Is Something About to Happen With the Old Statler Hilton Downtown? Um, Maybe?

• This was just posted on youtube last week showing the interior http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rJ5uDlIvaQQ&feature=related

• Noah, the continental building is going slow because it is being done by Forest City (grin), as for parking, I like the idea on gutting the library out. The adjacent parking lots mentioned at Jackson and St Paul wont work because they want about 150% of what it would take to build a new one and the one to the east is to small.

• With Main Street Garden the neighborhood is completely different than it was just a few years ago; it's gone from a neglected corner of downtown to a vibrant residential neighborhood. I look at this building outside of my apartment window every day and never tire of the view; it's the most talked about structure in downtown's east end. As more and more surrounding properties are redeveloped (the Atmos Complex, UNT School of Law, etc) there will be increasing pressure to make a viable project out of this structure. On a side not, why is the Continental Building project going so slow?

• Since it's a contributing structure in the Harwood Historic District, I don't think the George Dahl-designed library can be demolished without a fight; more likely the owners will allow it to deteriorate to a point that there's no option but demolition by neglect. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Dallas_Central_Library

• The parking garage (removed for Main Street Garden) was across the street, separate from the hotel. For something similar, there's still a garage across the street to the west (Continental Building with 1,200 spaces), southwest (Mercantile Jackson Garage) and an empty lot across the street to the east.

• I can't imagine anyone actually wanting this building for much of anything. For one, it's too expensive. Two, it has every remediation problem you can imagine ->meaning, even more expensive. Three, the ceilings are too short and don't appeal to modern tastes. And you can't fix that. So, even if someone bought it, and even if they spent all of the money necessary to renovate it and remediate it, AND they fixed the parking problems, how are they going to market it? There are plenty of other very nice condos and apartments in downtown, uptown, and mid-town with much more modern tastes.

• I really hope they are able to revitalize this into something grand. I love, love, love that building.

• That makes sense, but it won't stop someone in City Hall from paying six digits for a "consultant" to study the issue and come up with the same result.

• The library should be torn down (maybe save the facade) to make room for a garage and pool deck.

• I've been told that making Elm and Commerce two-way streets wreaks havoc with the on-off ramps to the freeways, and that in order to do so, all the freeway entrances would have to be rebuilt. For that reason, Elm and Commerce aren't likely to be two way again until those ramps are ready for replacement--a long time into the future. Unfortunately.

• Commerce too.

• Now if only they would make Elm a two-way street like it once was before.

• Not sure what you can do with that building since they tore down the parking garage to build the park.

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