Wednesday, October 03, 2007

Bank Forward @ University Village

Here's a look at what the new Bank Forward branch currently under construction at University Village will look like when completed. The bank should open next month. Back in May, GFL was the first to report about Bank Forward coming to University Village. Can anyone tell me exactly where that Starbucks is going to be located? My guess is on the left (south) side of the building.

27 comments:

GrandForksGuy said...

BTW, I should probably give an image credit to Icon Architects who I believe is the firm responsible for the new bank.

Anonymous said...

who the hell uses Bank Forward anyways? I guess I don't understand how these new banks can come in here and pull customers away from their current banks....or at least enough customers to support the banks they're building, aren't they building one on the extreme south side of columbia towards King's Walk?

Anonymous said...

All the buildings look alike - not like the "Dinkytown" style we were lead to believe would be built.

Anonymous said...

No demand for a Dinytown style community = no Dinkytown.

Pretty simple once you think about it.

Anonymous said...

Chill dude, no need to be insulting. A Dinkytown environment was conceived and sold to the community and embraced by the University. Why did that concept become something else?

Anonymous said...

I think UND always wanted strip malls, they just used the dinkytown idea to sell the idea of using the Bronson property for non-academic areas. They are doing a horrible job of developing the property and lost a great opportunity to make something unique.

Anonymous said...

Nothing wrong with continuing the classic style of architecture in the U neighborhood; it looks pretty darned classy, to be honest...traditional...not kirtzy like the hit and miss structures in Dinkytown.

As for a variety of shops? Well, it looks like that's happening, too...slowly, but happening. (If only everyone would quit begging for the franchise places.)

Anonymous said...

Starbucks backed out of their space is what I heard.

elucidarian said...

Is it fair to ask if UND has sold out? Has the university sought, unevenly, to benefit from going where the money is, versus nurturing creative environments for their intellectual worth? No such institution should jump at any venture just because it promises to be lucrative. There must be a balance. Hopefully, the recent bout of financially incentive ventures will pay back in academic dividends.

Anonymous said...

I think developers could have pursued funkier, more contemporary (and yes, jumbled) styles that appeal to college students and younger adults instead of another strip mall for the alumni and seniors living in overpriced townhomes.

Anonymous said...

You are correct, UND has sold out...

Anonymous said...

"to benefit from going where the money is"

Carve this on Kupchella's tombstone.

Matt BK said...

The problem is, nobody seems to want to challenge any of it. You would think that the students would want to, but anyone I've talked to doesn't really care.

------
www.CampusDakota.com - For Students

Anonymous said...

Seems that students understand that they have no voice at UND. They come and go, they pay ever spiralling tuition, get a degree (or transfer out), and go on. The promise of a Dinkytown was just that, a promise. Broken as other promises have been.

Anonymous said...

How is the U different from the U of M or most of the other colleges?

(Other than losing out on Dinkytown, that is?)

Tuition and books, like insurance expense, are out-of-hand no matter where one goes, it seems to me.

river man said...

Tuition, healthcare costs, executives' salaries and compensation, pro athletes, Wal-Mart, Microsoft, and countless others are out of control in expensese. Tutition and most healthcare costs are outrageous. Executives, movie stars, owners of large companies, doctors, big investors, and pro athletes get paid way way too much compared to the average salary. One word, greed. Wal-Mart has grown too big and and greedy. Microsoft software is too expensive. What happened to the social conscience of this country when in a company an employee makes $13,000 a year or less while top executive and owners make millions. Sad! All I want is a salary between $50,000 and $150,000. That's my rant of the day. Sorry if I have gone off topic and upset some people.

Anonymous said...

I agree a lot of the above are overpaid. But moviestars and athletes wouldn't draw the big pay if we didn't go gaga over them. It bothers me to see the huge corporate salaries and even more the mega buyouts for the same executives who should get canned. Doctors-some don't earn much more than $150,000 and most of them have huge debt to repay after years of education.

elucidarian said...

"athletes wouldn't draw the big pay if we didn't go gaga over them"

I watched Field of Dreams with my kids the other night (we had to apologize for the brief language). There's one point where Ray Liotta's Shoeless Joe Jackson shares his love of the game, how he played for food money, and how he would have played for nothing. How many players would admit that today without fearing they'd lose their big salary, if they feel that way at all. Like Trent Reznor said, "God money, Ill do anything for you. God money, just tell me what you want me to."

As for overpaid university entities, has anybody seen this pitch to raise the a President's salary? The Board of Higher Ed. is worried we're not competitive enough in paying that position. What about every other position?! I heard there was a previous UND prez who said refused to be paid more if the staff and faculty didn't get a raise as well. A couple years back, while working on campus, I found out that Kupchella got 17% raise while most other employees got 3%! The percentage should be the same across the board, and all raises will still be reflective of base salary.

Irksome!

Anonymous said...

River Man - Perhaps they get paid more than others because of their education and the nature of their work - being an executive is a 24/7 job, most of the time and they have an obligation to their stockholders to make sure the company is actually making money. I think it is only fair that persons with no education earn what they do - after all they cannot contribute as much to our society as others with education and experience. After all, we paid a lot for our education so I think we should be making more. And celebrities and athletes make this much because you let them - when you go to the movies, rent one, or watch sports on TV - you support their living style. As you might notice, celebrities and athletes do not make as much in Europe (which also contributes to their more normal life style), simply because the society is not as crazy about them.

Anonymous said...

The gap between the average employee's pay and that of the top executive has grown exponentially in most companies. This represents a more incidious Dickensian gap between the haves and have-nots generally. Where are we headed? Sorry, this thread has gone astray of the new Bank Forward building.

Anonymous said...

Has anyone heard for sure that Starbucks has pulled out, or does someone have a confirmed opening date for Starbucks?

Anonymous said...

It's true that when we go see a movie or rent one (or buy a CD or attend a sports event) we are supporting the lives of the stars; however, we are also supporting the whole crew, down to "best boy" and "dolly grip," most of whom earn modest wages and may be unemployed much of the year. Anyone who downloads film or music files illegally using the logic that the stars and corporate execs don't need the money must also realize that they are hurting the "common folk" as well.

Anonymous said...

I'm no supporter of pirated anything, but by the time CDs and DVDs are released, the little people have already been paid. It's mostly the lead performers and executives who profit from royalties that lose out.

river man said...

I apologize for going off subject of the thread, but I was just responding to a thead above my comment and I just wanted to contribute to the thread and my thoughts. The poster commented on tuition being outrageous, and I just wanted to expand on it with my own opinion. But sometimes that's the nature of these threads and this blog when a thread starts off on on one topic, and by the end of the thread, its entirely about something else.

Anonymous said...

WDAZ was reporting today that a new hotel, housing and businesses on the Bronson property may soon be announced.

Anonymous said...

What's this talk about the university selling out? When UND sold the Dinkytown idea, it wasn't to have the same thing as U of M. The idea was to have something similar, i.e. shops, etc. There is now a gas station with lots of amenities, haircut place, chiropractor, tanning salon, two banks, Starbucks coming, apartments above some of the places, and Suite 49. I don't know what you people want. Some people just can't be pleased.

Anonymous said...

"Some people just can't be pleased."

And some people just won't be fooled.