SAN ANTONIO │ Frost Bank Headquarters │ 386 FEET | 23 FLOORS │ Complete - Page 84

KevinFromTexas · #**1661** Posted **Aug 4, 2018, 3:25 AM**

I gotta say. The animated tv show memes related to this building have been great. Kudos. haha

AwesomeSAView · #**1662** Posted **Aug 4, 2018, 10:20 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by micahinsa

Yep, I agree with you. Beautiful design. But I’m looking at it and thinking “great, now where’s the top half?”

Also, how ironic is it that people would join a forum literally called “skyscraper page” and then tell you to shut up about wanting taller buildings?

LOL
Well EVERYONE is entitled to their own opinion, and you and I are certainly in EVERYONE. After all EVERYONE has one, an opinion that is!!!

And IMO, I think the new Frost Tower is a "world class building" designed by a "world class architect" for a "world class city"!!!!

CHEERS TO THE LATTER END OF SUMMER!!!

maxus · #**1663** Posted **Aug 5, 2018, 4:24 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by AwesomeSAView

LOL
Well EVERYONE is entitled to their own opinion, and you and I are certainly in EVERYONE. After all EVERYONE has one, an opinion that is!!!

And IMO, I think the new Frost Tower is a "world class building" designed by a "world class architect" for a "world class city"!!!!

CHEERS TO THE LATTER END OF SUMMER!!!

In my opinion, and I believe you need to hear it, is that the new Frost is no world class building. It is a bold change to the norm around here. That's it.

Yes, it is a world class architect but I doubt he personally had a full hand in this project. We can substantiate that with many of his other projects in comparison.

Also, SA strives to be world class. We are not there yet. Based on many, if not most of the comments, SA won't be world class until there is a 50 story plus tower built. The Riverwalk, Spurs, Pearl and USAA do not make us world class.
In addition, the appalling decisions of the city to sell out to the developers and telecoms to continually "uglify" SA with the installation of 19th century utility poles, actually makes us look backwards. But that's just my opinion.

Paul in S.A TX · #**1664** Posted **Aug 5, 2018, 5:51 AM**

San Antonio has many attributes that I would consider to be world class. It may not be a global city like New York or Paris but it has many elements that you find in a world class city. I can think of several world class cities that have very few tall buildings.

My list of what is world class in S.A.

Landmarks: The Riverwalk, The Alamo, Main Plaza, San Fernando Cathederal, San Antonio Zoo, Majestic theatre, King William district, Tobin Center,Missions National Historic Park. UNESCO World heritage site. Tower of the Americas.

Institutions & organizations: U T Health Science Center, South Texas Medical Center, Port San Antonio, Ft. Sam Houston, Brook Army Medical center, San Antonio's huge military presence and cyber community. San Antonio Spurs.

San Antonio's long list of world class hotels and resorts as well theme parks and entertainment venues.

San Antonio's freeway infrastructure and medical facilities.

San Antonio companies that are worldwide: Valero Energy, USAA, Clear Channel, I heart Media.

San Antonio events: Fiesta, S.A. Rodeo.

maxus · #**1665** Posted **Aug 5, 2018, 6:44 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paul in S.A TX

San Antonio has many attributes that I would consider to be world class. It may not be a global city like New York or Paris but it has many elements that you find in a world class city. I can think of several world class cities that have very few tall buildings.

My list of what is world class in S.A.

Landmarks: The Riverwalk, The Alamo, Main Plaza, San Fernando Cathederal, San Antonio Zoo, Majestic theatre, King William district, Tobin Center,Missions National Historic Park. UNESCO World heritage site. Tower of the Americas.

Institutions & organizations: U T Health Science Center, South Texas Medical Center, Port San Antonio, Ft. Sam Houston, Brook Army Medical center, San Antonio's huge military presence and cyber community. San Antonio Spurs.

San Antonio's long list of world class hotels and resorts as well theme parks and entertainment venues.

San Antonio's freeway infrastructure and medical facilities.

San Antonio companies that are worldwide: Valero Energy, USAA, Clear Channel, I heart Media.

San Antonio events: Fiesta, S.A. Rodeo.

Good points, Paul. Again, it is a matter of opinion but if you added several more points to each of those categories. We could get there. Still no one ever addresses my point about those utility poles that are sprouting up like weeds.

sirkingwilliam · #**1666** Posted **Aug 5, 2018, 7:51 AM**

Alright, back to the topic. You can discuss world class status in the off topic thread guys.

Fryguy · #**1667** Posted **Aug 5, 2018, 2:44 PM**

The glass for the crown should start to go up on Monday. However, I saw that there is work going on today - Sunday. So, I'm definitely excited.

PDD · #**1668** Posted **Aug 5, 2018, 4:04 PM**

Seems like they’ve haven’t done much with the garage is recent months. Or maybe there is more work to be done in the interior?

Dan In Real Life · #**1669** Posted **Aug 6, 2018, 1:55 PM**

Deleted

Fryguy · #**1670** Posted **Aug 6, 2018, 2:52 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by PDD

Seems like they’ve haven’t done much with the garage is recent months. Or maybe there is more work to be done in the interior?

They have been doing a lot with the garage, including putting the niches on the outer potions of the garage before they put in the glass.

Sean1187 · #**1671** Posted **Aug 6, 2018, 3:13 PM**

Figured I'd share my pic from last Thursday. Enjoy.

Fryguy · #**1672** Posted **Aug 6, 2018, 4:46 PM**

So it looks like the glass is going to be the same color as the glass of the overall building. Interesting.

theOGalexd · #**1673** Posted **Aug 6, 2018, 9:40 PM**

I have a feeling that once the glass is fully installed on the crown, it's going to look less stubby. The street presence this building has on Main by the Embassy Suites is awesome.

Restless 1 · #**1674** Posted **Aug 7, 2018, 12:01 AM**

Seeing as we are celebrating the topping out of FT, I thought I'd post this pic of the best tower in Texas at around the same point.

https://www.facebook.com/VintageSanA...type=3&theater

Some nice density there as well. At this point, the TL was the tallest office building West of the Mississippi.

Fryguy · #**1675** Posted **Aug 7, 2018, 2:45 AM**

I was walking by tonight and saw they put some of the glass up on the garage. You can see it on the webcam.

Restless 1 · #**1676** Posted **Aug 7, 2018, 3:44 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fryguy

I was walking by tonight and saw they put some of the glass up on the garage. You can see it on the webcam.

It's topped out, and now we await the glass and the lighting. I, personally don't care about the garage, but I care about skin, and the lighting.

Restless 1 · #**1677** Posted **Aug 7, 2018, 4:03 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by theOGalexd

I have a feeling that once the glass is fully installed on the crown, it's going to look less stubby. The street presence this building has on Main by the Embassy Suites is awesome.

Even Weston Center looks stubby. Doubt the crown of FT will change anything.

That said, it is beautiful building, and will look nice from street level, but it is not skyline changing, as it's presence will only be seen from the Northwest, and somewhat from the Northeast.

It can be argued that those are more important vantages, but coming from South on 37, it will barely be noticeable. Coming from the North on I-10, and from I-37/281, it will make an impression, but if you pass on the East side of DT, you can easily miss it.

Great building, yes, but as San Antonio is the headquarters of Frost, it is not the Icon it should have been.

IMO, and yes, only my opinion, it should have been second in dominance on the skyline to the TOA. And given it's location, would have served as a nice bookend to TOA. As it stands now, Weston Center still bears that load.

KevinFromTexas · #**1678** Posted **Aug 7, 2018, 5:14 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Restless 1

Seeing as we are celebrating the topping out of FT, I thought I'd post this pic of the best tower in Texas at around the same point.

https://www.facebook.com/VintageSanA...type=3&theater

Some nice density there as well. At this point, the TL was the tallest office building West of the Mississippi.

That's a great photo of the Tower Life Building. I'm not sure I've ever seen a construction photo of it. That's awesome.

One thing, though, there were several cities west of the Mississippi that already had taller buildings. Houston and Dallas both did, along with Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, and Minneapolis. Several of those were office buildings at the time. I think the only one that wasn't was the Magnolia Hotel in Dallas, besides LA's city hall.

Restless 1 · #**1679** Posted **Aug 7, 2018, 11:48 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by KevinFromTexas

That's a great photo of the Tower Life Building. I'm not sure I've ever seen a construction photo of it. That's awesome.

One thing, though, there were several cities west of the Mississippi that already had taller buildings. Houston and Dallas both did, along with Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, and Minneapolis. Several of those were office buildings at the time. I think the only one that wasn't was the Magnolia Hotel in Dallas, besides LA's city hall.

Can't believe my link lied to me. Oh well, I stand corrected.

Txdev · #**1680** Posted **Aug 8, 2018, 12:17 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by micahinsa

Also, how ironic is it that people would join a forum literally called “skyscraper page” and then tell you to shut up about wanting taller buildings?

I don’t have a problem with wanting taller buildings, but some of the posts about wanting taller buildings, when it doesn’t make sense economically, or more ground floor retail, in places that don’t make sense, just make me roll my eyes because I know how amazing it is that they’re building what they’re building.

The reason no one has built an office tower downtown in 30 years is because with current construction costs, you’d have to get $50/sf rent, which is almost double the cost of the Weston Centre.

To build it skinnier would mean smaller floorplates, which work for residential pencil towers in NY, but not for office space, where firms generally don’t want to be split over a lot of floors. To build it taller would mean an even bigger parking garage, and much higher costs (every additional floor means that all of the columns below have to be a little bit thicker, the elevator system more expensive, the drain pipes a little wider, the foundation piers a little deeper, the AC chiller system a little bigger, etc. And it is largely unproven whether the market will respond at those rates. (Other than Frost, I haven’t heard of any leases being signed.)

So to go forward and build it, hoping that tenants will come, and knowing that if they do come, they may be coming out of the Weston Centre (cannibalizing some of his existing tenant base) takes an incredible amount of guts and faith in San Antonio. His willingness to sign his name on a $100 million construction loan, which is a lot, even if you’re a billionaire, is putting his money where his mouth is, in a way that few in San Antonio have been willing to do.

In short, it’s amazing.

And so I feel like I’m watching the development Olympics, and just watched someone nail a perfect triple flip on the snowboard, and the guy drinking beer at the bar next to me says “yeah, but he should have done a quadruple flip.”

It’s not that a quadruple flip wouldn’t be awesome, but it may feel to some, that it shows a lack of understanding and respect for how hard it is to do what was done.

So instead of saying “It should be taller”, as if the architects and developers, through sheer lack of imagination, just hadn’t considered doing 60 stories, but now that you say it, they will...

Instead maybe say “I hope this building leases quickly so eventually it might make sense for someone to build an even taller tower.”