Montrose1100 Posted April 23, 2014 Share Posted April 23, 2014 Hello HAIF. What is the odd building on the northwest corner of Fannin @ Congress? It looks like an early 2000 build from that street corner, but the view of it looking south west from I-10 & 59 make it seem like huge bunker. Is it a parking garage with only one level of office? I understand the bunker side is facing other buildings on the block but it's a lot taller than it's neighbors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Pragmatist Posted April 23, 2014 Share Posted April 23, 2014 http://www.houstonarchitecture.com/Building/2072/Congress-Plaza.php I'm guessing this is the building you're talking about. The link has information on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arche_757 Posted April 23, 2014 Share Posted April 23, 2014 This is one of those great buildings that looks so different from so many angles that it's hard sometimes to reconcile one view of it with another. Seen from the Main Street Bridge over Buffalo Bayou, the building appears as a solid brown brick with a single narrow slit of windows across the top. From ground level on Congress Street is looks more like a stately bank with its clock, portal, and reflective glass. The disparity arises from the fact that the building is intended to be the opposite of many other buildings in Houston. Instead of offices supplemented by a meager amount of parking, this building is mostly parking with offices as an afterthought. A full 13 of its 17 stories are reserved for cars. The remaining office areas are utilized by the county court system for jury assembly, a law library, and other functions as deemed necessary. Who the heck did that write-up? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mollusk Posted April 23, 2014 Share Posted April 23, 2014 I've no idea who drafted the writeup, but it's outdated except in the sense that Congress Plaza's major function is parking. Originally it had jury assembly on the ground floor, a good chunk of the county attorney's office, a number of courtrooms for civil courts, all topped off by the county law library. The civil courts moved out several years ago when the new civil courthouse was completed, followed by jury assembly a year or so ago. The law library is now downstairs, and the county is apparently repurposing the upper floors, judging by the construction equipment on the Fannin side. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Montrose1100 Posted April 24, 2014 Author Share Posted April 24, 2014 It looks so out of place when approaching from the east. All these small older buildings and the a giant wall with one tiny horizontal window. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subdude Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 This was originally planned as a much larger project. I copied the image from the Houston: Potential topic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Montrose1100 Posted April 24, 2014 Author Share Posted April 24, 2014 This was originally planned as a much larger project. I'm having trouble uploading the image at the moment unfortunately.Upon closer inspection of the facade it does look very late 80's. Google street view made it seem like the same era as Calpine Center. How do you have such a large collection of projects that could have been? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subdude Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 How do you have such a large collection of projects that could have been? Oh, I just sort of pile 'em up as I see them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Houston19514 Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 I wonder if the structure was built as planned; I.e., could they add the office tower structure on top some day? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mollusk Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 I wonder if the structure was built as planned; I.e., could they add the office tower structure on top some day? The structure as built has more parking garage than the original concept plus a number of office suitable floors above that, all of which was facilitated by the county's need for space at the time. What didn't get built as planned was the SW corner of the block, which is now a "moo" small parking garage. I don't know if it's got the structure to be built on top of, but I somehow doubt it. Edit: Every time I try to insert the Yiddish expression of disinterest spelled m - e - h, it gets auto corrected to "moo." Feh. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Montrose1100 Posted April 24, 2014 Author Share Posted April 24, 2014 Oh, I just sort of pile 'em up as I see them.Ah yes, I remember this from the thread. Didn't put two and two together. I thought you had dug up one of the 1,000's of books/magazine clippings from your attic that are careful organized by date of release. Kept in weather proof containers, scanning each document with microfiber gloves. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subdude Posted April 24, 2014 Share Posted April 24, 2014 Although the planned structure does look extremely 1980s, I think it is unfortunate that it wasn't built. Another victim of the bust years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigFootsSocks Posted April 25, 2014 Share Posted April 25, 2014 Although the planned structure does look extremely 1980s, I think it is unfortunate that it wasn't built. Another victim of the bust years. Yeah I don't know I'd argue that this would look dated immensely quickly and would probably eventually be torn down like the other vacant towers in this city. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arche_757 Posted April 25, 2014 Share Posted April 25, 2014 The proposed tower looks very much like it would belong in Austin. Not that its a terrible design. Very much would be a nice Post Modern design in 2080 - something that seems really odd to think about. Simple, clean, and large enough that it could have been easily reconfigured into some other use. Personally, I think its a lot better than the Civil Courts building with the undersized dome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Montrose1100 Posted April 25, 2014 Author Share Posted April 25, 2014 I know this might be veering off topic but do you all think this area of Downtown will be one of the last to be fully developed? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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