b a r n f l
o w e r
P a r t U r b
a n. P a
r t C o w b o y.
A l l T e x
a n.
 |
| 240 acre parcel in Cypress TX |
Development Executive
Summary
“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication” -Leonardo di Vinci
New Urbanism
“New Urbanism is lighter on the pocketbook, more efficient with tax dollars, safer for pedestrians, bikers and drivers, easier on the environment and is a healthier way to live. It just performs better.”
“When cities are designed so walking, biking and taking transit are convenient ways to take care of daily needs, we all use less energy. New Urbanism saves money and brings energy to public spaces and local economies.”
“In contrast to the wide roads and vast parking lots of sprawl, New Urbanism brings people, goods and services together with welcoming sidewalks and public spaces. This makes places more pleasant and generates a premium in the marketplace.”
“New Urbanism promotes compact neighborhoods and a well-connected transportation network, which reduces infrastructure costs and has been shown to improve response times for emergency responders.”
“ New Urbanism promotes a greener lifestyle by encouraging fewer and shorter car trips and more efficient building designs. Improvements to both buildings and our transportation network can significantly reduce emissions per person, making cities truly more efficient.”
“Rising health care and obesity are major challenges in the
" New Urbanism is the most important phenomenon
to emerge in American
architecture in the post-Cold War era.”
Herbert Muschamp, The New York Times.
Project
Charter
Barnflower-
a master planned and mixed use real estate development in Cypress, TX
Barnflower is a mixed use
community concept design based on principles of New Urbanism and a pursuit of
simplicity. The proposed development is
laid out within a 240 acre parcel in Cypress
TX Houston
The “New Urban” niche of community design is
yet to be found in the Northwest corridor of Houston
Barnflower Heights- a residential neighborhood
with nostalgically designed bungalows and cottages.
Barnflower Gardens- a custom home section encompassed by natural aesthetic—older growth trees and wildflower meadows.
Barnflower
Promenade:
-Main street district with on street parking.
-Vintage warehouse brick and turn of the century
style architecture.
-Period lighting.
-Large (10 acre) central park feature with outdoor
amphitheater for community gatherings, events, cultural activities, movie
nights and festivals.
-Facilities and space within the
streetscape/sidewalks for seasonal farmers markets and cultural
events/festivals.
-Designated space for medical facility and assisted
living.
-Sidewalk cafes with plentiful outdoor seating.
-METRO commuter station (as approved.)
-Cohesive design elements in all structures that
unify the space.
- A class “A” community theater designed for
plays, political events, concerts and other local community activities.
-Bungalow/garden home size lots (60 x 120.)
-Classically designed bungalows and cottages that
reminisce the timeless design of the Heights in Houston
-Alleyways to rear garages.
-White picket fences.
-Sidewalks that lead to paths that circumnavigate
entire community.
-Colorful and complimentary home colors and styles.
-Walkable to parks, community spaces, and Main Street
-Low maintenance but well appointed colorful
landscapes.
-2200+ sq ft custom homes with porches and
exterior living spaces evoking a modern vintage aesthetic and also including deliberate
consideration to multiple living areas.** (see below for further definition.)
-Large, ¼ acre or larger lots with circular rear lot lines.
-Homes are grouped in neighborhood circles that
resemble “flowers” when viewing from above.
-Flower design enables homes to face a neighborhood
common park area for neighborhood interaction.
-Community center with pool, and “old barn” style
clubhouse. Large enough for receptions, property owners association meetings or
private functions.
-Tire lane driveways.
-Every lot backing up to open space and water
features.
-Surrounding open spaces can be used for community
organic gardens.
The parameters include creating 2-3 living
spaces on a lot, rather than 1 large structure that contains multiple rooms
that are rarely used by the average family.
For example: instead of a large 4000+ sq/ft house on a 1/3 acre
lot, consider an architecturally
charming 2200 sq/foot bungalow (living
space 1) on the same lot, with attention
given to exterior outdoor living, garden and porch spaces front and back. In addition to this home is a stylish living
space above the garage (living space 2) that can serve as an attractive yet
private alternative for guests or returning children. And ultimately, a petite yet charming pool or
garden side cabana (living space 3) can be another space available for
entertaining, visiting parents, or as a children’s getaway. These additional spaces can be closed off to
additional utility expenses when not in use, and create a fantastic amenity
when additional space is required.
The Community
The Cy-fair area is poised to
continue as one of the top growth corridors in the Houston area over the next
few years. With easy access to all points in Houston, and Houston well
established as the United
States
An interesting condition worth
noting is that although Houston
Project
Management
The
Project Manager will be authorized to select team members and negotiate and
justify final budgets. The majority of
the project work will be contracted out with specific scope(s) of work (SOW) up
for bid and contract. The full time project
team would additionally include a sales and marketing specialist, a project construction superintendent, and a
financial and accounting director. Additional
team members would work under contract in all supporting fields.
Business
Case
The highest priority of the endeavor is to provide
a healthy return for the investment stakeholders. Revenue objectives include short term as well
as long term perpetual income streams that will be further defined below.
The ultimate
purpose of the project is to create a sustainable and iconic community that caters
to the established surrounding population but also taps into the anticipated
growth to the area. With this in mind, the development is being designed with a
mix of conventional development practices, as well as progressive
considerations in sustainability and design. This combination of ideals creates
an investment with conservative attributes but can also offer aggressive
potential returns.
Additionally the potential advantage is not only a
strong revenue stream, but also the intrinsic benefit of association with a
project that is sustainable, forward thinking, and groundbreaking in
scope. This is a project that will ultimately garner
significant publicity and its success will develop reputation for those that
were initial backers and key stakeholders of the project. It will be a highpoint on a resume,
investment portfolio, or brokerage history to have been associated with this
project.
Revenue from the project will ultimately be
produced in 4 ways:
1.
Residential
Land/Home Sales.
2.
Commercial
land sales
3.
Commercial
lease space(perpetual)
4.
Community
activities (perpetual)
Residential Land and Home Sales:
53 acres of the parcel will be dedicated to
developing 231 residential lots, 67 of which will be completely built out by
the developer as cottage residences. The
remainders are custom home parcels which will be built out or sold as lots as
the market dictates.
Commercial tracts sale:
30 acres of the Promenade parcel will be divided
into urban blocks all surrounding the 10 acre Park. The blocks will each be subdivided into 4-6
lots available for purchase, but restricted with very specific building and
design standards. This division into
smaller lots will make land purchase more manageable for small business owners
and entrepreneurs, but lots can be combined as well for larger projects.
Commercial Lease Space:
The remaining 30 acres of the Promenade district
will be fully developed out as part of the project to create a perpetual
passive income stream through lease space.
This project will be developed in phases as market forces dictate. These
mixed use structures will vary in use, including but not limited to, retail,
office, restaurant, and entertainment. The analogous estimate of commercial space
development costs are $75 per square foot before build out, $110 after. Revenue rates are based on 80% occupancy, 28,000
sq. ft. of leasable space per acre. Initial rates starting at $18 per sq. ft.
per year. Thus translating into a 16.8%
cap rate.
Bridgeland
Real Estate Market Report
3--According to NPR: “…a report by the Brookings Institution finds Houston is now one of the world's fastest growing metro economies… The Global MetroMonitor tracks economic growth in the world's 200 largest metro areas, both in terms of employment and per capita income. For 2011,Houston U.S. Dallas
Community Activities:
The street layout, park, and expansive sidewalks
will provide occasion and space for street festivals, farmers markets, and
community social events. The park and amphitheater will likely host various
events throughout the year. These events
will generate revenue with vendor space rentals and permit fees. Additionally will be the nostalgic space of
the community center “barn” which will host property owners meetings, but can
be rented out for other uses as well. This
space will be designed in a classic style that is ideal for receptions, events,
or even small concerts. Although all
these resources are not anticipated to generate an enormous income stream, the
community will be an attractive venue for special events due to its location,
surroundings, and spaciousness, and validates inclusion in this narrative.
Land Use:
The estimates of pricing and costs are based upon
an analogous model of recent area development and contractor pricing. The initial proposed breakdown of land use is
as follows:
Residential bungalow district: 52- 6200 sq ft lots (6 lots to an acre)
= 12
Acres
Residential custom district: 206 lots (25 acreage, 182 custom) = 113 Acres
Developed parks, community areas and
detention = 23 Acres
Medical, assisted living = 30 acres district
Promenade commercial district = 20
Acres
Metro commuter facility and parking = 4 Acres
Roads, on street parking,
neighborhood entry points = 23 Acres
Green space, wildflower gardens, community
gardens = 15 Acres
Total:
240 Acres
Additional
Project Considerations
There are various elements of
the project that can be purported to “define” the community as a whole, but
ultimately, if required, many of the amenities can be modified, or even
eliminated if required. For example, one of the larger elements of the community
is the anticipated access to commuter rail through a proposed metro stop. If
ultimately this stop is not implemented, this will not impede the other
elements of the community from still being a draw to the consumer, and
producing sales and income. With various
design changes, the space dedicated to the rail stop can be transformed into a
high visibility commercial district.
This initial business case
presentation lends the perspective that open land (green space) directly
adjacent to residences will be an amenity that adds value to the property.
Based on this design, the amounts of land dedicated to development and sales
will be significantly less than what is actually available if developed per
standard status quo development practices- being simply, houses packed
together—as many as you can squeeze into the allotted acreage. This alternative
design feature allows us as a project team to have a bit of space to ultimately
expand if the project requires additional land use.
On the other hand, and preferably,
if the initial land use requirements come within project estimations, this
would allow us to avoid additional development, thus maintaining green space as
an amenity and enabling the green space to be marketed as something accessible to
the community and adjacent to most custom home lots.
Strengths,
Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats
Strengths- Location, area growth, area
socio-economic population, Houston
Weaknesses- No firm contract or price on
property, land owner hard to communicate with, no firm investors, no committed
tenants, no commercial partners, no medical partners, no confirmed lender
partners, unproven trend locally, much larger project than previously embarked
on, utilities may not be immediately available.
Opportunities- higher than expected increase
of property value, community draws such as art shows, car shows, and music
festivals, artistic colony reputation opportunity, free publicity through media
outlets, partnership with architecturally directed media, water and sewer
facilities would provide additional revenue stream.
Threats- NIMBYism, commuter rail
antagonists, unrealistic pricing or inflation on land, contractors, suppliers.
Market fluctuations, deep pocketed competitors, traffic congestion, railway
participation for railway crossing or commuter lines, lawsuits, noise
pollution, land bought out by speculators,
Measurable
Project Objectives by Phase
The project objectives and systems of measurement
are as follows:
Phase 1- Due diligence, project feasibility,
and network development
Objective 1--Actively network and negotiate partnerships and
contracts for the use of the land with the major stakeholders and desired
tenants. This includes, but is not limited to the following: METRO, Houston
Galveston Area Council, Harris County Commissioner, Potential tenant
identification, Capital investors, Milton Mandell (current land owner), attorney,
neighborhood centers inc., SCORE and Greater Houston Builders Association,
realtors and marketing contingent.
Deemed successful when all potential stakeholders
have been contacted with clear direction of expectations if involved in
project.
Objective 2—Secure and finalize contracts with stakeholders. Ensure
expectations are realistic with overall project objectives
Deemed successful when sufficient stakeholders
have signed on to move forward with project.
Phase 2- Initiation
Objective 3 – Initiate development as defined in Project
Charter and Work Breakdown Structure and WBS Dictionary.
Deemed successful as milestones are met in WBS.
Management
Strategy
The
project will be generally managed by PMI principles and standards. The project team is yet to be determined.
At least one member of the
project management team will be on the site throughout the entire process. The entire team will be updated monthly and
be well versed in what is expected to occur within the project over the next
few weeks. The construction manager will maintain presence and typically be the
single point of contact for all subcontractor representation. The lead designer also playing the role as
well as lead project manager will ensure that nothing slips through the cracks
as the details and nuances of the project are implemented. The management strategy requires a clear
Scope of Work defining the expectations of the contracted agent, with a payment
schedule and rates clearly defined.
These will be contractually binding, and ensure adherence to all the
expectations put forth.
Economic
and area growth data and trends
1--The Greater Cypress absorption rate for
commercial space.
The Greater Cypress absorption rate for new
residential space .
The
77429 Zip Code is one of the most affluent zip codes in Harris County; nearly
77% of the population has an income over US $50,000 and 42.65% earning over
$100,000.[6]
The Cypress urban cluster ranks 50th in the top 100 highest-income urban
areas in the United States.
2--The
following is a report from a local real estate blog that includes a chart indicating
a steady demand of homes in the premier development of the Cypress area.
“What
a month of home sales in Bridgeland! Bridgeland sold more homes this past
month than any other previous month.”
(The data was compiled using the Houston
3--According to NPR: “…a report by the Brookings Institution finds Houston is now one of the world's fastest growing metro economies… The Global MetroMonitor tracks economic growth in the world's 200 largest metro areas, both in terms of employment and per capita income. For 2011,
(Letter of opportunity sent
SEP 2011)
Dear Cy-Fair Economic
Development Corporation, (a
subsidiary of Cy Fair Chamber of Commerce)
I am in the process of
developing the pro-forma for the promotion of a real estate project envisioned
for the Cypress
Please provide any
information you may have of the following related to the Cy-fair or
specifically Cypress Area:
-Absorption rates,
residential lease and own
-Absorption rates, commercial
lease space
-growth patterns for
retirees, young families, middle age empty nesters
-municipal growth lending
programs, tax abatement offers, Utility or road development expenditure
reimbursement availability, TIRZ, public-private partnership opportunities,
green/sustainable development grant programs or the availability of other
pro-development/investment programs.
-5, 10, and 20 year plans
for anticipated area growth and transportation patterns.
Regards,
Michael Lucas
