Traveling through Robertson County I saw a site I think you would enjoy seeing!!  Wind Turbine Blades parked on the rail road tracks just north of Hearne.  If you have never seen one of these in person here is a picture that may give you an idea of the immense size of these wondrous machines.

Holy Moly!

Living in the Brazos Valley in College Station, I never get to see these gigantic machines, but if you live in West Texas, it is just a part of the horizon.  I found this video, take a look!

Texas A&M University and Wind Power

Did you know that our home town university has a large influence on green energy?  West Texas A&M University, part of the Texas A&M University Systems in College Station, is located in the city of Canyon in west Texas.  It is the first University in Texas to start wind energy research.  The research began in 1970 and led to the formation of the AEI (Alternative Energy Institute) in 1977.

Wind Farms:

West Texas is one of the best sites on the planet for wind farms.  It is the largest supplier in the US followed by Iowa.  6.9% of the electricity in Texas during 2011 was generated by the use of wind turbines.  There are 5 large wind farms in Texas that combined produce over 2900MegaWatts of electricity.  That is enough energy to power more than 920,000 average Texas homes.

Transporting huge turbine blades on the rail!

Wind Power Benefits (www.whywind.org)

1. It Provides Sustainable Income: Local Farmers receive substantial Royalty Income for hosting wind turbines on their property
2. It Contributes to Local Taxes: Municipality receives both Municipal and School taxes from the Wind Project
3. It Creates Jobs: Permanent full-time jobs are created in the community from the wind project
4. It Provides Opportunities: Jobs are created and money is spent locally to procure material and services during construction
5. It Boosts Local Economy: Annual local expenditure is undertaken during operation and maintenance
6. It Improves Infrastructure: Local Infrastructure like Roads, Power, Transportation etc. is upgraded and improved
7.  It is Clean Power: Wind Power displaces the need to ramp up coal, oil and gas powered generation thus improving air quality and reducing green house gases
8. It is Affordable: It saves money for ratepayers by offsetting oil, gas fired generation and expensive power imports.
9. It Spurs Economic Growth: Created jobs regionally and nationaly in steel, composite, manufacturing, and power devices
10. It Encourages Tourism: Encourages eco-tourism and promotes local hospitality enterprises like bed and breakfast, tours etc.
11. It is Abundant & Reliable: Diversifies regional power sources, local economy, and enhances sustainability.
12. It Contributes to Community Funding: It Contributes and Sponsors Local Community Initiatives
13. It is Compatible with Agriculture: Wind Power has a smaller footprints, can be build in modular increments, can be easily decommissioned, and provides the best guarantee of preserving natural rural landscape
14. It Works: Currently Denmark gets 21% of its power from wind, Ontario is planning to achieve a 10% target of its power from wind.
15. It is Popular: Majority of surveys undertaken to date show almost 84% support for wind power. Wind is growing annually 30-35% around the World
16. It Reduces Power Losses: Distributed generation like wind projects near point of consumption help reduce transmission losses. As found in a study done for Hydro One networks by Navigant Consulting in June 2005, and title “Avoided Cost Analysis for the Evaluation of CDM Measures”

Electricity is a great way to go green and save money.   Here are some tips that will help you save money by using less electricity.

• Set your thermostat a few degrees lower in the winter and a few degrees higher in the summer to save on heating and cooling costs.
• Install compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) when your older incandescent bulbs burn out.
• Unplug appliances when you’re not using them. Or, use a “smart” power strip that senses when appliances are off and cuts “phantom” or “vampire” energy use.
• Wash clothes in cold water whenever possible. As much as 85 percent of the energy used to machine-wash clothes goes to heating the water.
• Use a drying rack or clothesline to save the energy otherwise used during machine drying.

PS – Joey Condon is a Bryan College Station,Texas Real Estate Professional.  If you need help with buying or selling, just give me a call – 979-218-4091

5 Star Rating for Real Estate Sales in College Station

5 Stars- Highly likely to recommend

Sold a Single Family home in 2012 in College Station, TX.

When I woke up on Thursday, May 24th, to watch the University Plaza Hotel implosion, I had expected to drive up to the Bonfire Memorial on Texas A&M Campus. There I would find a remote hill that overlooked the campus’ border tree-line so I could see as much of the building as possible without being caught in the crowds. Things didn’t work out how I had planned.

The streets were blocked off. Traffic was insane. And all of Bryan, College Station had woken up that hour earlier to watch the exciting spectacle. Thousands of city residents lined Texas Avenue, flooded the fields of the Bonfire Memorial, piled upon the beds of pick-ups and roofs of distant houses. Entire families had arrived to watch. I witnessed parents being dragged by excited children, hardly aware of the time or the reason they had driven all this way to fight through the crowd. Students leapt into trees for a better view (only to return to land, discovering the flourishing leaves completely impeded their vision). Droves of individuals, all ages and ethnicities, were flowing forward, as if being pulled to the base of that sight surrounding the Plaza Hotel. And then right at 6:30am, the crowds came to a halt. Everyone found their respective position, and all eyes gazed up. Nobody wanted to miss the spectacle set to start right at that moment.

Of course when 6:42 rolled around I was actually watching a triad of kids pushing and tackling one another in the manicured grass, rooting for the smaller child in a dragon-flame black hoodie. Then the cannon shot ripped through the air like victory at Kyle Field. It echoed along the silent, expectant streets of College Station, grabbing the attention of every onlooker. Then another explosion, flashing sparks of light and puffs of debris shooting out along the length of the buildings core. And the whole thing came crashing down.

It almost looked like dominos set horizontally, collapsing upon one another from one end to the next. The explosion ripped through, and the left side of the structure simply sagged, sending a rippling collapse along the length of its frame. A tower on the right seemed to linger, obdurate, but then receded into the rising haze of dust. And then it was over. Billowing clouds of debris rose steadily into the air, reaching up like wings on either side of where the structure had stood, and then drifting slowly with the morning breeze. A mad rush to beat the traffic ensued immediately after.

Driving by the site thirteen hours later would show little evidence of a recent demolition. You might see a thin, black fence lining the corner of Texas Avenue and University Drive, a large poster reading “Precision Demolition” stretched across its frame. As you passed the length of University, through the cracks of buildings and construction machines you might glimpse a pile of concrete rubble about two stories tall, weighing heavily on the earth. No outside clutter, no stray blocks of concrete littering the surrounding streets or sidewalks. Just a clean, perfectly orchestrated  implosion, designed by none other than College Station’s own civil engineers.

So what happens next?

First of all, the engineers are going to have to remove all demolished materials and debris, amounting to over 70,000 tons. Fortunately, this is not going to end up as wasteful as might be expected. Veronica Morgan, a leading Engineer of the Plaza Hotel demolition project, was quoted saying, “It’s not going to the landfill. It is not all garbage.” In fact, the materials from the Plaza Hotel are intended to be recycled. And that same concrete and asphalt is going to be used right here, in the Bryan, College Station area.

The materials are being sent to Brazos Paving, Inc. who plans to use the concrete and asphalt into usable road materials, after being finely crushed. So the same concrete that served as the walls and frame of the building which blemished your beautiful city skyline might now be the very material you drive over every day commuting to work along Highway 21(or at least once in awhile when you make a trip to Austin). Appropriate? I’d say so.

Civil Engineer Veronica Morgan informed the public that it might take a few weeks to remove the material from the implosion. However, there appears to be no rush since the future plans for this site of prime city real estate is still unclear. KBTX stated simply that the demolition is making way for “a new development at Texas Avenue and University Drive.” Similar ambiguous accounts make it clear that the future for this potentially thriving business location has not been released: but city officials have made clear their priority of converting this pivotal location to a development with promising economic returns. There has been speculation of student housing, a food and business market area, as well as additional bars or nightclubs. Whatever the future holds, let us hope the developers will find greater success than the locations previous owner.

PS – Susan Hilton is Bryan College Station, Texas’ real estate specialist in foreclosure sales and real estate agent career building so if you need help – CALL! 979-219-3970

After forty hours of hard work all week, ladies from all over Bryan/College Station came out and brought friends to come relax with the ladies of the Brazos Valley for wine, beer, delicious food and more desserts than you can imagine. The desserts were donated by many local bakers and included cake truffles, mini cupcakes, mini tarts, and iced cookies just to name a few! And they were not just your normal cake and pie! These desserts were one of the highlights of the event, but Texas Country Catering also provided a spread to remember and be thankful for! Delicious food opened the door for the action!

Countless silent auction items were on display and available to the highest bidders. The silent auction included more Jewelry than you can imagine, from inexpensive zebra beaded fun to the most gorgeous diamonds and gold you could want! Every woman had a dream list of items she hoped to “Win.” Purses in the silent auction came from popular names such as Kate Spade, Coach, Vera Bradley, Fossil, Lucky, Diane Von Furstenburg, Cole Haan and More! There were items from $5 to $5000 and everything in between including some great gift certificates and fun experiences! We are so grateful for the companies and individuals who donated such amazing auction items this year! We heard whispering throughout the room such as “WOW can you believe all these items!” and “They have so much great stuff!” Without the donors, all of these items would not have been possible! THANK YOU, THANK YOU to all of our donors!

The main event was the fabulous designer handbag auction! The latest fashion designer purses were auctioned off, along with Patio Furniture donated by Dealers Lighting (Who knew they had patio furniture!), Diamond Earrings, A trip to New York along with backstage passes to the Broadway Show ‘Ghost’ and even a Photography Training Class experience including dessert by Jessica Klima Photography! We auctioned a timeless black Alligator Elie Tahari donated by (Vehicle) Inspections Plus in Bryan, A fun purple Diane von Furstenberg donated by the Bubba Moore Memorial Group, and a White and Silver Coach donated by Kristi Fox Satsky, Realtor® (Yours Truly!) which had a fun and exciting bidding war that won’t be soon forgotten! You had to be there! And oh baby the highlight of the Auction! A Louis Vuitton donated by Britt Allen with Mustang Therapies! This purse was so beautiful and brought in $1850 that had locals Missy Carpenter and Fred Bayliss, Attorney at Law, in a heated bidding war, including a time out or two to get some bids from the phone since Fred was bidding via Text Message (It was Ladies night remember!)! And Icing on the Cake ladies! These purses and other items were modeled by some local male business owners, heroes, & local celebrities! We even had a College Station Fire Fighter, Josh Varner, presence our stage to auction of a Gorgeous Dooney & Burke donated by Milan and Patty Powers. Oo La La ladies if you missed this event, you missed these fun male models and lots of shopping fun!

We had lots of other gorgeous auction items, donated by lots of wonderful local businesses as well, and my mouth was watering the whole time just wanting to buy everything in sight, especially the Zebra Kate Spade! And in addition, David Gardeners donated a gorgeous David Yurman Necklace and Earring set worth almost $2700! And the winner is… Jeanne Vollentine! Who happens to be my aunt! How excited I was to hear them call her name!

Power of the Purse was the ladies night of the year, boasting fun, fellowship and fashion all rolled into one fabulous event. The attendees supported this outstanding organization as every dollar raised was designated for charitable care at The Brazos Valley Rehabilitation Center in Bryan, Texas. Your donations do make an impact! The Brazos Valley Rehabilitation Center is our local Easter Seals affiliate and they have been helping children and adults with therapy services such as Physical, Occupational, Speech, Hippotherapy and more, regardless of ability to pay. The most recent program brought to you by BVRC is their Autism Program. This program has changed the lives of many children and their families and it’s all thanks to the supporters of the BVRC.

A special thanks to my friends who were a pleasure to work with on the Power of the Purse Committee! Rene Lukes, Kim Varner and Lindsey Niemeyer who also work with me at Century 21 Beal, Inc, as well as Jessica Klima of Jessica Klima Photography, Jan Lee of Dealers Lighting, Sue Ellen Davis, Fara Goodwyn, Robyn Segal, Chelsie Breaux, Maury Bell Thomas, Dr. Carol Binzer of TAMU, and our Chair, Patty Powers. All of these women and many others worked so hard to make sure it was an amazing event! And it was! We reached our goal and surpassed it!

So go ahead and mark your calendars for next year, Friday, May 3rd, and grab a handful of friends for ladies night! Plan to come have a blast and celebrate women helping the residents of the Brazos Valley by supporting the Brazos Valley Rehabilitation Center.

Kristi Fox Satsky, Realtor®
Century 21 Beal, Inc.
Brazos Valley Rehabilitation Center- Advisory Council President
Kristi Fox Satsky, REALTOR®, Unlocking your Brazos Valley Real Estate Dreams, One Key at a time throughout Bryan/College Station.

College Station Plaza Hotel coming down!!

Joe Ferreri’s Ramada Inn built in 1960 ended as the Plaza Hotel today! Many years of financial troubles and dilapidated buildings adjacent to the Hotel, contributed to the eventual demolition of the hotel. Many Aggies have walked the halls in the last 50+ years. Weddings, ring dunk parties, and many other gatherings walked the halls and corridors of the once 17 story addition to the College Station skyline. Being from the nearby city of Caldwell, I grew up passing by the hotel to go to Piggly Wiggly and Taco Bell on Texas Ave. I always knew we were close to Taco Bell when I could see the bottom half of the hotel from the back seat on FM 60 coming from Snook.

I can’t wait to see construction start on the new (rumor) student housing, shopping/eating center and night clubs. The College Station local economy will see a boost once the new structures are in place and open for business, so Aggies get ready!

My daughter, Hailey, was the videographer and I can’t find a better video online anywhere!! She did a great job!

It was a little over a year ago when my wife and I were moving into our first house and when I became completely fascinated with Real Estate. Finally, we were both college grads with teaching jobs in two pretty well paying school districts—we had become DINKS (Dual Income No Kids). We were real tired of paying another person’s mortgage and decided that it was time to buy. After being referred to our agent, we began the 30 house tour before finding “the one.” But it was during this process that I became absorbed in the process of real estate. I enjoyed looking at comparable houses in neighborhoods, looking at market trends, talking with mortgage brokers, the home inspection, and the whole ball of wax. So, this January I enrolled in all the necessary classes to obtain a license and passed both state and national exams in April. Well that’s it, right? I’m a Realtor, yay! WRONG. I have just taken the lid off of this can of worms. After passing the exams, my sponsoring VP of Sales says “alright, now it’s time to get to work.” She proceeds to give me what looks like a Wal-Mart receipt list of things to do and people to email and forms to fill out and things to order and and and…

As I am currently teaching, I have been chipping away at this list one flake at a time, in my little cave late at night, and I am ready for summer to devote 100% of me to real estate. Thankfully, every time I walk into Century 21 Beal I am greeted with warm smiling faces, willing to drop everything in order to answer my inane little questions or give me just the advice I needed to accomplish something. Those faces help take that concoction of emotions across the stage and down the altar to a manageable state.

Victor Rosen

“Victor Rosen Working for YOU!”

victor.rosen@century21bcs.com

The reality is that the unexpected plunge of real estate in Florida around 2009 sparked a nationwide real estate crisis. This, in turn, was one of the major flames to ignite our nation’s most recent recession. So it would appear only appropriate that the real estate industry suffer long after the recovery of every other aspect of our nation’s economy. The cause of our recession’s drought would inherently outlast the seemingly stable, progressing aspects of our pre-recession economy. Therefore, despite the various other regions of America’s economy now flourishing and returning to full vigilance, the market for selling and buying homes is supposed to linger in the arid economic desert until all signs of a healthy economy have been brought to light.

Which brings us to our next question: how much longer until the real estate market stabilizes as well? The answer, to the great enthrallment of homeowners still squatting in a vacant market, is not much longer. In fact, we might not have to wait at all. The economy is healthy, banks are recovering, jobs have been made, and homes are once more looking to be purchased.

Actually, little statistical evidence shows that the housing market is back on track. But for those hoping to get a head start, that doesn’t quite matter. Instead, the significant change has been the mood of potential buyers and sellers. That’s right: the attitude toward the housing market is changing, which is all the foreshadowing necessary to predict an upswing in the market for real estate. Think for a moment: with the economy stabilizing and the nations markets growing once more, people are anticipating that the housing market is going to bounce back as well. And rightly so. It’s a fact that it will only be a matter of time before the real estate industry recovers, and for potential home buyers looking to get the best deal on a selling home, now is the last chance to buy cheap.

But this isn’t just the biased perspective of a real estate blogger throwing out ideas. The Vice President and Chief Economist of Fannie Mae, Doug Duncan, claims that “conditions are coming together to encourage people to want to buy homes.” Duncan’s speculation comes from his understanding that “Americans’ rental price expectations for the next year continue to rise, reaching their record high level.” From these projections, Duncan predicts that some of America’s home renters might find home ownership as a more compelling option due to the rising rent prices.

Fannie Mae conducts a real estate survey every month, and the vibe emanating from the respondents are suggesting some interesting things. To start, the percent of respondents who think that it is a good time to buy has reach a high of 73%. To accompany this compelling statistic, the number of respondents who claimed it is a good time to sell also rose. This coupling suggests the market is ready to expand, as buyers and sellers come closer to reaching an agreement on the negotiated and offered prices. With more people looking to sell and more looking to buy, the market automatically grows. From there it’s only a matter of processing statistics to show that home sales are finally recovering.

Perhaps the dramatic increase of respondents looking to buy is an effect of projected rising home sales. In fact, regarding respondents’ expectations of home price increases over the next twelve months, the highest amount of respondents from this entire year claimed home prices would climb. Also, coinciding with Vice President Doug Duncan’s understanding, almost 50% of respondents are anticipating rental prices to go up.

For further encouragement regarding the real estate market, 66% of the respondents of Fannie Mae’s survey claimed that, if they were to move within the next year, they would buy a home. This is a strikingly encouraging prospect (assuming the opinions of Fannie Mae’s respondents are reflective of the overall population), and owners with homes on the market can certainly look forward to a steadily growing pool of potential home buyers.

All in all, Fannie Mae’s survey shows us not that the market for home real estate is already recovering, but rather that the opinions and attitudes of the public are gradually shifting in the favor of the real estate market. Rising renting costs are causing people to shift their interest back to home ownership. Low prices for homes, likely only to rise over the next years, are also encouraging prospects for potential home buyers. And the overall stabilization of the economy is assuring potential home owners that the value of their purchase will not plummet the moment after they purchase their new home. So while the statistics are showing very little in the means of a growing market for the real estate industry, it is clear that America is ready to trust home ownership once more. And because of this, the market for real estate will begin steadily restoring itself.

PS – Susan Hilton is Bryan College Station, Texas’ real estate specialist in foreclosure sales and real estate agent career building so if you need help – CALL! 979-219-3970

Meeting the energy demands of the State of Texas hasn’t been any real issue for many years. But after the overpowering heat of last year’s summer, and the extended heat waves that threatened to bring an entire energy industry crashing down, people are beginning to wonder. For the first time in a long time, people are beginning to have real concerns as to whether the state of Texas is ready to meet their energy needs. And whether you live in Dallas, San Antonio, or Bryan-College Station, if the state isn’t ready to meet our demands for energy consumption, you are going to feel it.
So why the sudden overwhelming demand? Texas has managed to meet energy needs for decades, so why is the state in a sudden crunch? Some might say the effects of global warming are causing our homes to struggle resisting the climbing heat; and last year’s record breaking weather could hardly be offered as a rebuttal. But there are numerous other factors, the most prominent of which is the climbing growth of Texas’ population and economy.

In the last decade alone, Texas’ population has grown by over 4.2 million residents. Texas House Speaker, Joe Straus himself, claims that Texas has “by far the largest electric usage of any state—roughly equivalent to Kansas, Colorado, New Mexico, Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Mississippi combined.” That is a lot of electricity. It helps that Texas is also one of the largest states in the Nation, and quite consistently the hottest. But there is no getting around the fact that Texas’ economy is growing rapidly, and this economic prosperity is driving up electric demands at a rate that would put many other nations across the globe in a back-breaking position.
So, as a Bryan or College Station home owner, the next obvious question is: will Texas manage to meet the energy requirements for the Summer of 2012, and the several, if not innumerable summers following? The answer is yes. Texas will meet the energy demands of the state. Why? Because it has to.

To offer a (perhaps) more credible answer to the above question, Governor Rick Perry confidently proclaims that “based on current weather expectations, Texas has the capacity to meet consumer needs over the 2012 summer months.” Even Lt. Governor David Dewhurst, referring to the record hot summer of 2011, claims that “since then, the Legislature has worked closely with state agencies and generators across Texas to ensure we are prepared for 2012.”

All this political talk vaguely ensures that everything will be okay and whatnot. But the real question is how are they going to ensure we will meet the energy demands of 2012. Governor Rick Perry has this to say:

“To prepare for this summer the Public Utility Commission and ERCOT have taken some specific steps. The PUC is working with transmission and distribution companies to make better use of demand-response programs, which were created as part of their energy-efficiency requirement. ERCOT is continuing to expand its interruptible load programs, which allow large industrial and commercial users to voluntarily reduce consumption during periods of peak usage.”

So in laymen’s terms, the Public Utility Commission (PUC) and the Electric Reliability Council Of Texas (ERCOT) are taking measures to ensure better energy efficiency requirements throughout the state, and to work on their response programs to unexpected/sudden increased consumer demands (from extended heat waves, etc.).

Efficiency and reliability are all good and great, but another matter, probably the most important matter, is the development of new, affordable, and reusable energy sources. These solve all the problems and are the solutions to long-term energy demands. So what is Texas doing about this?

In Lt. Governor David Dewhurst’s report on future energy demands, he claims that “Texas’ energy resources are as diverse and abundant as our booming population.” Believe it or not, this is almost an understatement. Texas has remained at the forefront of the nation’s energy industry, and through the use and gradual growth of diverse, renewable energy sources, Texas is actually paving the way for the entire Nation’s future energy policy. Texas is currently invested in Wind Energy, Hydropower, Ocean Power, Hydrogen, and all of the non-renewable fuels, from Nuclear to oil to natural gases. In fact, Texas’ growing use of wind turbines has lead the nation in the amount and percentage of energy produced, reaching over 3% of the states’ energy production in 2007, and climbing steadily ever since. Texas is also ranked first in the nation for solar resource potential, having a virtually unlimited solar energy supply.

All statistics aside, the irrefutable reason that Texas is pushing and leading the nation in the direction of new, innovative energy sources is because of the high demand in our state. Texas needs more energy to match the growing population, industry, and rising heat. And, as humans, we respond well to necessity. Texas will meet the energy requirements for 2012, and as the population grows and the summers remain hot as ever, Texas will continue to meet the energy requirements due to the growing investments and discoveries in the energy industry. So residents of Bryan and College Station, rest assured: this summer shouldn’t get too hot, so long as you stay indoors.

PS – Susan Hilton is Bryan College Station, Texas’ real estate specialist in foreclosure sales and real estate agent career building so if you need help – CALL!       979-219-3970 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting            979-219-3970     end_of_the_skype_highlighting

Almost every Bryan/College Station resident would admit to driving past the abandoned Plaza Hotel occasionally in their weekly routine, if not daily. The seventeen story concrete shell stands at the intersection of Texas Avenue and University Drive, arguably the two busiest streets in the whole city. And after 6:30am on Thursday, May 24th 2012, this once pivotal structure will be reduced to nothing more than a pile of shattered concrete and useless rubble.

If you’ve driven through the city of College Station in the past few weeks, it’s likely that you’ve noticed the unusual vacancy of the Plaza Hotel. Not that you would be expected to notice a parking lot or diminished business: instead, it is the actual building itself which you would’ve noticed. The windows of various apartments and hotel rooms appear to almost open up to the sky behind the structure. I myself have viewed this spectacle on a few sunset evenings, when the sky behind the Plaza Hotel was painted with the various colors of sunset, the different tones of orange, pink, or Easter purple leaking through the hollowed frame of the seventeen story structure. It’s more than evident then, peering up through the cracks in the concrete frame, to understand how completely abandoned the Plaza Hotel had become. And to hear now that the building will be imploded this upcoming Thursday, you might not be entirely surprised.

But how did this pivotal structure, the hotel that has had such a powerful presence in the history of our growing city, come to such an abrupt end? In such instances as this, it is sometimes important to understand the buildings past in order to appreciate the present circumstances.

What we know today as the Plaza Hotel actually began as a Ramada Inn, the first foundations of which were laid in the late 1950s. Joe Ferreri, the constructor of the Ramada Inn, was approached in the 1950s by Earl Rudder of Texas A&M. Attracted to Ferreri’s success as a drive-inn restaurant owner, Rudder approached Joe with the proposition to construct a badly needed hotel on the Corner of Texas Avenue and University. After appearing hesitant about the project due to his lack of experience in the hotel industry, Rudder encouraged him forward, getting the young businessman to wonder how much different it could be than the food industry.

So Joe began to build. By 1960 the Ramada Inn opened, looking far different than the Plaza Hotel that we know today. The Ramada had been a quaint, two story Inn with an Olympic swimming pool, faculty club, banquet hall, and just over 150 rooms. But this quiet corner served as a focal point for the College Station and Texas A&M community.

The Ramada Inn had immediate success and was consistently pushed to over 90% of its overall capacity. In fact, the hotel had such great business that Ferreri was pressed to expand. In 1980 he began the construction of a new high-rise for his Hotel, and in just one year an additional seventeen story tower was built: making the shell of the structure that you see today.

But despite the initial success of Ferreri’s expanded hotel and the overall consistent business he was receiving from the community at large, only a few years after the construction of the Hotel’s new high-rise, Joe Ferreri was forced to sell the Ramada Inn. In the early 1980s there was a major economic recession, much like the most recent economic events of the late 21st Century. Rising interest rates on the debts incurred from Ferreri’s construction, along with the overall state of the economy and slowing business, forced Ferreri out of his prized construction. The result was a loss of over 32 million dollars in assets and personal funds. Ferreri was left only with his home, a single car, and his family.

Since then what began as the Ramada Inn has switched ownership several times, becoming most recently what it is known as today: the Plaza Hotel. And it would appear that a similar fate befell the success of the Plaza Hotel’s business, the inevitable slip to bankruptcy that caused the hotel to close its doors for the last time in 2010.

Unfortunately, the story does not end there. After the abandonment of the Plaza Hotel, the twelve acre site of prime real-estate has become a hot-spot for crime, vandalism, and drug use. Criminals have been simply unable to avoid the alluring pull of an abandoned, seventeen story shelter full of furniture, walls, and glass. Security has been gradually increasing over the past few months, but authorities have become hard-pressed for the funds to support the coverage of such a broad area when the use of civil authorities is generally looked for elsewhere. So what is the result? Demolition.

The demolition project has been delegated to the local Civil Engineering Company, Mitchell and Morgan. Veronica Morgan is the lead Civil Engineer in charge of the implosion, which is currently set to occur around 6:30am this Thursday, the 24th of May. The event will be free and open to the public. Veronica Morgan herself hopes the implosion “will be an event for the community.” Many are certainly looking forward to the removal of the towering Plaza Hotel, which has been described by as an ‘eyesore’ to the community at large.

While future construction in the Plaza Hotel area is still unclear (there has been speculation about student housing, shopping/eating centers, night clubs, etc.), it is obvious and in popular demand that the archaic, outdated shell of the 1960s Ramada Inn be destroyed and replaced with a more aesthetically appealing structure. While the overall value of the land has decreased 28.7% from 2008 to 2010, it is still located in a prime location with an excellent promise of prosperous business. The city allegedly has had multiple propositions processed over the past several months, and the entire community is excited to find out what the future will hold.

PS – Susan Hilton is Bryan College Station, Texas’ real estate specialist in foreclosure sales and real estate agent career building so if you need help – CALL! 979-219-3970