tamtagon

I think there should be, but I dont think there is. I'm not really sure if the TTC is an approved program yet???? It's a good bet that if TTC gets whatever it needs to start, the Dallas Agile Port will have a roll in decision making. So far, most of the strategic alliances bridged by the Dallas NAFTA Trade Corridor folks have focused on domestic distribution of imports; that's certainly understandable, and hopefully once the widening of the Panama Canal is done, more of the Asian imports will reach the Dallas distribution center via the Port of Houston. What concerns me, though, with the agile port cooperative between Dallas area entities and the Port of Houston is an apparent (but unconfirmed) lack of effort to channel American exports through the system. I dont remember the organization off the top of my head, but I read about a proposal to put together a new rail route from the Panhandle/South Plains to a Pacific Mexican port for export of American agricultural products. Understanding there may be a compelling business reason for Asian-bound exports to embark from the Pacific coast, I think every effort should be made to direct Midwestern & Great Plains exports through Texas ports. Apologies to economic rebuilders of New Orleans, but I want to see the Dallas/Houston agile port system become the primary route of American exports.

Cool moth - and great picture of it!! I had a racoon family visit my apt patio/yard for a while when I lived in Knox-Henderson area of Dallas. Today, this once rural community is rapidly being surrounded by suburban Atlanta. Fortunately, my property backs up to a 2000 acre state park; I get all kinds of wildlife. Last summer a beaver "got lost" when a new neighobrhood was cut into the woods a down the road and moved into a small pond in my backyard wilderness. It was there for a couple months.

I think the new sculpture is going to make the best art setting experience in Texas even better. Before the Nasher Collection was committed to the Dallas Arts District, I was kinda hoping it would make a home in the Fort Worth Cultural District, that the park next to the Kimball is perfect for a sculpture garden. A Nasher annex in Fort Worth is still on my wish list. The park with the Rothko Chapel is just about my favorite place in Texas.

That's the building design that did not get picked. Here's a link to the design the developers propose for 1900 Pacific: http://forum.dallasmetropolis.com/showpost...p;postcount=151 Nothing about this project is certain: Sweeney's $12 million request would go toward demolition of the vacant Corrigan Tower (1950's design) and renovation of the vacant 1920s(?) art deco Tower Petroleum Building into a boutique hotel. Sweeney got $1 million to renovate another vacant downtown building which now houses Club Blue. The patrons of Blue are blamed for elevated criminal activity downtown, and the city says the Sweeney's violated the conditions of the $1 million TIF contribution because Clue Blue was supposed to be an upscale venue but now attracts a gangster type of crowd - the city says this violates the $1 million TIF agreement and promises to deny any futher requests from Sweeney until Club Blue changes. Club Blue owners recently filed a $12 million lawsuit against the city on gounds of constitutional violations, slander and stuff like that. It's a political mess, and I'm doubtful 1900 Pacific will be redeveloped any time soon.

Actually, the inland/intermodal/port of pre-clearance is part of the Dallas NAFTA Trade Corridor. The Port of Dallas already exists. The agile port facility cooperative between The US Maritime Authority, City of Dallas and Port of Houston is one component of the whole initiative. As far as I'm aware, the decision of agile port facilities ownership has not been determined yet - it's either the city of Dallas or Port of Houston Authority. It makes sense on this forum environment that a misconception regarding the role of the Port of Houston to pervade. Most of the Texas sized talk about what's already developing is because of cargo being trained from West Coast points of entry. It'll be at least a couple years (guessing) before The Port of Houston's involvement moves from planning to implementation. In my opinion, this agile facility will end up being the most important component of the Port of Dallas, and represent the bulk of Port of Houston future growth. I have a feeling that a whole lot of product which currently floats down the Mississippi toward New Orleans embarkation will end up on a train to Dallas for Houston.

No idea how 'agile port' came to be the name for a place with that function. Seems like it might have been a temporary title used during conceptual development, that never got finished. Odd phrase? I think it's all together unfortunate. In general it's more ambiguous and confusing to refer to 'the agile port of Dallas' than to simply 'the port of Dallas'. Frankly, I hope the foppish inclinations of Dallas organizations lead to better branding of the cargo processing enterprises. Anyone know when this deal with the Port of Houston is supposed to get moving? I sure hope we'll start to see more and more American exports processed/packed in Dallas and shipped out of Houston.

Are you saying the word "port" has only one application? I guess the Port of Houston isnt really a seaport, since oceangoing vessels must navigate the ship channel prior to reaching the port facilities. Should it be the Inland Port of Houston? It's a quick search on the Internet to find out what 'Agile Port' is supposed to mean. These ports are all over the place, the cooperative effort of the US Maritime Admin, City of Dallas and (Inland) Port of Houston Authority is a recent occurance. :-)

If we're going to pick nits, the Port of Dallas is an Agile Port System, and the Port of Houston is a Seaport, how's that? I'll stop refering to it as the 'Port of Dallas' as soon as U.S. Maritime Administration and the Port of Houston Authority do.

I'm getting tired of all the flat-top buildings.

Texas Rank; Company; Fortune 500 Rank; Annual revenue; HQ 1 Exxon Mobil..................1.....339,938.0.......Irving 2 ConocoPhillips..............6.....166,683.0....... Houston 3 Valero Energy..............15.....81,362.0.......San Antonio 4 Marathon Oil................23.....58,958.0.......Houston 5 Dell..............................25.....55,908.0. ......Round Rock 6 AT&T............................39.....43,862.0...... .San Antonio 7 Plains Pipeline.............65.....31,177.3.......Houston 8 Sysco...........................68.....30,281.9... ....Houston 9 Halliburton..................103....20,994.0...... .Houston 10 AMR..........................105....20,712.0...... .Fort Worth 11 EDS..........................108....20,537.0...... .Plano 12 J.C. Penney...............118....18,781.0.......Plano 13 Lyondell Chem..........121....18,606.0.......Houston 14 Tesoro......................132....16,473.0....... San Antonio 15 Kimberly-Clark..........140....15,902.6.......Irving 16 D.R. Horton...............162....13,863.7.......Fort Worth 17 Texas Inst................167....13,392.0.......Dallas 18 Fluor.........................169....13,161.1..... ..Irving 19 Waste Mgmt..............170....13,074.0.......Houston 20 BNSF..........................171....12,987.0..... ..Fort Worth 21 Centex......................175....12,859.7....... Dallas 22 Enterprise Prod.........183....12,257.0.......Houston 23 USAA........................189....11,980.4....... San Antonio 24 Continental...............207....11,208.0.......Houston 25 Dean Foods..............216....10,900.3.......Dallas 26 Reliant Energy..........220....10,708.0.......Houston 27 TXU...........................228....10,449.0..... ..Dallas 28 Tenet Healthcare......236....10,052.0.......Dallas 29 Kinder Morgan...........243.....9,787.1.......Houston 30 CenterPoint...............244.....9,784.0.......Houston 31 Clear Channel...........252.....9,468.9.......San Antonio 32 TEPPCO.....................267.....8,618.5.......Houston 33 Burlington.................298.....7,587.0.......Houston 34 Apache.....................299.....7,584.2.......Houston 35 Southwest................300.....7,584.0.......Dallas 36 Baker Hughes............310.....7,218.0.......Houston 37 Anadarko...................314.....7,100.0.......The Woodlands 38 Commercial Metals....329.....6,592.7.......Irving 39 Enbridge...................335.....6,476.9.......Houston 40 Dynegy......................337.....6,438.0....... Houston 41 Energy Transfer.........347.....6,274.3.......Dallas 42 Celanese...................356.....6,070.0.......Dallas 43 Group 1 Auto.............361.....5,969.6.......Houston 44 Blockbuster...............366.....5,864.4.......Dallas 45 Freescale...................368.....5,843.0....... Austin 46 Pilgrim's Pride............382.....5,666.3.......Pittsburg 47 Smith Intl...................390.....5,579.0.......Houston 48 RadioShack................423.....5,081.7.......Fort Worth 49 Atmos Energy............430.....4,973.3.......Dallas 50 Triad Hospitals...........432.....4,916.6.......Plano 51 Temple-Inland...........433.....4,910.0.......Austin 52 Whole Foods.............449.....4,701.3.......Austin 53 National Oilwell.........452.....4,644.5.......Houston 54 El Paso......................455.....4,596.0.......Houston 55 ACS...........................471.....4,351.2..... ..Dallas 56 Frontier Oil................496.....4,001.2.......Houston DFW - 22 1 Exxon Mobil..................1.....339,938.0.......Irving 10 AMR..........................105....20,712.0...... .Fort Worth 11 EDS..........................108....20,537.0...... .Plano 12 J.C. Penney...............118....18,781.0.......Plano 15 Kimberly-Clark..........140....15,902.6.......Irving 16 D.R. Horton...............162....13,863.7.......Fort Worth 17 Texas Inst................167....13,392.0.......Dallas 18 Fluor.........................169....13,161.1..... ..Irving 20 BNSF..........................171....12,987.0..... ..Fort Worth 21 Centex......................175....12,859.7....... Dallas 25 Dean Foods..............216....10,900.3.......Dallas 27 TXU...........................228....10,449.0..... ..Dallas 28 Tenet Healthcare......236....10,052.0.......Dallas 35 Southwest................300.....7,584.0.......Dallas 38 Commercial Metals....329.....6,592.7.......Irving 41 Energy Transfer.........347.....6,274.3.......Dallas 42 Celanese...................356.....6,070.0.......Dallas 44 Blockbuster...............366.....5,864.4.......Dallas 48 RadioShack................423.....5,081.7.......Fort Worth 49 Atmos Energy............430.....4,973.3.......Dallas 50 Triad Hospitals...........432.....4,916.6.......Plano 55 ACS...........................471.....4,351.2..... ..Dallas Pittsburg - 1 46 Pilgrim's Pride............382.....5,666.3.......Pittsburg Houston - 24 2 ConocoPhillips..............6.....166,683.0....... Houston 4 Marathon Oil................23.....58,958.0.......Houston 7 Plains Pipeline.............65.....31,177.3.......Houston 8 Sysco...........................68.....30,281.9... ....Houston 9 Halliburton..................103....20,994.0...... .Houston 13 Lyondell Chem..........121....18,606.0.......Houston 19 Waste Mgmt..............170....13,074.0.......Houston 22 Enterprise Prod.........183....12,257.0.......Houston 24 Continental...............207....11,208.0.......Houston 26 Reliant Energy..........220....10,708.0.......Houston 29 Kinder Morgan...........243.....9,787.1.......Houston 30 CenterPoint...............244.....9,784.0.......Houston 32 TEPPCO.....................267.....8,618.5.......Houston 33 Burlington.................298.....7,587.0.......Houston 34 Apache.....................299.....7,584.2.......Houston 36 Baker Hughes............310.....7,218.0.......Houston 37 Anadarko...................314.....7,100.0.......The Woodlands 39 Enbridge...................335.....6,476.9.......Houston 40 Dynegy......................337.....6,438.0....... Houston 43 Group 1 Auto.............361.....5,969.6.......Houston 47 Smith Intl...................390.....5,579.0.......Houst on 53 National Oilwell.........452.....4,644.5.......Houston 54 El Paso......................455.....4,596.0.......Houston 56 Frontier Oil................496.....4,001.2.......Houston San Antonio - 5; Austin - 4 3 Valero Energy..............15.....81,362.0.......San Antonio 5 Dell..............................25.....55,908.0. ......Round Rock 6 AT&T............................39.....43,862.0...... .San Antonio 14 Tesoro......................132....16,473.0....... San Antonio 23 USAA........................189....11,980.4....... San Antonio 31 Clear Channel...........252.....9,468.9.......San Antonio 45 Freescale...................368.....5,843.0....... Austin 51 Temple-Inland...........433.....4,910.0.......Austin 52 Whole Foods.............449.....4,701.3.......Austin

word

Dang-it, I hate it when my post does not say what I intended. Even more, I hate it when you, Houston19514, point out the silliness, ...because it does make me sound like a blinded Dallas Booster. I think some of Uptown should be included in the geographic footprint of the Dallas CBD - that there is no valid statistical reason Woodall Rogers freeway should form a defining boundry creating two separate sub-markets. Even before this most recent addition of office space, southern Uptown (Lower McKinney) and the CBD have functioned as a united business district. I think I got the idea that Houston CBD is geographically twice the size of Dallas CBD from an annual report called something like American City Mayors Report, or Governors Report, I dont remember the name, but I think it's published out of Denver...? Ring a bell with anyone? I know it's been linked though this forum, and others.... I'll see if I can dig it one of these days.

I think what we're observing in the major Sunbelt business centers like Houston, Dallas and Atlanta is an emerging redefinition to the traditional American central business district. In response to mounting quality of life inconveniences triggered by suburban sprawl, a high density residential development trend in/around historic central city business districts is creating a new variation of citylife. Neighobrhood blocks of office towers functioning only as a work destination is obsolete in the vast suburban population centers; what will evolve is a homogenized mix of development serving both office and residential needs. Office leasing agents for existing and pending central Dallas office space should be able find the tennents from first ring suburban areas. We're still going to see rapid exurb business park development, it just wont represent as overwhelming a majority of new construction.

It's a real easy call to say mass transit in Houston is lagging, but it's disingenuous to fault the city and/or residents. I think the reason for METRO rail's tardiness is because the region's very substantial industrial output is primarily based on Oil and Gas industries. Making gasoline is a cornerstone of the Houston area economy; money talks and politicians listen. Actually, the Dallas CBD is growing, and in a few years the tight highway ring circling the 'downtown' will no longer geographically define the business district. While residential conversion has become a popular reuse of older buildings in/near the historic center of the CBD, new office construction has resumed to the west, after the 20 hibernation. To me, the residential reuse underway and/or planned for so many of Dallas' oldest highrises indicates a giant urban step forward. By the end of the decade, a small town's worth of people will be living in a very concentrated area with a "city" atmosphere. Houston is the only place within 1000 miles that will have a comparable setting, I think it's exciting that the "big city lifestyle" opportunity is becoming available. This increasing population density of downtown area neighborhoods will make the (expanded) Dallas CBD appealing to more employers. Before comparing the two CBD's, the geographic size needs to be similar. I'm not sure about this, but I think the statistical area labeled as Houston's CBD is about twice the size as the Dallas CBD. If that's roughly accurate, much of Uptown Dallas should be combined with the traditional CBD designation for statistical review.

Go Spurs!

Atlanta's got a decade(+/-) of continuous high density residential development in the central city swath generally labeled as downtown and midtown. Highrise living in Atlanta had an Olympic jump-start that has not faded over the years. Many of the dwelling just coming to the market, and more which are u/c, will have moderate pricing - that's a very encouraging signal. These tangible signs of an expanding urban environment are not what makes me say Atlanta's got going on that puts it on top. There's an atmosphere of excitment, contagious and encouraging; a street beat of prosperity resonates across town much of the time.

Regarding the slow progress of local passenger rail service in Houston, all signs indicate the problem rest squarely with malicious micromanagement from the region's most powerful political leaders. Houston's potential is not being squandered, it just hasnt reached the kinetic threshold yet.

Bless his heart

I agree that, overall, the revival of 'urban culture' in Houston has lagged behind similar suburban population centers like Atlanta and Dallas. However, one remarkable characteristic of Houston culture is the ability to effect a rapid redirection of itself.

A thorough understanding of the successes and failures of DART light rail implementation and usage would be invaluable to the light rail initiative in Houston.

When I was in college and thought I was coming down with a cold, I would get, like, totally drunk, that seemed to get rid of the nasty virus.

The way things are going in Atlanta, Dallas and Houston might find themselves in a battle for second place.

Pretty much what troyboy said. A chamber of commerce dynamic promotion outlining where things are could realign expectations. Fifty years ago, a trip to the central business district in Houston or Dallas was reliable to fill just about any expectation of city experience. That reality is no longer true, but the expectation is still common.

I think the primary root cause for the dead downtown dilemma among visitors and metro area residents of both Houston and Dallas is the lack of precedence to guage expectations for these evolving Sunbelt Central Business Districts.

Are you trying to say I'm not objective in my observations?