I-10 At Jensen Dr.

[Eastside KEV]

So I was driving around the East side of Downtown a few days ago and came across some pretty interesting townhomes. They are near the Alexan lofts, on Jensen just off I-10. The builder is Cityview homes, and they have a pretty cool roof top terrace with every unit they will sell. They are asking around 220K for a 1900 Sq Ft home, and have very nice finishes. I guess waht Im getting at is what we can expect from the eastside of Downtown in the coming years. Will it turn around? Is it too industrial? THere are many other builders in that area building roof top decks as well. In-town and Waterhill are two who are building similar strucures for around 250K. They have two-car garages, and many dont share walls. The views of Houston from the East Side are beautiful, and many builders are designing structures to take advantage of the area. Any opinions or ideas would be great! Thanks.

Kevin

[Guest danax]

Welcome to the forum, Eastside KEV.

Here are a couple of topics where we discussed that general Near East End.

East End/ Dt Area Construction

Near East End (?) , questions

St. Emanuel Townhomes Near Kim Son

I personally think the area is a winner in the long run. There's nothing going on there right now as far as retail but it's quickly building up. It reminds me of an eastside version of Rice Military around Sawyer. Same general distance from Downtown and same transition from a lot of industrial to residential, just the surroundings are not as happening as the Westside. It appears to be quiet and seems to be on an elevation which gives those great, unobstructed views of the skyline from a rare northeastern vantage point, although I believe that large industrial facility on the southeast corner of Jenson and Clinton is for sale and, if someone ends up building high rise residential there, some of the views from the north side of Clinton might be blocked slightly. It'd be nice if KBR and Proler Metals down the street were to relocate.

In case you might not have heard, the Buffalo Bayou Master Plan includes Clinton Dr. and is supposed to have some pedestrian bridge across the Bayou connecting to the hike and bike trails. You could ride your bike over the pedestrian bridge to the Waterview District for a cup of coffee. It all sounds fantastic but only time will tell how much gets realized. On that first rendering it shows a rail stop on Clinton...? Guess that one is out the window.

The rooftop terrace idea sounds great and makes me wonder why it hasn't been done much before, or has it?

[hokieone]

Eastside,

Welcome from me as well. I agree that looks like a winner to me. I was over there today, those city view terraces were a long time coming. The sign was up forever and it was a welcome thing once the construction started. They look a little narrow to me, but regardless it is another piece of the puzzle starting to fill in. Plus catty corner to there has been a sign for a variance request for a rental residential complex. Nothing is going to happen over night, but it does look like momentum is happening. Juliet just continues to fill in the gaps. Going up Gregg street off Clinton gives you a good idea of how much room there is and how much the builders are starting to fill in. I think that the plot of land off Clinton in between In Town first phase and Juliet's first phases is also supposed to eventually have another builder come in there as well. Eventually it could be where you drive down Clinton and up Gregg and see nothing but new homes with eventual retail where the industrial buildings currently are. Definitely a lot of potential, plus convenient to downtown, I-10 and 59.

[Eastside KEV]

Thanks for that great info Danax and Hokieone. I agree that its not going to happen overnight, but if you have, say 5-7 years, I think a return on the investment is probable. The rooftop decks havent been used as much as I would think, but with minimal cost and a high-end reward, I think most builders are moving that direction. Doing a little research online, I see that some people have even put a jacuzzi on the rooftop patio. That would make our mild winters a true pleasure!

This forum makes me proud to be a Houstonian, and I hope we can all appreciate this great source of information.

Thanks Again!

[israel]

Wow! I just found this forum and I think the discussions are great. I've learned a lot about my neighborhood, Fifth Ward or as it may one day be called, "East Town" or "Buffalo Bayou Vista".

I see a great deal of potential for this area and since I have lived here for most of my life, I can see how the area is changing. The change is good. I moved back here in 2003 to help my parents. I am looking at buying property and developing it myself. I'm an engineer by trade, but I will be working with the Owner Builder network to learn how to be my own general contractor. My goal is to help beautify the community, clean up the area, and share the convenience and comfortable living with other Houstonians. As I have seen in many posts, the neighborhood is in a

[Dobiestud]

East end has really come alooong way in the past 5 years. The numerous townhome developments, of varying qualities, have been in the works for a number of years. This is important to note, since the developments we see now were planned, and their lands purchased years ago, mostly btwn 2000-2002. Like anything else, human psychology kicks in, and when people actually see development, they expect more for their land. Hence, land prices have gone up atleast 2 to 5 times on average within the past few years. Everyone wants to sell at 'tomorrow's higher prices' as opposed to now. Any of you in the investment or development business can probably relate to this, and the fact is that it takes alotta steam out of the new momentum the area has gained. Much higher land prices mean higher home prices.

There are a handful of scattered developments going up, and really filling in the blocks bit by bit. The location is obviously great, and any development whatsoever will be help the area, especially since it will bring new residents, mostly professionals, into the area, who tend to actively voice their demands for expanded city services, security, entetainment, shopping, etc. But hang tight, this will take many years to happen. There are sooooo many vacant and out of place industrial blocks of land and land with environmental problems that really make this place look dead, not an attractive feature for the short-sighted average homebuyer. Nightlife and clubs/bars will begin to pop up in the area soon I think, as they are pretty simple to set up (given they meet ordinance restrictions) and will also help make this place more habitable, especially for the younger professional crowd.

Also, bare in mind, that just past the industrial and vacant zone just east of downtown, still in east end, there are cozy tree lined neighborhoods with quite alot of potential, and not just cookie cutter type construction that we see these days. Many of these older homes are in fairly good condition and the mature trees on their lots really set this area apart and give it a unique value. I just hope that people continue to take care of and better their properties as values in the area will rise and push out some industrial eyesores.

Speaking of an eyesore, does anyone know what will ever happen to the Maxwell house coffee that sits smack dab in the middle of East End?

[Guest danax]

^^^ Welcome to the forum, israel, and welcome back to the East End. I never knew the locals called that area "The Bottom". Funny that it's actually a little hill rising up from the bayou. Congratulations on your deciding to build your own home there too.

Nice timing to find your old 'hood is being reborn just when you're ready to build. I think at some point in the near future we'll see the north side of I-10 start to redevelop too, just as Midtown has crossed the 59/288. The downside is that we'll forever lose almost all of those old, historic homes but, most of them are about to fall down anyway.

Have you decided what style home you are going to build? A "McMansion" perhaps? I don't mean that in a bad way, as a McMansion over there wouldn't be intrusive but rather a potential spark for more of the same. I live in Pecan Park on the East End and we're seeing our first McMansion going up on an empty lot, which is causing some mixed feelings amongst some of the neighbors. Townhomes are the obvious choice for production builders but I've been wondering when individual builders would start putting up pioneering McMansions in formerly decrepit neighborhoods such as "The Bottom".

[hokieone]

Lately, I have definitely noticed a surge in the area just east of the convention center. Saw that Urban living has something going up just next to Kim Son. Waterhill Homes has two different areas of land they have cleared and started selling, close to Live oak and Capital. Perry is adding new phases near St charles and Juliet's area close to I-45 is starting to look like an actual subdivision, they have put so many over there. City View terrace off of Jensen is coming along pretty well, and all the Clinton area keeps filling in. Definitely exciting to see. Not gong to cure the industrial building and wasteland areas overnight, but progress is being made. really most has been in the last 1-2 years, which is even more impressive.

I like the term "the bottom." As much as I hate when Houston keep coming up with new dumb and unnecessary nicknames for some areas (see the "SoDo" discussion), the near east end might actually work well with something like "The Bottom." Right now some people are pretty unclear on where I-10/ Jensen and Near east end exactly are.

On the Maxwell house issue, who knows? I do like the smell from the plant though, one of the few you can actually say that about.

[israel]

Thanks for the welcome. Well, many of those historic homes are being torn down at a rapid pace. The City of Houston is encouraging much of the development by wiping away taxes of $35K in judgments and selling for the appraised value of $5K or $6K. One family recently bought a lot (40'X90') from under my nose for $4500 in a public auction. They started cleaning it up and the next-door vacant lot appeared with a "for sale" sign. I checked HAR and they wanted $39,500 for the 40'X90' lot (same condition as the auctioned one).

Yes, to the above comment, landowners are pricing their land at speculative prices, and it makes it hard for builders because the banks have the cash and they don't want to speculate.

There are already McMansions starting to pop up. One family purchased 3 lots (159'X100') and built a huge house with a detached garage (home looks like 3500 sq ft). They are one block from I-10 and live on a dead end street (very quiet) and very inspiring for me to stick around this "hood".

The land I will develop is 140'X100'. I'm looking to build two traditional homes in the next two years and both will be about 2000 sqft. Although, recently I've been looking at the 3 story terrace designs because the view to Downtown would be nice with the exception of the toxic Superfund site that is next door. I like having a yard so even if I built the three-story designs I would only build two structures. I plan to break ground in early March 2006 so the next months will be spent researching the design and planning.

I am familiar with the Pecan Park area because I went to Milby High School down the road. I think the development of the Gulfgate area has really helped spur growth there. I lived in San Antonio and I always thought HEB was a good grocery store so I was happy to see them come to Houston. Also, the Gulfgate area has their own Starbucks, that is always a status symbol that is nice to have; I find Starbucks offers a good meeting place even though their prices are overpriced they beat an espresso coffee at the Olive Garden.

Any ideas or comments on home designs are greatly appreciated.

Regards,

Israel

[happytown]

  I think the development of the Gulfgate area has really helped spur growth there.  I lived in San Antonio and I always thought HEB was a good grocery store so I was happy to see them come to Houston.  Also, the Gulfgate area has their own Starbucks, that is always a status symbol that is nice to have; I find Starbucks offers a good meeting place even though their prices are overpriced they beat an espresso coffee at the Olive Garden.

Any ideas or comments on home designs are greatly appreciated.

Regards,

Israel

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Welcome to the forum. And congrats for building at such an exciting time. I live near that Starbucks in Gulfgate It's one of my favorite Sarbucks. Very polite and all, but with a Black-Hispanic flair to it. It seems to be doing well too, which is nice. I was there right after it opened and saw a Starbucks guy down here looking it over. He seemed pleased.

[midtownguy]

Happytown,

Where exactly do you live? I was thinking about that area, and really like the booming, energetic feel and diversity over there, but wasn't too impressed with the bland Perry Townhomes that are going up. The prices are right, but Perry builds really bland communities.

[happytown]

Happytown,

Where exactly do you live? I was thinking about that area, and really like the booming, energetic feel and diversity over there, but wasn't too impressed with the bland Perry Townhomes that are going up. The prices are right, but Perry builds really bland communities.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

There's an area I really like that I would check out if I were in the market: The area just northwest of Lawndale and Wayside. Several streets there have been recently rebuilt by the City. And the neighborhood is well kept up. If I really wanted to roll the dice I would look at the Garden Villas area. There is some new construction there, some of it very nice. The area has a reputation for flooding, but I believe that problem is being fixed. The lots in that area are huge, the size you associate with River Oaks. Lots of big old Pecan trees, among others. A fascinating, though somewhat unpolished, area. I love to drive around in there once in a while. Very unlike any other area of Houston.

[hydepark]

Rita and the substandard housing in Houston

If the washing machine spin cycle shakes my new 3 bedroom Tremont home... Just imagine what sustained winds of even 65 miles an hour will do .....25% of the temporary housing that has been allowed to be throw up all over Houston will be in a heap on the ground... and that is a conservative estimate.