Porchman

News strory on its opening... http://www.wdsu.com/...082/detail.html

"Eat the Ham Tina!" (my family's call to dinner when the HoneyBaked or Virginia is the main entree).

O-M-G! That's like TOtally way more FB friends than for Heights First Saturday in support of local businesses! Coming soon: White Remonstration Night !

Also, if you want to get down and dirty - really dirty - contact Trudi about opportunties to do so. (OO! That sounds really dirty:lol:) In various clean-up and landscaping projects, I have enjoyed spending the time. It's refreshing to put in the physical effort outside my own garden and it's really cool to enjoy a small piece of this natural asset.

That's what Terry Hershey thought... http://www.buffaloba...rg/history.html We are stuck with a muddy bayou... and no mountains (except for the scary ash pile on the ship channel). They are working on trash with the pink monster. I hope the pink monster was not a victim of the fire.

The proposed Wal*Mart, on the edge of the Heights does not challenge the walkability or uniqueness of the Heights, no more than Target and Home Depot have. What makes the Heights a truly special neighborhood is a sense place. Some of that sense is built on front porches and neighbors being engaged with each other. Some of that sense is built on cool, little shops and great restaurants. In all of this, place needs foundation. That foundation is built on a sense of understanding, and for those of us who live here, self-deprecation. We, in the Heights, are very privileged to live here. Still, we are Houstonians. We are subject to Houston’s benefits and to its issues. Our foundation becomes weak if we are ignorant of those issues. Kudos to those who slam people in the Heights for provincial attittudes. I think a butt-kicking is good. (Mrs. Porchman does that for me on a regular basis^_^ ). Kudos to those in this neighborhood, who object to this project on multiple levels, and who, in other forums,are trying to create more constructive conversation about this issue.

The point many of us are making is that this is not a black-white issue where Walmart is all-evil, and all other commercial entities have no baggage. There is also an emotional tug on this thread in that some are dismayed that the non-reactionary, middle ground is not being found among many posting here. As a whole, there is a disappointment in that. Also, I think some members are expecting more of other, specific members.while garbage is expected to flow from other posters. Thank you for weighing in. You helped frame the argument, and you did not disappoint anybody. A few hours ago, I was looking for elevation of the discussion. We received levity instead. I'll take that..

No doubt, this fight is not novel. However the arguments seem to isolate Walmart for ills for which others are gulity...and ignored while those others are celebrated. Particularly in the context of what has been posted on many threads herein, that's hypocrisy. That's what's disappointing for me. I think that disappointment is the root of derision which others are projecting.

I have not weighed in on this yet, because I really don’t care. My apathy, I think, is driven by a dual sense. I don’t like Walmart. I don’t hate Walmart. However, I have been bothered by rampant supposition throughout this thread. My summary of the opposition to this development: (1) Big box stores inside the Loop are bad…except for Target on Sawyer, HEB wherever, Costco on Wesleyan, and Whole Foods on Waugh. I, too, hate Big Box for its sprawl characteristics. Yet, I have not seen a single person who has posted say anything about footprint of the above developments or say anything about the egregious concrete around the new Kroger Signature on Shepherd, for that matter. All I see posted is what great assets these other boxes are. (2) People being underpaid and mistreated…just like dishwashers in the locally owned restaurants, the workers who mill clothes at Target, and those who harvest our food available at the local grocery stores. May we strive to cure all such things. (3) The proposed Walmart is in the Heights. It’s not. It’s on an odd, ugly undeveloped brownfield, south of the Katy Freeway. I have spoken out against the redevelopment of 945 Heights, (sometimes in most distasteful ways). I have expressed concerns and even argued with Redscare about 2125 Heights. I just don’t view the proposed Walmart as the uber-threat with which it is being treated. The issues for which I have stood before were totally in the middle of our neighborhood. This is not. (4) Walmart ruins property values. The Dunvale example is convenient. Apparently, the Dunvale Walmart (which had been at the location for several years prior to 2001) suddenly created a huge drop in property values all the way out to Highway 6 in the past decade. However, it helped property values in 77024 a half-mile away? Certainly, 77007 may see some property value drop in the next few years. It has the advantage of being very convenient to major hubs of the City. Its disadvantage is that it is immersed by aging, stucco-box townhouses and apartment buildings, lining narrow streets, and adjacent to a bunch of flavor-of-the-month bars. If this development happens, Walmart might be the only sign of stability in the neighborhood. (5) Walmart sells cheap crap. Yep! For people living paycheck-to-paycheck, affordable is better. The economy has no effect on this. Many people live this way, and will continue to do so. (6) Walmart on Yale will create a traffic mess. Probably. Popular places do. Welcome to Houston! Let’s not be stupid here. Walmart does not exist in a vacuum of injustice. We, in the Heights, are not appointed as stewards of justice. Living in a World 1 Country, in a unique neighborhood, in an economically stable City can make such things difficult to realize and digest. I don’t deny a certain knee-jerk instinct that this development would be bad (mostly over the big box issue). However, looking at the proposed development – locally and globally – I cannot object to this. I don’t care if this Walmart flies or not. In light of the disaster in the Gulf, the two wars in which our Nation is engaged, and our struggling economy, the furor over this seems absurd. I ask that the discourse over this find a more balanced plateau in all manners.

So, here ya go. You get to vote...on the pretty pictures. http://www.reliantpark.com/feedback/ If you want more data, the slideshow with the costs (slide 42) is here http://www.reliantpa...ide_Show_SM.pdf They are missing Option 4. Poke out the skylights fill the inside with rich loam, seed it heavily, and regularly water. Ch-ch-ch-Chia-Dome!

UH-D community garden

Not really dire. They have all sorts of ideas about primping the area, but nothing in play to make those ideas reality.

From the Neartown Association Forum today.. -Same renderings that look like Richard Florida did drugs with Walt Disney -They think things need to be changed around there, but acknowledge no budget for acquisition, little landowner cooperation and no synergy for eminent domain. -Discussion centered on centralized parking on on Lovett, between Montrose and Yoakum. -Also addressed, planning around the Waugh/Commonwealth corridor, public art, pedestrian friendlienss, maintaining the organically cool pieces. Many ideas far from the ground.

Mayor Parker is in The 2010 TIME 100 - The World's Most Influential People .

The only two Heights places I go 12 times a year would be: Cricket's - Breakfast Berryhill- Fish Tacos, margarita, free chips. I eat/take-out from Jenni's at least once a month. I expect that I will be getting my fix more often. We really have enjoyed a couple of happy hours at Pagoda. I'm not sure if this will be an ongoing trend. I can't say that we don't eat out that much. We go to almost all the other Heights places 2-6 times a year, and sometimes, we cross out of the Heights and eat in other parts of the City. It's just so far, though.

HBJ: Brennan's of Houston to reopen on Fat Tuesday

There are different covenants to different sections of the TMC. And much of that Fannin-Main strip is actually owned by the individual intituions. (I'm not sure which, because the maps I've seen do not differentiate between ownership and leaseholds). I've tried looking it up, but cannot get a determination. In the meantime the Chron is reporting that BCM Bonds are on the S&P watch list.

Yes. Mayo and also Cleveland Clinic have much more international aspirations. HCA is in this private equity deal right now. Healthcare is growing, but leverage is not worth what it was a few years ago. I think they have a good business structure overall. It will be interesting to see what kind of "play" they have when (and if) they roll out of their private structure. Still, does anybody know who owns the BCM Hospital Land? BCM or TMC? That is critical component of what flexibility any sale deal has.

Good. First, BCM needs to find a permanent President, then someone (perhaps, acting BCM President Butler or TMC Presidnt Wainerdi) needs to lead a discussion between that President and another TCM Head. TMH's Girotto appears to have been as much a part of the Methodist-Baylor split as Traber, so there are probably some seriously bad feelings there. Besides, TCM is putting the final touches on its research institute. This and the global focus of tertiary care centers, might make their 50-year contract affiliation with Weill Cornell more strong and rigid than it has appeared in the first few years of the affiliation. SLEH/THI might be a good partner for BCM. They have teaching contracts with UTHSC and BCM, but no comprehensive affiliation. They had a fast, damaged relationship when Traber was BCM President. Traber's gone and there's a new Bishop on their Board. Things could move here. In the meantime, BCM should put the south campus hospital up for sale....as is. They need the cash. I'm not sure who would buy it. There are always physicians who think they can run a hospital. Also, HCA is lacking a comprehensive TMC presence. If that plot is actually TMC land, however, neither buy would fly as TCM bylaws require that member instituions located on their campus must be not-for-profit. As I have posted earlier, BCM, TMH, and SLEH should look at a comprehensive affiliation/merger. It was discussed 15 years ago, but never happened. I think all three would be good for each other. I guess we shall see. It's all so soap operatic at some level.

From The Chronicle of Higher Education

Rice needs to step off. In merging or even affiliating with BCM, they would be stepping into managed care. In an environment where that may mean something very different in the next few years, their governance does not need to enter into that picture. The best partner for BCM is TMH. Go figure! They, SLEH, and TCH need to discuss merger. The combined institution would rival The Mayo Clinic and Cleveland Clinic. (Imagine Houston could have the same medical prestige of Rochester, Minnesota and Cleveland, Ohio!) Hubris needs to be set aside.

The menu is still posted! I liked going there for lunch. I would sit in the bright terrace area, having a glass of wine, and an overpriced, tasty sandwich. With very few people in Galleria 3, it was very peaceful. I think the problem is that is was designed to be an upscale, douchey sports bar. The non-terrace areas - a large part of their space - were really dark. For soccer moms trying to shove food into their kids, that won't play, even if price is not an issue. Guys who are into sports bars aren't likely to be the Galleria profile. If they do go there, they are already in a dark place, so they don't need to go somewhere darker.