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X.R.

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Everything posted by X.R.

  1. X.R.
    Top part sort of looks like the Brava.
  2. X.R.
    Most/all of their properties are retail. I'm in disbelief that we'd actually get retail right there. Its badly needed, just in disbelief. Also, I feel like the neighborhood would fight it. BUT, if we get a little Marq'E mixed with some 19th and Yale from their portfolio in this spot...myyyyyy goodness. It would change the complexion of museum district.
  3. X.R.
    I think this was also my first reaction, but its moreso because I couldn't visualize what it would look like when done. Particularly the materials. The menil's most recent construction showed that they know what they are doing, the structures are muted but look great and obviously they used quality materials. Plus, the newer landscaping by the Rothko is starting to look great. Their portfolio of the houses, since the Menil design looks closer to their houses than their hospitality stuff which is interesting, Flato designed gives me a lot of hope that this rises above the 50s-style buildings that plagued our college campuses 😚. https://www.lakeflato.com/projects/houses
  4. X.R.
    lol, so they're anticipating beginning when a new administration is on its way to DC. It doesn't seem like their efforts in other parts of the state is really gaining traction either, from the dally morning news: Following December 2019 public meetings, TxDOT said 27% of 849 people indicated that they wanted I-345 to remain untouched. About 31% said they wanted a depressed highway, while 27% wanted it fully removed. In 2021, 66% of roughly 1,000 people surveyed said that they wanted the highway kept in place, noting that many commuters from parts of southern Dallas use I-345 to travel north. I dunno guys and gals, the longer our project drags the worse it gets for TxDot. Its not like this somehow becomes MORE politically popular over time, lol. I mean, community sentiment is going the wrong way in Dallas over a much smaller project. And if we have another bad flood [god forbid] I'm not sure "lets dig a giant hole and put a freeway in it" is going to play well. Then we gotta tell Houstonians to adopt a different traffic flow for 5+ years as they work on this, and during COVID we were like "yeah that could work" but now the freeways are full again and I'm not sure if that's feasible without destroying everyone's commute. I'm for certain parts of the project, but for a bunch of factors that aren't all just political, this is starting to feel like a dog that won't hunt.
  5. X.R.
    The Menil should just start a construction/development company at this point and start designing all over Montrose cuz they clearly understand the aesthetic. Those renderings perfectly vibe with the area, my goodness.
  6. X.R.
    Goddamn, that looks fun and that amenity list is insane. The whole boxy designs with aggressively designed balconies is a thing in Houston now, huh. Plus the "lets put this on pillars and make show them off like midriff."
  7. X.R.
    I agree, I kind of think its the most beautiful within the loop. If I ever made enough money I think this is where I'd want to live first, as opposed to west U or memorial or bellaire or whatever compared neighborhood. I think its cuz the location is so nice. This is larger than most of the items in the area, but in terms of comparable areas [in terms of home prices] is this mostly about expectations and location of the neighbors when compared to something like the tower going up in Tanglewood?
  8. X.R.
    Its so true, lol. Which is wild because so many other countries that get infected by the FIFA curse get so much construction done, meanwhile we're like "yeah, dunno if burying a short stretch of highway can be done in three and a half years."
  9. X.R.
    Houston and Dally won the world cup bid for 2026. If I'm those cities I have an honest conversation with TxDot about what they can finish before the WC comes, for any portion of their highway proposals that already have the greenlight [so for Houston, only the midtown 59 part?]. Dally has a highway TxDot wants to entrench now too, the one by Deep Ellum, i think its i-345. The Dallas one won't be as bad since the main airport is on the west side and so i-345 won't be used by travelers to Dally or Jerryworld/Arlington. Still wouldn't want my city to have a gaping hole in it next to a major entertainment district [deep ellum]. Houston just can't tolerate a disruption to the redline during the WC. It was basically built for this moment. So they better get to work on entrenching that highway later this year or...😬
  10. X.R.
    Yup, that looks about as painful a remodel as most of expected. I've been avoiding going in since this started when I'm working DT. Not gonna lie though, despite my initial hand-wringing, from the outside this is looking like a hell of an update. They were taking even more brick off late last week. We may get the refresher we hoped for after all!
  11. X.R.
    Wanna give an update: Its open and I'm assuming its gaining tenants because there are U-Haul's and furniture trucks in the streets every weekend. So there was a lot of moaning by the neighborhood about this project but I gotta say that its kind of developed into a neighborhood hub for foot traffic. I think its the extensive landscaping and the large sidewalks and copious amounts of healthy grass. Just a ton of dog walkers [the poop bag stations are constantly busy] during the day and joggers and older people walking at night assumedly because of how well lit the area is compared to other streets. Oakdale and Prospect streets were mostly empty pre-Boone, now you have kids riding scooters on the sidewalks on both streets. Its been an interesting mini-social experiment to watch. The net-impact on the neighborhood so far has been nice, in my opinion.
  12. X.R.
    I've spoken to lawyers with knowledge about Target's retail numbers at this site and how that land is being valued internally with expectations of where the area is headed in the next 5 years. Whoever tries to do it will have to take it from Target's cold, dead hands. We're talking retail at the site so I am surprised no one mentioned what seems like a decent success, and thats Saint Bernard. I got clients that go there, I go there sometimes, its always busy on the weekends now, and last winter season was crazy there. Maybe they just don't have the right retail mix? Tom Ford never made much sense to me there, despite people who could afford tom ford shopping down the street at saint bernards and buying like 500 dollars of golf shirts [about 3.5 shirts, lol]. They shouldn't try and be an extension of the Galleria's uber-luxury section, they should be themselves and figure out really draws in the pockets of the people surrounding them. They have a few examples, so build around that.
  13. X.R.
    Putting in the silver line drew all sorts of criticism and some lawsuits from the surrounding businesses due to the construction and perceived/real effect the construction had on their revenue. I wonder if that is in the back of the mind of the Uptown peeps when considering more pedestrian construction. Tbh, there are alot of roads that could be utilized for a lane given the lack of traffic outside of peak rush hour. Plus, y'all have schools and actually incredible number of pocket parks that could really be given a boost by having bike connectivity with Memorial Park. I work in and around the Galleria area and it always amazes me that for an area with such high property values (condos are viable assets here!) getting from Tanglewood/West Oaks/Upper Post Oak/San Filipe to the park seems like such a treacherous proposition. Any real protected pathway would instantly be a huge boost, to both life quality and property values. I see so many people with strollers navigating shitty sidewalks, cyclists riding front roads, and joggers in the street that I'm just like "whats going on."
  14. X.R.
    If I'm being honest, I'd almost prefer an indoor pool to one that has no view, is surrounded by buildings, or doesn't get much sun. Plus, as an indoor, its all year round as opposed to a lot of outdoor pools. If they can, make the windows bigger, put in a sizeable spa/hot tub, and its a better amenity than some of these pools at the luxury places.
  15. X.R.
    I've been to the Denver location, pretty much the ideal sports bar for cities with multiple teams/strong sports town since their main offering is that they can get any game on any channel. Denver was a lot of people who were baseball/football fans but didn't go to the game, and alot of non-Denver fans looking for their teams' games. And the numerous TVs help them have a bunch of different games on at different times, including the EPL. I know Greenstreet has its issues, but I think this is a positive sign both for the development and for downtown regarding the strength of the demand for such an experience. Can't help but think this is them thinking "we want to get as close to Toyota Center/Juice Box to capture that audience." Kind of smart since they get to establish the brand before whatever Crane and Co have in store for the area around Minute Maid.
  16. X.R.
    Partly a joke, or maybe the truth, but maybe the East Downtown TIRZ ran outta cash? Is it a city project, is it tied to some road/bike lane work, or is it a neighborhood initiative? I did a quick search but couldn't find anything related to it. It does sync with goal #2 on the TIRZ page http://eadohouston.com/tirz-15/#1645123285128-6b4fbfb8-19df
  17. X.R.
    Fair, only counter is that this type of design is what these companies know and are familiar with. Plus, that rendering is more lush and full of trees than anything on Westchase. Given their propensity to highlight access to public transit, the boulevard will probably will be pedestrian/bike friendly one would think. For projects like this, a little downtown Bagby street treatment should be in the cards.
  18. X.R.
    Even closer, contrast it with the Boone Manor project. The garage portion on the Oakdale was going to be only partially sheathed and after some conversations they went ahead and did the whole thing (very neighborly of them, tbh, given the increased costs from supply chain cost increases). In their case, I think the sheathing actually helped the upper portions of the building. That is only 5 stories of garage, however. Both Boone and Southmore, Boone to a greater extent in my opinion, did really well with the landscaping, which offset the podium from a pedestrian point of view. To me, that is a practical element we are overlooking, which is that if the landscaping and street design is thoughtful and extensive then it takes a bit off the brutalist nature of the garage. Of course, alot of that is subject to budget moreso than other portions of the building, so we won't know what it'll be like for a while.
  19. X.R.
    I feel like it will look better when built, but also it seems to only have changed when the variance was denied so its a bit of reaping what we sow. The development in the museum district is starting to be 👀. With Boone and the X going up, and the rents they do and prolly will charge, really need a cocktail bar and some kind of retail. Feel like a Lulu store would do real well with the crowd 😂
  20. X.R.
    Imagine having one of the hottest places in town, being featured in multiple publications in such a short time (featured in Texas Monthly), and, as management, being so bad at your job that you didn't realize your staff would leave if the talent left. I'm sure both sides had their issues, but still, just incredibly bad. Agree with @EaDolivin, if I was new ownership I'd just get the gang together, seems very plug and play.
  21. X.R.
    Most of my networking lunches are in the Shops, so I'm glad this is getting done and hopefully it stops feeling like a run down mall from the 90s. Before the reno, it had big Almeda Mall vibes to it. I agree with @editor. This thing will always have business because of the entities that office in the surrounding buildings, and because of STCL, but man this shoulda been done like 5 years ago. I'm not asking for anything crazy, given how long its been the same, just open up the sides a bit to provide inviting entrances, add some glass, get two bar/food places going with decent outside space and I promise you 100% those businesses would do well. It close to the hotel, close enough to discovery green, they get tons of people walking outside of it, but it just looks like a fortress. If you gave North Italia, for example, a sweetheart deal and just put glass on a wall like the original renderings showed with some covered outdoor seating I know 50 attorneys and accountants that would be there yesterday. What a strange development. Edit: If they did the North Italia thing, people would definitely have their networking events there as opposed to Adairs on Lousiana or some similar place. Counterpoint is that they actually have done wonderful work in the office buildings, so they do know how to do renos right. I'm hoping for the best.
  22. X.R.
    As a former violin player all through life up until end of college, uhhh this is pretty big. Live sound vs sound distorted by electrical transmission is 100% different. Also, even though alot of pits don't have you seeing the performers, you still take cues from the movement and sound. What in the what what. Was it just overlooked? Thats real bad. I would sue the design company lol.
  23. X.R.
    Say what we want about the building, but they have done a great job with the landscaping and the sidewalks with the building. Mix of mature and young trees, some jasmine for the railings, and ample texas native plants. The street experience, based on seeing into the expansive glass panels while walking on a re-done sidewalk under some serious tree coverage, is really nice. The attention to detail is there. If they do this for two more blocks, sign me up.
  24. X.R.
    There's a bit of a lack of non-TMC premium medical space here in the H. Docs with larger clinics/private practices that also have credentials at the larger hospitals want a nice space for their patients that doesn't require them to deal with parking in the med center. Midtown is already getting two or three pain/plastics clinics (including Austin st), you have Mann doing his thing in Museum district, and there's a bit of new leasable space just south of TMC. I think we'll see more of these "premium" healthcare spaces around town with retail at the bottom because, you know, the doctors need to diversify too 😂. Didn't the Museo District's renderings have shades too? Lol, why does everyone love that, is that a trend.
  25. X.R.
    What a departure from what was there before. When riding through the bayou it never made sense that you have all this organic foot traffic combined with the affluence of that neighborhood and all the developments looked sorta run down and rough. You'd look at HAR and just see 650k+ houses for a mile radius from that site, but then you had an old looking cleaners, specs, and whatever rando food joint was rotating into that corner or the one across the bayou. Plus the bayou connection was kinda poor, therefore cutting off access to the families, cyclists, and joggers/walkers who abounded in that area prior to the construction on the bridges. Kind of incredible to go from that to this. I like how they threw the 16% population increase in like its no big deal.🤣
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