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From one of the 2 tower crane operators.

Construction overall was actually around $385 million and that includes the new gallery building, the school, the underground parking and the new state of the art conservation labs. They very wisely raised an additional $90 million to support an operational endowment. So this building is not just bought and paid for, but they’ve ensured that the additional expenses are covered in perpetuity. That’s 650,000 square feet of new construction. Compare that to LA’s plans to spend $750 million to replace 3 buildings At LACMA with 1 building AND end up with less space. $475 million is a lot of money, but they have spent it wisely.

The view from Four Leaf Towers east bldg .

As you can tell I was a little upset 😅

Nice sunny afternoon . The fins are being constructed out of concrete block and a metal frame today Here is a nice pic of the ensemble of bldgs on this side of Post Osk .

To be fair, Trammell Crow was not involved during that time period. It wouldn't surprise me in the least if this project and/or Skanska's downtown project break ground sooner than many think.

I have to give the developers credit for being "brave" in pushing their building so close to the edge of the street. It seems so out of character in a city like Houston that when you see it, it stands out as being something exceptional.

The city council approved a plan to temporarily close off main street between Commerce and Rusk for use as outdoor seating for the restaurants and bars on main street. https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/transportation/article/Houston-OKs-plan-to-let-downtown-bars-15736736.php Here's the relative agenda item: https://houston.novusagenda.com/agendapublic/CoverSheet.aspx?ItemID=21005&MeetingID=453

Great location for another residential high-rise.

They will have both. He actually mentioned a place in London he is modeling this concept after...

Midtown Houston has several videos on their FB story where they were taking a tour of the ION. I think that these only stay up for 24 hours? So it's going to disappear by like 6pmish today. I'll download them and post them here with the stills. They did say that the north face of the building would be restaurants. Their post: https://www.facebook.com/stories/2112030015480802/UzpfSVNDOjEwMTYwNTUyNzU3ODEyMjI4/ Here are the same vids that I downloaded and then reuploaded to imgur The stills:

From the Houston Business Journal

Lovely infill building . Love this building in the late afternoon.

They certainly could knock everything around it and build around or even over it right? Maybe they will? It will be sad to see it go if that is indeed what happens.

I know a lot of people dismiss the architectural merits of this shopping center as already so compromised, but even with all the ham-fisted alterations, I still found some charm in the place. Despite it all, it was still distinguishable from most strip shopping centers and I wish they would embrace that rather than destroy what they have. That theater, its marquee, is a landmark for the community and one appeal to living in the neighborhood. It's your calling card. Why tear it down?

...with a boutique hotel component.

Rivet Oaks Theater is my #1 favorite place in Houston. You can feel the history inside and I even like the awkward silent bar upstairs. I don’t generally get upset about things being torn down and replaced but this would be an exception.

Dinerstein Cos.' luxury apartment tower in the Galleria area tops out ahead of schedule By Sara Samora – Reporter, Houston Business Journal Nov 18, 2020, 2:03pm CST A Houston-based developer has reached a construction milestone on its latest luxury apartment tower. The Dinerstein Cos. said its Aspire Post Oak project topped out ahead of schedule. The tower was original expected to reach its highest point in January 2021, according to a Nov. 18 press release. The luxury 383-unit high-rise is at 1650 Post Oak Blvd. and sits on 1.59 acres at the corner of Post Oak and San Felipe Street in Houston's Uptown District. It will have seven floors of residential and commercial parking below 33 residential floors. The project also contains 15,506 square feet of ground-floor retail space, which is slated to be leased to a "nationally renowned restaurant concept," the press release stated. Houston-based Ludlow & Associates Construction is the general contractor, and San Francisco-based Gensler is the architect for the project. “Aspire Post Oak’s location is one of Houston’s most appealing, urban mixed-use and pedestrian-friendly areas in the city, and we recognize the need for the property’s design to reflect the surrounding premier environment," said Brooks Howell, residential leader and principal at Gensler. Aspire Post Oak is a part of the Dinerstein Cos. Aspire Living Collection. The units have an average size of 1,210 square feet, larger than an average apartment space, to accommodate current market demand. All the units will have a private outdoor space overlooking the Uptown District with views of the Galleria, downtown Houston and Memorial Park. Future tenants will have the option of choosing between one-, two- or three-bedroom units and penthouses. The units will also feature modern kitchens, European-inspired bathrooms and in-unit washers and dryers. Aspire Post Oak's amenities will include smart unit technology, a resident lounge, massage rooms, private dining rooms, a 24-hour fitness center, an infinity-edged pool with tanning decks and adjacent aqua lounge, indoor and outdoor resident event space, an elevated dog park and a concierge. Leasing for Aspire Post Oak will begin in the latter part of 2021 with rents starting at $3,000 per month. “Although we do business all over the country, Houston is our home, and we are beyond excited for Aspire Post Oak to place its mark on the Houston skyline,” said Brian Dinerstein, CEO of Dinerstein Cos. “We look forward to creating a modern, cutting-edge, residential option at one of the most walkable and vibrant locations in the city.” The project broke ground in spring 2019 and had been the subject of a lawsuit related to neighborhood opposition. However, the lawsuit was dismissed in July 2020 after the parties reached an agreement, according to Harris County District Court records, which did not disclose the terms of the agreement.

I went ahead and emailed Preservation Houston and the Mayor. I was told that Mayor Parker did a great job strengthening the preservation ordinance here in Houston but it could still use some TLC.

Some activity going on today at the construction site.

^^^ @rgarza my pal, you didn't tell us about this drop dead gorgeous 215-seat auditorium/theater at the soon to open MFAH. what a remarkably/beautiful addition. i am still struggling with the overall exterior of this burgeoning and yet monumental MFAH structure. upon my most honest personal opinion... i think that the exterior consisting of that GOD AWFUL frosted glass tubing... is the most UGLY/HORRIFIC THING EVER for a newly modern day constructed museum edifice that is costing in excess of ($475mm). with a price tag that steep, EVERY ASPECT OF THIS remarkable edifice should be something that DREAMS ARE MADE OF. nonetheless, let's talk about the INTERIOR design. once again, upon my most personal view, in lieu of observing many of the posted illustrations throughout this burgeoning MFAH thread, the interior design looks like a small slice of PURE HEAVEN. the billowing and barrel ceilings, the seemingly never-ending space, the pure and unadulterated opulence... like, everywhere you look. the way that the ART SEEMS TO COME TO LIFE throughout this magnificent structure, the SOOTHING and yet state-of-the-art LIGHTING EFFECTS throughout, and the seamless flow of pure/raw energy emanating from the MFAH staffers as they prepare this place for it's opening. HOUSTON, is a very fair, and yet, hard working blue collar city. it always has been. however, upon your visit, this small slice of PURE HEAVEN... is going to catapult your very soul and overall well-being into the stratosphere...

I wouldn't say it's purely decorative. Sett paving can last a lot longer than concrete or asphalt (centuries in many cases). And it has the beneficial side effect of slowing down vehicular traffic. On sidewalks in places with street trees, brick pavers (or, even better, Portuguese stone) undulate naturally with growth in the trees' root system, whereas concrete sidewalks crack. The material is ubiquitous on the sidewalks of residential neighborhoods in Rio de Janeiro, for example, for exactly this reason.

right, the whole point of getting rid of the pierce elevated is that it is a kind of block between midtown and downtown. whether there are cars or trees on it, it is going to have the same effect. if we're going to displace as much of the east and north around downtown to re-route 45, get rid of every remnant of the pierce elevated structure. just get rid of it.

Oh, that was just to give us recurring nightmares and to look cool lol

One of my favorite things about living in LA is discovering how much funky old stuff is here. People think LA is all Beverly Hills and the Sunset Strip but my neighborhood has two vintage movie theaters (Los Feliz and The Vista) as well as several really cool 1920s era apartment buildings. And it seems as if most neighborhoods have walkable "town centers" like Franklin Square, Los Feliz Village, Larchmont Village, Echo Park and Silverlake along Sunset Blvd. Houston is losing too much of it's soul. If the River Oaks goes bye-bye, I'll be very sad. A city is more than just buildings, it's memories and shared experiences. My Mom grew up going there. I went on my first date there. Had my first experience with the Rocky Horror Picture Show there. In grad school at UH, we loved the midnight shows. It's the last of the old ladies and it would be a tragedy to lose it.

Weingarten Realty seems to be the epitome and personification of irresponsible development. Is "make it look cheap and ugly" a part of their business plan? If so, they've met and exceeded that goal. It's a damn shame that their tentacles ever latched on to River Oaks Shopping Center.

Really sucks to lose the theater. I love seeing movies there. Take out the Mens Warehouse instead.

Reminder of what the crown is supposed to look like with a rendered approximation of relative prominence...

I Liked the former Crawler Crane better than this one.

Do Roostar owners post about it on the internet? I don't care if you believe differently than me, just how you use your platform as a business owner. I didn't see anything on "boss lady"s social media.

lets kick this off... I want to see another tower rise!

IMO proximity to parks within walking distance is an awkward measure because it doesn't reflect differences in how citizens get around, what kind of parks programming and features they actually want/need, and differences in the quality of parks. Chicago is a traditionally urban city and so it stands to reason they should have more small neighborhood parks that give people access to ample areas of grass and trees for activities they would otherwise miss while living in a rowhouse or apartment. And Chicago is also the kind of city where many residents would and could walk to such a park. A lot of Houston is annexed suburban sprawl or suburban style apartment complexes. People who live in these areas thus have access to large private yards, cul-de-sacs, private HOA amenities, apartment complex amenities and green spaces, etc. So not only is the need for small neighborhood "grass and trees" parks greatly diminished, but because of the lower population density and limited walkability of these areas it would be harder to provide raw geographic coverage and also actually achieve the goal of these places being accessible on foot. Also the County runs a lot of parks and there are lots of MUD amenities that aren't being counted. And there's initiatives where school playgrounds and sports fields get double use for community programming and recreation leagues. And there's private sports parks. When you put it all together, the stats are skewed I think. I think if there was a analysis done on parks needs and accessibility, what you'd find is that older neighborhoods in the city proper aren't that different from Chicago. There's parks all over the place and recreation and sports facilities and community centers in most established areas inside the Beltway that are in the COH or one of the other traditional municipalities(Pasadena, Bellaire, etc) The deficiency I think would not even be in the City of Houston at all but rather in unincorporated Harris County. There are areas of poor infrastructure that are also mostly low income in the Northwest and Northeast. There's also similarly low income "rural urban" areas. Also many of the new-build sprawl housing developments(detached homes built for rental purposes by remote investors, that will quickly depreciate and become workforce housing) have zero built-in parks. I would like to see outlying areas have more parks facilities that fill the gaps that would exist in such places. For example, contiguous hike and bike trails to compensate for streets and roads being pretty terrible for that. In areas with lots of working families with children a multipurpose gym and rec center that the YMCA could operate would be appreciated by these citizens I am sure. Also there are relatively few public swimming pools that don't require a costly membership to access located on the northern side of the metro, a county pool would be a big attraction. People generally like dog parks as they are a place to get out and be outside. In all case these things would be more centralized and would be accessed mostly via driving or by public transit(bus routes) and would be most effective if they drew from a wide area rather than trying to be neighborhood focused just to boost a stat. Sorry for the wall of text, I was really bored at work today and kind of daydreamed about this question for longer than normal.

They just measure belovedness by how much someone is willing to pay for it. Maybe that particular red box is a head fake to get some alternate financing for the other three from a "save the RO Theatre" campaign, but jeez, to be a theater owner now, you're probably desperately trying to volunteer to be a vaccine distribution center. Not the best time for these guys to see value in keeping it around. I think a small cinema like this one would be a great addition to a walkable retail area with dense residential, a pretty nice amenity on it's own. The old structure/style of this one would add to the charm, and I don't typically care for that kind f stuff.

Any other rumblings here? Along with the Hess garage block residential, this project would round out Discovery Green's adjacent blocks, I think. .

You have to remember that developers have zero sentimental attachment to anything. People don't seem to understand or just don't want to come to the realization that developers literally only care about making as much money as possible and nothing else. This is why our city needs more protections for historic buildings because soon we will have none left.

Another video

I just don't get it. They own the whole development - there are plenty of other places to put that tower that don't destroy a beloved local institution.

More found photos.

Those "seniors" look pretty ripped. I hope I look that good when I'm a senior. Nice find @Urbannizer

Untitled by o texano, on Flickr

There's a hundred-dollar word. I really hope no optometrists/ophthalmologists open an office there. Could you imagine having a dilated pupil and walking through the lobby?