Posted on 03/17/2007 2:07:05 AM PDT by Lorianne
Clearing its last regulatory hurdle, plans for the 70-story Trump International Hotel & Tower on Poydras Street won unanimous approval Thursday from the New Orleans City Council.
The 1.6 million-square-foot tower, estimated to cost about $400 million, would fill most of the largely vacant block bounded by Poydras, Camp, Natchez and Magazine streets. It would be 716 feet high, plus a 126-foot spire, and would contain 734 luxury condominium and hotel units and a 715-space garage.
Florida developer Cliff Mowe said he hopes to break ground this summer on what would be Louisiana's tallest building. Construction is expected to take 28 months, putting completion in late 2009.
New York real estate magnate Donald Trump announced on Aug. 25, 2005, that he would join a team of Florida developers in building a 70-story tower in New Orleans. Hurricane Katrina hit four days later, but within two weeks Donald Trump Jr. said the developers would go ahead with the project.
Although financing has not been nailed down, Mowe has said several large lenders are interested in the project, in part because of Trump's involvement.
No one spoke against the proposed tower at the council meeting. The plans were approved 5-0 on the recommendation of Councilwoman Stacy Head, whose district includes the site. "This is Trump," Head told her colleagues in asking for approval. "Woo-hoo."
(Excerpt) Read more at nola.com ...
Pictures?
Trump had said that he got a great incentive to build there. IIRC, he has smaller properties there.
Well, how deep is it to bedrock there?
Gotta build it really tall....sinking before it even gets started.
A cost of $545K per condo to build. I wonder what they'll sell for.
I'm guessing they basically gave him the property...some kind of free deal with the city. Probably prime real estate.
But I will bet this...within five years after being built...it will be sold off for 50 cents on the dollar. It will never make a penny of profit.
A future leaning tower now here in the US?
I don't know, but setting aside the foundation issues, what about the wind issues for future hurricanes?
Taking both into account, Trump is flipping the bird at Mother Nature.
This was the project that Trump was planning to go ahead with right before the hurricane and (threatened?) pulled out. I'm sure his phone was ringing off the hook to build. Trump got what he wanted.
That's it: if he could dig down to the bedrock, and securely anchor his projected phallic symbol in it, then [if sturdy enough] it could stand and not topple over.
Bedrock? As far as I know its all sediment from the Mississippi. I lived in NO during the building boom of the early '80s. You could hear them driving piles all day long, every day. I believe the tallest building in the city is about 40 floors.
FYI: When you walk along St. Charles, the ground bounces (like a mini earthquake) whenever the streetcar goes by...
While there are enough people to buy a condo at those prices (maybe), the people I know who have the means would die before buying into anything with that narcisstic windbag's name on it - I include myself. Unless the buyers are out of towners or nouveau riche, this project will never fly.
See # 13.
I agree. They reek of money/no class. However, someone buys them.
The delta is FLAT. You're not going to see more 'flat' from the 70th floor than you would from the 40th. Maybe you could spot oil rigs out in the Gulf of Mexico on a clear day.
Trump's projects are boring architecturally. I hate to think what Trump will do to someplace like Havana after the fall.
This is going to take a whole lot of pilings that I can't even imagine.
A great place to build a waiting engineering disaster. I wouldn't build anything over 2 stories in NO...
A long long way down. I've seen pilings disappear after being hit by just two or three blows, it's like soup.
Since there are other tall buildings in the CBD I'm guessing the engineering is there.
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