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The building fronting the bayou is going to be first for Phase 1

We only had 4 hotels downtown for quite some time, for most of the 1990s and until about 2000. Pre-2000: Hyatt Regency, Doubletree-Allen Center (now C. Baldwin), Four Seasons and Lancaster Hotel. 2000: Crowne Plaza (now The Whitehall) and Holiday Inn Express (approx - can't find an exact opening date) 2002: Sam Houston Hotel 2003: Magnolia Hotel, Marriott Courtyard, Residence Inn, Hilton Americas 2004: Club Quarters, Hotel Icon, and Inn at the Ballpark (now Westin) 2011: Embassy Suites 2014: JW Marriott 2015: Holiday Inn and Springhill Suites 2016: Hampton Inn, Homewood Suites, Aloft Hotel and Marriott Marquis 2017: Le Meridien and Hotel Alessandra (currently closed, soon to reopen as TBD) 2019: AC Hotel and Cambria 2021: Hyatt Place

It is not being bought by Marriott. It's being bought by Host Hotels & Resorts, so the possible brands are even more numerous. (Host Hotels started its life as part of Marriott, but has been completely separate corporation for a long time and owns many hotels with non-Marriott flags.)

Took the same photo a few days apart.

Horizon Tower For Lease sign has been posted along Main street. Retaining wall forming.

East River Building F Site and Foundation. Building is a total of 5 floors above grade.

I've noticed some poles being planted around the property for what looks like an impending construction fence.

I don't know what this was and I don't know that this is the right place for it, but there's some kind of activity on the lot across from Drewery in front of the mural - plywood in unusual formations. Still a big FOR SALE sign so I don't know what's being done but it's odd.

Cool, now start construction on The Mill. Thanks

I guess Rooftop wont be coming back to this location. "Sad news for fans of the cinema club’s buzzy drive-in movie experience, The Drive-In off Navigation. “We’re sad to say that due to complications with city permitting, we aren’t able to re-open this venue,” the email notes." https://houston.culturemap.com/news/entertainment/08-05-21-rooftop-cinema-club-uptown-blvd-place-tickets-august-11-september-movies/

It's pretty safe to say that Marriott actually owns zero hotels downtown. And by my count, 11 of the 26 downtown hotels fly Marriott flags. IF they add this one and if the W ever gets off the ground, they would be up to 13 of 28. Side point: holy cow! 26 hotels in downtown Houston (and soon to be 27, maybe 28). It seems like not that long ago there were 4 hotels in downtown Houston. FOUR!

^seems about right. Heaven forbid public infrastructure not look like hell. I guess that is one of the positives the Great Depression gave all of us: Public works and infrastructure that is something to be proud of, not only in its design but also the longevity of so many of those old projects.

for centerpoint to spend millions of dollars on a relocation or beautification project like this, the cost would ultimately be approved by the texas public utilities commission and end up on all of our electricity bills. i will generalize and say we tend to get the ugly/cheap option in texas compared to more progressive locales.

I can’t see Centerpoint paying the money it would take to construct a shell around their substation(s). The substation in question is a full city block, and I would think that if they decided to do something like this the best we could hope for is a high wall around the electrical equipment. Petition your local city council representative. Agreed these are typically horrid.

Maybe they can build a fake building around it https://www.messynessychic.com/2013/12/13/lights-on-but-nobody-home-behind-the-fake-buildings-that-power-chicago/

Too bad there is a substation there next to the Hilton and Toyota Center. That would be another great spot for development.

like this old Western Union switching building?

It was more about the local impacts, which are being spun as negative by those against the project. But when you actually ask the neighborhoods, they seem to want this. These are the guys being impacted by the perceived pollution, flooding, construction, traffic, displacement, etc. I don't generally agree with the way TXDOT has done things, but if the option is to build it as-is versus not build it, I hope they choose to build.

Agreed. Hopefully the city and TxDOT converge on their ideas for segment 3. I really do think the city's vision for segment three has the ability to strengthen the urban core of Houston to an incredible degree and give it the ability to become one of the premier urban areas in the country. The new development all of the new parkland would spur is just crazy to think about. http://www.houstontx.gov/planning/nhhip/east/public-meeting-east-side.pdf http://www.houstontx.gov/planning/nhhip/north/Public Meeting_North Side_Final Rev.pdf http://www.houstontx.gov/planning/nhhip/west/presentation-west.pdf http://www.houstontx.gov/planning/nhhip/midtown/public-open-house-midtown.pdf

Just did some digging and looks like it’ll be a restaurant/bar/club called Outside. Here is their IG profile: https://instagram.com/outsidehoustontx?utm_medium=copy_link

apartments above parking garage.

The big kid toys have arrived.

Of course they are. But I still loathe dealing with them. I wonder… how much of this would be an issue if say, Houston had a zoning law? I know…I know… but maybe there would be better planning to have located this next to the highly undesirable interstate/back-side of GRB, and not …hmm…squints… throws dart arbitrarily at a map of downtown blocks. There! Right within view of the big new Hilton Americas and Toyota Center.

For comments regarding the capping of the freeway and adding open space in EaDo, remember that is conceptual and TXDOT will not fund that. TXDOT is relying on private investment or other entities to do the amenities on top of the freeway. Renderings sure look nice, but that it is not guaranteed. TXDOT makes you want to think that is how it will end up looking like... Yes, TXDOT will burry the freeway, but what goes above it can still change.

The video says 3990 Montrose. This could be similar to when you see renders with parts of Houston that don’t add up together and aren’t close together or in the right position. I mean these renders aren’t exactly grade A quality.

so roughly here on the googs: https://www.google.com/maps/@29.7626221,-95.3401902,18.58z very cool.

Not sure if the wood structures are related, but the entities that own this lot (BAP 2800, LLC & Grassy Knoll, LLC) just submitted documentation asserting that the groundwater pollution under the site has reached an acceptable level. Assuming the monitoring/abatement is complete, this entire block is now available for immediate development. https://www.publicworks.houstontx.gov/sites/default/files/assets/executive_summary_2020_148_fpc.pdf Also of note, this same group is supposed to be speaking 8/10 at this meeting: City of Houston Special-Called Council Committee on Regulatory and Neighborhood Affairs

I completely agree with that, and I think the same balance applies to the section running behind the GRB.

It's my understanding that Mayor Turner is against the design of segments 1 and 2, but mostly approves of segment 3 albeit with some modifications. In a presentation to the H-GAC, the city even proposes to move forward now but make the slight changes (mostly parks/greenspace, connections, etc.). https://www.houstontx.gov/planning/nhhip/docs_pdfs/Commissioner Ryan - NHHIP - Letter & Technical Appendix.pdf https://www.houstontx.gov/planning/nhhip/docs_pdfs/TPC Presentation April 2020.pdf

So, is the answer to the question, "no"?

if you use the stick behind the steering wheel only half the lights blink, push the triangle button and they all blink!

Stephen Morgan and Steven Romo (from Ch13) are getting married - Romo is moving to NYC also... https://www.instagram.com/p/CRZkq0_hW4X/?utm_source=ig_embed&ig_rid=f4a250c5-f418-4b42-9a2b-70d3a1a619d0

Asked a worker last weekend and he said left side is gonna be a gas station, right side some restaurant, I presume some fast food with no drive thru.

Sure but CenterPoint isn't going to want to pay to do that. Plus all the connections would have to be routed to the new location as well. Anything is possible but I say it getting moved will probably never happen.

Oh hey, the neighborhood with zero negative impacts and only improvements supports it. That's so weird.

Beautiful repurpose. More of this, please.

Oooo

Im so glad that this project will cover up that horrid building from view from Discovery Green

They now have a drilling rig onsite, I think they might be moving beyond mockups!!

https://www.hansenpartners.com/development

https://gff.com/view/ojala-east-riverside/

The atmosphere would be one of people rushing past empty buildings. There's a reason there are vacant lots - there's no demand for a building on them. And, with something like 24% vacancy, it will be a while before demand increases enough to make building anything economic.

I believe the builder that built the new homes directly across McKinney had a sign up saying they would be building phase 2...

Now, if they could just give Houston a new Ritz-Carlton...

Chef announcement with rendering. Guess we now know why Michael Hsu opened an office in the Heights. https://houstonfoodfinder.com/news/austin-based-loro-announces-chef-for-houston-restaurant-in-the-heights/?fbclid=IwAR1H5YxwhgvgFYrFPANpt-ag9_dpXomQE_BaQEwlosm5YgsZv7M3LKPgl9s

This site is in desperate need of this development.

I wonder if it would ever be too much to hope the city would close either Preston and Congress just at the block bordering Market Square? I know it’s absurd to ponder closing a street to vehicular traffic in Houston, but it would allow Market Square to really become more connected to the surrounding blocks by eliminating thru-vehicles.

Agree with the points above. These days a huge "trophy" building wouldn't do as much as something residential/hotel to bring in foot traffic that has nice lower floors to make the street level atmosphere more appealing.

I like your train of thought, but feel it ought to be at least double that size or else it’s a 7 floor building with 45, 46 and 34floor buildings on 3-sides. But yes, something that allows a little more human scale to the neighborhood so Market Square isn’t surrounded by shade inducing towers…though in August that’s not a terrible thing.