Sky High
New York City, top this: The proposed Museum Plaza is a 671-foot-tall, 57-story skyscraper that looks more like a Lego creation than a real-life building. Its towers are connected in the middle by a three-story floating island soaring 20-plus stories into the air. Museum Plaza, to be built in Louisville, Ky., and designed by architecture firm REX, will feature a contemporary art museum, 80 luxury condos, 130 loft condos, a 300-room hotel, and 250,000 square feet of office and retail space, plus an underground parking garage.
–Rachel Z. Azoff
No Entrance
The California Apartment Association has sponsored a bill in the California Assembly that would enable rental housing providers to use information from the Megan’s Law Web site, an online sex offender database, as the basis for refusing to rent to someone and for evicting high-risk sex offenders. The bill also would give the housing providers the right to notify other tenants that these renters lived on a property. Currently, the association says apartment owners face a Catch-22. They can be sued if they refuse to rent housing based on information from the Web site, but they also face litigation if they fail to protect tenants from people known to be dangerous.
–Les Shaver
Job Incubator
Most housing authorities want to see their residents get better jobs and improve themselves. The DuPage [Ill.] Housing Authority is taking extra steps to make that happen. The authority has excess office space in its own offices and is offering that space free to businesses that hire its residents. So far it has two takers. These firms have to give residents jobs and prove they’re growing within 18 months. During that time, they’ll contribute $250 a month to an escrow account. If they make hires and grow their businesses, they’ll get the money back. If not, the authority keeps it.
–Les Shaver
The Who’s Who Returns
Is your company included in the 2007 Who’s Who Sourcebook? Don’t miss out on the opportunity to list your company in this comprehensive directory for the multifamily industry. There is no charge to be included. Follow the link to the Who’s Who for more information. Questions? E-mail mfewho@hanleywood.com.
Easy Décor
Residents at W Dallas Victory Residences in Texas won’t have an excuse for bare walls. The project’s developer, Gatehouse Capital, is offering an online program that lets condo owners design, decorate, and furnish their units in a matter of clicks. Owners can buy everything from bedding and furniture to cookware. The program, called Residential Solutions, is powered by The Higgins Group, a San Francisco-based holding company with subsidiaries that offer procurement and branded retail programs for the luxury hospitality industry.
–Rachel Z. Azoff