wernicke Posted May 9, 2008 Share Posted May 9, 2008 I'm not sure if someone already mentioned it, but MetroNational -- which owns much of the Memorial City area -- will use the crown for their own offices. It is almost like they just added a weird spikey crown on top of a boring building so they could have nice high-rise offices with 360 degree windows. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted June 13, 2008 Share Posted June 13, 2008 I don't know about yall, but I'm liking this building more and more each time I pass by it, which is once every couple months. The glass looks much better than last time. It's still a little boxy, but I suspect next I see it the crown will be done and it'll be looking even nicer.It's no architectual marvel, but it's much better looking than five months ago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swtsig Posted June 13, 2008 Share Posted June 13, 2008 I don't know about yall, but I'm liking this building more and more each time I pass by it, which is once every couple months. The glass looks much better than last time. It's still a little boxy, but I suspect next I see it the crown will be done and it'll be looking even nicer.It's no architectual marvel, but it's much better looking than five months ago.i drive by it once every 2 weeks or so (and can see it out of my office window) and still detest the thing... 35 stories, and that was the best they could do? here's hoping the westin looks nicer (which it will purely by default). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpringShadows Posted June 17, 2008 Share Posted June 17, 2008 i drive by it once every 2 weeks or so (and can see it out of my office window) and still detest the thing... 35 stories, and that was the best they could do? here's hoping the westin looks nicer (which it will purely by default).There is a new rendering on the feeder in front of the building. It details the Westin and shows the whole "Big Picture" and it looks completely different and much improved over the original rendering, it even shows how Memorial City Mall will look. I'll try to get a picture of the sign. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheeats Posted June 17, 2008 Share Posted June 17, 2008 Has anyone else noticed that they haven't made any progress on the "crown" in about two months? The rest of the building appears to be complete, "skin"-wise, but that stupid crown is still just sitting there all skeleton-like and creepy. What gives? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyEvilTwin Posted June 17, 2008 Share Posted June 17, 2008 Has anyone else noticed that they haven't made any progress on the "crown" in about two months? The rest of the building appears to be complete, "skin"-wise, but that stupid crown is still just sitting there all skeleton-like and creepy. What gives? Yeah, I've been wondering if they didn't realize the windows for the crown were too big to fit in the service elevator before they disassembled the crane... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swtsig Posted June 17, 2008 Share Posted June 17, 2008 There is a new rendering on the feeder in front of the building. It details the Westin and shows the whole "Big Picture" and it looks completely different and much improved over the original rendering, it even shows how Memorial City Mall will look. I'll try to get a picture of the sign. yeah, i noticed that new rendering last week... so that's the westin? i actually really liked the design. cant say there's a building like that in houston. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheeats Posted June 18, 2008 Share Posted June 18, 2008 I just noticed this in an article from January 2007: Starwood will add the 155-room Sheraton Houston, Memorial City to the mix, as well as the 250-room Westin Houston Memorial City, which will be topped by 65 Westin Residences. Residences? Like apartments? Or like extended stay suites? But cool either way... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hldjhn987 Posted June 18, 2008 Share Posted June 18, 2008 If anyone has forgot there is a live webcam of this project. http://www.metronational.com/cam_hospital.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChannelTwoNews Posted June 18, 2008 Share Posted June 18, 2008 The rendering is right next to the Wells Fargo branch along the feeder, which kinda threw me off since I thought it may have been near the intersection at Gessner. Anyway, here it is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted June 18, 2008 Share Posted June 18, 2008 That's gonna look nice. I like it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tuscany04 Posted June 18, 2008 Share Posted June 18, 2008 The crown should have been big enough to be centered in the middle of the building, and still reach the north and south side edges. That would have been nice.I have been saying the same thing to myself back to the day the crown began taking shape. The building is tall according to height measurements, but it looks squatty and awkward. In anthropomorphic terms, it looks like the Empire State Building's short, dumpy kid brother. Who ARE these architects that fail to respect aesthetics in the massing of their buildings? All architects who design buildings with setbacks but who don't naturally possess a good sense of design rhythm and balance should first read anything written by Hugh Ferris to learn about how these kinds of buildings can be done well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livincinco Posted June 19, 2008 Share Posted June 19, 2008 I have been saying the same thing to myself back to the day the crown began taking shape. The building is tall according to height measurements, but it looks squatty and awkward. In anthropomorphic terms, it looks like the Empire State Building's short, dumpy kid brother. Who ARE these architects that fail to respect aesthetics in the massing of their buildings? All architects who design buildings with setbacks but who don't naturally possess a good sense of design rhythm and balance should first read anything written by Hugh Ferris to learn about how these kinds of buildings can be done well. You know what would really give it that sense of balance? Bring back the ARMS! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jc281 Posted June 19, 2008 Share Posted June 19, 2008 sweet, new rendering looks great. now im craving some papa joes. arent they well-placed to profit off all this new dev? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KinkaidAlum Posted June 19, 2008 Share Posted June 19, 2008 The Westin Hotel will fill a HUGE void for a nice hotel in West Houston. Currently, the only other option is the Omni. That said, I cannot imagine who they are going to market the condos to? Feeder/Freeway views for the empty nesters of Memorial? Kinda hard to believe that Houston's first new-build hotel/condo project is happening on Interstate 10 rather than downtown or the galleria. I understand that this concept is one of the only ways to get lending these days, but damn, I wouldn't lend to that! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jc281 Posted June 19, 2008 Share Posted June 19, 2008 The Westin Hotel will fill a HUGE void for a nice hotel in West Houston. Currently, the only other option is the Omni. That said, I cannot imagine who they are going to market the condos to? Feeder/Freeway views for the empty nesters of Memorial? Kinda hard to believe that Houston's first new-build hotel/condo project is happening on Interstate 10 rather than downtown or the galleria. I understand that this concept is one of the only ways to get lending these days, but damn, I wouldn't lend to that!are you suggesting the Westin will have residences? i think its just hotel.the only condos for Memorial City are East of Gessner and the mall itself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChannelTwoNews Posted June 19, 2008 Share Posted June 19, 2008 are you suggesting the Westin will have residences? i think its just hotel.the only condos for Memorial City are East of Gessner and the mall itself.The same people in charge of marketing for 920 Memorial City Way are supposed to handle the Westin's condo units as well. That's what the Starwood people at MCM said anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jc281 Posted June 19, 2008 Share Posted June 19, 2008 The same people in charge of marketing for 920 Memorial City Way are supposed to handle the Westin's condo units as well. That's what the Starwood people at MCM said anyway.so the westin is the high rise next to the robot building? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheeats Posted June 19, 2008 Share Posted June 19, 2008 so the westin is the high rise next to the robot building?I propose that, henceforth, the Memorial Hermann building shall be referred to as The Robot Building, for any and all purposes.All those in favor? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jc281 Posted June 19, 2008 Share Posted June 19, 2008 I propose that, henceforth, the Memorial Hermann building shall be referred to as The Robot Building, for any and all purposes.All those in favor?I Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shasta Posted June 19, 2008 Share Posted June 19, 2008 I propose that, henceforth, the Memorial Hermann building shall be referred to as The Robot Building, for any and all purposes.All those in favor?The real question is: Autobot or Decepticon? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GovernorAggie Posted June 19, 2008 Share Posted June 19, 2008 Easily Decepticon! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheeats Posted June 19, 2008 Share Posted June 19, 2008 New pictures for y'all: Taken from my office window, so excuse the slight glare. I'm still wondering where exactly that walkway from the hospital is going to end up in the mall, since right now it's headed towards the rubble of Mervyn's and/or the ice rink. Hmm... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AstrosFreak Posted June 19, 2008 Share Posted June 19, 2008 According to the new signage that's been put up around Robot Tower, the walkway is already done. The mall will expand to meet up with the existing pedestrian bridge. It also shows that the Westin will look pretty spectacular. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ricco67 Posted June 19, 2008 Author Share Posted June 19, 2008 According to the new signage that's been put up around Robot Tower, the walkway is already done. The mall will expand to meet up with the existing pedestrian bridge. It also shows that the Westin will look pretty spectacular.I would certainly hope that they planned for the mall to meet up with the skyway...heaven forbid it would just be hanging there waiting for some fool to take a swan dive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
20thStDad Posted June 19, 2008 Share Posted June 19, 2008 Easily Decepticon!I say autobot. It's a hospital, right? Helping people? It's a good robot. Possibly with an evil crown... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheeats Posted June 19, 2008 Share Posted June 19, 2008 According to the new signage that's been put up around Robot Tower, the walkway is already done. The mall will expand to meet up with the existing pedestrian bridge. It also shows that the Westin will look pretty spectacular. I think they have at least a teensy bit more to do... After all, there's a good-sized strip of parking lot/road that needs to be traversed before the walkway could meet up with anything. But I take that to mean that they're building something on the site of the old Mervyn's? If so, that's great! I was wondering how much longer they were just going to have that big, empty, patchy field there. Any ideas what it will be? Or am I getting way too off-topic here? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Great Hizzy! Posted June 19, 2008 Share Posted June 19, 2008 According to the new signage that's been put up around Robot Tower, the walkway is already done. The mall will expand to meet up with the existing pedestrian bridge. It also shows that the Westin will look pretty spectacular.Whoa, whoa, wait a minute! The mall is expanding... again? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ricco67 Posted June 19, 2008 Author Share Posted June 19, 2008 Whoa, whoa, wait a minute! The mall is expanding... again?that's what I like about you, Hizzy; You're quick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Great Hizzy! Posted June 19, 2008 Share Posted June 19, 2008 that's what I like about you, Hizzy; You're quick.Quick? You just wait 'till the caffiene from this Dr. Pepper kicks in! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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