houstonmacbro

I'm just saying don't count it out. Same as Sharpstown. In the long run, I think it (Sharpstown) will come back if for nothing else than its proximity to the Galleria which is growing like gangbusters.

In 20 years Houston will look very different. Just look at Kirby and Uptown Park areas. Skyscrapers?!? Who whudda thunk.

No, Sharpstown doesn't. But TWENTY YEARS AGO someone was killed in the Greenspoint Mall parking lot, and for whatever reason, that trumps all. The Soviet Union dissolved... we've had four presidents, three governors, four mayors... grunge rock came and went... the internet went from a pipe dream in then Senator Al Gore's imagination to an essential reality today... a kid born the day the shooting happened would be in college today... in other words, change is all around, yet in all that time, whenever you think of Greenspoint, you think of "Gunspoint," even though it was twenty years ago.

I say that not to condemn the place... I'm a big backer of Greenspoint and the Aldine High School area... I'm just stating a fact. That place will never come back, and that's a shame. You can put all the lipstick you want on a corpse, but at the end of the day, it's still a corpse. Having spent a lot of my youth and having worked at the Greenspoint Mervyn's from 1992 - 1995, I wish i weren't so, but that would be denying the obvious.

They do have a new digital movie theater at the mall. Also Greenspoint has access to three major freeways, Sysco Foods just built a major distribution center there, and they have immediate proximity to the airport. Sharpstown doesn't have this.

I was riding down Almeda yesterday towards downtown and noticed a skyscraper in the distance with these really cool looking vertical windmills on top. Does anyone know what building this is, and the story behind it?

Geeze, What would they do if you just continue using the Tripod? Taze you. Wrestle you to the ground and throw you in cuffs? If rent-a-cops touch you they can be open to lawsuit.

I really wasn't willing to find out. LOL

I looked at the clip again and it's possible that the houses are in Fifth Ward. They are on blocks and many houses out in that area are raised like that. Just a thought.

Yeah, I don't believe it's a city thing as much as a property management thing. It's the same at Rice University. No one will say anything when your just walking around snapping pictures but as soon as you drag out a tripod your going to be confronted.  Is a tripod to "professional" looking?  I don't know and I don't blame you for wanting to use one. That's just the way it is. 

Yeah, I think it's because people started using it for official photos (weddings, portraits, quinceneras, etc.) ... I know I shot a singing group's portrait out there, but had to do it without the tripod (security stood there and made sure I didn't use it).

I guess they figure tripod = profession. No tripod means - amateur (or semi-professional).

I'd heard most of the movie was taped here.

Perhaps they could just put Maruchan Ramen Noodles on board and still provide it free. That stuff is way cheaper than a wilted lettuce sandwich.

And salty. I know a lot of processed food HAS salt in it, but those noodles have salt and TASTE salty.

Did anyone else see that study that came out last month about AT&T reliability and speed being off the charts? I guess a couple of years of people complaining was enough to get it to upgrade its network substantially. I was surprised to see it besting Verizon in most markets. There was one place where AT&T reliability was around 95%, while Verizon was in the 60's.

Unfortunately, I don't think Houston was part of that study.

I'm surprised T-Mobile doesn't get better reviews in Houston. In most markets where T-Mobile ate an incumbent carrier (Primeco/Aerial in Houston, Voicestream in Minneapolis, etc...) the service is considered superior.

I have relatives on T-Mobile and they wouldn't dare switch. They get pretty good reception and much lower rates than me on AT&T.

As someone that lives and works in the area I have mixed feelings. I work for the college which has a branch just across the freeway (Beltway 8) and we were/are hoping for a revival of the area. It has such potential, but so do a lot of things I guess.

I do think a theater might be a good option. I do kind of favor the open-air, town center concept and wonder with all those acres, would it be better to build something like that...?

I do wish Continental did what Hawaiian Airlines did and offered free meals in addition to extra buy on board options.

Maybe what Continental should do is try to sell distinctly Houston products (food products from Houston area chains and/or specialties from the Houston area, such as fajitas, Vietnamese sandwiches, etc) on flights to and from Houston. I also thought of the idea of including chips and salsa with meal packs as kind of a Tex-Mex touch...

This is a really good idea. And don't several of the Houston chains operate in the new terminal already?

I am sad to see them ditch their meal service. It was the one thing that made me fly them over other airlines (honest, I am not just saying that).

Anyhow, I also thought I heard somewhere that they are going to be charging extra for additional legroom. WTH?!?

This project was never realistic. The area has no capacity for something like this. They are already closing shops and restaurants in the town center, no way another entire retail/food district was going to hold up. Let go of your 2007 economy pipe dreams people, Pearland is and always will be that muddy, tallow-filled area south of Houston.

I think Pearland could have supported this development, but it was started at the wrong time (economic downturn/depression). I will say that I ate at a Seafood restaurant in the Town Center there and it was HORRIBLE. I will never go again. If Pearland doesn't 'step up' I will not be back for anything else.

I can't remember the name, but it is a few stores down from Barnes and Noble.

Yuck!

I mostly slum in the 'burbs and we have pretty good reception all over the FM 1960 area. I do have lousy service when I visit mom (south of the medical center by about 3 miles). I will ask my sister if she has noticed any improvement.

I'm having to think it's the angle...? I mean, the drawings looked pretty good.

What happened?

Does anyone have any street-level pictures?

Who said anything about a laundromat?

Plans for market

The empty J.C. Penney space, however, was recently acquired by investor Matthew Nguyen who, separately, plans to open a market and laundromat in the space early next year. He'll also carve out smaller areas for tenants that want to lease between 800 and 1,500 square feet.

Segal said the renovations and rebranding will begin soon.

Full article here: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/hotstories/6778267.html

I read, but didn't understand the idea of a huge laundromat in the mall? That just seems to go against the concept of a shopping mall.

Has anyone noticed another HUMONGOUS cross on St. Luke's Hospital (downtown)? It is like huge and plastered on the side of their building that abuts the Pierce Elevated.

Pizza In Houston The Houston Area

Photo essay on Chron.com

URL: http://www.chron.com/entertainment/photogallery/Looking_for_pizza.html#16312891

Looks like H1N1 is rearing it's ugly head again. I think what's more startling is that this time around, people are actually dying from it and it seems the news is just not reporting a lot of the death ... or at least not like they were reporting 'cases' back in the Spring/Summer.

Weird.

I thought the comments below the article were telling and I concur with many of them. Luby's used to have good food at great prices. They really did price themselves out of the casual dining marketing. While Luby's entire fate is not sealed, this is pointing to where they are headed if they don't get control of their prices and food.

Leaner Times as Luby's Trims Locations

Citing the economic slowdown, Houston cafeteria chain Luby's is closing 25 of its 120 restaurant locations.

That represents 20 percent of its restaurants.

Six Houston stores closed by Thursday, leaving 36 restaurants in the area. The closed stores are:

• • 6223 Bellaire Blvd.

• • 8440 Gulf Freeway

• • 4511 FM 1960 West

• • 1210 Southmore Ave. in Pasadena

• • 6125 Central City Blvd. in Galveston

• • 5115 Avenue H in Rosenberg.

Full article here: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/business/6671963.html

Domino's is terrible, but they run some excellent deals ($5 small one topping, $10 large specialty) so I sometimes find myself ordering to go from the one on the corner and picking it up.

I am not a big fan of Domino's either, but I like their veggie.

I know this is gonna sound cheesy (forgive the pun), but I like Domino's (new?) veggie pizza. It's thin crust and delicious:

That just marks the 3rd BS pointless website related to this project. Never gonna happen.

I do believe it's gonna happen, but this economy has put the brakes on so many projects. Might be well into Fall 2010 or even Spring 2011 before they really get moving again.

Has anyone seen the 2008 Honda Accord? In pictures it comes off as kind of ugly and loaded with styling cliches. Why have they turned the Accord into such a boat? I guess it is the first law of car manufacturing that for some reason, each generation needs to be bigger than the last.

I kinda like it in certain colors and mod levels. I think Acura is driving the ship these days, and the new Acura (based on the same body design) is a beast!

Iconic East End eatery falls victim to rail

Harrisburg project ends Lenox Barbecue's 63-year run

By ALLAN TURNER

HOUSTON CHRONICLE

July 19, 2009, 8:34PM

Nathan Lindstrom Chronicle

Erik Mrok, owner of Lenox Barbecue, stands outside his restaurant that has closed due to Metro light rail line construction.

Lenox Barbecue's big closing bash was a party to remember: Scores of diners chowed through mountains of brisket, quaffed 14 cases of beer and lovingly recounted tales from the eatery's glory years. But now the party's over and the padlock's on the door.

After 63 years of serving barbecue and all the fixings to East End patrons, the Harrisburg Boulevard restaurant has become a victim of progress. In coming months, rails for the Metropolitan Transit Authority's east Houston light rail project will run right through the restaurant's dining room. The owner and Metro officials finalized the property sale last month.

Full article here: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/6537112.html