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I am the owner of an exciting search engine designed exclusively for downtown Houston (http://www.tunnelquest.com). 

If there are any new businesses or any other information that you think would be useful for Houston downtown residents, employees, and patriots, please contact us at http://www.tunnelquest.com/contactus.htm.

Thanks,

TunnelQuest.com

Or people could post them right here, and you could return to the forum to get the information.

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hou_15chenevertst.jpg

Loft Conversion Looms for 1920s-Era CBD Warehouse

By K Pica Kahn, Connie Gore

Last updated: Tuesday, August 31, 2004 09:13am

K Pica Kahn is on special assignment for GlobeSt.com.

HOUSTON-A California receiver has sold a two-building warehouse property, totaling 142,428 sf, along Chenevert Street as part of a four-year-old securities case with TLC America and affiliates. In a separate sale, the buyer gets one-third of an acre abutting the 1920s-era complex from a TLC sister entity.

Robb Evan of Tustin, CA, is the court-appointed receiver for TLC America, DBA as Brea Development Co. of Brea, CA. Proceeds from the sale of 15 Chenevert St., assessed at $3.1 million by Harris County, will be applied to a $106.6-million judgment set by federal Judge David O. Carter for the Central District of California for securities fraud in connection with a Ponzi real estate scheme. The judgment was issued in November 2001 against TLC and its entities. Two years ago, Evans unloaded the 91-unit Dakota Woods at 5414 Elm St. in Houston to earn more than $2 million for the court-ordered disposition.

In the latest disposition, Silco Investment Co. of Houston, led by Dan Silvestri, bought the warehouses from Evans and abutting land at 21 Chenevert St., valued at $534,000, in a transaction with Brea Development Co. The sales were brokered by Jeff Eisenhardt and Mark Hendricks with Phoenix-based Hendricks & Partners' Houston office. Eisenhardt tells GlobeSt.com that Silco intends to convert the 126,178-sf warehouse into lofts. The one-acre tract includes a 26,250-sf metal warehouse, which most likely will be razed to make way for the project.

The warehouse buildings were constructed for Nabisco Bakery and have changed hands several times, with the longest run being the site of Purse & Co.'s wholesale furniture business. TLC America bought the buildings in 1999 from the Frost family of Houston, which acquired them two years earlier from the furniture wholesaler. TLC's affiliate, Brea, bought the one-third acre tract in 1998 from Wiese Aaron of Houston.

According to court records and published accounts, TLC raised in excess of $150 million from more than 1,800 investors, most of whom were senior citizens. Its allure was the promise of guaranteed returns of 8% to 15% to investors, according to an SEC document. TLC principals stood accused of misusing at least $28.3 million in investor funds to pay other investors, invest in a prime bank scheme, buy racehorses, make charitable contributions and wire funds overseas. The receiver's initial status report showed TLC had about $2.5 million in cash and real estate purchased and developed at a cost of about $61 million. TLC is precluded from realizing any gain from the asset sales. Any gain beyond the $106.6 million judgment is to be applied to a $110,000 civil fine, according to published accounts.

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I think its very close to that new club "Thermal". Its a pretty intersting area around the warehouse district, that is, the "other" warehouse district north of MMP. Its very industrial with several old brick warehouses...perfect for real loft conversions.

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Sept. 5, 2004, 10:57PM

WRAP-UPS

Downtown dreamers wanted

By RAD SALLEE

Copyright 2004 Houston Chronicle

Houston has come a long way in just a few years. The new ballpark and sports arena now echo with cheering fans, at least some of the time. The streets and sidewalks have been rebuilt, almost. And MetroRail is running with only one or two mishaps a week.

Now, downtown officials and businesspeople are asking the public for advice on the future of this already improved urban landscape.

Now that much of the needed infrastructure is in place and the big attractions are drawing crowds, the next step is to "people-ize the streets" by attracting "more retail and more residents," said Jodie Sinclair, spokeswoman for the Houston Downtown Management District.

Opinions can be given at www.houstondowntown.com. Look in the top right corner for "Let planners know what you think" to get a survey form labeled, "What should downtown look like in 20 years?"

The first part of the survey asks people to choose five potential changes from a list of 10 and rank them by priority. The second asks respondents to make suggestions.

The list for the first part includes such choices as more stores and restaurants, more parks and plazas, more schools and churches, more affordable housing and a continuous greenbelt along the bayou.

Sinclair said the responses will be released this month.

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I went to that website but I can't find the poll!

Edit: Duh, never mind, I found it.  The print is really small.  <_<

Yeah, it's not that obvious. But it's there, right under "BREAKING NEWS" on the upper right side of the page, just below the banner.

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I used to help my Dad refill oxygen tanks at the volunteer ambulance hall, and I promise, after 20 minutes or so we'd both feel a bit perkier (there's bound to be a bit of leakage).

For the same price as one session at an oxygen bar, you could go to a welding supply shop and buy more oxygen than you'd need for a year. Not being a medical expert, I'm not sure if concentrated oxygen is beneficial. Oxygen is oxygen, whether scented, medicinal, or industrial.

Probably jogging is a better option.

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Thats up there with bottled water.

This article leaves unsatisfied for some reason. Mabye its the reminder that Houston is behind on the trends, or so the theory goes. Or mabye its that Thursdays are boring downtown. Funny, I remember some thursdays downtown that were pretty "happening"

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  • 3 weeks later...

What most people don't realize is that, although oxygen is necessary to live, excess oxygen is not good for you. Breathing purified oxygen can irritate the respiratory system. In fact, people take antioxidants like vitamin E and C to prevent the free radicals caused by oxidation. Breathing this purified oxygen will do more harm then good to your health.

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  • 3 weeks later...

OPINION

From the October 15, 2004 print edition

Commentary

Waning convention business worsens hotel glut

Bruce H. Walker

Special to Houston Business Journal

Downtown Houston's not hot, at least for hotels.

The city is oversupplied and will not correct itself for years. The situation was entirely predictable. By ignoring economic realities and relying on faulty research, Houston city leaders have jeopardized viable hotels.

A surge of downtown hotel openings caused occupancy levels to plummet from 79 percent in 2000 to 47 percent today, well below the break-even mark and causing a storm of concern amongst hoteliers. There are more hotel rooms than occupants to fill them. Houston's hotel market is an example that shouldn't be taken lightly by other cities.

The number of hotel rooms doubled following a recession that started in early 2001, with room counts going from 2,200 to 4,700 today -- a 114 percent increase. This uncontrolled supply growth is to blame for today's depression.

In the second quarter of 2004, room-nights sold volume is only 26 percent higher than that of four years ago, before 2,500 new rooms were added.

The addition of 2,500 new rooms was caused in large part by the City of Houston, which built the 1,200-room Hilton Americas-Houston next to the George R. Brown Convention Center with public funds, and offered tax abatements to attract the other 1,258 new rooms.

The city entered the hotel business to attract more and bigger conventions. The rationale for Houston putting on its capitalist hat was that a new "headquarters" hotel adjacent to the existing convention center would make the city better able to compete for conventions.

The evidence shows otherwise.

First, national demand for convention space is about half of what it was through the 1990s. Convention attendance has been deeply depressed for the past four years, with few signs of a recovery in sight. Trade Show Week reported an average 111 million convention/trade show attendees per year for the six years 1995 through 2000. This was followed in 2001 through 2004 with attendance averaging 56 million per year, a 50 percent decline.

There are a number of reasons for this, and the economy is only one of them. Others include a fundamental change in how business does business. Improving teleconferencing and other trends in technology and supply chain management all contribute to lower demand for conventions. We all know how Home Depot and Lowes have replaced most convention-going, neighborhood hardware proprietors.

Second, local governments all over the country keep adding convention space, worsening the over-supply. Since 1990, some 80 cities have significantly expanded their convention center space and added convention hotels. Third, the evidence so far is that adding another convention hotel does not increase the demand for convention space locally.

In the second quarter, the Hilton Americas generated $59 REVPAR (Revenue Per Available Room per day). This is a poor showing and will likely result in a return on capital of only 3 percent. Since municipal borrowing rates are twice this expected rate of return, the project will probably not cover its bond payments, resulting in a cash drain for Houston. Consequently, Houston hotel occupancy tax receipts will probably have to be used to cover the cash shortfall, resulting in little or no marketing funds left to promote Houston!

We also examined the downtown market excluding the Hilton Americas. So far, the entire market gain in room-nights sold has gone to the new public Hilton rather than to privately owned hotels. Tax incentives contributed to the explosion in new hotel supply, as well as the consultant-driven hype that major new convention volume was "on the way." To date, we know of no significant increase in the rates of booked convention business for the future.

What is in store for downtown Houston? With only a 47 percent occupancy rate to be expected through the first half of 2005, red ink will prevail. Look for hotel closures or conversions to residential usage.

Many cities have the notion that "if you build it they will come." In an age of continued growth, cities need to consider the overall impact that development will have within the city. Private operators knew this hotel was a probable failure and so would not develop it. For the City of Houston, what should have been a straightforward analysis has turned into a costly mistake.

Bruce H. Walker is president of Source Strategies Inc., Texas' largest hotel consultancy, producing 75 Texas hotel feasibility studies annually.

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Well, I can see his logic when it comes to CERTAIN kind of conferences and conventions.... but it's not the same thing with the boat, or the OTC conventions. Not even with the NRA or the antique shows. There is MUCH more than your typical conventions.

He doesn't even touch upon THAT kind of business which has a tendency to go through houston once or twice a year!

Ricco

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