The Real Deal

By Sharman Egan Lagniappe columnist

Ever wonder how the whole loft thing got started downtown? When I began asking that question, it led me to Max Morey and John Switzer, two developers with a passion for downtown Mobile and loft development.

Morey and Switzer, partners in the firm J.S.M.M./Lofts, developed the first lofts for resale in Mobile in 2001. They bought the building at 501 Dauphin St. for $147,000 (considerably less than the $225,000 being asked for the one loft currently for sale in the building), dubbed it The Warehouse and transformed it into five loft-style condos.

Morey and Switzer aren’t just business partners – they’re best friends. And, not surprisingly, they both live downtown in lofts they developed in a building off S. Bayou Street that was once a flophouse. Switzer’s part-time home is on the first floor (he actually lives in Pensacola) and Morey lives on the second floor.

These are two of the coolest lofts I’ve seen in a long time. They include all the usual elements that define a loft – very high ceilings, exposed brick and open floor plans – plus numerous unique touches such as the kitchen countertops made from the original beams from the old Crescent Theater.

So what are these two pioneering developers up to these days? First on their list is redevelopment of the Crescent Theatre at 208 Dauphin St., originally built in 1865. Vaudeville shows were performed here long before the movie industry was born. It became a movie theater in the early 1900s then eventually it was converted into a restaurant.

When Morey and Switzer bought the building from the city for $15,000, it was nothing more than a burned-out shell. Morey said the city was willing to let the property go for a pittance as long as they agreed to develop the space.

The developers are shooting for opening in late 2007. They are committed to creating a theater that is true to the history of the space, with a façade similar to the original one. They will use vintage materials throughout, including old drapes and seats.

“About the only thing that will be new is the equipment to screen the films,” Morey said. “Almost everything else will be old.”

Their plans include other ideas that will set it apart from the typical suburban theater.

“We will even have an usher dressed in a ‘monkey suit,’” Morey said.

The new theatre will screen independent films that generally aren’t shown in the Mobile Bay area, or, if they are shown, appear for just a few days. For example, says Morey, if the theatre were open today, it might be showing “An Inconvenient Truth” or “The Queen,” both Academy-Award-winning films most Mobilians have never seen.

The theatre building will also include two very high-end lofts. The second floor will be a 3300 square foot unit, priced at $800,000, with 15-foot ceilings and a balcony overlooking Dauphin Street. The third floor penthouse, priced at $1.2 million, will have 3000 square feet, a 300-square-foot private terrace and 12-foot ceilings.

“I don’t know if there’s a market for this,” says Morey. “But all we need are two rich people who want to bask in the lights of the RSA Tower.” Morey says the views from both units will be unmatched in downtown.

Both Morey and Switzer are also building new personal homes downtown. Of course, the minute I heard that, I started trying to figure out how to come up with the bucks to buy one of the lofts they currently own. Sadly, they won’t be available for sale since both lofts will be incorporated into Switzer’s new home to create a fabulous compound worthy of a feature on HGTV. The new digs at 756 Government St. will include three separate living quarters surrounding a large private courtyard with a swimming pool. The exterior will be a Prairie-style design influenced by Frank Lloyd Wright, replacing the current non-descript façade.

Next door, Morey plans to build his new home on what is currently a vacant lot. He is still working on the design, but the version I saw reflected his love of warehouse-style lofts. It will be designed by architect Linda Snapp, who also designed the Crescent Theater. And like the theater, it will be built using many vintage materials recycled from old buildings, including the original bricks from the Crescent Theater.

Morey and Switzer also own the Burch & Hatfield building at 754 Government Street. The J.S.M.M./Lofts office is on the second floor, and a new retail store, Victorian Lace, will open shortly on the first floor. Large picture windows are already displaying the lovely vintage bridal gowns the store will offer.

Mobile housing is hot, hot, hot!

The feds just released the annual report on 2006 U.S. housing sales, confirming what we already knew – the Mobile housing market is HOT. The figures from the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO) ranked Mobile 17th out of 282 cities in the U.S. in terms of appreciation, with prices rising an average of 14.66 percent. This rate is well over twice the national rate of 5.87 percent.

Alabama ranked 14th among states, with prices rising an average of 8.1 percent. The other Alabama cities ranked in the study were Birmingham(113th), Decatur (109th), Huntsville (81st), Montgomery (90th) and Tuscaloosa (97th).

Sharman Egan is Lagniappe lagniappe columnist. Contact her at Sharman@SharmanEgan.com.

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