intencity77 Posted July 12, 2011 Share Posted July 12, 2011 (edited) Anyone remember the arches that were supposed to be between midtown and downtown? Something about the gateway to houston...Oh yeah! I had forgotten about those. Weren't the arches going to be made out of some greenish colored metal trusses (similar to the Eiffel Tower construction) standing over the Pierce Elevated? Years ago, I remember seeing the colorful renderings of them in either the Post or Chronicle! I believe this was around the same time some private foundation was proposing to build a waterway canal down one of the downtown streets...Prairie? I forget which one. I think the waterway was near the courthouse and was part of the original concept for the Cotswold Project in downtown. Once the city took over the project, the waterway was scrapped and instead many streets were redone, sidewalks widened and head-in parking spaces were built. Edited July 12, 2011 by intencity77 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted July 12, 2011 Share Posted July 12, 2011 Oh yeah! I had forgotten about those. Weren't the arches going to be made out of some greenish colored metal trusses (similar to the Eiffel Tower construction) standing over the Pierce Elevated? Years ago, I remember seeing the colorful renderings of them in either the Post or Chronicle! I believe this was around the same time some private foundation was proposing to build a waterway canal down one of the downtown streets...Prairie? I forget which one. I think the waterway was near the courthouse and was part of the original concept for the Cotswold Project in downtown. Once the city took over the project, the waterway was scrapped and instead many streets were redone, sidewalks widened and head-in parking spaces were built.I tried searching for these arches and couldn't find them. Anyone have pictures of these? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LTAWACS Posted July 12, 2011 Share Posted July 12, 2011 Oh yeah! I had forgotten about those. Weren't the arches going to be made out of some greenish colored metal trusses (similar to the Eiffel Tower construction) standing over the Pierce Elevated? Years ago, I remember seeing the colorful renderings of them in either the Post or Chronicle! I believe this was around the same time some private foundation was proposing to build a waterway canal down one of the downtown streets...Prairie? I forget which one. I think the waterway was near the courthouse and was part of the original concept for the Cotswold Project in downtown. Once the city took over the project, the waterway was scrapped and instead many streets were redone, sidewalks widened and head-in parking spaces were built. I never saw green ones... i did see white ones and i think they were supposed to be made from ivory or the like. lemme see if i can find the, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LTAWACS Posted July 12, 2011 Share Posted July 12, 2011 It'll have to wait until i can get to another machine. However, it was in the Main Street Corridor Master Plan from some time ago... i have a copy of the entire thing somewhere.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Urbannizer Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 (edited) Six, additional design proposals for the Bank of the Southwest Tower! By Helmut Jahn. Edited July 15, 2011 by Urbannizer 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted July 15, 2011 Share Posted July 15, 2011 Six, additional design proposals for the Bank of the Southwest Tower! By Helmut Jahn.It was as though they went out of their way to choose the ugly one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted July 16, 2011 Share Posted July 16, 2011 I really like this "could been" design for a UH dorm: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted July 16, 2011 Share Posted July 16, 2011 this built out would have been cool: Wheeler LRT station http://www.hok.com/cfm/ProjectDetailArchive.cfm?Tag=&projectID=527&TagList=United%20States^Mobility^Transportation^Planning Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 (edited) Fibro city. It would be awesome for a visionary Houstonian to invest in the city in this way. What ever happened to those people who invested in their city? Did they leave it to corporations or do we simply not hear about them anymore? http://www.archdaily...28Arch+Daily%29 Edited July 19, 2011 by lockmat 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 not that this exciting, but still. Guess the potential is still there with this buidling since it still exists. I wonder if this is still in progress?St. Joseph/Holiday Inn highrise renovation: http://www.haseninc.com/projects/officeprojects/office-stjoseph.php#../images/stjoseph1.jpg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 (edited) Life Sciences in TMC, pretty sweet:http://www.archastic.com/home/houston-life-science-center Edited July 19, 2011 by lockmat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LTAWACS Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 (edited) wow... now THAT'S cool! Edited July 19, 2011 by LTAWACS Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simbha Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 wow... now THAT'S cool!Agreed. What happened to this proposal? It's beautiful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mister X Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 It was as though they went out of their way to choose the ugly one.You truly have awful taste. Just completely awful. Please don't quit your day job. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HTX Posted July 20, 2011 Share Posted July 20, 2011 Life Sciences in TMC, pretty sweet:http://www.archastic...-science-centerTop row far left. First thing I thought when I opened the link was "toilet bowl with the brush right there." Glad the design evolved Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Highway6 Posted July 20, 2011 Share Posted July 20, 2011 Fibro city. It would be awesome for a visionary Houstonian to invest in the city in this way. What ever happened to those people who invested in their city? Did they leave it to corporations or do we simply not hear about them anymore?Isn't any entity, whether an individual or corporation, who decides to build here instead of elsewhere deciding that Houston is the best place for them to build? So wouldn't all new projects in Houston be investments in Houston? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted July 20, 2011 Share Posted July 20, 2011 Top row far left. First thing I thought when I opened the link was "toilet bowl with the brush right there." Glad the design evolvedI believe they already built this building, however it was not this design. Am I right, everyone? Too bad b/c this design is pretty cool. It reminds me of what The Perennial should be designed like on Post Oak, instead it's like one of those early stages of this design.Isn't any entity, whether an individual or corporation, who decides to build here instead of elsewhere deciding that Houston is the best place for them to build? So wouldn't all new projects in Houston be investments in Houston?In a way, yes, but not the same way Jesse Jones and Dan Duncan invested in Houston. Granted, they invested more in the arts and medicine, I'm not sure how much they invested in infrastructure or things like Fibrocity, but that would be awesome if they wanted to.Here's a decent article I found: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/6944081.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Highway6 Posted July 20, 2011 Share Posted July 20, 2011 In a way, yes, but not the same way Jesse Jones and Dan Duncan invested in Houston. Granted, they invested more in the arts and medicine, I'm not sure how much they invested in infrastructure or things like Fibrocity, but that would be awesome if they wanted to.Here's a decent article I found: http://www.chron.com...an/6944081.htmlI initially had a longer response, but I slimmed it down till I could see who your examples would be.You hit the nail on the head - all the multi-millionaire philanthropists invest in Universities, Arts, Medical, Libraries, Humanities. You can add Ima Hogg and M.D. Anderson to your list. Nationally, it's the same - Carnegie, Rockefeller, Vanderbilt, Gates - their return on investment is seeing growth in cultural, medical, or scholastic endeavors. I can't think of many example of philanthropists who's only goal is too invest in the architecture and aesthetics of a city for the sake of improving the city, especially when it involves commercial projects.The sort-of exception I can think of, though it isn't isolated from the above reasons, is T Boone Pickens. Rich alumni like himself who's main goal is to improve their alma mater, but in investing in academics of a small school in a small town, are also investing in the architecture, aesthetics and image of the college town. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 This was supposed to be a "Midway Hotel" Scott DeWoody: http://scottdewoody.com/portfolio/midway_hotel/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 "Texas Plaza" between Bayou Place and the Wortham Center http://tgullette.com/RecentWork.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 (edited) What would have been better, Discovery Green, Hilton Americas and Hess tower or this convention center hotel proejct?: http://tgullette.com...iceBldgs_3.html http://tgullette.com/StreetScenes_2.html the huge screen looks pretty awesome: http://tgullette.com/StreetScenes_3.html Edited July 24, 2011 by lockmat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subdude Posted July 24, 2011 Author Share Posted July 24, 2011 What would have been better, Discovery Green, Hilton Americas and Hess tower or this convention center hotel proejct?: the huge screen looks pretty awesome: http://tgullette.com/StreetScenes_3.html Boy, I don't know. Call me cantankerous, but I just have this 'thing' about television screens in public places. What would the arched structure holding up the screen have been? This was supposed to be a "Midway Hotel" Scott DeWoody: http://scottdewoody.com/portfolio/midway_hotel/ Do you know where this would have been located? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subdude Posted July 24, 2011 Author Share Posted July 24, 2011 For an old-school approach to this thread, there are always those many plans from the 80s to fall back on. Here's a model of a lesser known project called Resource Centre/Houston. It was to have been a series of towers: 46, 36, 26 & 16 stories tall, with the smallest being a hotel and the rest being office space. 2 million square feet on 16 acres. It would've been located east of what's now CityCentre, occupying the land that's now a large strip center. Apologies for the quality since it's a copy from microfilm. Where is CityCentre located? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 Do you know where this would have been located?No, I don't know. Maybe CityCentre? Didn't Midway develop that property? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 Of course, we ought to add the Ritz Carlton at BLVD Place http://swamplot.com/a-first-look-at-the-ritz-carlton-hotel-tower-at-boulevard-place/2008-01-16/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LTAWACS Posted July 25, 2011 Share Posted July 25, 2011 Where is CityCentre located?waaaay out west... like... highway 6 at i-10. somewhere around there.. funny that they call it citycentre when it's nowhere near the center of the city. ugh. they misspelled it to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgriff Posted July 25, 2011 Share Posted July 25, 2011 (edited) waaaay out west... like... highway 6 at i-10. somewhere around there.. funny that they call it citycentre when it's nowhere near the center of the city. ugh. they misspelled it to.It's at the intersection of Beltway 8 and I-10, where Town and Country mall used to be.Edit: And midway did develop a Hotel at this site. Hotel Sorella. It's not the hotel in the rendering above but I can see a few elements that are very similar. The development has been very successful. They are breaking ground on a new parking garage and two more small office towers right now. Edited July 25, 2011 by jgriff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted July 25, 2011 Share Posted July 25, 2011 I wanna say this is south of 59 on Purdue St. but it's hard for me to tell: http://ua.sinappsb.net/projects.asp?indid=18&projid=72&pimgid=368 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LTAWACS Posted July 25, 2011 Share Posted July 25, 2011 It's at the intersection of Beltway 8 and I-10, where Town and Country mall used to be. Edit: And midway did develop a Hotel at this site. Hotel Sorella. It's not the hotel in the rendering above but I can see a few elements that are very similar. The development has been very successful. They are breaking ground on a new parking garage and two more small office towers right now. This is good news. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simbha Posted July 25, 2011 Share Posted July 25, 2011 I have no artistic/drawing ability, so I'll cower behind some barrels after saying this...It would be awesome to get a rendering of Houston with some or all of these projects drawn in. I'd love to see how the city 'might've looked'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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