“New” development north of Broad on Staples Mill
Posted: December 19, 2011 | Author: Nathan Hughes | Filed under: Commercial Leasing, Henrico County, Multi-family Housing, New Development, Office Buildings, Redevelopment, Residential, Retail | Tags: commercial real estate, Henrico County, real estate development, Redevelopment, Richmond, Virginia | Leave a comment »About once a month I get a question about the large, vacant property that borders Staples Mill Road that is just north of West Broad Street, right over the Henrico Count line. My answer is always that it was an old, rundown neighborhood that was purchased and cleared with the intention of rebuilding, and that the developer is the same group that is doing the project at Monument Avenue and Willow Lawn Drive – Gumenick Properties. As to why it hasn’t been started, well just look around at new building all around the country. The developer was obviously waiting until the economy turns around.
But, I always have to give that answer with the caveat that the last official word I had heard about it was a few years ago. I couldn’t even be sure that the same plans were in place. Thankfully I can point to this article on Richmond.com that gives us the lowdown on the current situation — which is pretty much as described as above. It sounds as though things are just on hold, but the same big plans are still on the books. In fact, this project is expected to take 10 years even once they finally get underway.
You need to go read the article to see all of the reported details, but I thought I would share a couple of details of the plans here:
What: Staples Mill Centre, proposed to include 1,096 apartments, 571 condominiums, 391 townhouses, 32 single-family homes, 60,000 square feet of offices, and 100,000 square feet of stores.
Where: About 80 acres between Staples Mill Road, Libbie Avenue and Bethlehem Road, near Interstate 64.
It’s true, RVA, Mint is coming to the Fan!
Posted: September 25, 2011 | Author: Nathan Hughes | Filed under: B&H News, Buying a Business, City of Richmond, Restaurants | Tags: Bandazian & Holden, business owners, commercial real estate, downtown Richmond, Restaurants, Richmond, Virginia | 1 Comment »There was a rumor floating around for the past few weeks that Amy Cabaniss, the owner of Julep’s in Shockoe Bottom, was purchasing the building where Davis & Main operated a long-standing restaurant for decades. There was good reason for the rumor, because it was true!
Amy closed on the deal to purchase the real estate and the equipment at 2501 West Main Street this past Friday afternoon. Richard Holden, Principal Broker at Bandazian & Holden, represented Amy in the purchase.
It has been on the market for some time. Fan of the Fan reported back in June that the restaurant had closed, and I know that it had been for sale for some time before that. We are proud that Bandazian & Holden was part of making this sale happen, and even more proud that such a fine restaurateur will be the one taking over.
The new restaurant will be Mint New Casual Cuisine. From all of the great ideas that I’ve heard from Amy and from the reactions I’ve heard so far from the neighbors, the Fan District will be very happy to have her there!
Congratulations on the purchase, Amy! I can’t wait to try out the new place!
Small rental property owners breathe a sigh of relief
Posted: April 13, 2011 | Author: Nathan Hughes | Filed under: Commercial Leasing, Government Institutions, Investing, Multi-family Housing, National News, Office Buildings, Residential, Retail | Tags: Bandazian & Holden, business environment, commercial real estate, government, legal, property management, real estate development | Leave a comment »There is always a lot of new legislation passed every year that sounds like a good idea at the time and generally goes unnoticed, and every once in a while the consequences of that legislation become horrifyingly apparent afterwards.
This past year, the legislation that was causing so much heartburn for small property owners was a new IRS requirement that anyone with rental property file a 1099 for any repairs that add up to $600+ over the course of the year. (see my post about it here, from December 2010)
Good news — the provision was repealed before it could take effect!! (here is the actual legislation that was passed to repeal the IRS provision, in case you would like to read it)
Hats off to the Realtor community for standing against this for the good of the mom-and-pop investors, who are the ones would be most affected by those proposed requirements — and for Realtor Magazine’s blog for bringing the repeal to my attention. From their description of how everything unfolded, it seems as though everyone understood that this was good to do:
When the provision was included in the small business bill, REALTORS® were among the first and firmest opponents of it, helping to ensure that Congress understood the provision was an example of over-reach that was never intended to burden mom and pop property owners. Members of Congress and President Obama got the message and, in a rare example of agreement between not only Republicans, Democrats, and independents, but also between House and Senate chambers and between the legislative and executive branches, lawmakers agreed the provision needed to come out.
Nice to know that we don’t have this provision coming up to haunt us over the next few years, isn’t it?
How to make zoning easier to understand
Posted: February 7, 2011 | Author: Nathan Hughes | Filed under: Government Institutions, Legal, Redevelopment | Tags: Bandazian & Holden, business environment, business owners, commercial real estate, downtown Richmond, government, legal, real estate development, Redevelopment, Richmond, Virginia, zoning | Leave a comment »Government regulations are typically so complicated that not only can the lay-person not understand what they mean, but they are written in such a way that even people that think they know what is meant are left arguing completely different interpretations. Zoning regulations are no exception.
In fact, in NYC the zoning regulations are so convoluted that “In a recent case, a judge said the word “development,” which appears at least 2,500 times in the [zoning] resolution, did not mean what the city said.” (source: New York Times article — we’ll see more about that article in just a minute)
The Planning Commissioner for NYC, Amanda Burden, is attempting to make the zoning regulations a little more accessible to the general public by issuing a new city handbook with plain explanations and cartoon drawings that illustrate what particular zoning designations look like and what they mean. Check out the coverage in the New York Times about what she has been doing to bridge that gap.
While this may not be the right approach for every locality, the idea is one that every local government should take to heart: Start building tools that puts control of the government back into the hands of the people. Sure, we elect officials to represent us and we should not be ruled by mob mentality (see: California), but the people also need to be able to understand what is being done — especially when we are expected to interpret these rules and abide by them.
I have seen far too many business and property owners try to follow the rules that have been laid out, only to find a health inspector or building inspector come in with a totally different understanding and cost the owner thousands of dollars in hard cost and lost business because the rules were not clear enough.
What do you think, Richmond? Have you had any issues with the local zoning regulations (city or county)? What would you suggest could be done to make the rules more clear?
Redevelopment plans for Carytown get nod from Museum District
Posted: February 6, 2011 | Author: Nathan Hughes | Filed under: City of Richmond, Commercial Leasing, Government Institutions, Investing, New Urbanism, Redevelopment, Retail, Shopping Centers, Transportation | Tags: business environment, business owners, commercial real estate, downtown Richmond, government, real estate development, Redevelopment, Richmond, Virginia, walkability | 2 Comments »The redevelopment of the old Verizon building at 10 N. Nansemond Street has been hotly debated and contested. (see: the official site for the Carytown Place; Don’t Big Box Carytown‘s website; & this post and the accompanying comment thread on Caramelized Opinions for a good summary & feel of the debate)
The Museum District Association had originally ruled to oppose the redevelopment based on the original plans, but Friday they sent out a press release announcing the reversal of that position. The gist of the situation can be summed up from this one paragraph in the press release:
The Board voted 13-1 in November to oppose the original SUP and subsequently provided the applicant with detailed requests for further changes to make it more amenable to the neighborhood. The applicant responded by altering the SUP to remove vehicular ingress/egress on Nansemond Street as well as reduce the number of available uses of the property to 10 uses. The applicant also agreed to limit the usable floor space of any one tenant to no more than 25,000 square feet, ensuring there would be multiple tenants in the building and ruling out a single, larger “big box” tenant.
The whole press release can be read here on the MDA’s website (right now it’s at the top, but it will shift down the page as new releases are issued).
What do you think? Are you satisfied with the MDA’s ruling, or are the changes in the plan not enough for you? In that case, what changes would be enough to get your support for the development?
Retail Real Estate Market: 2010 vs. 2011
Posted: January 10, 2011 | Author: Nathan Hughes | Filed under: Retail, Shopping Centers | Tags: business environment, commercial real estate, real estate development, retail business, retail real estate | Leave a comment »Retail real estate has gone through a lot over the past year and will continue to evolve over the upcoming year. I can say from anecdotal experience in our office and from what I’ve heard from other colleagues in the business that the last half of 2010 was very busy, with the level of activity only set to increase going forward.
Retail Traffic is a great resource for information on the retail real estate market and I always enjoy seeing a new issue come out. If you don’t want to miss anything, I would suggest you watch it closely too. Of course, if I see anything particularly interesting, I will be sure to pass it along here. For example…..
Their “Retail Real Estate’s 2010 in Review” is a comprehensive review of the biggest stories in retail real estate over the course of the past year.
And even more important, “What Will 2011 Bring?” (which links to a few other very informative pieces)
Important! New IRS requirements for all landlords
Posted: December 6, 2010 | Author: Nathan Hughes | Filed under: Commercial Leasing, Government Institutions, Investing, Multi-family Housing, National News, Office Buildings, Retail, Shopping Centers | Tags: business environment, commercial real estate, government, IRS, legal, property management, taxes | 1 Comment »
Anyone receiving rental payments from either residential or commercial properties will need to review the newly-enacted small business legislation called HR5297 with their accountant and how it expands 1099 reporting requirements.
Currently, only real estate professionals that engage in property management services have to use 1099 forms to report any service provider that they pay more than $600 in a given tax year.
The changes will be enacted over the next two years as follows (details from the NAR Issue Brief released recently — can be found online here or hosted on my site here):
2011 Rule: ALL persons who receive rental payments must provide Form 1099. This affects ALL owners (both individuals and businesses) of rental properties, both residential and commercial. Thus, “mom and pop” investors and those who invest in real estate for their personal portfolios are subject to the new reporting requirement. Only aggregate annual payments of $600 or more for services (but not goods) must be reported.
2012 Rule: All businesses, including real estate businesses, self-employed individuals and independent contractors will be required to make a 1099 report of any aggregate annual payment of $600 or more to any person from whom they acquired goods and services.
Please keep in mind that I am not an accountant, so before you act on any of this information (or panic. or dismiss.) please consult with your accounting/tax professional. But when I saw this come across my desk, I thought it was important that you are aware of these new rules!
(*Warning! Sales pitch!*) And, by the way, here at Bandazian & Holden, we have dealt with these reporting requirements from when they were first enacted for real estate professionals in the property management field, and we are accustomed to handling the necessary paperwork for our clients. If you don’t feel like dealing with it on your own, let me know and come on board with us. (*End of warning. Enjoy your day!*)
Play-by-play on the Richmond restaurant discussion
Posted: October 24, 2010 | Author: Nathan Hughes | Filed under: B&H News, Restaurants, Weblogs | Tags: Bandazian & Holden, business environment, business owners, commercial real estate, Restaurants, Richmond, Virginia | 2 Comments »Last Tuesday was “An Evening at Morton’s”, where a select group of individuals involved in Richmond’s restaurant community were brought together to discuss Richmond’s food culture. You can see my write-up and some useful links here.
I wanted to be sure you were aware of a few more resources that are especially useful if you weren’t able to follow along that night:
- All of the participants answered some introductory questions before the panel, and the answers can be found here.
- The live blog and questions from participants online were recorded and can be read in their entirety here.
- Here is the NBC12 coverage of the event, and there is a video on that same page of the coverage. The part of the report focused on the Steak Chat starts about halfway through the video.
I would love to hear what you thought of the discussion, and any insights you may have to share that didn’t get covered that night. There was a lot to cover, and we could have gone on for hours — so there are definitely topics that didn’t get fully discussed.
Richmond’s Food Culture — join in on the discussion tonight!
Posted: October 19, 2010 | Author: Nathan Hughes | Filed under: B&H News, Restaurants, Weblogs | Tags: Bandazian & Holden, business environment, business owners, commercial real estate, Restaurants, Richmond, Virginia | 4 Comments »
I’ve followed the ongoing series “An Evening at Morton’s” since it started off the year with a discussion on the Young Professional Business Climate, so I know that this is an exciting group and they have spun off some great discussions already.
Rather than rehash what has been said previously, I encourage you to read what Richmond.com has to say about the format of the evening and how you can participate. (nudge: go here)
[Okay, I lied. I am going to rehash just a little bit.] The masterminds behind the evening pick a topic, get experts together around a table at Morton’s Steakhouse down in Shockoe Slip, have a moderator facilitate the discussion, live blog & live tweet it, take questions and interactions with folks following along at home, record it, and release follow up posts wrapping up what was learned from the evening.
Thus is born #steakchatrva, or the long version, An Evening at Morton’s.
The topic on the table this month is Richmond’s Food Culture, which is a topic that is very near to my heart (and wallet, considering that most of what I do as a Commercial Realtor and Business Broker has to do with restaurants). I had heard of the topic and suggested some folks and angles on the topic to make things interesting. It hadn’t occurred to me that I might be asked to be at the table, so I was honored and excited to get the call.
We have a great panel for tonight’s discussion (taken straight from Richmond.com’s article on the evening):
- Brandon Fox (@bpfox), Richmond Magazine Dining Columnist & RHome Managing Editor
- Andy Howell, Cafe Rustica owner and chef
- Nathan Hughes (@rvabusiness) Bandazian & Holden VP & Sales Manager
- Karri Peifer (@KarriPeifer), Richmond.com food writer & editor
- Randy O’Dell (@Bellytimber), co-owner Bellytimber & Mezzanine
- Heather Sullivan, NBC 12 co-anchor NBC12 News Today & “Restaurant Report“
- Deveron Timberlake, Style Weekly food and drink editor
- Michelle Williams, deLux, Europa, The Hard Shell, Water Grill, The Hill Cafe chef / owner
While there are lots of people that could be included in the discussion, as evidenced by the larger than normal panel this month, there is only but so much space at the table. It is always important to note that while we are representatives of the community, we are not the end-all to the topic and need the rest of the community to step up and participate. We don’t want to lose the other voices that are equally important in the discussion.
So here is how you can participate:
- Follow the conversation on Twitter by clicking here to see everything that is tagged with #steakchatrva, and use the hashtag #steakchat to appear in that stream to participate on Twitter.
- Go to Richmond.com here and scroll down for the input form anytime before the event tonight to set a reminder.
- Watch the live blogging here starting at 6:30pm tonight, October 19th, to see the discussion unfold.
What do you think we should be talking about? Have anything you would like to share? Feel free to leave a comment or two here, if the urge should strike you. Just keep in mind that I won’t be checking the blog once the discussion is underway, so chime in on the other channels listed above to have your voice heard after 6:30pm tonight!
Business is getting better, Richmond
Posted: October 18, 2010 | Author: Nathan Hughes | Filed under: B&H News, City of Richmond, Commercial Leasing, National News, Restaurants, Retail | Tags: Bandazian & Holden, business environment, business owners, commercial real estate | 6 Comments »Business is booming! Relatively speaking, at least, the economy is buzzing along. Things certainly aren’t where they used to be, but they are getting better. Running a small business is tough, no doubt about it — but it’s always tough.
One of the first questions I hear is “how is business” — and the answer lately has been that business is great! The business I’m in (commercial real estate and business brokering) is busier than it has been in the past couple of years. I can’t speak for the entire industry, but our small piece has been rolling along quite briskly. The period between the 4th of July and Labor Day weekend is usually dead for us, except for the residential leasing, but this year defied past trends and was the busiest we’ve had in a long time.
As I’ve said in the past, I’m a small business. I’m not Coca-Cola or Dow Chemical. I don’t need the whole economy to be in a bubble to be doing well. I just need to do well with and by my clients and customers to be rewarded. Conversely, I don’t need the whole economy to be in recession for my business to be spiraling downward, either.
It’s not just our business at Bandazian & Holden that has been on the upswing lately. I’ve been hearing from more and more friends that their businesses are doing the same thing, and that brings me great hope for everyone.
Don’t take my word for it, though. The news outlets are tapping into the data and things are starting to spring back (or at least stop going down) all over:
From Nation’s Restaurant News: Atlanta’s restaurants seeing better days
Operators in the city pointed to an increase in private parties and convention business, which they expect to continue as the holiday season nears. And while diners remain value-conscious, some restaurateurs reported that increased drink and appetizer orders are giving check averages a boost.
U.S. retail sales rose for a third consecutive month in September, posting a stronger-than-expected increase that should fend off fears of a double-dip recession but doesn’t signal a strong recovery.
For the second quarter, area sales totaled $2.59 billion compared to $2.64 billion in the second quarter of 2009. The decrease of 1.89 percent is the smallest quarter to quarter change since BizSense began analyzing taxable sales data at the end of 2008—a sign that the slowdown may be flattening out.…Restaurants and bars are also doing a little bit better, growing sales by more than 6 percent in the second quarter. That is a big change from the 1 percent to 2 percent decrease reported for previous quarters.
What has changed? I don’t know. Maybe people are tired of being scared and sitting on the sidelines, waiting for more bad news. What I do know is that we got ourselves into this mess, and it’s up to us to dig our way out — everyone working on their small piece of the hole. There is plenty of money to be made in good times and bad times, trick is that the people have to earn their money in the “bad times”. Let’s keep making this work!
What do you think? Have you seen business improving in your corner of the world?