NORFOLK
The developer of the Fort Norfolk Plaza medical office project has signed an investment agreement with an Indianapolis-based group that specializes in health care.
Dr. Keith Newby said Tuesday that construction will start in early summer.
Newby's new partner is Lauth Property Group. It signed a joint-venture agreement with him to develop Fort Norfolk Plaza across Brambleton Avenue from the medical complex that includes Sentara Norfolk General Hospital and Eastern Virginia Medical School. The project, which has been subsidized by the city, calls for a nine-story medical office building, a jazz club/restaurant, retail shops and a parking garage.
Lauth will be providing "all the capital," said Newby, who has been in negotiations with the group for over two months. "We're still figuring out what that will be."
The project, estimated to cost $66 million, also could be partly financed by the sale of federal empowerment-zone bonds.
While some details still need to be worked out, the project is a done deal, said Andrew Lawler, Lauth's vice president for health care.
"We're all over this," he said. "We're excited."
According to its Web site and news accounts, Lauth is the 13th-largest real estate developer in the United States and the eighth-largest developer of health-care projects. Its projects include Bon Secours Health Center at Virginia Beach.
"They do medical office buildings all the time," said Newby, a local cardiologist. "They wanted to get this going, and they wanted to get it done fast."
So does Newby.
Like other developers in the region, Newby has had difficulties getting financing in the current investment-shy economy. Earlier this year, an equity investor pulled out, forcing Newby to stop the preliminary construction that had begun on the 2-acre site.
When plans for the project were announced two years ago, they included a medical office building, condominiums, a hotel, restaurant, retail shops and a parking deck. Seeing a glut of new housing in the downtown area, Newby abandoned the condo plans early on. In March, an extended-stay Hyatt Summerfield Suites was dropped.
That left a core project of a medical office building plus a restaurant and some retail. Construction is scheduled to start by July, with the building opening to tenants between 14 and 16 months later, Newby said.
The city has helped the project financially. It bought the land from the state for $2.5 million and plans to convey it to the developer when financing is finalized.
Last year, the City Council approved a tax incentive package worth about $11.4 million, but that amount will be scaled back to reflect the loss of the hotel, said Roderick Woolard, Norfolk's economic development director.
"I'm very, very happy that Dr. Newby has secured such a strong and experienced partner to join him in his project," said Woolard, adding that Lauth has "not just the expertise but also the resources to make it a reality."
Lauth was attracted by the city's support and the project's location near the medical complex, Lawler said. It's also the first large medical office building built in Norfolk in decades and is significantly pre-leased, he said.
About 60 percent of the medical office building's space is already under firm leases, Newby said. The largest tenant is Sentara Medical Group. And, he said, he has letters of intent for an additional 25 percent of the space.
Nancy Young, (757) 446-2947, nancy.young@pilotonline.com
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Location may not be the best.
This building will be directly in the main approach to the Helicopter pad at Sentara Norfolk General. While the hight is not enough to interfere with helicopter approaches. The building itself may be in harms way. The takeoff and landing of helicopter flight is where must deadly accidents occur. Any malfunction on approach and climb out where airspeed is low and power requirements are high make them more prone to accidents. This pad is not only the main base for Nightingale but every other medical helicopter in the area, Army, Navy, Coastguard,State, City, County,etc... It is used by anybody anytime 24 hrs. a day. Sentara is the only trauma hospital of its type in this part of the country. Think this thing threw in this area we get everything 4K to 60+k Lbs. landing here. What Mess that would make.
Yipes
How about something more architectually appealing?! So blah, so normal, not a unique piece that sets so many cities apart from one another. Also, getting in and out of there is going to be fun (intended sarcasm here) with its current design.
This forum...
...is proof people will complain about anything! I think you should focus your efforts on getting rid of those uber-UGLY mermaids that pollute the city's various buildings and businesses.
This is a mostly privately funded project
'm sorry but I'm all for beautiful buildings but where were you all when other buildings were approved? Or more importantly, where were you when the city torn historical treasures down. Look Ma; they received funding.
EVMS and General are where lasting development exist as is the ODU area. We can count on increased study from the Jones institute now that certain research can resume. This seems a no brainier. Though I do believe you could come to some agreement about how it looks but it is a win.
CALL TO ACTION: NORFOLK'S MEDICAL DISTRICT
CONCERNED CITIZENS,
Call these elected officials and tell them to build quality and architecturally sound buildings in the Norfolk's Medical district.
Office of the Mayor
1109 City Hall Building
810 Union Street
Norfolk, VA 23510
(757)664-4679
FAX (757)441-2909
Vice Mayor Anthony Burfoot
757-441-5926
Cheap and Ugly Construction on Waterfront Property
I can not conceive that the city would agree to allow the construction of this cheap, dime store edifice called a medical building. The medical 'tower" has been scaled back repeatedly and this is what we get?(in light of a slumping condo/housing market.) The original design was beautiful and resembled the look of a ship. Now we have this cheap, pre-fabricated brick, synthetic stucco, cookie cutter office building with a parking garage! The majority of the facade of this building is that of a parking garage. WHY ARE WE BUILDING THIS CHEAPLY VEILED PARKING GARAGE/BUILDING ON WATERFRONT PROPERTY? Wake up city of Norfolk Council members, the planning commission, and Dr. Newby. Norfolk is 98% developed. We must make sound decisions with regards to the development of the small amount of developable space within city limits. THIS PARKING GARAGE/CARDBOARD BOX IS NOT WORTHY TO BE BUILT IN THE CITY'S ENVISIONED MEDICAL DISTRICT.
The negative cannot be seen
It is invisible but still a huge negative. This is a private project for profit being partially funded with taxpayer dollars. That is a huge negative and continues the dangerous, development stiffling, precedent set by our council. No doubt no developer will ever again pursue a development in Norfolk without expecting the same type of local govt handout that has been given to the other developers.
norfolk tax payer
This project sounds good to me..Im all for more doctors opening offices here in Norfolk..each office means more tax money for the city.I like having the areas largest hospital just around the corner.
This is a marvelous turn of events...
This is the best use of this property, and we congratulate Dr.Newby (Norfolk Native) for pursuing this grand plan. We also thank him for retaining the name of the historic landmark 'Fort Norfolk'. For those not in the know, Fort Norfolk still exist just down the road from this development and is maintained by the Army Corps of Engineers and Norfolk Historic Society, This Fort is on the Elizabeth River at a very strategic location into the harbor, It is the last Revolutionary Fortress commissioned to be built by then "General George Washington" we said general not president. So, Here is new life to a deserted, worn, forgotten wharf area that will generate jobs, new medical technology, new prestige to the medical community and perhaps more development for norfolk citizens. No negatives that we can see... much better asset than a granby tower.
ugly
I usually don't agree with a lot of the posters on here, but that building is QUITE ugly and moreover, extremely boring. When is Norfolk going to get a tall building that doesn't look like everything else and kind of becomes a landmark feature?!
Ditto Mike
I was on the black list for my comments also. So, I became a double "O" agent. But in all seriousness, long gone is Government for the People by the People. It is Government for the Government by the Government. Fort Norfolk and Berkley plans may very well be great ideas for the future on the tail of the St. Paul’s Quadrant construction soon to come. At the same time, should UNFINISHED PROJECTS be resolved (the giant hole in the ground [Granby Tower]) and other areas of and in the city of Norfolk receive needed attention? Could the average citizen have five junked cars in their yard that they are JUST working on or, have half a roof and partial plumbing? I think not!! Building or attempting to build it up fast, is not going to make Norfolk, NY or LA. If I do vote at all locally it most likely will be for new ideas and direction. You kinda feel what's the use of voting and that may be what they want us to think. Yet some how we have to keep the faith and back it up with some measure of works. Any one reading this post is asked to grade your city council representative.
Socialized development for profit
When do we seperate private business from local government funding? Our dimwitted council literally taxes people out of their homes, the area is losing population as inhabitants flee to areas with lower costs of living, so developers don't want to invest here due to economic risks in a dying area, so council continues to raise taxes (through the assessors office and unrealistic assessments), and then gives those collected taxes to private developers to fund for profit business ventures. Taxes continue to go up, population continues to flee, developers continue to not want to invest in area.....vicous cycle of failure and gross stupidity. Free markets work for a reason. Socialized markets have failed through out history. It's not sustainable.
Out of town developers
Why is the city dealing with out of town developers when there are local ones? At least then my hard earned tax dollars would be spent here!!! Notice they never ask for our opinion before just giving the money away!!
terrible.
That building stinks. It is more garage than building. I hate it.
The big glass palaces
The big glass palaces always belong to the hospitals, the banks and to a lesser degree the lawyers.
YAWN!
I can't believe we wasted tax money to let a developer put a massive parking garage on waterfront land! From the new rendering, thats all this building looks to be, 60% parking and 40% office. Would we pay to let someone put up a new garage on Waterside?
Bummed
Another boring edifice with a parking garage attached.
The project cost $66M the taxpayers pay $14M?
That's just about 22% of this project that the taxpayers of Norfolk are putting in. That's real generous of city council. I wonder if the taxpayers of Norfolk would rather let the developers and investors pay for their own projects so they can afford to make their own house payments or would the taxpayers choose to continue to pay for city councils friends and families development projects while they struggle to make ends meet. I'd rather have my the developers and investors pay for their own schemes and keep my income to support my family with. I'm tired of these rich leeches raking in money hand over fist on the average citizens tax dollars. It's time to stop the foolishness but it can only be done by voting out all incumbents at every election cycle. We're not smart enough to do that though, so I guess the taxpayers will continue to vote the same clowns in. If we continue to make the same mistakes, we'll continue to get the same results. I'm on the Pilots black list for some reason so this probably won't get posted.