[urbanactivist]

And we're under construction...

http://www.chron.com/business/homefr...#photo-3329887

High-rise kicks off major urban development



By Nancy Sarnoff

Updated 2:32 a.m., Wednesday, August 15, 2012

A long-delayed residential project near downtown, primarily targeting well-paid professionals with upscale apartments and condos and a cluster of retail, entertainment and offices, is finally under way.

More than five years after announcing plans for the 24-acre Regent Square project off Allen Parkway, GID Development Group has begun construction on the first building, a 21-story apartment tower called The Sovereign.

It represents an important milestone for GID, which had planned to break ground before the national economy went into a tailspin.

"We went through a tough cycle in the real estate market and the overall economy," said James Linsley, president of Boston-based GID.

The project was one of several that were shelved or canceled as demand for space dried up and lenders stopped financing major commercial real estate projects.

GID said it remains committed to Regent Square, which is to go up in multiple phases on land abutting Allen Parkway near Dunlavy and Dallas, on the site of the old Allen House Apartments. The development could take 10 years to complete.

Plans include about 400,000 square feet of retail, restaurant and entertainment space; more than 1,500 residential units; and 250,000 square feet of office space in what the developer refers to as an "urban district" where residents can walk to everything. The walkable nature of the project extends beyond its borders, Linsley said, with a pedestrian trail around Buffalo Bayou and high-end shops and a new Whole Foods a short distance away...