monarch

^^^ not only are we here... heck, we are EVERYWHERE!

^^^ meticulous/jaw dropping. there seems to be no stone left unturned upon this development. WOW!

^^^ this particular development is not even completed. yet, the "WOW" is constantly climbing up the charts. what a remarkable addition/achievement for MIDTOWN HOUSTON!

^^^ upon behalf of DOWNTOWN HOUSTON and DISCOVERY GREEN PARK. what else is there to say...

stuffed wings common bond late august ^^^ this is waaaaaay too cool. THE ION is going to ROCK!

^^^ actually, i would like to venture forth just to try my luck with those awesome stairs...

^^^ soooooo in essence, you're doing a DRIVE BY? 😱 😱

Skanska drew inspiration from Bank of America Tower for new downtown Houston project By Jeff Jeffrey – Reporter, Houston Business Journal Jan 14, 2021, 2:29pm CST The design for Skanska USA Commercial Development’s new 28-story office project adjacent to Discovery Green in downtown Houston was influenced by the company’s experience building Bank of America Tower, executives with the company told the Houston Business Journal during a Jan.14 interview. Matt Damborsky, executive vice president for Skanska USA Commercial Development’s Houston market, said after seeing how successful Bank of America Tower’s amenity terraces were with tenants, the company made sure to include similar terraces that overlook the 12-acre Discovery Green park in its new project, dubbed 1550 on the Green. Skanska’s new 375,000-square-foot office tower will be located at 1550 Lamar St. “We learned while we were building Bank of America Tower, as well as similar projects across the U.S. and around the world, that tenants really like to have that third place where they can work,” Damborsky said. “In this case, the entire building overlooks the park, so we wanted to make sure we were doing what we could to bring the park into the building.” Bank of America Tower, which opened at 800 Capitol St. in May 2019, has an outdoor amenity deck on the 35-story building’s 12th floor, as well as a retail and restaurant lobby on the bottom floor, which the company named Understory. The plans for 1550 on the Green include two tenant-only terraces and an additional terrace on the roof deck that the public will be able to rent as an event space, Damborsky said. While the plans for 1550 on the Green are still being finalized, Skanska and its design team are also considering ways to activate the building’s lobby to make it more inviting to tenants and members of the public who might be looking for a place to grab a bite to eat. “We’re considering various uses,” Damborsky said. “The obvious component is food and beverage. We’re open to everything from a fast-casual restaurant to fine dining. But we might be also do something like the walk-up food and beverage places we have seen be successful at other downtown buildings.” The design team making those decisions includes the BIG-Bjarke Ingels Group, an international design firm that chose to make 1550 on the Green its first project in Texas, as well as Austin-based architect Michael Hsu, who was brought on to design the interior amenity spaces. Hsu also designed Bank of America Tower's Understory culinary market. “We are very excited to have Michael Hsu on board because he’s known for creating interesting retail and amenity spaces that become a destination,” Damborsky said. That said, Damborsky noted that Bank of America Tower’s influence on 1550 on the Green wasn’t just limited to the layout of the building. The project will also have many of the touchless technology systems that Bank of America Tower incorporated into its design — systems that took on new importance in the wake of the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic. “Not only do those systems provide an additional level of convenience, they are important to protecting the health and wellness of the employees working there,” Damborsky said. “We want to make entry into the office as easy as possible. As with Bank of America Tower, we want to include systems that call the building’s elevators as soon as an employee badges into the building. We also want to have systems in place, so that planned visitors can be put on a list to make their access into the office as easy as possible, as well.” Skanska plans to announce the construction timeline for 1550 on the Green after it receives all of the required permits. Records filed with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation show that construction of the building could begin as early as June 1, with an estimated completion date of May 1, 2023. The initial phase of the project is expected to cost $117 million, according to the TDLR filing. Once 1550 on the Green is completed, the building will include two basement levels of parking, six levels of above-ground parking, 20 floors of office space and a mechanical penthouse. There will be 7,000 square feet of ground-floor retail. Norton Rose Fulbright, one of the largest law firms in Houston, has already signed on as the first tenant in the tower. Norton Rose Fulbright has more than 175 lawyers in its Houston office and currently is based in the Fulbright Tower, at 1301 McKinney St., part of the Houston Center complex downtown. The firm will relocate in 2024 and have naming rights in Skanska's new tower, where it will occupy 32% of the office space. Skanska acquired the property at 1550 Lamar St. in 2019 as part of a $55 million deal to buy four downtown parking lots from MIPS Investments LLC and MIPS Parking LLC, which Skanska said would be used for a then-unnamed mixed-use development. 1550 on the Green will occupy two of those parcels. Damborsky said Skanska still has not decided exactly what the remaining two parcels will be used for, but the company plans to call its mixed-use district Discovery West. "Right now, we're going to focus on making 1550 on the Green a truly spectacular project," he said.

^^^ nothing to date. maybe, COVID has slowed down development a bit...

^^^ combine this absolutely gorgeous SKANSKA development with our forthcoming first W HOTEL... atop the houston first building... discovery green is slowly turning into a downtown urban masterpiece. these new prospective developments shall turn the discovery green district into a downtown urban tourist destination. HOUSTON, WE CAN NO-LONGER FIND A PROBLEM...

^^^ this prospective development, is like a giant EXCLAMATION POINT to this all-important downtown district. what an absolute perfect design concept for skanska...

^^^ yep, it's a DOGGY DOG world embassy suites! bow wow...

^^^ what a gorgeously designed development. skanska, PLEASE construct this masterpiece. i'm begging you...

^^^ maybe it's just me, but this latest particular mcnair project design... although, quite majestic and stately in appearance... offers no grace/vitality/momentum, like the beautiful/striking previous design. in fact, this particular rendering reminds me of the above ^^^ christmas nutcracker. stately... majestic... uniformed... completely at attention. yet, it seems to be yearning/screaming for the nearest walnut to crack. i am trying desperately to fall in love with this newest rendition. maybe it's because of it's priceless location, or it's gorgeous height/scope/scale. IT NEEDS TO BE UTTERLY MAGNIFICENT! however, it also requires a bit of warmth and poshness with its proximity to the galleria and uptown's famous waterfall. maybe, it shall grow on me...

^^^ oooops! meant to add the attribute with the initial posting. here you go... https://www.papercitymag.com/real-estate/east-river-houston-development-midway-mega-project-waterfront-restaurants/

Houston’s New Waterfront Destination Takes Shape — An Inside Look at East River, Midway’s City Changing Mega Project A 150 Acre, 65 City Block New District is Coming — Here's Everything You Need to Know The model dominates the center of the long table, giving a 3D glimpse in miniature at just how vast this world will be. No were not talking about the latest superhero multiverse or some other Hollywood creation. In some ways, this is even more ambitious than that. For this is real. And coming to Houston. “It truly is a remarkable opportunity,” Midway CEO Jonathan Brinsden says. “It’s rare you find this kind of site with attributes like Buffalo Bayou frontage within the urban core in the shadow of downtown. “That’s just not unusual to Houston. That’s unusual to every large city in the country. . . This truly is a generational opportunity and that’s the lens we look at it through.” The model on the table is of East River, a potential city-changing development East of downtown abutting the Buffalo Bayou. Midway’s the company behind CityCentre, the company that helped revitalize Levy Park, the company that proved College Station could have its own cool hotel just as hip as anything in Austin. But if everything goes right, East River will be its magnum opus. It’s sheer size immediately places it on another scale entirely. We’re talking about 150 acres of former industrial land long closed off to Houstonians, a swath that’s the equivalent of 65 city blocks. It’s the largest site within the 610 Loop that is still open for redevelopment. In essence, Midway almost will be building a new mini city within the city. One that introduces a riverfront to Houston. “It’s got a mile of frontage on the Buffalo Bayou,” Midway executive vice president David Hightower says. “And we’re on the river part of the Bayou. This is where it really turns into a river.” To take advantage of that unique feature, expect to see restaurants with patios that run right down to the Bayou and even adventure outfitters offering kayaking and other water activities. East River will be a waterside development in very noticeable ways. “I think it will be a very new and unique feel for Houston, which is exciting,” Brinsden says. Midway gave PaperCity an unprecedented look at this new East River development, assembling its East River project team around a giant conference table (everyone was masked and well spaced out) to detail everything that is coming. With the heads of departments getting into everything they’re working on for East River, you get a real sense of the scope and complexity of the project. And everything that is coming. It is A LOT. In the best sense. In total, East River is projected to be a 20 year build, but it will roll out in phases with the construction of phase one beginning in early 2021. The first phase will include five or six restaurants, a mix of full service and more casual, grab-and-go type spots. A bike shop, an outdoor outfitter (picture kayaking and more), coffee shop, ice cream parlor, barbershop, blow dry bar and more are also in play as either strong possibilities or likelihoods. The first apartment complex on the site is also part of the phase one plans. The Laura is a five-story, 360-unit complex that bring the first residents to the East River development. Office space — as much as 250,000 square feet of offices — will ensure that East River emerges as a play, live and work destination from the beginning. Every major building will have retail — shops, restaurants, etc. . . — on the ground floor. East River’s first phase will be centered around a 2,000-square-foot green space. This giant lawn will be a place to hang out and congregate much like CityCentre’s smaller plaza lawn. Live music and events also will take place on the grand lawn, with the idea of creating an instant hub in the new community. Midway also plans to set aside some smaller retail spots that are largely built out for local vendors from the 2nd and 5th Wards, the two Houston neighborhoods the project straddles. “We’ll have some spaces that are more approachable with a low cost of entry for local businesses,” says Lacee Jacobs, Midway’s vice president of strategic leasing and advisory. Finding East River’s Groove Plenty of research goes into determining the right mix for a development of this size. Midway’s design management team toured 27 projects in 17 states to build an accurate sense of what worked and what did not work in other cities. Pearl District in Portland, Industry City in Brooklyn, The High Line in Manhattan and South Lake Union, which transformed a rundown area of Seattle into a tech hub with a major Amazon campus, were just some of the more high-profile developments Midway studied. “We don’t want a Disneyland back there,” Hightower says. “We want something that feels authentic.” One of the challenges East River faces is that unlike with many of the studied projects, or even San Antonio’s Pearl District, there are no existing historic-type buildings on the site to repurpose. This was a fenced off industrial site originally owned by the old Brown & Root construction company that helped reshape Houston and grew into the largest construction firm in the United States. The structures on the East River site were the type of barebones metal buildings that do not work (or come close to meeting code) for restaurants or retail. Everything will have to be built from scratch at East River. Which may make it a good fit for Midway. This is a development firm that has shown it is willing to take its time — and look to the future. While East River’s first phase is projected to open in 2023, the entire build out of the 150 acre site is not expected to be complete till around 2041. “That’s one thing that’s a little different about us,” Brinsden says, smiling. “We take a long term approach.” The models on the table, which show much more than phase one, display that in detailed miniature. East River will have some nods to history. The Laura mid-rise is named after the first steamboat that took the Houston-founding Allen Brothers up the Buffalo Bayou. Houston’s Maritime Museum will also be reborn at the development in a nod to its waterfront perch. The museum will not be part of phase one, but the Bayou definitely will be. “The whole development is meant to activate the waterfront,” Anna Deans, Midway’s vice president of investment & development, says. Restaurant patios (some as large as 3,000 square feet) will spill right out towards the water. Trails will lead to the water. East River being connected to Buffalo Bayou’s hike and bike trails, more than 500 miles of trails in total, will helped connect it to the rest of the city in a much different way than purely car centric destinations. Of course, many of those trails will run along the water. “CityCentre was developed pretty revolutionary in that you put the most value on the pedestrian orientated green space rather than the highly trafficked vehicular corridor,” Deans says. “Now, we’re putting some of our most valued space along the waterfront.” “I never thought I’d be able to use waterfront in something I was leasing in Houston,” Jacobs laughs. Midway’s Patio Power The emphasis on the waterfront at East River will bring another early Midway staple into play. Long before restaurant patios become a must — and long, long before COVID-19 made them potential business savers — CityCentre built part of its vision around them. “One of our favorite things was when we developed CityCentre, we maintained that every restaurant had to have a patio,” Brinsden says. “And you would have thought that was the most insane requirement ever. Like we were asking them to go to the moon or something.” Much has changed in Houston dining — and the city in general — in the 15 years since then. But Midway is still focused on innovating. Some of the surprising touches at East River include beehives and some familiar Houston trees. Midway turned to Alvéole, a social beekeeping company, to install several hives that are already producing honey at the site. One of the top tree movers in the country turned to them to help save about 300 of the beloved towering oaks that had to be removed as part of Post Oak Boulevard’s somewhat controversial transformation. Those trees are now planted in a nursery on the northern boundary of the site — and will be worked into the development, giving East River mature, shading oaks from day one. Midway is also determined to achieve WELL Certification, which centers around things that directly affect people like air quality and the daylight a building allows in, and a high WiredScore along with the almost now expected LEED certification. Most Houstonians — even lifelong ones — have never been to this East River site before. It’s been closed off for generations. Midway is doing what it can to change that even before phase one opens with things like showcasing a striking 60 foot by 40 foot mural made out of shipping containers from Houston artist David Maldonado. That mural occupies the corner of Jensen Drive and Clinton Drive, where East River’s first phase will rise. Midway’s successful Moonstruck Drive-In, which shows a mix of classics and new movies (including Wonder Woman 1984 starting Christmas Day), on the site brings more people in. “Place making and creating experiences is a big part of what we do,” Midway marketing strategist Shelby Sekaly says. With East River, Midway is essentially creating a vast new place in Houston. “A truly walkable urban community is something that people want,” Hightower says. “We’re going to build one from scratch.” Midway’s already put in the research. This is a firm that uses advanced stats as effectively as a modern baseball general manager. But in the end, East River will have to rise above all the statistics that helped shape it to be successful. “There are lots of fancy terms like dwell time,” Brinsden says. “But you want it to be that community place where when people have time, they want to go there to hang out. And if someone has a guest in town, this is the place they want to bring them to — the place they want to show them. “Because they think it’s a special part of Houston.” Brinsden is leaning forward in his chair, the East River model stretching out across the table in front of him. There it is. Now, it just needs to transform an oft-forgotten chunk of the city. No pressure.

^^^ love me some GONZO247! this totally cool burgeoning artist epitomizes everything regarding our fair city of houston. compassion... diversity... cool/sexy... bold... talent... and total brilliance...

^^^ money must undoubtedly know no bounds at this forthcoming masterpiece. this is going to cost a fortune... WOW!

Sneak peek: Blossom Hotel to open in Houston's Texas Medical Center area By Olivia Pulsinelli – Assistant managing editor, Houston Business Journal Dec 4, 2020, 3:08pm CST The Blossom Hotel Houston will open at 7118 Bertner Ave. in the Texas Medical Center area in April 2021, according to a press release. It's the first U.S. hotel for The Blossom Holding Group, which is based in Hangzhou, China, and began exploring overseas markets in 2014, according to the company's website. The company has owned the 0.92-acre site since Jan. 1, 2016, according to the Harris County Appraisal District. Work has been underway on the site since 2018, according to Houston architecture forum HAIF. The 16-story hotel will feature 267 guest rooms and over 400,000 square feet of amenities, including three chef-focused restaurants, a lobby library, outdoor pool deck, top-tier fitness center, karaoke room, and 13 event spaces. Services will include long-term storage; laundry; language translation available in Mandarin, Spanish and German; appointment scheduling and travel services. Blossom Hotel drew inspiration from the city's prominent health care and aerospace industries. There are lunar-inspired accents and décor featured throughout, including minimalist lunar-based color schemes in the guest rooms. Guest rooms also feature marble bathroom, complete with rain shower heads, robes, slippers and Gilchrist & Soames amenities. In terms of the health care industry, Blossom Hotel will be across the street from the University of Texas M.D. Anderson's Mid Campus in the TMC area. Proximity to the Texas Medical Center is a major draw for hotel developers, which can then market their projects to out-of-towners traveling to Houston for treatment or to visit a patient at the TMC. “We designed the hotel to mirror the union of both Houston’s unique character and our goal to embrace our international guests,” said Christen Larsen, director of sales and marketing. “Just as Houston has welcomed us, we are thrilled to welcome Houston and beyond to Blossom Hotel, a concept engrained into our brand identity: Be International. Be Houston. Be You.” The new hotels underway in Houston come a particularly challenging time for the city’s hospitality industry. Social distancing mandates and travel restrictions implemented in the wake of Covid-19 have kept many potential travelers at home this year. During the second quarter of 2020, revenue per average room — the industry benchmark for success — was down 61.6% in greater Houston compared to the second quarter of 2019, according to a recent report by San Antonio-based Source Strategies Inc.

^^^ @jermh what an absolute GORGEOUS illustration! heck, this edifice is not even completed yet. upon my own personal view, once TEXAS TOWER is fully completed, it shall reign as one of the most beautiful/elegant/sophisticated towers in the south/southwest. mark my words...

^^^ nancy and rich kinder ^^^ @DarklyMoron @rgarza and to any other HAIF stalwarts that are associated to whatever degree... to the newest MFAH CROWN JEWEL now open within our fair city of houston, tx... CONGRATULATIONS! thank you kindly for your hard work, constant insight and updates, and all around knowledgeable contributions to this burgeoning MFAH thread. SALUTE!

Developers unveil ambitious Buffalo Bayou urban village Houston-based apartment developer Hanover Co. aims to deliver the initial phase of its most ambitious project yet on a 14-acre parcel along the western edge of Buffalo Bayou Park in fall 2021. The company, which has developed more than 60,000 apartment units across the U.S. over the last four decades, and financial partner Houston-based Lionstone Investments today unveiled an urban village called Autry Park at the gateway to the River Oaks and Montrose neighborhoods. The project, which pulls from the natural landscape of Buffalo Bayou Park and will serve as an amenity for park goers, will bring apartment buildings, restaurants, shops and retail services to the site. “We anticipate the desire to live across the street from one of Houston’s most treasured park spaces in the middle of a vibrant retail development adjacent to some of Houston’s best neighborhoods is going to be something greatly desired by renters and retailers,” said David Ott, development partner for Texas at Hanover Co. Autry Park, named for the small city park it surrounds, will consist of five towers totalling 1,450 residential units, 350,000 square feet of office space and 100,000 square feet of retail space and a hospitality component. Phase 1, which broke ground at the end of 2019, will bring two multifamily and retail buildings totaling 750 units and 50,000 square feet of retail space amid a winding network of streets and sidewalks shaded by mature oaks. On HoustonChronicle.com: An abundance of apartments slated for small stretch of West Dallas “What we’re trying to create is really this unique retail experience right on the park that will seamlessly interact with Buffalo Bayou Park,” Ott said. COVID-19 did not upend the design. “Fortunately, our vision for Autry Park always contemplated ample patio space, a dynamic public park, indoor-outdoor breezeways, and small-footprint retailers and restaurants,” said Tristan Simon, managing partner of Rebees, the project’s retail development partner. “This village-like atmosphere will feel safe and rewarding in the post-pandemic world.” Austin-based Michael Hsu Office of Architecture is designing the retail space and central park. Houston-based landscape architecture firm OJB is using inspiration of the natural landscape of Buffalo Bayou Parks along the streets and sidewalks of Autry Park. The developers collaborated with Buffalo Bayou Partnership, the city of Houston and Memorial Heights TIRZ 5 reinvestment zone to improve the city’s infrastructure, including new roads, bike lanes and pedestrian-friendly intersections that will make accessing Buffalo Bayou Park, a linear park stretching from Shepherd Drive to the Port of Houston, safer, according to Ott. On HoustonChronicle.com: Allen Parkway hotel and condo tower breaks ground The property, which was assembled in three purchases from Center for Pursuit, Lighthouse for the Blind and the city of Houston and Harris County, is east of Shepherd between Allen Parkway and West Dallas. New streets will create smaller scale blocks with granite paver streets lined with trees, landscaping and a new urban park at its core, Ott said. Though near the bayou, the project is not in the floodway. The developers are building the code-required 2 feet above the 500 year flood plain, which is approximately 5 feet higher than Harvey water line. A lighted intersection will go in at Allen Parkway and Buffalo Park Drive, a new street west of Tirrill Street at the primary entry to the development. Improvements at Autry Park will do away with a turning lane and extend the park to the hard corner at Shepherd Drive and Allen Parkway to make it pedestrian friendly, Ott said. A signalized cross walk will be added to provide access to Buffalo Bayou Park across the street. Ziegler Cooper Architects designed the 21-level Hanover Autry Park, while Design Collective and W Partnership designed the eight-story Hanover Parkview mid-rise also under construction. Monthly rents are expected to range from $2,000 to more than $10,000 for a 3,000-square-foot penthouse, Ott said. Hanover and Lionstone aim to deliver the first apartment units and retail spaces in fall 2021, when they expect the economy is in better shape. The project is in development at a time when urban neighborhoods such as Montrose, downtown, Washington Avenue and the Heights have been hard hit by the pandemic as renters have opted to buy houses and fled to the suburbs for more space, said Bruce McClenny, president of ApartmentData.com. Demand is not as strong as supply as nearly 23,000 units were delivered across the Houston market in the last year, well above historic average of 17,000 units, according to ApartmentData. Rents in Houston were down 1.1 percent in the last 6 months, while rents in Montrose/Museum/Midtown are down 6.1 percent during the period. By the time it opens in 2021, Houston should be in better shape and adding jobs, McClenny said.

Dinerstein Cos.' luxury apartment tower in the Galleria area tops out ahead of schedule By Sara Samora – Reporter, Houston Business Journal Nov 18, 2020, 2:03pm CST A Houston-based developer has reached a construction milestone on its latest luxury apartment tower. The Dinerstein Cos. said its Aspire Post Oak project topped out ahead of schedule. The tower was original expected to reach its highest point in January 2021, according to a Nov. 18 press release. The luxury 383-unit high-rise is at 1650 Post Oak Blvd. and sits on 1.59 acres at the corner of Post Oak and San Felipe Street in Houston's Uptown District. It will have seven floors of residential and commercial parking below 33 residential floors. The project also contains 15,506 square feet of ground-floor retail space, which is slated to be leased to a "nationally renowned restaurant concept," the press release stated. Houston-based Ludlow & Associates Construction is the general contractor, and San Francisco-based Gensler is the architect for the project. “Aspire Post Oak’s location is one of Houston’s most appealing, urban mixed-use and pedestrian-friendly areas in the city, and we recognize the need for the property’s design to reflect the surrounding premier environment," said Brooks Howell, residential leader and principal at Gensler. Aspire Post Oak is a part of the Dinerstein Cos. Aspire Living Collection. The units have an average size of 1,210 square feet, larger than an average apartment space, to accommodate current market demand. All the units will have a private outdoor space overlooking the Uptown District with views of the Galleria, downtown Houston and Memorial Park. Future tenants will have the option of choosing between one-, two- or three-bedroom units and penthouses. The units will also feature modern kitchens, European-inspired bathrooms and in-unit washers and dryers. Aspire Post Oak's amenities will include smart unit technology, a resident lounge, massage rooms, private dining rooms, a 24-hour fitness center, an infinity-edged pool with tanning decks and adjacent aqua lounge, indoor and outdoor resident event space, an elevated dog park and a concierge. Leasing for Aspire Post Oak will begin in the latter part of 2021 with rents starting at $3,000 per month. “Although we do business all over the country, Houston is our home, and we are beyond excited for Aspire Post Oak to place its mark on the Houston skyline,” said Brian Dinerstein, CEO of Dinerstein Cos. “We look forward to creating a modern, cutting-edge, residential option at one of the most walkable and vibrant locations in the city.” The project broke ground in spring 2019 and had been the subject of a lawsuit related to neighborhood opposition. However, the lawsuit was dismissed in July 2020 after the parties reached an agreement, according to Harris County District Court records, which did not disclose the terms of the agreement.

^^^ @rgarza my pal, you didn't tell us about this drop dead gorgeous 215-seat auditorium/theater at the soon to open MFAH. what a remarkably/beautiful addition. i am still struggling with the overall exterior of this burgeoning and yet monumental MFAH structure. upon my most honest personal opinion... i think that the exterior consisting of that GOD AWFUL frosted glass tubing... is the most UGLY/HORRIFIC THING EVER for a newly modern day constructed museum edifice that is costing in excess of ($475mm). with a price tag that steep, EVERY ASPECT OF THIS remarkable edifice should be something that DREAMS ARE MADE OF. nonetheless, let's talk about the INTERIOR design. once again, upon my most personal view, in lieu of observing many of the posted illustrations throughout this burgeoning MFAH thread, the interior design looks like a small slice of PURE HEAVEN. the billowing and barrel ceilings, the seemingly never-ending space, the pure and unadulterated opulence... like, everywhere you look. the way that the ART SEEMS TO COME TO LIFE throughout this magnificent structure, the SOOTHING and yet state-of-the-art LIGHTING EFFECTS throughout, and the seamless flow of pure/raw energy emanating from the MFAH staffers as they prepare this place for it's opening. HOUSTON, is a very fair, and yet, hard working blue collar city. it always has been. however, upon your visit, this small slice of PURE HEAVEN... is going to catapult your very soul and overall well-being into the stratosphere...

^^^ @jermh simply outstanding and totally CLEAR illustrations. please post more...