initially priced between $700,000 and $6 million, Kuntze and other brand experts said. A reported 80 percent of the units have had a 20 percent nonrefundable deposit placed on them, despite an estimated 50 percent jump in building costs.
Some of those owners and developers from Tampa's SimDag LLC will be at today's groundbreaking, Trump Tower Tampa spokesman David Hooks said. Trump - whose percentage of investment in the Tampa project is unknown - won't attend as he and his wife await the birth of their baby, Hooks said.
Trump's real estate properties most often are located in resort towns or much larger cities: New York, Chicago, Atlantic City, Las Vegas, Seoul, Korea. Tampa and Toronto are among the first lesser-known cities to be the site of a Trump nonresort project. The Tampa tower isn't expected to be completed until at least December 2008.
Trump has spent decades making his fortune on high-quality real estate such as the Tampa project, said Paul Parkin, partner and founder of SALT, a San Francisco-based branding and communications firm. So far, his off-the-wall endorsement ventures haven't compromised Trump properties, he said.
"As long as they continue to build towers with the same standards, there's no risk," he said.
Spreading The Brand
Trump himself admits to being a shameless promoter of products he supports. His Web site - www.trumponline.com- highlights Trump properties and resorts, as well as a slew of merchandise. There's Trump signature power suits, Trump the fragrance, Trump the board game, Trump Ice bottled water, and even Trump University, an online business school that includes a course on building a brand name.
"If I were to put 'Trump' on everything that came my way - from potato chips to paper clips - the power of my name would be diluted," Trump wrote last week in The Trump Blog, a commentary at trumpuniversity.com. "I'm very demanding and selective about where that name goes. And I always try to make sure the letters are in gold."
Parkin said the value of a brand can be diminished if used too much. He points to Richard Branson's Virgin brand in the United Kingdom, where the one-time record label now hawks airlines, cell phones, banks, soda pop and even bridal services as a way to risk weakening the brand. Trump can go too far and hurt his real estate ventures as a result, he said.
"If he's not careful, he's running the risk of actually undermining the thing that made him," Parkin said. "Trump Tampa may make sense, but what about Trump Boise? How far does it go?"
How the public perceives Trump the brand is different than it was before "The Apprentice" appeared as a prime-time reality series several years ago, Parkin said. It used to be that Donald Trump the man was defined by the image and success of his buildings and companies. "These have been completely overshadowed by the image of the man," Parkin said. "Now, you evaluate the properties by the identity of a person."
A December survey tracking the popularity of certain brands found that Trump was on a roller coaster of success. The 2005 ImagePower Newsmaker Brands Survey found that television viewers were cooling to confrontational reality shows such as "The Apprentice" and that Trump's name as a celebrity was deemed a loser along with others such as Britney Spears and Howard Stern.
But Trump, like Spears and Stern, continued to profit from their brand-associated merchandise, said the national survey conducted by branding specialists Landor Associates and Penn, Schoen and Berland Associates.
Parkin said Trump likely will have a sense of humor about his brand, until it hurts his bottom line.
"When he stops making money where he makes the bulk of his money, he will start caring," Parkin said.
Impact Has Varying Effect
It remains to be seen if Trump's name can boost the image of Tampa - a city with more than 300,000 residents, and an estimated 2.5 million in the metropolitan area.
Larger cities with Trump projects said they doubt they will frantically promote Trump's arrival in their city. Toronto, Canada's largest city with 2.5 million residents, already has a healthy residential presence in its downtown on the shores of Lake Ontario, said Stuart Green, the city's deputy communications director.
The 70-story condo Trump International Hotel and Tower, which has yet to break ground, is welcome but not essential to be a catalyst for Toronto's residential and financial health, he said.
"Is it just another condo? No," Green said. "But at the same time, it's not going to make the city a much better place. It's already a great city."
Trump also is not turning heads in Chicago, where the 90-story Trump International Hotel and Tower is expected to open in 2008. Carolyn Kae Phillips, spokeswoman for the city's economic development arm, World Business Chicago, said Trump's new tower won't significantly change the city's economic image.
"We can't imagine it would have any impact on the city of Chicago," said Phillips, the department's director of Strategic Initiatives. "We've got plenty of great brands in the city already."
Donald Trump's name graces a slew of products, from bottled water to cologne. He first made his name, however, on a number of real estate ventures that bear his surname. They include:
New York
Trump Tower
Trump Park Avenue
Trump World Tower
Trump International Hotel and Tower
Trump Place
The Residences at Trump National
Trump Parc and Trump Parc East
Trump Palace
Trump Tower at Westchester
Los Angeles
The Estates at Trump National
Chicago
Trump International Hotel and Tower
Florida
Trump Tower Tampa
Trump Grande Ocean Resort at North Miami Beach
Las Vegas
Trump International Hotel and Tower
Canouan Islands, The Grenadines
Trump Island Villas
Seoul, Korea
Trump World
Toronto
Trump International Hotel and Tower
Other non-brand properties involving the Trump Organization
610 Park Avenue, New York
40 Wall Street, New York
Mar a Lago at Palm Beach
Source: The Trump Organization - www.trumponline.com
http://www.tbo.com/news/money/MGBOY6JGAKE.html
SDK4
March 2nd, 2006, 08:52 PM
I can't believe Trump won't be there today. It shows you how much he really cares about this project.
Jasonhouse
March 2nd, 2006, 08:59 PM
This isn't Trump's deal anyways. He's pretty much always just been the name brand the developers bought to separate their product from all of the others.
smiley
March 2nd, 2006, 11:14 PM
Who cares if he shows, as long as it is built properly
SDK4
March 3rd, 2006, 03:35 AM
This isn't Trump's deal anyways. He's pretty much always just been the name brand the developers bought to separate their product from all of the others.
I know, but it would have created alot of buzz around the building and its construction if he had shown.
smiley
March 3rd, 2006, 04:16 AM
When it goes up out of the ground (in 6 months from now)- it will have buzz.
robbie
March 6th, 2006, 02:44 AM
Check out article in Times from March 3. It mentions that there will be 163 caissons to claw the bedrock 100 feet underground. Pretty interesting....and it will take supposedly the next five and a half months but of course with Tampa's notorious rainy weather and hurricane season approaching, it may take longer. I just got a little bit educated about casissons. It's going to be interesting to sink that many on a small site.
thehappysmith
March 6th, 2006, 05:00 AM
^That site's going to be solid caisson.
robbie
March 6th, 2006, 07:33 PM
So with all the caisson work going on we won't see anything coming out of the ground until the fall and vertical construction will be heavy next year. I hope Donald has at least one more plan for Tampa (maybe a 50 story loft building). He should have something in St. Pete as well. (TTT St. Pete). Just wishing.
robbie
March 17th, 2006, 11:45 PM
Hey Mr. Zerobluechip,
Anything going on at TTT this week? Any caissons laying around yet?
Jasonhouse
March 18th, 2006, 12:25 AM
^All week long... I altered my route home (took Channelside, not Twiggs) on Wednesday, to check it out.
Pretty much everything is humming along... Towers at Channelside is going up much quicker than I expected. Must be a good GC.
robbie
March 19th, 2006, 01:53 AM
Saw it for myself today. They have it so you can see through it again. The land looked a little different. Yes the towers are moving along. Looks like the east parking may be topped out and they are starting on the east residential tower. Maybe the middle link may go last.
robbie
March 22nd, 2006, 10:53 PM
I guess Mr. Bluechip is too busy to give updates. That's OK. Anyway, today there were several workers on site doing some serious work. I was waiting at the light to turn on Brorein and it took long because the bridge was up. While waiting, a crane was dropping a tall concrete cylinder in the ground. Went to Publix to go pee and when I came back it was in the ground.
biga1968
March 24th, 2006, 12:49 AM
It going a while before this building get off the ground. 3 or 4 months maybe.
zerobullchip
March 24th, 2006, 02:43 AM
Sorry I've been too busy to do anything lately. As it turns out I may not be around this job with a view for too much longer, so my plan to shoot these photos may not pan out. There are rumors that something similar may be available from the same view on website in the next few months. I'll keep you posted.
smiley
March 24th, 2006, 10:48 PM
As I said in the Channelside thread - I was up in one of the offices today and got to look around - this building if going all out. I am sure it will take a while, but they are cranking away. NO idea about that mysterious "financing" that the Times kept harping on - hoping it would fall through, no doubt - but someone is paying for the work
TamHavPolis
April 4th, 2006, 04:33 PM
I don't know if any of you have seen the story, and I'm too lazy to post the link, but the Tampa Tribune is reporting that SimDag has dropped Turner Construction as the contractor for the Trump Tower.
What on earth is going on? Is this building going to be built?
Dave01walk
April 4th, 2006, 04:49 PM
TAMPA - Trump Tower Tampa is getting a new contractor.
The development team behind downtown's most talked-about condominium project confirmed Monday it has dropped Turner Construction Co. as its general contractor and is in negotiation with four other candidates for the job.
David Hooks, a spokesman for Trump Tower Tampa, said the change in contractors won't delay construction on the 52-story, 192-unit luxury condominium tower.
He said work under way at the Ashley Drive construction site - installing the 163 caissons that will support the building - is not being done by Turner. That work will continue until mid-August. The first condominiums are expected to be ready for tenants in August 2008.
The $225 million condominium is being developed by Donald Trump, the real estate maven and reality TV star, in partnership with SimDag LLC, a Tampa-based development firm specializing in luxury waterfront condominiums.
The partnership announced in December that it had hired Turner Construction Co. of New York, one of the nation's largest construction companies, as general contractor.
"Turner is a proven company, one of the nation's leading general contractors and the most experienced builder of high-rise developments in Florida," Trump said in a Dec. 15 news release. "They will do a great job."
Turner spokeswoman Karen Pruente confirmed Monday that her company is no longer the general contractor. Hooks said a confidentiality agreement prohibits members of the Trump-SimDag team from discussing their decision to release Turner.
http://www.tampatrib.com/MGBFAPOJLLE.html
renner01
April 4th, 2006, 10:23 PM
I had mentioned i believe once on this thread that I had been told by a potential contractor that the developer sim-dag was having a time of it getting the finance in place. we shall see....
TallTampa
April 4th, 2006, 10:35 PM
No Donald at the groundbreaking, contractor dismissed from project, groundbreaking delayed almost a year....something doesn't smell right.
Jasonhouse
April 4th, 2006, 11:46 PM
I can't conceive of construction halting after starting... Talk about rinky-dink!
robbie
April 5th, 2006, 12:12 AM
He can't be everywhere at once. He just had the baby and he's got projects going on all over the world. Drive by the site sometime and you can see and hear the work. I can't imagine they do all the caisson work and then halt.
TallTampa
April 5th, 2006, 01:26 AM
You're probably right, it just seems odd.
jvance75
April 5th, 2006, 05:43 AM
Trump Tower already faces hurdles
The luxury condo high-rise is having to replace its general contractor and faces another hurdle: finding a financier to lend it $200-million.
By JAMES THORNER, Times Staff Writer
Published April 4, 2006
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
TAMPA - One month after its ceremonial groundbreaking and 21/2 years shy of completion, Trump Tower Tampa has broken with its builder, a company it praised last year as one of the best in the business.
Turner Construction Co., the New York contractor pegged in December to build the $260-million luxury condominium high-rise, backed out of the deal March 17, Turner spokeswoman Shannon Eckhart said.
"I don't have details," Eckhart said.
Since construction officially started March 2, subcontractors have been laying underground foundations for the 52-story, 600-foot skyscraper at Ashley Drive and Brorein Street.
Tower developer SimDag LLC vows to hire a general contractor to replace Turner in the next month. A grand opening is scheduled for late 2008.
"The developer is in negotiation with four highly qualified companies to assume the role of general contractor well in advance of any impact on the construction timetable," project spokesman David Hooks said in a written statement.
But Trump Tower might have a higher hurdle: It has yet to announce a financier to lend it $200-million.
SimDag's principals, including Frank Dagostino and Jody Simon, have had to dig into their pockets for startup money.
The tower would house 192 condominiums priced from about $700,000 to $6.2-million.
Trump is lending his brand to the building in exchange for a cut of the profits, a formula he perfected on condo projects in places such as North Miami Beach.
Skeptics wondered for months whether Turner was hedging its bets on the skyscraper. The company never displayed Trump Tower on its Web site, a gallery that included such comparatively smaller deals such as the Clearwater library.
http://www.sptimes.com/2006/04/04/Business/Trump_Tower_already_f.shtml
Dale
April 5th, 2006, 06:18 AM
I have mixed feelings about this. It would be a shame if Tampa didn't get a new tallest out of this boom. On the other hand, the design is a real dozer.
smiley
April 5th, 2006, 05:58 PM
I still maintain that it will get built.
jvance75
April 5th, 2006, 08:38 PM
the lending issue should be worked out very soon...
Gdad
April 20th, 2006, 10:00 PM
Has anyone else noticed the caisson operation has been stopped for about a week now? It went on for a while after Turner left- but not now. It would be nice to know who the new GC is going to be.
tampamobster21
April 20th, 2006, 10:03 PM
They are waiting to see if they can get the 200 million that they need. Honestly, I think that Trump has the money to finance the project himself and not even hit the depth of his pockets.
Maxim98
April 20th, 2006, 10:25 PM
I still maintain that it will get built.
Oh, I think so too. It's just taking forever...
Sure, most projects do (four years from proposal to opening isn't really that long).
I'm just an impatient skyrise whore.
tampamobster21
April 20th, 2006, 10:55 PM
Same here I love cities. I can not wait until everything will be built.
TamHavPolis
April 21st, 2006, 11:11 AM
As far as I understand, Trump doesn't actually own an interest in the building of Trump Tower Tampa. He has essentially franchised out his brand name to a group of local real estate developers - just like McDonald's doesn't really own a number of the stores with their name on them, even though they have a right to make sure that those restaurants meet minimum standards.
tampamobster21
April 22nd, 2006, 11:15 AM
Well then why doesn't he have his name on the top of the building.
FloridaFuture
April 22nd, 2006, 01:46 PM
Well then why doesn't he have his name on the top of the building.
Because not every bulding he builds has to phisically have his name on the building......and not every building has words on the top.
Jasonhouse
April 22nd, 2006, 05:23 PM
Hey, if anyone wants to be the project superintendent for this building, here is your chance... They're hiring. :D
Careerbuilder.com (http://www.careerbuilder.com/JobSeeker/Jobs/JobDetails.aspx?IPATH=JEHRA&siteid=cb_emailrec&sc_cmp2=10_JobMat_JobDet&je=myrec&Job_DID=J8A5T862H6T27JCPL5T&cbRecursionCnt=1&cbsid=cd42cae3e4bf4c859532124c1fed762f-199020036-RC-1)
tampamobster21
April 22nd, 2006, 10:03 PM
I think it would look cool if Trump had his name on the Tampa skyline.
Jasonhouse
April 22nd, 2006, 10:44 PM
On the otherhand, I would find that very tacky and in poor taste.
tampamobster21
April 22nd, 2006, 11:14 PM
Well it is his name on the bill for the building. I think on the otherhand he should have put money towards the project. Or did he?
TamHavPolis
April 22nd, 2006, 11:19 PM
When has Donald Trump done something that wasn't tasteless and/or tacky? I mean, have you been to the original Trump Tower on Manhattan?
Dale
April 23rd, 2006, 02:36 AM
His Chicago, Toronto, Philly, Jersey City, Sunny Isles Beach and Hollywood Beach projects range from gorgeous to classy to tasteful.
FloridaFuture
April 23rd, 2006, 02:41 AM
His Chicago, Toronto, Philly, Jersey City, Sunny Isles Beach and Hollywood Beach projects range from gorgeous to classy to tasteful.
His Chicago building is sweet, and his Toronto one too. If only he would build those here and make them 700-750 feet.
robbie
April 23rd, 2006, 06:30 PM
Another Trump building here would be awesome and I don't care that it would be for the rich. It would really help the skyline's appearance.
tampamobster21
April 24th, 2006, 10:46 AM
I think that would be cool as well, but to out do what ever is here already. I wish all developers would try to out do eachother, within reason of course.
FloridaFuture
April 24th, 2006, 01:07 PM
I think that would be cool as well, but to out do what ever is here already. I wish all developers would try to out do eachother, within reason of course.
Well it would depend on the tower and its characteristics if it was cool.
The Mad Hatter!!
April 24th, 2006, 11:00 PM
So what you're saying is that you want tampa to turn out like dubai, i really dont think you want that.
John F
April 25th, 2006, 12:43 AM
Great analogy, Mad...
I HATE how they've developed Dubai. The layout alone (just look at some of the projects and the entire footprint involved0 is stuff to make me throw up in the mouth a little.
thehappysmith
April 25th, 2006, 03:08 AM
Yeah, when I think of developers trying to outdo each other, I would rather imagine New York in the 20s and 30s. Awesome stuff came out of that period when every millionaire wanted to make his building the talk of the town. Wouldn't it be nice to see a competition that produced Tampa's own unique (smaller) versions of masterpieces like Singer, Woolworth, and Chrysler?
Ah, I guess architecture was different in those days, though. You didn't have to make a building look like a sail or a bunch of upside-down fishing boats. You could make it look like a building.
tampamobster21
April 25th, 2006, 06:22 AM
I do not want another Dubai. I hate Dubai and everything about it.
97Roll
May 5th, 2006, 06:45 PM
Anyone know the latest on this project?
Gdad
May 5th, 2006, 07:44 PM
I see they are puting together a much larger caisson machine now- I had heard they found some issues underground they had to deal with. Florida soil is like swiss cheese.
Anyone heard anything on who the new general contractor is?
tampamobster21
May 6th, 2006, 07:07 AM
I just wish that they would hurry up and get vertical.
FloridaFuture
May 6th, 2006, 12:50 PM
I just wish that they would hurry up and get vertical.
Pretty much everyone does.....
Tampa on the move.
May 12th, 2006, 01:35 AM
Amen to that, I want to see that 52-55 story building going up soon..
They better hurry because it will take 2 years to build it, and Superbowl will be here :: e Jan 2009..
Come on Trump... :bash: :bash:
Start hammering away..
tampamobster21
May 13th, 2006, 09:37 AM
lol I hope they just get a developer and the funding.
robbie
May 13th, 2006, 10:12 PM
When I drove by the site yesterday there was all kinds of equipment, materials and trucks on the land, just no bodies.
Dave01walk
May 14th, 2006, 06:11 AM
I can't really see this not happening. I mean Trump has his name on the line here for one. Secondly, I can't imagine having to tell all of those people who have put huge deposits down, "oh yea, by the way, we decided were not going to do this due to construction costs. Oh, did we forget to mention that?" I think that would be a huge blow to his org. Somebody let me know if they think differently, but I just don't see it happening. But on the other hand, I'm curious what the "rich people" which I am not one, are thinking. You would think by now they would be raising a stink if they put 10% or what ever it is and it's way behind schedule, and nobody's talking and contractors are being replaced. I know if I put that much down on a signature piece of real estate I would be asking alot of questions.
Tampa on the move.
May 21st, 2006, 05:18 AM
They will get this going soon.. Someone said it was 70% sold out already before construction even begins..
tampamobster21
May 21st, 2006, 08:55 AM
I really hope so. I do not want the Trump project to not get built. Is it possible for them not to do this project now?
TallTampa
May 21st, 2006, 06:16 PM
I was down there on Friday. There's still work being done, but it's going slow right now. I can't imagine this project falling apart, but you never know.
robbie
May 22nd, 2006, 09:05 PM
More work today. I parked at Publix and walked over to the park next to Cap Trust. On Brorein over the river the workers kinda looked at me as if I was a big Freakazoid. I couldn't tell what kind of work was being done but there were about eight to ten workers on the site. There is a big cylinder about five feet in diameter stuck in the ground near the river corner. There are round metal rods about 20 feet long sitting on the site and I have no idea what they are for. I'm assuming they have something to do with the caissons.
If anybody else would like to do this, I would recommend you go with another person so you don't stick out like a sour thumb. The homeless stayed on the other side, under the crosstown. They were not a problem. The park smells like piss. I hope the bums are not pissing on the pavers.
tampamobster21
May 22nd, 2006, 09:13 PM
http://discovertampasfuture.blogspot.com/ this is my site for construction. Let me know if you all want me to take more photos.
robbie
May 22nd, 2006, 09:16 PM
Yes, by all means take as many as possible.
Tampa on the move.
May 22nd, 2006, 09:26 PM
http://discovertampasfuture.blogspot.com/ this is my site for construction. Let me know if you all want me to take more photos.
Tampa Mobsterr you are the one.. Thank you so much for this link. I am coming to Tampa in 3 weeks and just need my fix..
Great pics.. Will you do the same for Trump-Skypoint-Newks-Novare projects and Maas????
John F
May 23rd, 2006, 10:00 PM
Well, if anyone is like me -- they don't get to downtown often... They would also savor pictures of construction sites...
Which brings me to my offering (thanks to a friend who took the shots for me) of the following pics of Trump Tower of Tampa's site construction:
http://www.aquaclaracanines.com/Photo287.jpg
http://www.aquaclaracanines.com/Photo288.jpg
http://www.aquaclaracanines.com/Photo289.jpg
Not the greatest quality but can't look a gift horse in the mouth
tampamobster21
May 23rd, 2006, 10:40 PM
Good shots, John F.
TallTampa
May 24th, 2006, 12:48 AM
well, it looks like things are happening, albeit slowly.
Gdad
May 24th, 2006, 04:43 PM
Nice pictures. When you look at the size of the guy walking next to the steel caisson cages it puts it in perspective how big the foundation on a 50+ story building really is.
Quegiebo
May 24th, 2006, 06:27 PM
Nice work, John! :yes:
SWFigment
May 31st, 2006, 02:44 AM
Any new news on this? I haven't been downtown in a while, so I feel out of the loop. Have they gotten off the ground yet? Do they ever plan to?!?!
John F
May 31st, 2006, 03:13 AM
Those pictures aren't even a week old, you could check the date on posts...
Sorry to snap but people need to read threads before commenting.
Dave01walk
May 31st, 2006, 05:03 AM
SWFigment, they are still doing undergroud work from the last I've seen. This will probably take awhile to support the building.
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1 comment:
You are doing great work!
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