Click Here To Register!

Work gets underway this week on apartments at former Reynolds Metals site in downtown Richmond

March 05, 2012 1:01 PM
by Paula C. Squires 

After years of planning, work begins this week on a key apartment project along the Canal Walk in downtown Richmond.  The action comes following last week’s closing by WVS Cos. and Fountainhead Properties on a $35 million deal to acquire five former aluminum manufacuturing buildings on seven acres along the Haxall Canal. The joint partners bought the land, known as the Reynolds North Packaging Plant, from Reynolds Group Holdings. It paid about $7.3 million for the land, with the rest of the money earmarked for construction.

“This is just the first phase,” Tom Papa, a principal with Fountainhead Properties, said of the demolition work that begins this week on what will be 175 apartments and 8,000 square feet of retail space. “Things like windows will need to be dismantled and preserved and then put back in later,” Papa told Virginia Business.

Eventually, he said, total build out of the mixed-use project would run into the hundreds of millions of dollars if plans for a 20-plus office tower, a hotel and retail uses along the Canal materialize.

Built from the late 1800s to the early 1900s, the five buildings between South 10th and 12th Streets that will be converted into apartments were formerly used to package aluminum foil.  This property is the last piece of undeveloped land along Richmond’s Canal Walk. 

In what is known as the Italianate building, Papa says the developers are holding 6,000 square feet of space on the ground level for a restaurant tenant. “We’d like something that fits the San Antonio mode — tables, chairs and music on the canal,“ he said. “We have talked to quite a few, mostly local restaurant owners. What we’re trying to do is give the better local restaurants a first shot.”

The apartments, which should be ready by the end of the year, would be within blocks of Shockoe Bottom restaurants, major law firms and other downtown businesses.

The project was announced in 2010, but the developers had difficulty getting financing. The money for the first phase is coming from the Virginia Housing Development Authority and Union First Market Bank, said Papa.  Because of the delays, though, he said, “It was the first project where I had a building permit on the day that I closed.“

View Original Article Here

Developers have high hopes for new property

DAVID LARTER  
One of the biggest real estate deals on the Richmond waterfront closed this week, and the new owners want to add to city’s skyline.

WVS Companies and Fountainhead Properties closed Wednesday on a $35 million deal to purchase the seven-acre Reynolds North property at Canal Walk from Reynolds Group Holdings.

The first phase of the massive project calls for the five dormant aluminum-manufacturing buildings to be converted into 174 apartments and 8,000 square feet of retail along the Canal Walk. Construction will begin on those apartments this weekend, with the first units coming on line before the end of the year, according to the developers.

But WVS and Fountainhead have their sights set even higher.

Part of the land in the deal is a lot at the corner of 10th and Byrd that Cushman & Wakefield | Thalhimer’sJeff Cooke is shopping around as a location for Richmond’s next high-rise office building.

“It’s got a clear view of the river, and it’s one of the few remaining locations on the river to put a high-rise,” Cooke said.

The site for the potential high-rise, which is adjacent to the Riverfront Plaza buildings, is about 55,000 square feet, or about 1.2 acres. Cooke said he’s marketing it as a 15- to 20-story, 350,000-square-foot skyscraper that would be nestled between Troutman Sanders and BB&T in the skyline.

Fountainhead and WVS might look to sell the land to another developer who would handle the high-rise, Cooke said.

Tom Papa, one of the principals at Fountainhead, said that financing for a high-rise project would be difficult to obtain until an anchor tenant is lined up.

“We’ve had a fair number of large companies scout that area as a location, but once we’ve locked in someone for about 100,000 square feet we can start to move ahead with it,” Papa said.

Fountainhead and WVS have been trying to buy the Reynolds North Packaging Plant land since February 2010, shortly after the aluminum foil company moved the manufacturing operation to Louisville, Ky. The developers initially looked at financing the deal through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which they said at the time would take at least a year to close.

But a year came and went, and the financing still hadn’t come through, according to Richard Souter, vice president at WVS.

“When all the capital markets dried up, HUD really was the only game in town,” Souter said. “Their interest rates were so competitive that developers all over the state started applying, not just for new construction loans, but for refinancing, and they just ended up getting a huge backlog of applications. From an outsider’s view, it looked like they got overwhelmed.”

Souter said it took almost a year for WVS and Fountainhead to even be invited to submit an application for the financing, and then there was another wait.

“You send in an application to HUD, and it’s just sucked into this machine and you have very little idea of where it stands and what’s going on with it,” Souter said.

Because of the great rates on HUD loans, the developers were willing to wait. But the longer it dragged out, the more impatient Reynolds became.

“All this time, we didn’t own the land,” Souter said. “Reynolds was incredibly patient with us through the process, but they told us, ‘At some point you’ve got to close’ … and they told us that by raising the purchase price every month we didn’t close.”

After months of delays, WVS and Fountainhead decided to seek financing though the Virginia Housing Development Authority, which Fountainhead knew from previous projects.

One hundred days later, the developers inked the deal.

“Fundamentally we’re developers, so we want to be doing stuff,” Souter said. “Planning and envisioning is one thing, but once you’re knocking things down, building walls and moving dirt, that’s when it’s really exciting. We’re ecstatic.”

Souter said that during the next month the team — a 50/50 partnership between WVS and Fountainhead — will focus on marketing and pre-leasing the first five buildings, which will be rehabilitated with the hope of securing historic tax credits.

One of the buildings, the so-called Italianate Building, will have the bottom floor zoned for a restaurant, which would bring the area a little bit closer to the San Antonio River Walk vibe developers have been dreaming about since the 1980s.

Rents in the apartments will average $1,050 per month for the one-bedroom units and $1,400 per month for the two-bedroom units.

Cooke, from Thalhimer, said that once the whole project at Reynolds North is done, it would bring about 500 apartments to the area, a new hotel and ideally a few new restaurants.

Living On The Canal 

By: CAROL HAZARD | Richmond Times Dispatch 
Published: March 01, 2012

A plan to renovate industrial buildings on a prime piece of property along the Haxall Canal in downtown Richmond is about to materialize after a few setbacks that delayed the project.

Two Richmond developers will turn five historic buildings, in the first phase of construction, into 175 apartments with 8,000 square feet of retail space.

Built from the late 1800s to the early 1900s, the buildings between South 10th and 12th streets were used to package aluminum foil and operated until mid-2009 by Reynolds Consumer Products.

"This is the linchpin project we have been waiting for the last 15 years," said Jack Berry, executive director of Venture Richmond, a downtown advocacy group. "It will enable the completion of the Canal Walk from the Turning Basin to Brown's Island."

The historic buildings are across the canal from the Riverside on the James office and condo complex.

Subsequent phases of the renovations, stretching to Virginia Street, call for two structures built in the 1970s to be torn down to make way for more apartments, office and retail space. A high-rise building is planned at 10th and Byrd streets.

Construction starts next week, said Jason Vickers-Smith, a principal with The WVS Cos., one of the developers. "We hope to have people moving in this fall."

WVS and Fountainhead Properties closed on the $35 million deal Wednesday, paying $7.3 million for the property with the rest designated for construction.

WVS developed Rocketts Landing, a high-density, multiuse project along the James River on the Henrico County-Richmond line. Fountainhead developed The Plant Zero Art Center and New Manchester Flats, a mixed-used apartment community in South Richmond.

"The development will bring retail and restaurants to the water's edge along with hundreds of apartments," Berry said.

"We will always be indebted to Reynolds Metals and its stewardship of this riverfront property, especially Dale Wiley Jr., the plant manager, who saved the canal locks when constructing the manufacturing facility many years ago."

The Haxall Canal, which runs through the property, is a great amenity, Vickers-Smith said. "The whole project will help energize the Canal Walk."

The property sits on a 7-acre slice of land with a lot of elevation change. It is within three or four blocks of high-quality office, retail and residential space, including Shockoe Slip, Vistas on the James, Riverfront Plaza and the new Williams Mullen office on 10th Street, Vickers-Smith said.

An Italianate building sits next to a historic brown building with an arch that bridges over South 12th Street and connects with an old metal shell building that will be torn down for a new building. The arch will be restored.

The plan is to finish the first phase, one-third of the project, by this time next year, Vickers-Smith said. The remaining phases will be market-driven, depending on how well the apartment and retail space is leased.

The apartment units will average 850 square feet but some will be as large as 1,800 square feet, Vickers-Smith said. They will rent for an average $1,300 to $1,400 a month.

He envisions mostly restaurants on the retail side in the first phase of development.

The property has been eyed for 20 years as a key piece to the whole riverfront development in downtown Richmond, said Jeffrey Cooke, a senior vice president at Cushman & Wakefield | Thalhimer.

"It is the last major piece that is undeveloped," said Cooke, who represents the buyers.

North Falls Acquisition LLC, a joint venture of WVS and Fountainhead, was formed to develop the project, which has not yet been named.

Years in the making, the project was first announced in February 2010, but the developers, the same ones who are doing it now, could not pull the financing together.

"It's a huge project," said Richard Gregory, a principal with Fountainhead. "Financing through (the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development) was so backlogged, we had to change lenders. HUD could not get to it, especially one this size."

It also took time to work through zoning and covenant issues with the city, Gregory said.

Financing was provided through the Virginia Housing Development Authority and Union First Market Bank.

Walter Parks is the architect. The contractors are JD Lewis Construction Management in Henrico and Branch & Associates Inc. in Roanoke.

Click Here to View Original Article

One relocation, two rehabs

by DAVID LARTER

Make room for more historic-tax-credit-fueled renovations in Manchester.

Fountainhead Development is getting ready to rehabilitate buildings on two city blocks near Fifth and Stockton streets for an estimated $20 million, said Tom Papa, a principal with the firm.

The developer is planning to put 210 units in the two Miller Manufacturing buildings, he said. Miller Manufacturing is based in Richmond but is relocating, Papa said.

“It’s a little bit sad, because Miller as one of the last true manufacturing operations in Manchester,” Papa said. “But we’ve been chomping at the bit to get this project underway since we bought the property six years ago.”

City records show Fountainhead bought the two properties in February 2006 for $6.1 million.

The developers have already had the parcels rezoned for residential use, so they can avoid the lengthy special-use permit process required for many such renovations of industrial sites.

Papa said that his firm had not chosen a builder or finalized financing but that architecture firm Walter Parks is drawing up final plans.

The buildings will be renovated one at a time, with the first breaking ground in June and the second breaking ground in January, Papa said.

Papa said amenities would include a gym, a pool and a media center.

To view the original article in BizSense Click Here!

New Manchester Flats Residents:

It’s a Perfect 10! 

You Spoke Up & We Listened.  The Fountainhead Properties’ team understands that parking is important & we want to better your living experience in every way we can.  In celebration of the grand opening of the new parking lot located along 4^th Street, we will be offering parking for ONLY $10.00 per parking space for ONE YEAR!  Stop by the Property Management Office & take advantage of this great deal!  All residents must come into the office and sign up for your new parking pass before February 29^th or email Lisa Hall at lisa@fountainheadproperties.net to make alternative arrangements in order to receive this great special.  We hope to see you soon!

And we didn’t forget about those of you who already have parking…

Residents who already have parking, we will honor the $10.00 special for you as well starting March 1^st through the end of your lease term if you let us know you want to take advantage of this special!  That is a $20 savings each month- now that is something to celebrate!

February 2012 Newsletter

Happy Valentines Day to all of our fountainhead properties residents! 

New Contest For Our Residents! 

Win $75 Off your March Rent!

Stay in the loop by visiting fountainhead properties on Facebook! Comment on our Facebook page during the month of February and you will be entered in a contest to win $75.00 off your March rent!!! We want to hear your great ideas and suggestions!

Congratulations to the winner of last month’s contest, Jeff Alford!

A Sneak Peek at fountainhead’s New Development Plans starting in 2012.  Continuing our mission to transform Richmond through innovative reuse.  

REYNOLDS NORTH PROJECT

10th & Byrd Street 

Four buildings along the James River and the historical Haxall Canal

Over 500 Apartments in Shockoe Slip
Historic Adaptive Reuse 

SOUTH CANAL

115 Hull Street 

91 Luxury Apartments on the Canal in New Manchester!

Historic Adaptive Reuse  

MILLER PROJECT

500 Stockton Street

200 Apartments in 

Historic Adaptive Reuse

NEW MANCHESTER FLATS BUILDING III

E 4th Street

3-Level New Construction 

92 Apartments in New Manchester

Commons@Plant Zero Lofts Roof Top Deck

The roof-top deck at The Commons at Plant Zero Lofts is now new & improved!  Check it

out and enjoy the amazing city views!  

Papa’s Pizza

Residents of fountainhead properties receive 15% off regular menu items (*excludes items already discounted).

Go to www.papasdeliver.com to view the full menu and

order online!

Trash Disposal

Please dispose of all trash in the large dumpsters provided for you at your property (if applicable).  Do not place your trash bags in the small silver bins.  These small trash bins are for small amounts of trash, and are not drop off locations for your trash bags.  In addition, please do not dispose of your pet’s waste in the trash receptacles---utilize the pet waste stations provided for you throughout the property.

Pet Stations Coming Soon to the Commons@Plant Zero!

2 New Pet Stations will be installed at the Commons in effort to keep the property looking its best!  Please dispose of all pet waste in the pet waste station.    

Who’s Who on your Maintenance Team:

Louis Poole:      Maintenance Supervisor

Jim Poole:         Maintenance Technician

DL Priest:          Maintenance Technician 

Jeff Rowe:         Maintenance Technician 

Bobby Clarke:   Groundskeeper 

Sixto Cruz:         Groundskeeper

Community Tip

“A bad neighbor is as great a calamity as a good one is a great advantage.” Hesoid

Always be mindful of your neighbors and remember it is everyone’s responsibility to help create a great community for all!  

Resident Events!!!

February 21st - Mardi Gras Party! Come Celebrate New Orleans Style With the Fountainhead Team!

February 16th - BINGO Night!  Bring $1 to play & WIN some $!!!

Recipe of the Month by April Weber

Homemade Snickers Bars

This is a delicious easy dessert recipe that will be a hit for an occasion.  I found this recipe on Pinterest.  It is very easy to make and even better to eat!  Enjoy!  

FYI… Pinterest just became one of the top 10 social networks.  If you have not checked it out yet, do it!  There are a lot of great things that people are sharing.   Pinterest is a vision board-styled social photo sharing website and app where users can create and manage theme-based image collections. The site's mission statement is to "connect everyone in the world through the 'things' they find interesting".  Images are grouped together on a user’s page creating an inspiration board of ideas. 

makes one 9×13 pan

bottom chocolate layer

1 1/4 cups milk chocolate chips

1/4 cup peanut butter

Thoroughly grease you baking pan. Melt ingredients together in a saucepan or microwave, then pour into the baking dish and spread until even. Let cool and harden completely.

nougat layer

1/4 cup unsalted butter

1 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup evaporated milk

1 1/2 cups marshmallow fluff

1/4 cup peanut butter

1 1/2 cup salted peanuts chopped, roughly chopped

1 tsp vanilla extract
Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add in sugar and milk, stirring until dissolved and bring to a boil. Let cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add in fluff, peanut butter and vanilla, stirring until smooth. Turn off heat and fold in peanuts, then pour over bottom chocolate layer. Let cool completely.

caramel layer

1 14-ounce bag of caramels

1/4 cup whipping cream

Combine ingredients in a saucepan over low heat. Let melt, stirring occasionally, until smooth – this took about 10 minutes for me. Pour over nougat layer and let cool completely.

Top chocolate layer

1 1/4 cups milk chocolate chips

1/4 cup peanut butter

Melt ingredients together in a saucepan or microwave, then pour over caramel and spread until even. Let cool and harden completely.

Refrigerate for at least one hour before serving, then cut as desired. These can stay at room temperature, but they do get gooey. I like them refrigerated best!

Note: For best results, buy one of the half-sheet aluminum cake pans at the grocery store. That way, you can pop the entire square out and cut from there!

91 Luxury Apartments On the Canal Coming Soon!

CLICK HERE to Read About South Canal Plans!

The Reynolds Project

Where am I RVA? 13th Street Tunnel

By Philip Riggan

It has been a while since the property at 12th and Byrd streets known as "Reynolds North" has made the news but an interesting concept from the recent forum on the Richmond Riverfront Plan has at least brought the project back to the attention of some Richmonders.

A plan to redevelop the Reynolds Packaging Group's vacant North Plant property is seen to be a key to the long-term success of Richmond's Canal Walk area. Better parking, pedestrian access, bike paths and a better economic outlook are all needed for the area to thrive.


The Reynolds North property is connected to Venture Richmond's 1.25-mile Canal Walk and two levels of the canals -- Haxall Canal to the west and the Tidewater Connection to the east. WVS Cos. and Fountainhead Development LLC is working on a project that would bring initially about 220 apartments and 8,000 square feet of retail to the area, according to the Richmond Times-Dispatch almost eight months ago.


Hargreaves Associates, the architecture firm hired to carry out the riverfront plans, proposed to create a connection between Shockoe Slip at the Martin Agency and the Canal Walk at the undeveloped Reynolds North property by way of a new tunnel at 13th Street that would go under the Downtown Expressway, which is owned by the Richmond Metro Authority. They gave no estimate to the project, but it would likely cost several million dollars.


It is an interesting concept and making more walking/biking connections in urban planning projects is the new expected standard. Access to that area from Shockoe Slip is limited to 12th Street -- which is a busy underpass -- and down at Virginia Street at the Hat Factory.
Of course, most people I've spoken with quickly assumed a new tunnel would just provide shelter for the homeless and cause the life of the RMA and roadway tolls to be extended and increased.


Also, there is another possible connection just east of 13th street on Shockoe Slip (yes, that's the name of the street) that wouldn't require tunnelling, though it isn't on RMA property, has a very steep drop (steps, bad for cycling) and would require (costly?) negociations with the private sector.


I think if the developer wants to make the best investment on the future of its property, the tunnel under the Expressway should certainly be considered and included in the costs of the project. The RMA owns a seemingly unused 12-car parking lot connected to the south bank of the expressway which would provide access during construction. There is also existing cobblestone roadway on both sides of the would-be tunnel, which would enhance the attraction from the get-go.


Need more background? In May 2011, the Richmond Times-Dispatch's Will Jones wrote about Reynolds North and the Canal Walk:

But its abundance of vacant commercial space shows it remains a work in progress, said Brenton S. Halsey Sr., who helped guide the public-private redevelopment effort along the Canal Walk. Halsey, a former chairman and CEO of James River Corp., also is a member of the riverfront committee for Venture Richmond, which promotes economic development and events mostly in the downtown area. 

Halsey said the city's original plan for the Canal Walk envisioned development occurring over about 15 years. 

Development of the North Plant site, which extends from 10th Street east to Virginia Street, also is important because it will help link two disjointed sections of the Canal Walk, said Richard Souter, vice president for The WVS Cos., the developer of the Rocketts Landing project. 

He said his group has been working with Mayor Dwight C. Jones' administration on what likely will be a multi-phase agreement that would sort out the responsibilities of each party. The 3north architectural firm has been working on the city's behalf to address a variety of issues, including security, lighting, accessibility and amenities.

4th & HULL ST. PARKING

PARKING CLARIFICATION

Residents of Plant Zero Art Center & Ink Building:

Due to the high level of feedback that Fountainhead Properties received after announcing that Central Parking Systems was taking over the management of the parking lot located between 3^rd Street and 4^th Street, directly beside Plant Zero Art Center, a follow-up notification was deemed necessary in effort to explain the reasons behind the conversion from a “free” parking lot to a fee based system. 

Fountainhead Properties began negotiations with Central Parking Systems approximately two years ago, and, after extensive research, decided to employ them to begin management of the parking lot in January 2012.  The main factors that lead to finalization of this contract were the increasing number of financial obligations associated with maintaining ownership of the parking lot.  Annually, Fountainhead Properties pays approximately $28,000.00 in bills associated with the parking lot, not including maintenance expenses.  This expense includes:  Real Estate Taxes, Storm Water Run-Off Taxes, Utilities for Lighting, and the Mortgage payment.   Fountainhead Properties has offered this parking lot at no cost to the tenants of Plant Zero and surrounding businesses for several years.  Fountainhead does not hope to recoup this entire amount annually, let alone expect to come close to making a profit; however, it has become necessary to implement a system to offset some of these costs. 

The owners and management team of Fountainhead Properties have been in the past, and remain, strong advocates of the Arts Community and the Non-Profit Organizations that contribute to the expanding development and culture in New Manchester, and in Richmond as a whole.  Our company looks to the residents and businesses for support in this transition, and we believe that the growing number of vehicles that opt to utilize the street parking along Hull Street, Decatur Street, and Stockton Street will decrease the speed of the thru traffic in the area; as well as, add to the walk-able, urban feel of the community.  In addition, in effort to increase the lighting in this area, and encourage street parking, Fountainhead upgraded the light fixtures along the edges of the parking lot so that more light is projected in this area at night. 

Fountainhead realizes that this is a big change that will require an adjustment period; however, we hope that this clarification sheds some light on the reasons behind the decision to implement a fee-based structure for use of the parking lot.  We thank you in advance for your understanding, and we look forward to seeing the area grow and adapt to the increasing population of the New Manchester area. 

Please feel free to contact Rebecca Bryan, the Director of Property Operations, at Rebecca@fountainheadproperties.net if you have any additional questions, concerns, or feedback. 

Thank you again for your support,

Fountainhead Properties  

A Fountainhead Favorite, Artist Ron Johnson:

Between Surface
January 13 – February 25, 2012
Opening reception for the artist
Friday, January 13, 2012
7 – 9 pm
1514 West Main Street
Richmond, Virginia 23220
804-355-6553

All Artists Need A Box

One Art Studio Now Available at New Manchester Flats Location! 

Update on New Manchester Flats Parking Lot, Building II

Residents of New Manchester Flats~
The long awaited completion of the parking lot is almost here!  The paving company will be dropping off the paving equipment onsite today. Assuming the weather clears up tomorrow morning, the paving company should begin their work by tomorrow afternoon. Due to the weather delay, we can expect the parking lot to be completed by mid to late week next week.

Richmond's Earth Day is Right Around the Corner ~ Be on the lookout for updates!