Nic on Fifth - (290' - 26 Stories)

[min-chi-cbus]

I'm going to make John's day and agree with him that the building just doesn't do it for me at 27 floors (vs. the original 33). I'm not sure why -- maybe the photo squashes it and it won't feel "stout" -- but comparatively the original rendering looked tall, sleek and almost classy.

[mnmike]

Yea, you guys are right, it does seem to make a big difference. I never really loved it to start with, but it looked much better in the 33 floor rendering. Will be so happy to see this block developed anyway though! I hope they can get a good restaurant or something for the first floor, to bring some life.

[MNdible]

I think that for whatever reason, their official rendering is shot from a particularly unflattering angle. I think that in reality, it's going to be just fine. Not spectacular or soaring, but a high quality high rise building that's going to anchor a currently sad, forlorn corner of downtown. I suspect that in mass and height, it's going to feel very comparable to Skyscape, which feels plenty tall (granted, it's not sitting right next to the three tallest buildings between Chicago and San Francisco).

[Nathan]

Through the magic of computers I can show you guys that it is totally and completely skewed... I'll also see if I can unskew it and post that.

[Nathan]

This is how the Strip rendering looks when I match up all of the buildings in the surrounding area to the original rendering. They've deffinitely taken a floor out of the pedistal and the rest are probably just standard residential floors?

[min-chi-cbus]

Cool! That's better but the point stands for me -- a bit stumpy. No matter, because Skyscape or Grant Park don't looks stumpy and feel fairly large, and this DOES fill in this blighted block (even if it IS the best block downtown for new development, and where I secretly wanted a future "tallest" to be).

[spectre000]

I guess that would probably be right...are you taking that from the drawings on the city of Minneapolis page? I accounted for the 18' "34th floor", that would now be the 28th, but I didn't take into account the pedestal in my calculating...which must have made a difference?

No wait, thats not right...the original height was 357', and now that I look at it, some of the residential floors were different heights. So who knows how tall it will be. Here are the original drawings, have at it! I am sure you are better at calculating these things than me.

http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/www/gro ... 082986.pdf

The confusing part is the roof figure (357') is drawn halfway through the mechanical level at the top. So I'm a little doubtful if its 100% correct. It's hard to scale on my work monitor becuase I think my screen resolution distorts it. But I think on my home computer I calculated it around 365 feet way back when.

The majority of the residential floors are 9' 8". Even the parking levels in the podium. I had wondered since they are reducing the amount of units, would they reduce the parking? It appears so thanks to fotoapparatic's help. So I'm gonna contend we have a 58' height reduction for now. The 357' figure could still be right. But I have my doubts. Could be moot anyways. Once buildings go to mechanical drawings many times there are minor changes here and there that can change things.

I'd say either 307 or 299 feet tall.

[mnmike]

Much better. And yeah, they certainly did take out a pedestal floor.

Nice work, thanks!

[John]

I know I'm sort of banned from this thread, so I will try to behave and not repeat this again! One way the architects could have made the building look less stout and blocky ( at 27 stories ) would have been to create a few slight setbacks as the building rises to create a more slender and vertical culmination as it meets with the cantilevered crown. That would help give the illusion of the tower being somewhat taller than it actually is, and make it look less bulky. The building would have looked better and I probably wouldn't have been so pissed off about the scale back.

[Nathan]

Totally a good idea, it seems it will be mostly rectangular, relying on the crown for interest, and that would help.

[dumberGuy]

my fervent hope is that their marketing dept christens this development as "Opus's Stubbie on the Nic"

or -- just as fabulous-- "Parvum Opus"

[Lancestar2]

I just realized the crown will tie in nicely with the public library's roof ...how could I have not noticed that before lol

[1200onthemall]

I'm wondering if Barbara Flanagan still thinks its to tall??

[Nick]

I'm wondering if Barbara Flanagan still thinks its to tall??

Lol'd at that

[Konante]

I assume this story merely confirms the drop to 27 stories and not anything additional?

"Minnetonka-based Opus Development Corp. has trimmed the size of its planned luxury apartment tower in downtown Minneapolis, but has assembled financing to start construction before the end of the year."

http://finance-commerce.com/2012/08/opu ... ent-tower/

[min-chi-cbus]

I don't think anyone else here subscribes to Finance & Commerce...so we can't read it.

[PhilmerPhil]

He's just citing a source. Just because we don't have access to F&C doesn't mean we shouldn't hear about their stories.

[Konante]

I don't think anyone else here subscribes to Finance & Commerce...so we can't read it.

I don't either.

[Wedgeguy]

I don't think anyone else here subscribes to Finance & Commerce...so we can't read it.

Go to the downtown library as they have all the copies you want to keep up to date. I believe the Southdale library branch also has the F&C there too.

[Unity77]

I have access to F & C and there isn't anything new to announce.

"When it was announced a year ago, plans for Nicollet Residences called for a 33-story tower with 330 market-rate apartments. The revised plan envisions a 27-story building with 250 apartments on the site of the former Powers Department Store site...

Menke said that the schedule calls for Opus to begin demolishing a small commercial building on the site in the beginning of October. He said that he expected that Opus could begin putting in the foundation in late November or early December. The project is slated for completion in the summer of 2014."

Also from the article, "Chicago-based Magellan Development Group LLC is proposing a 355-unit apartment tower at 1368 LaSalle Ave., at the edge of downtown Minneapolis near Loring Park. The plan was announced a year ago. It’s not clear where the project timing stands. On Friday, Magellan vice president Brian Gordon declined comment."