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Simbha

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Posts posted by Simbha

  1. Why not turn it into an aquarium? I know we've got the 'Downtown Aquarium' and the Moody Gardens in Galveston, but I feel Houston really lacks a true, public aquarium. The Dome would seem to be perfect for it, and it could still be used as part of the Reliant Complex for conventions and such.

    Edit: I forgot about the aquarium in the zoo, but that's kind of the point... It's... forgettable. dry.gif

  2. I was browsing through some stock photos this morning for use in a report for a client, and I came upon an image of a park downtown I didn't recognize.

    I can't post the image here, but here's the link: http://jimolive.photoshelter.com/gallery-image/Skylines-Aerial/G0000TvF1r4G6nGg/I0000AIacI7lRcN0/P00009d5pAwxEqlQ.

    It looks beautiful, but I can't remember ever seeing this park.

    From what I can tell, the image is reversed (i.e., the orientation appears to be looking northward, but Discovery Green is on the left). If I'm correct, is this the site of One Park Place? If so - as much as I like that building - I would have loved for this to remain.

    Was this an actual park in the past?

  3. I was at a bookstore today and encountered a book titled Houston: Lost and Unbuilt by Steven Strom. It was published in 2010 by the UT Press.

    About 2/3 of the book covers Houston landmarks which were torn down, but the rest shows the Houston that "could have been." Here are some excerpts from Google Books:

    I didn't purchase the book, but I thumbed through the sections on 'Houston Unbuilt'. My favorite proposal shown is a pedestrian mall in front of the Second City National Bank. The caption indicates that a plaza in front of the NY state capitol is similar in design to the proposal.

    More details on the book can be found here: http://www.utexas.ed...oks/strhou.html

  4. Apologies for the quality since it's a copy from microfilm.

    I rather like the 'quality'. It makes me realize that visions for Houston's future are not new, and that the progression the city has undergone was - at some time in the 'long ago' past - just a vision.

    That gives me even greater hope for the future of the city, even if some of these visions (such as this one) didn't pan out.

  5. Cy Twombly, the namesake of a major gallery at the Menil, died today at the age of 83. He was known for his large-scale abstract paintings, his giant scribbles, and his site-specific ceiling painting at the Louvre. Major collections of his work also exist at the MoMA in New York and a museum in Munich.

    Twombly was considered a friend of the Menil Collection. I suppose, by extension, that makes him a friend of Houston.

    Article on CultureMap: http://houston.culturemap.com/newsdetail/07-05-11-beloved-scribble-based-menil-collection-artist-cy-twombly-dies/

    Menil site for Twombly Gallery: http://www.menil.org/collection/CyTwomblyInDepth.php

  6. What sunken plaza?

    The one next to Wells Fargo Tower. Somehow, it makes JPMC Tower taller.

    Oops, I meant lobby. I haven't been there in over a decade, but I believe there are several stories underground, no? Or, am I remembering things incorrectly?

    Regardless, I've heard both figures for the tower. Which is correct?

  7. I've seen these two figures posted for JPMorgan Chase in Downtown - 1,002 ft and 1,049 ft. Which is correct?

    It's my understanding that the former is the height from street level and the latter is the height from the sunken plaza. If that's correct, then it seems to me that 1,049 ft is the right height for the building. I recognize that building heights are measured from 'street level' but what does that actually mean? I'm 6' tall. I don't suddenly become 5'8" just because I take one step down a set of stairs.

    I'd like to better understand this from others who are better informed.

    I suppose my interest is in the bragging rights: Do we have the tallest building in the US outside NYC and Chicago?

  8. Here's some information on the progress of the Duncan Family Wing, which is expected to open next summer. This was all posted on the official HMNS blog, by blogger Susana (http://blog.hmns.org/?tag=susanna) who provides updates on the wing's construction.

    The wing topped out (at about 74 feet) in March.

    Here's an image of the state of the construction as of May 2011, posted by Susana on June 8, 2011:

    5793827300_3e6eec9952.jpg

    And, here's a time-lapse video of the wing's construction between September 2010 and May 2011:

    I didn't see this mentioned anywhere else, so I'll say that I just read that this wing is supposed to house one of the (if not the) largest collection of T-Rexes in the world. The entire paleontology hall is supposed to be nearly 35,000 square feet. For comparison, the LA Natural History Museum's new paleontology wing - which will open on July 16 - is about 14,000 square feet.

    • Like 1
  9. Emporis isn't exactly a reliable source of information. Almost all of it comes from "volunteers" and virtually none of it is fact-checked.

    As for the Singapore hospital, I've photographed nearly every skyscraper in Singapore and don't remember any of them being hospitals. Maybe you're thinking of Tokyo. According to HAIF's sister site, Tokyo Architecture Info, there is a twin-towered hospital there, called Saint Luke's, which is 51-stories. That would make it at least 156 meters, and likely much taller (according to a hospital developer I heard speak a couple of weeks ago, hospitals like to have a minimum floor height of 14 feet to handle special ducts and such).

    Thanks for this. It's not an official source or anything but the first posting in this SkyscraperCity thread - http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=39045 - seems to indicate that St. Luke's is primarily a residence for nurses and senior citizens (patients). While the latter receive care, it doesn't appear to be what I'd consider a hospital in and of itself. Additionally, the description provided through that link states that seven floors of the building is occupied by a hotel.

    Again, as pointed out above, it appears that identifying a tower as the tallest (anything including) hospital is a somewhat sketchy notion that requires definition first. I appreciate your pointing out the St. Luke's Garden, though - just another building of which I had no clue.

  10. Seems to depend largely on what you deem the "top" of a structure. Comes down to the constant roof vs. spire debate. The roof of Guy's Tower (which doesn't have a spire) is higher than the roof of the O'Quinn Tower, but the spire of the O'Quinn Tower is higher than the roof of Guy's Tower.

    But the other two you mentioned have me wondering. Why aren't they mentioned at all on any of these lists?

    Fair points, which I had thought too. Like you, I don't understand why the others don't appear on these lists (at least somewhere)...

  11. I was looking at some stats on hospital heights this weekend, and I noticed what I think are some inconsistencies across various websites.

    The Wikipedia page for Guy's Tower in London indicates that it is the tallest hospital in the world (link) at 142.6m. Additionally, Emporis's listing for Guy's Tower (link) also states "This is the world's tallest hospital" in the notes.

    However, Emporis also has a listing of the world's tallest hospitals (link) which shows the O'Quinn Medical Tower as the tallest, at 145m.

    Also, the Methodist Outpatient Center is cited as being 512 ft (156m) here and Emporis shows the Memorial Hermann Tower at I-10 and the Beltway at 152.4m (link).

    Memorial Hermann Medical Plaza appears to be about 131m, so that would seem to be out of the running - although I thought it was comparable in height to the top of the St. Luke spires and the top of the Methodist Outpatient Center.

    So, am I wrong to think that Houston has several 'tallest hospitals in the world'? Does anyone know of any taller ones?

    • Like 1
  12. I didn't see this anywhere else, so here goes...

    A new folk-art inspired greenspace called Smither Park is being planned for the 1/2 acre lot adjacent to the Orange Show. The park's development is being sponsored by the Orange Show in memory of John H. Smither. The design is by Dan Phillips (although I can't tell if he's doing the overall park layout or just the pieces within the park).

    Here's the website: http://smitherpark.org/Smither_Park_Website/Welcome.html

    ... and a rendering (found on the site):

    http://smitherpark.org/Smither_Park_Website/Welcome_files/shapeimage_1.png

    • Like 1
  13. It looks like this is a no-go - for now. According to this article by Nancy (and posted by Editor on a different thread): http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/business/sarnoff/7595071.html

    A building project for Methodist Hospital in the Texas Medical Center has been shelved amid an uncertain economy and health care policy changes.

    The 1.8 million square-foot project was designed for a site at the corner of John Freeman and Bertner. Ground breaking was scheduled for the first quarter of next year.

    Too bad. It's a nice looking complex. Perhaps it'll be built in the future.

    I wonder what this means for the overall expansion of the TMC. Obviously, 1.8 million square ft is a lot, but what about other expansion efforts? Are they halted too?

    • Like 1
  14. I hope the new building is more of a success than the Beck. Marzio went the "starchitect" route with the latter and I think it turned out a fairly major disappointment design-wise.

    I like the design of the Beck - but I understand that (perhaps 'objectively') it was a disappointment to many. I hope the design of the new building bridges the spaces around it well - specifically, the Law building, the Beck building, the Methodist church, the Presbyterian church, and the sculpture garden.

    Perhaps I'm too optimistic... dry.gif That's a lot to ask...

  15. Excellent new, IMO. I wonder what the name will be... It's possible it's named for the Alfred Glassell, Jr or even Peter Marzio himself - or another major donor, if one emerges.

    It's exciting to see some great names being batted around for the design firm.

    To the mods: This topic may be best merged with (the?) original topic found here: http://www.houstonarchitecture.com/haif/topic/24047-new-mfah-building.

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