Buffalo Bayou Master Plan

[pablog]

I came across this event on Facebook and thought I’d share because it’s for a good cause. Livelihood will be planting 100 trees at Buffalo Bayou Park if anyone wants to attend and meet up there!
 

here is the link https://livelihoodprojects.org/plantings

[HoustonMidtown]

Not sure if this is where this should go, but demo of Clayton Homes is underway...

 

Untitled by Houston Midtown, on Flickr

 

Untitled by Houston Midtown, on Flickr

 

Untitled by Houston Midtown, on Flickr

[JBTX]

I think this is an apt place for this to go. I noticed from the Chartres/i10 ramp the other day that it appeared as though the BB East trail from downtown was complete, but I remembered there is a solid iron gate at Clayton Homes that blocks it. Naturally, I went biking along the BB East trail the other day to see and it is very clearly finished, but still impassable around Clayton homes. The gate is still up, but you can see the demo equipment in the distance.

[Triton]

Apparently some work is being down along the bayou. Looks like a new path.

 

 

 

[CaptainJilliams]

Good to see, I was wondering if they were going to try rebuilding another path. But given how close it is to the bayou, it may be a matter of time before this one erodes as well.

[Avossos]

buffalo bayou Park is the jewel of our city.

[kbates2]

They need to fix the broken path downtown by the old Spaghetti Warehouse.  It collapsed during Harvey and hasn’t seen any love.

[skooljunkie]

https://www.hcfcd.org/Recovery/W100-00-00-X068-Buffalo-Bayou#_

 

HCFCD has been building up the banks by re-sloping with concrete boulders and other rock for about 6 months now. They then cover/pack with soil and sod + redo asphalt trails. Some of this began breaking down in 2015 and 2016 even before ole' Harv. Glad to see it fixed.  Phase 1 and 2 are done (I believe). Phase 3 (photo above) just started. Phases 6 and 7 have been ongoing for the last month or so. 

 

 

[hindesky]

Probably repairs to the asphalt walking paths that were much closer the the edge of the banks. Several of them have been closed due to the flooding. 

[HoustonMidtown]

Clayton Homes demo is complete

 

Untitled by Houston Midtown, on Flickr

 

Untitled by Houston Midtown, on Flickr

[jmitch94]

Kind of surreal to think the setting of so many memories for so many people can be erased just like that. I'm not railing against this at all it just makes me a little melancholy to think that something so essential and permanent as where you live for so many people for years and years can be turned into a patch of dirt that is indistinguishable from any other. 

[nate4l1f3]

59 minutes ago, jmitch94 said:

Kind of surreal to think the setting of so many memories for so many people can be erased just like that. I'm not railing against this at all it just makes me a little melancholy to think that something so essential and permanent as where you live for so many people for years and years can be turned into a patch of dirt that is indistinguishable from any other. 

....It really is

[gene]

Has anyone heard an exact date as to when Eastern Glades will be opened up? I think i originally heard or saw Spring 2020...to me it looks just about if not already complete, the fence just needs to be taken down...

 

[West Timer]

9 hours ago, jmitch94 said:

Kind of surreal to think the setting of so many memories for so many people can be erased just like that. I'm not railing against this at all it just makes me a little melancholy to think that something so essential and permanent as where you live for so many people for years and years can be turned into a patch of dirt that is indistinguishable from any other. 

If it happened to AstroWorld, it can happen anywhere. 😭

[JBTX]

3 hours ago, gene said:

Has anyone heard an exact date as to when Eastern Glades will be opened up? I think i originally heard or saw Spring 2020...to me it looks just about if not already complete, the fence just needs to be taken down...

 

 

I have not. Been monitoring it closely and you're right. It looks to just be fencing left. Website still says 2020.

[gene]

I am still trying to get over the comment about the "HOLE area is an eyesore..."

😲

[Houston19514]

On 6/16/2020 at 5:05 PM, HoustonMidtown said:

Clayton Homes demo is complete

 

 

I presume this was the part of Clayton Homes that was damaged by the flooding?  (When I first saw your post, I thought you were saying that all of Clayton Homes had been demolished, but that is clearly not the case.)

[Texasota]

Anyway, I was reacting to a throw away line, and we should probably nip this in the bud, since the Astrodome isn't terribly close to Buffalo Bayou.

[Montrose1100]

All Astrodome conversation moved to the appropriate topic. 

[Texasota]

hmmm, my one remaining comment now makes me seem like a crazy person...

[mls1202]

Forgive me for living under a rock, but I'm assuming the demolition of Clayton homes is to allow for the realignment of 59?  It's not necessarily going to host other residential or commercial (at least in the near term)?

[CaptainJilliams]

46 minutes ago, mls1202 said:

Forgive me for living under a rock, but I'm assuming the demolition of Clayton homes is to allow for the realignment of 59?  It's not necessarily going to host other residential or commercial (at least in the near term)?

 

That was the assumption in my mind as well.

[wilcal]

1 hour ago, mls1202 said:

Forgive me for living under a rock, but I'm assuming the demolition of Clayton homes is to allow for the realignment of 59?  It's not necessarily going to host other residential or commercial (at least in the near term)?

 

17 minutes ago, CaptainJilliams said:

 

That was the assumption in my mind as well.

 

The parts that were demo'd were due to flooding damage. If the 59 realignment happens, all of Clayton Homes will be removed, so it's doubtful anything is built in the near term. 

[gene]

edited to place it in the correct thread! thank you @Avossos !!!

Edited June 23, 2020 by gene

[Avossos]

5 hours ago, gene said:

anyone hear any date yet on the opening of Eastern Glades? i am just excited to have something like a Discovery Green area closer to me. Also with this opening i wonder if they will close the picnic loop temporarily to either make that nicer or make some other use for it? it definitely needs some attention and seating/table upgrades. 

 

https://www.memorialparkconservancy.org/discover/master-plan/eastern-glades/

 

 

 

I think we have a thread for memorial park...

 

You are correct, the memorial park picnic loop needs some attention. It isn't really attractive, nor is it modern in its functionality. I think there can be some major improvements.

[thedistrict84]

The warehouse at 1119 Commerce St. downtown has a construction fence set up around it. Looks like the Harris County Flood Control District is finally ready to move forward with demolition.
 

https://www.hcfcd.org/Find-Your-Watershed/Buffalo-Bayou/F-82-1119-Commerce-Street

 

https://imgur.com/gallery/eQ9YOaN

[Sunstar]

2 hours ago, thedistrict84 said:

The warehouse at 1119 Commerce St. downtown has a construction fence set up around it. Looks like the Harris County Flood Control District is finally ready to move forward with demolition.
 

https://www.hcfcd.org/Find-Your-Watershed/Buffalo-Bayou/F-82-1119-Commerce-Street

 

https://imgur.com/gallery/eQ9YOaN

Oh well, I had always hoped this building could somehow be incorporated into BBP’s design, but I understand that downtown is probably better off without it from a flood control perspective. Also, the south side bayou trail can now continue East, although the next barrier is right across San Jacinto at the Harris County inmate processing center.

 

I was hoping.that would meet the same fate as 1119. All that land plus the adjacent parking lot would open up a nice bit of green space along the bayou.

 

[kbates2]

13 hours ago, Sunstar said:

Oh well, I had always hoped this building could somehow be incorporated into BBP’s design, but I understand that downtown is probably better off without it from a flood control perspective. Also, the south side bayou trail can now continue East, although the next barrier is right across San Jacinto at the Harris County inmate processing center.

 

I was hoping.that would meet the same fate as 1119. All that land plus the adjacent parking lot would open up a nice bit of green space along the bayou.

 

 

Have we heard of its fate now that it is abandoned? 

[rechlin]

15 hours ago, Sunstar said:

Also, the south side bayou trail can now continue East, although the next barrier is right across San Jacinto at the Harris County inmate processing center.

I believe plans were shared here earlier that showed the path actually going THROUGH that building, which would be pretty cool.

[Houston19514]

46 minutes ago, rechlin said:

I believe plans were shared here earlier that showed the path actually going THROUGH that building, which would be pretty cool.

 

That is correct.  I posted those plans a while back.  Tried to find that post earlier today . . .   

[hindesky]

Spaw Glass is the GC of the project but JTB is the actual company doing the demo. I wonder if something is going to be built in its place, Spaw Glass does construction.

 

Edited July 13, 2020 by hindesky

[West Timer]

Beautiful in it's own way.

Houston's own no frills Little Venice. (sort of)

[HoustonBoy]

5 hours ago, West Timer said:

Beautiful in it's own way.

Houston's own no frills Little Venice. (sort of)

This is how I see it haha I wish this could be converted into a flood-proof outdoor terrace or walkway. Such a unique structure within Texas I feel.

[Tumbleweed_Tx]

IIRC, it's being removed to help improve water flow in the area. Nothing will go in it's place. The North Canal would be a better solution than tearing down this building (unless it's crumbling, or the city has something against Rowdy for tagging it)

[Houston19514]

4 hours ago, Tumbleweed_Tx said:

IIRC, it's being removed to help improve water flow in the area. Nothing will go in it's place. The North Canal would be a better solution than tearing down this building (unless it's crumbling, or the city has something against Rowdy for tagging it)

 

The north canal is going to be built too. We need multiple solutions.  And, yes, I'm pretty sure the building is crumbling. 

[Houston19514]

17 hours ago, hindesky said:

Spaw Glass is the GC of the project but JBT is the actual company doing the demo. I wonder if something is going to be built in its place, Spaw Glass does construction.

 

 

Maybe it's SpawGlass's civil division.  According to the Flood Control District (which owns the property): "Demolishing the building will create room to soften the existing bend in the channel."

[H-Town Man]

10 hours ago, HoustonBoy said:

This is how I see it haha I wish this could be converted into a flood-proof outdoor terrace or walkway. Such a unique structure within Texas I feel.

 

It is pretty unique within Texas, maybe some stuff in San Antonio comes closest. But we can't advocate that a canal be built for flood improvement and then when there's a building constricting the channel say "Oh, this has some character, we'll leave it." And if it's crumbling, that pretty much resolves the issue.

 

There used to be a lot of buildings built against and even over the bayou. Most of them were either destroyed in the two big early 1930's floods or cleared away soon after.

 

I think Spaw Glass has done plenty of demolition downtown over the years. They were involved in some of the middle-of-the-night demos if I'm not mistaken.

 

[JBTX]

Buffalo Bayou Partnership just sent this out regarding an informational session on the Buffalo Bayou East Plans:

I don't know if we are allowed to post links to stuff like that here, but, I'm sure you can find info on their website.

[tigereye]

Work starts on extending trails from Allen’s Landing to McKee St 

 

 

[H-Town Man]

37 minutes ago, tigereye said:

Work starts on extending trails from Allen’s Landing to McKee St 

 

 

 

Great news!!

 

[talltexan83]

Wonderful news!  And I can see how the continuation of the Austin St. dedicated bike plan will tie in well here.  

[CaptainJilliams]

Good to hear, the eastern trails definitely could use some love.

[thedistrict84]

That explains the crew tearing up the parking lot just southeast of the Wilson criminal justice building on Commerce, near where the Austin St. bike path intersects Commerce. Looks like they’re putting a path and green space right through where the parking lot was. Nice!

[H-Town Man]

It's a shame they couldn't acquire that holdout trapezoid parking lot parcel on the north side of Commerce. Guess the owner wouldn't sell at a reasonable price.

 

[Texasota]

The flood mapper shows that trapezoidal parking lot as being relatively low risk (500 year floodplain), so maybe the thought is that a building could actually go there.

Honestly I think that would be ideal. 

[H-Town Man]

1 hour ago, Texasota said:

The flood mapper shows that trapezoidal parking lot as being relatively low risk (500 year floodplain), so maybe the thought is that a building could actually go there.

Honestly I think that would be ideal. 

 

I think it's better to have street frontage for your park and then the land across the street has development pressure. But a couple of downtown parks have done it your way, with a commercial building in the park (Market Square, Jones Plaza, Discovery Green). Those buildings were controlled by the parks, though; if they wanted to do that here, they could have bought the parking lot and then built a commercial building there.

 

[Texasota]

Except the park will have street frontage regardless - Austin will terminate at the park and the block west of Austin will be all parkland. Besides, this isn't really one park; it's part of a network of expanding and contracting park spaces along the bayou.

 

I like the idea of a (residential) building anchoring the corner at Commerce/Elysian/La Branch and, hopefully, helping to instigate development on the surrounding lots. That would help to extend the little bit of a neighborhood further east on Commerce and maybe blunt the impact of Elysian dumping commuters from Kingwood or wherever into the city.

[H-Town Man]

2 hours ago, Texasota said:

Except the park will have street frontage regardless - Austin will terminate at the park and the block west of Austin will be all parkland. Besides, this isn't really one park; it's part of a network of expanding and contracting park spaces along the bayou.

 

I like the idea of a (residential) building anchoring the corner at Commerce/Elysian/La Branch and, hopefully, helping to instigate development on the surrounding lots. That would help to extend the little bit of a neighborhood further east on Commerce and maybe blunt the impact of Elysian dumping commuters from Kingwood or wherever into the city.

 

Wherever the park ends, there you have opportunity for commercial buildings. What this really boils down to is, do you want a narrower park or a wider park along the bayou?

 

I'm also skeptical that you'll get a residential building on that small trapezoidal site, especially with the flooding issues. Most likely this just remains a parking lot.

 

Edited September 3, 2020 by H-Town Man

[Texasota]

I sympathize with your skepticism and also worry that this will remain surface, but I do think there's room for a residential building there and think that would be the ideal use. What would have been better (from my perspective) would be if the Parks Board/BBP had purchased the lot and then put out an RFP for a building on it.

 

But I also don't really agree that "this really boils down to is, do you want a narrower park or a wider park along the bayou".  I want the park to be wide where there's a programmed benefit to that width and narrower where that width makes less sense. Given the wider sections between Caroline and Austin and Fannin and San Jacinto, plus the proximity of Allen's Landing and James Bute Park, I actually thinks it makes for a better, more interesting experience for the park to narrow here to make room for something else. As long as it's still wide enough to be useful and "something else" doesn't just stay a surface parking lot. 

 

I'll of course take a park over a parking lot in a heartbeat, but I think this lot is uniquely positioned to work well for a building (of some sort) despite its relative proximity to the bayou.

[H-Town Man]

15 minutes ago, Texasota said:

I sympathize with your skepticism and also worry that this will remain surface, but I do think there's room for a residential building there and think that would be the ideal use. What would have been better (from my perspective) would be if the Parks Board/BBP had purchased the lot and then put out an RFP for a building on it.

 

But I also don't really agree that "this really boils down to is, do you want a narrower park or a wider park along the bayou".  I want the park to be wide where there's a programmed benefit to that width and narrower where that width makes less sense. Given the wider sections between Caroline and Austin and Fannin and San Jacinto, plus the proximity of Allen's Landing and James Bute Park, I actually thinks it makes for a better, more interesting experience for the park to narrow here to make room for something else. As long as it's still wide enough to be useful and "something else" doesn't just stay a surface parking lot. 

 

I'll of course take a park over a parking lot in a heartbeat, but I think this lot is uniquely positioned to work well for a building (of some sort) despite its relative proximity to the bayou.

 

Shrug. I guess the Riverwalk in San Antonio is an example of where close commercial development makes the experience more interesting. I liked the original vision in the 2002 Master Plan where everything north of Commerce would be cleared out and you'd have a "Commerce Street Promenade," but that isn't likely to happen anytime soon.

 

Edited September 3, 2020 by H-Town Man