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Main St. Improvments


Moore713

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Not really a Palm tree fan. Just don't really see the connection with palms and Houston. Now Oaks and Magnolias those are Houston. Overall I like the improvements they are very subtle, but even small improvements can make a world of difference.

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Not really a Palm tree fan. Just don't really see the connection with palms and Houston. Now Oaks and Magnolias those are Houston. Overall I like the improvements they are very subtle, but even small improvements can make a world of difference.

yes, but these are serious bird crap catchers.  not to mention birds nest hoarders... no one wants this downtown houston.  on with the gorgeous uplit palms!

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yes, but these are serious bird crap catchers.  not to mention birds nest hoarders... no one wants this downtown houston.  on with the gorgeous uplit palms!

 

I'm sorry monarch, but this has to be the lamest excuse to not put a kind of tree in a location....because BIRDS. That's like saying don't put grass on the ground because a dog will take a crap on it or something fabric wise because a cat will scratch it, or put a bench on the street because, lord forbid, someone will sleep on it.

 

I personally think palm trees are kinda useless. They don't provide much shade. and they don't provide a good way to break up a streetscape in terms of the interplay between buildings, the sidewalks, views from further away, and the street itself. The only palms I think are relevant to Houston, and streetscapes in general, are ones that are used for ground cover. Not to mention when you think of Houston...you don't think of Palm trees. Leave that to Miami or a city right on the coast.

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don't be sorry my pal luminare.. for i love to debate.  however, i get your point.  but please let us not forget that houston is currently the most diverse city upon this great nation.  therefore, diversification arrives in all forms / aspects including our trees.  oaks / magnolias, as simply beautiful upon certain majestic areas around town.  god only knows just how many times i have walked under one of them and had to haul a_ _ in order to get away from fleeting bird stuff.  trust me, for when it comes to these particular trees... sh_ _ happens.

 

however, not only do i live downtown houston, but as many HAIFER's are now aware... i frequently travel and work abroad as well.  therefore, i have been truly blessed to come across trees basically all over the world.  palm trees, are just legitimate everywhere. these particular trees tend to lend a strong bit of exoticism as per any cityscape vs landscape environment.  just look at how completely beautiful los angeles is upon some areas.  look at how gorgeous highland village is in houston down westheimer.  i have had out of town guest that have been in absolute awe at how simply beautiful that particular area is... and especially at night when all of the uplit palms or lit up on display.

 

trust me my pal, should we add these uplit palms upon certain locales downtown houston... they will be an instant hit.  i cannot wait to see the end result!

 

 

Edited by monarch
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I have to a hard time believing very many people think Highland Village is particularly beautiful, though the palms are definitely its saving grace.

 

I would think that the most beautiful streets in Houston are those around Rice, North and South Blvd, etc. 

 

Obviously trees of that size are impossible on Main Street downtown, but something that at least casts some shade would be better than a palm tree.

Even downtown, which has built-in shade from tall, zero lot line buildings, can use every bit of shade it can get in the summer.

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Is this underway? Main was closed off today between Dallas & Polk in front of the old Books-a-Million space. Sidewalks there have been completely removed and are all dirt. Construction barriers are up. Not sure if this is a start or just a large underground infrastructure project.

I thought this project was to start around the same time as Dallas St Shopping District construction?

Edited by tigereye
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Dallas street reconstruction started a few weeks back

The Dallas St Shopping District is a separate project from Main St Improvements. But IIRC both had similar construction timelines with a 2Q 2016 completion.

Main St Improvements PDF

http://downtownhouston.org/site_media/uploads/attachments/2014-02-07/140203-Main_St-Public_Mtg_Presentation-SM.pdf

Edit: Looks like construction has started. Work I saw on Friday in front of Books-A-Million is the 1200 block.

http://www.downtownhouston.org/development/street-closures/

Edited by tigereye
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A bird told me they thought it might be related to drainage issues from the recent storms rather than part of this plan. Would be great if this was part of that plan, though - only tear the streets up once!

Seems likely since all of the bricks are pulled up on the street itself, as opposed to the sidewalks at 12-1300 Main.

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Work now on going at 300 block of Main bar strip.

https://twitter.com/thachadwick/status/620394156582531072

300 block of Main last night from Bad News Bar. Street mostly dug up but no work on the actual sidewalks as of yet.

https://twitter.com/thachadwick/status/627368122853404672

Didn't know the county building across the street was being renovated too. From the looks of work on it currently, looks like a big overhaul of the building.

Edited by tigereye
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The county building has been under renovation for at least 2 years now, with no visible progress. Hopefully it will eventually finish. I was inside it a few months ago to renew my registration and it didn't appear they had renovated anything in the lobby yet, either.

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The county building has been under renovation for at least 2 years now, with no visible progress. Hopefully it will eventually finish. I was inside it a few months ago to renew my registration and it didn't appear they had renovated anything in the lobby yet, either.

I don't recall all the construction on the facade I saw last night. Also, at night time some lights were left on. You could tell upper floors were in the midst of a complete overhaul.

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  • 3 months later...

You want to revitalize main st...start cracking down on, panhandle, lottering.., and other crap that makes it a uncomfortable place to be..

I agree.

Atlanta passed an "aggressive panhandling" ordinance a few years back. Not sure how it worked. But, frankly, Houston either needs to enforce what it has or make it even stronger, then enforce it. Not only on Main but all of downtown and mid-town.

I know, because I have been told this by friends who have come here on business or conventions, that one of their chief takeaways from their visit was the number of times that they are solicited for money. "Daily, and sometimes multiple times on our walk to the restaurant..... And back.....You guys need to do something about that....Houston is a Nice place except for all the panhandlers....."

Edited by UtterlyUrban
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You want to revitalize main st...start cracking down on, panhandle, lottering.., and other crap that makes it a uncomfortable place to be..

 

Loitering is only illegal in Houston for prostitution. Panhandling is protected free speech. As long as they're not bugging people on patios they are allowed to do it.

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Loitering is only illegal in Houston for prostitution. Panhandling is protected free speech. As long as they're not bugging people on patios they are allowed to do it.

 

Think of it as an example of our pro-free enterprise philosophy.  They're just small businessmen trying to make a living. :P

 

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Living and working in downtown, you learn who most of the bums are.  There are only a couple that are really bad.  One lady is the worst lately.  She routinely yells at everybody as they pass and walks/lays in the middle of the road.  I saw a metro bus come about 2 inches from running over her head about a month ago.  She did crazy yell sing Maggie May to me the other day.  That was sweet.

 

Does anybody else walk by one of the two groups of racists that like to gather (on the corner of Travis and Preston on Saturdays and Main and Texas on Sundays) that will openly yell racist comments at you?  Those guys are real winners.

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Living and working in downtown, you learn who most of the bums are.  There are only a couple that are really bad.  One lady is the worst lately.  She routinely yells at everybody as they pass and walks/lays in the middle of the road.  I saw a metro bus come about 2 inches from running over her head about a month ago.  She did crazy yell sing Maggie May to me the other day.  That was sweet.

 

Does anybody else walk by one of the two groups of racists that like to gather (on the corner of Travis and Preston on Saturdays and Main and Texas on Sundays) that will openly yell racist comments at you?  Those guys are real winners.

 

I don't get near that amount of excitement in Cypress :(

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the homeless people on main make it so hard to even walk on the street. during the day time the cops try to do a decent job and getting them to scatter, but what long term solution do we have to get them off the streets? cant they make more shelters that are further away

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We could set up health centers and treatment centers for those dealing with addiction, rather than spit at their feet and degrade them. Jesus, you guys can be so cruel. I get it, they can be annoying and smell bad, but it's a hell of a lot harder to get back on your feet when you've hit rock bottom. Some of them may have mental disorders and that's not their fault. There's no easily accessible mental health treatment centers available.

If you really want to "get rid of the homeless" because you either want to address the mental health issue, or if you just don't want to see them because they "disgust you", then we need mental health treatment centers that can give them a chance to get treatment for their addiction, and to help them begin a new life.

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The issue is not the lack of mental health facilities, IMO. Rather, it is the constitutional determination that those deemed not a threat to themselves or others cannot be held against their will.

I am aware of a homeless man in downtown. I don't know his diagnosis but I do know he walks the streets talking and yelling to people or things he is "seeing and hearing". He will do that for a month or two. Then he will be gone for several weeks. Then he is back. He is no longer talking to his fiction. He is quiet, He sits, he walks. He smiles. He smokes. He is engaging with his environment. Then, when the free drugs he was given to control his affliction run out, he is back to his fiction.

I don't know his story. My guess is that when he gets hauled in and gets "cogent", he denies long-term admission and is back out on the street to let the cycle start over again.

Facilities are not the issue.

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So you agree then that there's a mental health issue as an underlying cause of his and others behavior. So can you tell me how else are we supposed to tackle this issue? The few MH hospitals out there are stretched then and do not have the resources to help every homeless person get treatment.

Facilities themselves are not an issue; it's the abhorrent lack of these facilities, and the lack of funding for treatment, that is the issue.

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Loitering is only illegal in Houston for prostitution. Panhandling is protected free speech. As long as they're not bugging people on patios they are allowed to do it.

I assume it's also illegal to loiter at a convenience store, since they are required to have a "No Loitering" sign up.

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  • The title was changed to Main St. Improvments

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