In the News—Week of July 6, 2020
Around the Nation
Rents plummet as residents move out of San Francisco
The SFist reports that rents in the City by the Bay have fallen more than 20% over the past two months as residents move elsewhere. Financial stress and the pandemic have led to the migration elsewhere. And in many cases, it is just that the cost of living is too high. “Even with making well over $100K a year, I felt that I had few long term options for a lifestyle that fits with me as I grew — I would never be able to purchase a home or live by myself even with a comfortable salary,” one tech worker, who moved back to Chattanooga, Tennessee, told the website.
Energy & Environment
Norwegian energy company plans plant that will capture carbon gasses
Norwegian energy giant Equinor has announced plans for a project that will combine hydrogen generation with carbon capture and storage, CNBC reports. Hydrogen to Humber Saltend will be located near Hull, in the north of England. The plant will use natural gas to generate hydrogen and capture carbon gasses that are a by-product of the process. The company says the plant is the largest of its kind in the world and will capture nearly 900,000 tons of CO2 each year. The CO2 will be funneled under the sea.
Texas
Rice University’s conversion of old Sears store on track
Rice University’s work on turning an old Sears store into an innovation center is proceeding on schedule, the Houston Chronicle reports. The Ion is Midtown Houston is set to open in March and be leased out. “If all negotiations we are in right now end positively, we will have a full building,” said Ryan LeVasseur, managing director of direct real estate with Rice Management, which is in charge on the $100 million project to convert retail space into a 270,000-square-foot office building that will be attractive to startups.
Co-working firm leases space at Dallas Farmers Market
Industrious, which bills itself as a premium co-working space, is leasing 23,000 square feet in the Dallas Farmers Market, connect texas reports. The workspace, at 910 S. Pearl Expressway, will be called the Industrious Farmers Market and join the company’s two other spaces in the Metroplex. Industrious Farmers Market, which will also offer private spaces, is expected to open in the first quarter of 2021.
Arizona
Real estate, neighbors to collaborate on redeveloping golf course
Club West Golf Course in the Ahwatukee neighborhood of Phoenix won’t be home to the links again, AZ Big Media reports. The course has been closed since 2016. Attempts to restart the course didn’t work out. New owner Edge will try to redevelop the property as a community green space, along with building some homes. The company has started a collaborative design process with Community Land Solutions working with the neighbors on a redevelopment plan, drawing on the experience of other communities in Arizona and elsewhere.
Mexico
Delivery-only grocery chain plans to expand nationwide
Jüsto, a delivery-only Mexico City grocer, is planning to expand across the country and internationally, Mexico News Daily reports. The chain has raised more than $20 million from investors in the past year, according to the website Tech Crunch. Jüsto’s founder and CEO Ricardo Weder says e-commerce is growing as a result of the pandemic yet the market penetration rate of e-grocers is still less than 1% in Latin America.
