Home At 9602 Moonlight Dr.

[sdmarc]

The story I heard was O'Quinn bought this house for the use of one of his employees, the caretaker of his car collection.

There used to be nice cars parked out front frequently.

The guy lived in the house until it was discovered that he was embezzling money from O'Quinn's coffers. There was a messy trial, etc. Sometime after the guy went to jail and while the house sat empty, the roof failed.

Apparently the failure was in many areas and went un-noticed for months. By then, the damage was done.

It will be really sad to see this one go. It's truly a phenomenal house.

[HoustonRealtor]

The story I heard was O'Quinn bought this house for the use of one of his employees, the caretaker of his car collection.

There used to be nice cars parked out front frequently.

The guy lived in the house until it was discovered that he was embezzling money from O'Quinn's coffers. There was a messy trial, etc. Sometime after the guy went to jail and while the house sat empty, the roof failed.

Apparently the failure was in many areas and went un-noticed for months. By then, the damage was done.

It will be really sad to see this one go. It's truly a phenomenal house.

I don't recall ever hearing the story before, but a quick search produced THIS STORY from KPRC in 2005.

[GoAtomic]

Hmmmm....

And I suppose it's sweet when spec home builders move into neighborhoods and destroy character by building houses completely out of scale?

I also suppose it's sweet when 5,000 square foot McMansions move into former bungalow neighborhoods pricing out many buyers from what used to be affordable areas and raising taxes on long-time residents?

And is it sweet when these builders come in and tear down viable houses and more often than not waste a tremendous amount of resources?

And maybe you think it is sweet when these fellas move in and clear cut lots and build to the property lines in order to maximize profits?

And is it all groovy when spec home builders use their connections and deep pockets to tend to lock up homes/lots before individuals have a chance to get them?

Or, maybe you like the idea of spec homes sitting empty for months on end in neighborhoods because they are GROSSLY overpriced ($2.9 million in Afton Oaks?)

Forgive me for not shedding a tear for McMansion developers!

Not to take sides, but these points are dead-on. Sure there are some benefits to teardowns, ... but, there are definitely negatives.

[domus48]

[marmer]

I disagree. There are remarkable aspects of this home that would stand-up against homes designed by architects possessing considerable cache. Detailed viewing of the plans certainly assists in making this conclusion, I can only assume the physical details (given the available information) are noteworthy and given that Robert Cohen designed ship interiors, the level of precision should be spot on. It

[Scott08]

Even more World Class than what we have to offer in Houston (opinion):

Fallingwater (never been there)

Jason

Going off on a tangent, I toured Fallingwater in June 2005. Truly a moving experience as you describe, the house is amazing now, to imagine how amazing it was 70 years ago is unfathomable. One of my favorite memories of it was the "imperfection" of the home. Although in very good condition for a 70 year old house, it was a bit rough around the edges as it should be. Like an old work of art with a bit of patina. There's some cool houses in Houston, but I doubt there's any that will be toured like museums 70 years from now.

[BenH]

Going off on a tangent, I toured Fallingwater in June 2005. Truly a moving experience as you describe, the house is amazing now, to imagine how amazing it was 70 years ago is unfathomable. One of my favorite memories of it was the "imperfection" of the home. Although in very good condition for a 70 year old house, it was a bit rough around the edges as it should be. Like an old work of art with a bit of patina. There's some cool houses in Houston, but I doubt there's any that will be toured like museums 70 years from now.

Well, it would be in alot better shape now if Edgar Kauffman hadn't reenforced it with steel. That's one of the reasons it's sagging.

[nativehou]

Lisa Gray has a very nice article on this subject is today's Chron: "Abandoned house, abandoned hope in Meyerland"

It mentions the forum.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headli...es/5298831.html

[EatSleepMOD]

Lisa Gray has a very nice article on this subject is today's Chron: "Abandoned house, abandoned hope in Meyerland"

It mentions the forum.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headli...es/5298831.html

It is sad...I feel bad for Mr. Cohen and the family.

And the house....what a gem.

[marmer]

Lisa, you rock! I am sure I speak for many when I say that I am so glad you have a column now! Thanks for a great article about the Cohen house (and 1 Waverly, and many others!)

[Scott08]

This article, prominently displayed on Page 1 of the Arts/Entertainment section, will do 100 times more than our little forum here. Hopefully someone with enough money and clout will see it and try to stop the otherwise inevitable razing of the house.

[missjanel]

Lisa Gray has a very nice article on this subject is today's Chron: "Abandoned house, abandoned hope in Meyerland"

It mentions the forum.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headli...es/5298831.html

I love the interior pics both with and without the Cohens. Just to get even a small glimpse of what the interior looked like has made it all the more important to document the homes interior. I would love to see a pic of the kitchen. Does anyone have one?

[lgg]

Thanks, guys -- especially those of you who talked to me.

I love this forum.

-- Lisa, from the Chron

[lgg]

This interesting tidbit just appeared among the Chron's on-line comments. I assume it refers to what Granit told a neighbor: That he bought the house because his girlfriend lives across the street, and that he planned to live there himself.

"Granit bought the house next to ours and said exactly the same thing to the old man who lived there. He must have a lot of girlfriends..."

[lgg]

A Chron reader just e-mailed me this story. I wouldn't believe it if I hadn't seen the house that Cohen built.

I worked with a former business partner of Robert Cohen's. He once told me how he and Robert floated a boat (cabin cruiser) in The Shamrock's pool for a party!

[marmer]

A Chron reader just e-mailed me this story. I wouldn't believe it if I hadn't seen the house that Cohen built.

I worked with a former business partner of Robert Cohen's. He once told me how he and Robert floated a boat (cabin cruiser) in The Shamrock's pool for a party!

Of course the legend was that waterskiing could be done in the Shamrock's pool. I've seen that mentioned frequently but never seen a picture or any convincing proof.

[Parrothead]

Hmmmm....

And I suppose it's sweet when spec home builders move into neighborhoods and destroy character by building houses completely out of scale?

I also suppose it's sweet when 5,000 square foot McMansions move into former bungalow neighborhoods pricing out many buyers from what used to be affordable areas and raising taxes on long-time residents?

And is it sweet when these builders come in and tear down viable houses and more often than not waste a tremendous amount of resources?

And maybe you think it is sweet when these fellas move in and clear cut lots and build to the property lines in order to maximize profits?

And is it all groovy when spec home builders use their connections and deep pockets to tend to lock up homes/lots before individuals have a chance to get them?

Or, maybe you like the idea of spec homes sitting empty for months on end in neighborhoods because they are GROSSLY overpriced ($2.9 million in Afton Oaks?)

Forgive me for not shedding a tear for McMansion developers!

Not to take sides, but these points are dead-on. Sure there are some benefits to teardowns, ... but, there are definitely negatives.

Could not agree more with you both. Memorial Bend is just one neighborhood seeing a LOT of the negative sides to recent McMansion activity, and its charm is eroding along with some residents who simply cannot afford to keep up with the Jones' appraisal values.

It is very sad.

[EatSleepMOD]

This interesting tidbit just appeared among the Chron's on-line comments. I assume it refers to what Granit told a neighbor: That he bought the house because his girlfriend lives across the street, and that he planned to live there himself.

"Granit bought the house next to ours and said exactly the same thing to the old man who lived there. He must have a lot of girlfriends..."

I saw that comment too...VERY interesting.

[Native Montrosian]

Good scenario: the girlfriends find out about each other in time to save the house from destruction.

[marmer]

Good scenario: the girlfriends find out about each other in time to save the house from destruction.

Yeah, they lock him in the Carousel House and let the mold get him!

[BenH]

Willowisp knew about this, but I wanted to keep it quiet in case nothing came of it. A few weeks ago, I contacted Architectural Record's news editor on a whim, thinking they might be interested in the story. He responded and has one of his two Texas writers looking into it. Atomic Ranch has also expressed interest.

I'm out of town, so I haven't been able to see the story in the paper, but I'm glad it was done. Definitely alot more puplicity than we can muster here.

[flipper]

This comment from the comment section below the article ought to get y'all fired up:

"dmghouston wrote:

I don't think anything Granit Builders is doing is wrong. Why aren't you attacking the vandals you stole furniture and spray painted the place? The house is covered with mold and likely the house would need to be pretty much rebuilt. Not to mention it looks like someone built a box next to a mini-astrodome.

Granit Builders has a reputation for building beautiful houses in the Bellaire and West University areas. I am sure while the house probably wont be preserved, Granit will build a beautiful home and keep some historical aspect of the property.

No one complained when they tore down thousands of home in Bellaire to turn Bellaire into what it is today. I think Granit Builders is crazy not to take advantage of a beautiful property and like Cohen build his dream home. Where were all you people when the house was sitting vacant with leaks and mold? Why weren't you fighting the city to preserve it then?"

flipper

[HoustonRealtor]

This interesting tidbit just appeared among the Chron's on-line comments. I assume it refers to what Granit told a neighbor: That he bought the house because his girlfriend lives across the street, and that he planned to live there himself.

"Granit bought the house next to ours and said exactly the same thing to the old man who lived there. He must have a lot of girlfriends..."

I have family around the corner from the house. Word on the street, long before this article surfaced, was that his girlfriend lives across the street from the house and that he stays at her place quite a bit. Not much has ever been said about the plans for the property though.

[cw4044]

Does anyone know how much Granit paid for the house?

[domus48]

Given the recent coverage of this item it is hopeful that we can bring some muscle to bear on saving this significant architectural home. Thanks to "Ben H" for his additional efforts to bring attention to this via publication. That said, if anyone can assist or know of a means to assist (contacts in high places, historical information regarding the house or Robert Cohen, etc.) please feel free to contact me directly via this forum.

Hopefully I will be in a position to present this home for consideration by the HAHC next month. We'll see. Time may run out on this but any effort is better none.

Thanks!

[lgg]

Ooh, Flipper, that quote from "dmghouston" *is* interesting.

Do you think Marvin Granit's initials are "dmg"?

The Chron story didn't mention mold because a source who'd been inside the house recently told me that he didn't see any. And I think it's interesting that he defends the company's reputation, and says he's sure that Granit will "keep some historical aspect of the property." I heard that he might reuse some of the stones from that front wall -- but again, that wasn't in the story.

[lgg]

I had to go check the Chron's web page, and was rewarded with another appearance of dmghouston. Now I'm even more sure that he's Marvin Granit, who's done a lot of development in Bellaire.

The good news, if I'm right, is that he's willing to sell.

He wrote:

I would take one of those large scale tract homes any day! The houses I have been to in Bellaire look more like museums then spec houses. I am sure the city of Bellaire isn't complaining about the taxes they collect every year of the McMansions.

Why don't one of the readers make the owner a big offer for the house? I am sure he would sell it to someone who wanted to preserve it. Fact is that most people are quick to fight for a cause but aren't putting up anything to fight for it.

The cost of purchasing this lot and then cleaning the mold and remodeling it will exceed the cost of rebuilding on the lot. It's a house thats covered in mold! I think people should concentrate on better preserved buildings maybe like River Oaks bookstore etc.

[Native Montrosian]

I think people should concentrate on better preserved buildings maybe like River Oaks bookstore etc.

What?? Is he referring to the used bookstore on the corner of Westheimer and Eastside? What in the hey diddle is going on there?

[EatSleepMOD]

He wrote:

...Why don't one of the readers make the owner a big offer for the house?

I can assure you that the use of "Why don't"

is CLEARLY a red flag that he PROBABLY IS a local homebuilder!

Why don't you move into your girlfriends house?

Why don't you use "Why doesn't?"

Edited November 15, 2007 by EatSleepMOD

[Scott08]

You know he is right. The fastest way to stop this would be for someone to offer to buy the property from him at a competitive price. Sorry I can't afford it. In the big picture, these types of houses could find willing buyers interested in restoring them, it's just a smaller potential group. It would be great if some wealthy benefactor would step in to buy up mods, someone financially able to float with them until an appropriate buyer came along. Too bad Mr. O'Quinn didn't offer it up on the open market to begin with, but sounds like he just wanted to end a bad memory.