Land Development Consultants Archives

Ideation Charrette for Mixed-use Redevelopment

01.12.2022 Design Charrette Facilitation, Highest-and-Best-Use, Land Development Consultants, Location-Based Entertainment Consultants, Mixed-Use Development Consultants, Outdoor Recreation Facility Consultants, Placemaking Consultants and Designers, Project Consultants for China, Redevelopment Project Consultants, Tourism Destination Strategy Consultants

With a major Xi’an-based development company, we convened a several-day ideation charrette for mixed-use redevelopment of a land assembly in Xi’an, China. The core focus of the session was property at Shaanxi Weiyang Lake, a unique water body in metropolitan Xi’an. The Xi’an prefecture’s Weiyang District is one of 11 urban districts of in Xi’an, which is the capital city of Shaanxi Province in Northwest China.

This project ideation charrette for mixed-use redevelopment included the client’s development team (Shirong Investments, the Xi’an World Financial Group, and its affiliates) and additional location-based entertainment consultants based in China. In addition to the site’s physical development potential and market factors, the charrette also included consideration of the PRC’s national tourism strategy, PRC statistical tourism data, Xi’an’s cultural identify, and likely changes in PRC strategies for preferred in-country travel destinations. As part of the process, the charrette team toured shopping districts, cultural areas, existing tourism destinations, and the sites for expected competitive offerings.

The Xi’an region is known to many for its archaeological sites situated outside the core metro area, including Bingmayong (the “Terra Cotta Army”), where thousands of life-size, hand-molded figures were discovered buried with Qin Shi Huang – the first emperor of China. Xi’an was also a major departure point for the Silk Road, a network of caravan routes that in ancient times connected China with countries in the Mediterranean and greater Europe.

This is an update to a previously posted article.

Marne-la-Vallée Master Plan

01.11.2020 Economic Development Consultants, Golf course redevelopment and adaptive re-use, Land Development Consultants, Master Planned Community Developments, Tourism Destination Strategy Consultants

The Marne-la-Vallée master plan was part of an overall new town economic development plan to relieve urban development pressures on Paris. Our work noted here was conducted by a predecessor company in which our co-founder was a partner. Our work in connection with the Marne-la-Vallée master plan included the land use planning and strategic business planning support for client Walt Disney Co.

The strategic business planning work included product concepting and financial analysis for various sections of the master land use plan, including specific feasibility issues raised by client’s strategic planning department. Work performed also included overall land development consulting analysis such as land residual valuations – a means of depicting build-out value for various master plan and build-out scenarios, as well as financial studies of alternative routings of planning golf course facilities.

Marne-la-Vallée is a new town, an economic development strategy for the greater Paris region of France. It is about a 50-minute drive (by auto) from the center of the Marne-la-Vallée new town master plan which includes Paris Disneyland, over to central Paris (at or about Pont Neuf). By metro the trip is about one-half the time by automobile. The Marne-la-Vallée project was one of five new towns envisioned in the early 1960’s, and emerged among these other concept new towns as the largest.

The new town was intended to take some of the urban development pressure away from Paris and place a new focus in a new location. Paris Disneyland was the business “anchor” for propelling the start and growth of the new town region. From a population of Marne-la-Vallée has a current population of more than 280,000 residents. The Marne-la-Vallée master plan called for a potential of 500,000 residents at full build-out.

Other major institutions that located in this new town include Université Paris-Est Marne-la-Vallée and École des Ponts ParisTech, among numerous others. The Descartes Cluster is also situated in Marne-la-Vallée new town, the largest concentration in France of research centers (50+), higher education organizations and businesses involved in green technologies and city sustainability.

The master planning process for Paris Disneyland (then Euro Disneyland) was comprehensive and wide-ranging. Disney’s overall project included master-planning of a major regional theme park and themed entertainment district in the vicinity of the theme park.

Film Studios Development Consultants - European Region Project Consultants

Conceptual Plan Feasibility – Toulouse Film Studio

19.08.2018 Film Studios and Backlots, Land Development Consultants, Project Consultants for Europe

aec Explore Entertainment, SARL | Massing study for new film studio campus, explored on a rapid prototyping basis. Focus of effort was the creation of a digital hub at the heart of the limited footprint studio campus, with digital facilities capable of music, film, television, electronic game, and other digital projects. The visitor component of the master plan included AEC’s first placement of its “adventure gardens” concept.

Confidential – At client request, the rapid-protoyping image shown here includes limited details only.

Development Project Managers - Entitlements and Permits Consultants

Seralago Destination Resort – Owner Representation

19.08.2018 Entitlements and Permits Consultants, Land Development Consultants, Owner Representation Consultants

Floribra USA – Newfield Enterprises International | Owner representative for design, development, and operation of the master sewer, water, storm drainage infrastructure for Seralago resort, along with development of the resort’s first phase, Falcon’s Fire Golf Club. All development pads for future building were also prepped as part of the first phase development. On behalf of the family office of Newfield Enterprises International (NEI), itself owned the Ibrahim brothers: HES’ Abdulaziz, Khaled, and Waleed bin Ibrahim Al Ibrahim.

Project Feasibility for Golf Community

18.08.2018 Golf course redevelopment and adaptive re-use, Land Development Consultants, Project Consultants for Tribes and First, Real Estate Consultants, Residential Housing & Apartments

Al-Shehail Group (Riyadh) / Hopkins Development | As land development consultants we provided a project feasibility for a golf community, with market study, capital budget estimate, and financial projections. Residential product recommendations for the single-family and attached housing units in the development were provided, along with facilities suggestions for a community clubhouse that could support golf as well as additional outdoor recreation offerings.

The project had the working name, Mountain Meadows Golf Community, of McGaheysville, Virginia. McGaheysville is situated near the south fork of Shenandoah River in the heart of the Shenandoah Valley.

This due diligence and feasibility evaluation was to support the Al-Shehail Group of Companies’ potential investment. The site for this to-be-built master-planned residential golf community is situated in rolling meadow lands and foothills near McGaheysville, near Massanutten Ski Resort. The 300-acre project included 420 units in this master-planned golf community.

Following the due diligence effort, StoneCreek Partners was retained by the Al-Shehail Group to revamp and fine-tune the project master plan. Objectives included maximization of the housing along 16,900 lineal feet of golf course frontage. Project naming and naming conventions were also reworked, and golf signature holes were configured to minimize and balance on-site grading. An interesting aspect of the residential product placement on the site, was providing both a direct view onto golf as well as onto the scenic “long views” onto surrounding Shenandoah Valley foothills and mountains.

The master planning work was directly based on the project feasibility for golf community, previously prepared.