There goes the neighborhood ;-)

Well, today's Virginian Pilot brought news of what the City of Portsmouth plans to do with the old Holiday Inn site on Crawford, a mere stone's throw from my own humble abode.

From Meghan Hoyer:

City leaders today announced that a Texas-based company will redevelop what has been called Portsmouth's most desirable downtown spot into a mix of office space and residential units worth $158 million.

It is the largest single development in recent memory to be proposed for Portsmouth's downtown.

Lincoln Property Co. will develop the project, which will be on six acres of waterfront property that currently houses the Holiday Inn Olde Towne Portsmouth and the Harbor Court garage.

The project will generate $29 million in tax revenues for the city over its first 10 years.

"We've always looked at this as our premiere site," said Kathy Warren, development director for Portsmouth's Redevelopment and Housing Authority. "This has the potential to create a lot of momentum, not just at this property but at other downtown properties as well."

City leaders will now begin negotiations with Lincoln to determine the exact scope of the project and the amount of public investment required.

Why a Texas company? Isn't there a developer from Hampton Roads who can handle a project like this and has the ability to envision what could be?

Isn't the redevelopment in Park View also being sparked by a serious Texas investor? What's up with that?

And how much is this going to cost the City? Let's see, the simple traffic circle at the other end of Crawford Street is costing $1.2 million. And we got a pretty traffic circle...

So, now I have 4 years of construction to look forward to... Joy...