hindesky Posted December 20, 2021 Share Posted December 20, 2021 3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mkultra25 Posted December 21, 2021 Share Posted December 21, 2021 Longtime Montrosians may remember this building as the former site of the Black Dragon Tattoo Parlor. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gene Posted December 21, 2021 Share Posted December 21, 2021 that building is a mess and such an odd location....and i love it haha...it IS Montrose in a nutshell. sad to see it go but understand for sure. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbigtex56 Posted December 21, 2021 Share Posted December 21, 2021 It's not just about the building itself, which is really little more than a shack. These small, run-down low rent buildings in odd locations allowed young entrepreneurs to open the quirky little businesses that made Lower Westheimer unique and a destination. Those days have passed, and are unlikely to return anytime soon. Still, it's a bit sad to see these holdovers eradicated and the Montrose become increasingly slick and 'corporate'. 7 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gene Posted December 21, 2021 Share Posted December 21, 2021 yep...r.i.p. the montrose of old 🥲 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
editor Posted December 22, 2021 Share Posted December 22, 2021 18 hours ago, dbigtex56 said: It's not just about the building itself, which is really little more than a shack. These small, run-down low rent buildings in odd locations allowed young entrepreneurs to open the quirky little businesses that made Lower Westheimer unique and a destination. Those days have passed, and are unlikely to return anytime soon. Still, it's a bit sad to see these holdovers eradicated and the Montrose become increasingly slick and 'corporate'. When I returned to Houston, I was shocked how much Montrose changed. it was Houston's Greenwich Village. Of course, the Village is mostly corporate-ized now. Montrose isn't that bad yet, but it's certainly headed in that direction. Next stop: Disneyfication. As much as I love Katz's Deli, I think that was what started it all. It was a safe zone destination that drew in suburban grit tourists to watch "the other side" through their SUV windows without having to actually interact with anyone who was not exactly like them. I was especially surprised to see that big office building. Unless you were an artist's agent or an architect, Montrose people didn't "office." They created. They taught. They learned. They lived. EaDo (Do I really have to call it that?) seems to be picking up a good bit of the entrepreneurial spirit that can no longer afford Montrose. But it's not the same. Montrose was prog rock. EaDo is auto-tune. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j_cuevas713 Posted December 22, 2021 Share Posted December 22, 2021 I wish I had the opportunity to experience the Montrose some of yall remember. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbigtex56 Posted December 22, 2021 Share Posted December 22, 2021 27 minutes ago, j_cuevas713 said: I wish I had the opportunity to experience the Montrose some of yall remember. If this makes you feel better about not having experienced the 'old' Montrose, there was another side that nostalgic people don't often mention. Sex and drugs were big business. Many of the small businesses on lower Westheimer were so-called "Oriental Massage Parlors" which in retrospect were exploiting young Asian women who had no recourse. Teenage runaways flocked to Montrose, sometimes squatting in abandoned buildings and engaging in underage street prostitution. In retrospect, the 'johns' who paid for their services were rapists. There was a high incidence of meth and other 'party' drugs. Some people were unscathed, others became addicted. Some displayed psychotic behavior, some overdosed and died. Some men were cross-dressers or drag queens, and enjoyed the reactions they got when they'd venture onto the streets. Fine. But some transgender women had to engage in prostitution because there were few other opportunities open to them. They risked being robbed, beat up, raped or worse. They were flashy because it brought in business. A girl's gotta eat. Yes, the old Montrose was fun, and I miss it. But there was a gritty side too, and people got hurt. 3 1 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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