Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Overreached much?

Here's a description of the Mercato development:

"....a six-building project with 33,300 square feet of retail, 19,500 square feet of restaurants, 20,700 square feet of offices, 54 condominiums and underground parking."

They're selling it on the short market for "about half"..."paid in 2005 at the height of the real estate boom." Bulletin, 2/22/11.

How could this ever have seemed like a good idea? I especially like the "underground parking" part, because it so shows how unaware newcomers are of the lava rock underpinnings of Bend. Other than the Franklin Crossing building (another development that it's hard to believe wasn't an overreach) I'd be hard pressed to think of "underground parking" being much of an option around here.


And it makes me wonder, if Juniper Ridge was a privately owned development, would it still be around? Or would it also be on the short sale market.

5 comments:

OHDG said...

Didn't the Frankling Crossing building hit a lava tube when they dug down for the parking garage?

Duncan McGeary said...

I'd never heard that. Anyone know?

I just know growing up, you didn't see too many basements and or swimming pools, one of the reasons being the cost of excavation.

At least, that's the way I remember it...

Anonymous said...

Think that getting shot 6 times by his wife had anything to do with Trono wanting to sell?

Anonymous said...

And there's not an excavator around that won't put a "rock clause" in a bid.

Anonymous said...

MDU aka knife-river, aka MOSS, aka CACB owns city-hall.

100's of million in moving rock, were sucked out of the arse of Bend, and all flowed to MDU holding companys who MOSS is board. Moss got millions in stock from MDU, and MOSS filled city-hall with her own that loved all 'move the rock' projects that were seen. JR cost near a cool $1M for every acre developed for free for LS & SUTERRA, ... all at taxpayer expense.

But the real deal behind the curtain, that all this 'make work', made a lot of people very rich. :) ... Even now after all the bleeding the richest people of the PNW are taking care of CACB aka MOSS, because for all those 'good years', she took care of them, ... UMPQUA bank, and good folks of Boise.

Rock, dunc talks of rock, it could honestly be suggested that all this development was done here, just because it was expensive, just because it did cost millions and acre to excavate the rock, ... that the klusterfuck was its own reward.

All the parties that got rich from the KLEPTOCRACY that is are still in power, and will always be in power.