HoustonIsHome

All valid points. If you're worried about that, either mobilize to get zoning on the ballot, or don't buy an expensive house in a desirable neighborhood without deed restrictions in Houston - but don't sue to stop someone from doing something that complies with current laws.

Exactly. This has been defeated by public ballot many times. You can't have your cake and eat it too.

The law is the law, they should be petitioning to have the law changed not suing a developer who went through all the legal hoops he was required to.

Its bad for development and the legal process in general if anyone can tie you up in the courts for breaches of imaginary laws.

No one is hating on the woes of the residents. But the residents had no legal basis to enjoin the developers from erecting the building.

I can understand suing for depreciation of value(barely), but halting the project? Really?

Yeah, I agree. I have yet to go to downtown Houston without the Foley's building being there (last time it was closed for demo), but my greatest fear was that it would be a hole in the ground for months (or worse, a parking lot).

It feels different. Main Street Square used to be closed in. Very shady, lots of activity. Now it seems so open. Due a short building Foleys was imposing

Stairs are cheap, and they've been done elsewhere along the Bayou recently.

I just noticed there are already stairs right at the southeast corner of the Post Office site

From what I understand of Europe, this is the way a lot of their cities work: rich interior, poor surroundings. For a long time, it's been the opposite in the US (much to the confusion of Euro tourists) but now that trend is of course changing.

That has to do with with race.

White flight/ gentleman agreements etc.

Before desegregation we were very much like Europe with the rich in the core and the poor blacks on the fringe. Where TSU area is now was on the border of the city limits in Houston early days.

During desegregation many blacks felt that in order to show that they made it they needed to move to white areas. The whites responded by fleeing further and further out. Montrose was a very early burb

Gentleman agreements developed in neighborhoods like river oaks that prevented real estate from being sold to minorities.

What is happening now is more of a comfort thing. Houston has become a big integrated city and people are more comfortable to live amongst each other. So black families are now moving to pearland and katy in much higher numbers

I'm saying that a lot of people already spend $700+ a year on tolls and it doesn't seem to matter much. That's all. I agree for quite a few that will be the tipping poing, but I doubt that it will cause a mass exodus to the core or next to other major job centers.

I understand what you are saying, and never hunted at an exodus of any kind.

Over the last few decades the fringes of the urban sprawl (or new subdivisions) have been exceedingly attractive. Cheap homes that are low cost overcame location. What I am saying, is location may become more of an issue with added road costs.

Side note, have you been on the beltway between 290 and 249 @ 5pm recently? Looks like that strip needs a couple of tolls

Knowing Houston I am surprised that it hasn't turned into a super Wal-Mart bookebded by an office depot and an Academy and surrounding by a gigantic parking lot.

Franklin would likely be re-worked somehow - perhaps even removed. Considering the scale of the work being talked about on here its easy to see a street changing quite a bit to accomodate something. I mean we're talking about MOVING all the county jails+private jails+digging a canal between White Oak and Buffalo Bayou. Versus removing 400' of street that's probably in bad shape anyway overhanging part of Buffalo Bayou... which one sounds easier to you.

Yeah, a couple of those university submitted proposals has franklyn removed or set back further unto the property. They mess with streets all the time.

Especially if light rail is involved I dont see rerouting Franklin to Washington as being a big deal. Franklin, Preston and Washington already merge past 45 anyway.

To Slick Vic's point that people would be forced to move closer to work - either in or out of town - I think that's false. $720 - $1400 a year on tolls is way lower than buying a new home and moving (assuming people could even move).

What if the tolls are the tipping point.

What if you consider a car note, gas, insurance and maintenance.

Car note - ~ $300 x 12= $3600

Gas- $100 x 12= $1200

Insurance- $1000

Maintenace- $400

Tolls- 1400

..................

Total $7600 / year

Lets assume the suburban home costs $275000, a 30 yr mortgage at 5% interest would run you about $1500 a month or 18,000 a year

So total suburban costs would be $25,600

Now let's assume we ditch the car and buy a house/ townhome or whatever within a few miles from downtown. Lets say Montrose. A $400k house would mean a mortgage of $2100 or $25200 a year. Add in $800 for transit and you get $26,000 that's only a $400 / year difference

77006 home values: http://www.har.com/neighborhoods/MONTROSE-subdivision-10261270010001.html

So I dunno. Those 700 to $1400 in tolls could be the tipping point.

That's irritating! It should be Houston!

Don't be upset at pie in the sky announcements. Houston is getting actual towers not speculating and pitching unrealistic plans.

Fact of the matter is Museum tower has sold what 14 out of 119 units.

Other buildings like the Beat lofts remain really empty.

I doubt two giant towers with a zillion units will plop in dallas anytime soon

Do you think the downtown residential market flood will impact midtown prices?

I am surprised more east end apartments haven't been announced. This is where I was hoping for a boom in more reasonably priced housing.

Was hoping that the lag in residence downtown they mentioned in the article would be picked up by east end residents.

They mentioned that midtown already has a major retailer is a bit disingenuous. Yes Randalls is a major retailer but it's Randalls.

A slowly increasing downtown population would still have midtown and east end to fall back on. Just because 45 cuts the neighborhoods in two doesn't mean the residents can't cross the devide and use each other sites until closer ones develop.

These developments are being built with huge parking structures. Many people will still be driving so I don't think getting retail immediately will be a major issue for a lot of these high end residents

I actually like Dallas' City Hall. I have a soft spot for brutalist buildings.

Yeah, I am due for another eye exam too

I don't mind tax hikes, just as long as its not on something I use.

I don't mind other people paying to improve my city at all.

1. Downtown from 288 or from UH area.

2. Uptown going down 610

3. Downtown at night coming from I10 west or 45. That haunting glow just says welcome home.

Houston and Dallas has some of the ugliest city buildings on the planet. This isnt that bad.

We could have gotten this :http://www.dallascourts.com/photos/allen.jpg

Or this:

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RC_Xscv967E/TcgN1rw7QbI/AAAAAAAAGLQ/fM1xWZbL7-s/s1600/dallas%2Bcity%2Bhall.jpg

This can't be right...

They cannot be on tap to pay damages to whoever wants to file a claim... that is outrageous. What I took from it is:

They have to pay damages either way, now, and they can build.

Green light in my mind. Just an added 1.7 million dollar cost (for damages).

It is not whoever wants to file a claim. They will be paid the difference between the property values before Ashby and now. If there had been no diminished values thres is no recovery

It is a matter of time before everything inside the loop becomes mid / high rises... Houston is a big city. land value won't be going down anytime (trend is up). Ashby highrise will be followed by others. If you havent noticed, all the cheap construction / cheap apartment buildings / townhouses end up becoming devalued - and developers see this as a brilliant flag of opportunity; and come in.

The previous apartments weren't good... yet they were younger than many of the other homes surrounding. I think this building is beautiful, and I hope it goes up.

There are neighborhoods that I wish would not change much, and there are others I would mind seeing two dozen Ashby hirises in *cough*cough* Afton Oaks*cough*cough*

The neighborhoods around the museum district shouldn't be funked with.

River Oaks I care less about

As to whether the project should be prevented, that part should never have gotten to the jury. The judge should have dismissed that part as a matter of law.

As to damages, that I see being decided by a jury. That is what juries do. They decide matters of fault and award damages.

The judge as he did now could have done ages ago and allow the project to continue while the matter of damages goes on.

The residents and juries are trying to implement zoning codes through verdicts.

No dice. The public needs to vote on this again.

Yeah, that way companies would be incentivized to move out to the suburbs, like hospitals in Cypress or that new Exxon campus in the Woodlands.

Besides, you do know that Rick Perry and his pals were heading in this direction anyway, right?

I can hear the sales pitch now. Avoid the traffic and the tolls, move to the boonies.

The space is tempting, but those areas are too generic for me.

Not hating on those who like it, but I like the inner loop amenities

I like that this project isn't dragging its feet like so many other Downtown projects seem to be doing.

I was thinking the same.

Thought there would have been an extended period of rubble clearing, then the crater would be left for months before anything serious be done.

But no. After the demo, they went right at it. I'm not sold yet on the land use, but I'm glad that something is going up again.

Main Street Square seems so different without That blockwide building

Car pools?

Driving is so darn expensive already

Car notes, insurance, Maintenance, high gas prices, now tolls?

I saw this awhile back and I like it, but am I the only one who thinks this is not grand enough for downtown? It looks like something that should be in the museum district. The main building is just too short.

I agree with you that its not grand enough and works be better suited near Sam Houston park. However, we still have a lot of empty lots and one story buildings downtown. So it isnt exactly the direction I picture for downtown, but it really isn't that out of place YET.

That area as we speak is very barren. Very Detroitish.

It is going to be very different in the years, but as others have said an improvement in tourism or other things in the area are very welcome.

Wow, I had no idea the Third Ward was turning around like this. Shouts out to gentrification I guess...

Speaking of gentrification, where do you guys think we might see the lower social class citizens that are getting pushed out moving to?

Yes, Third was has been changing from multiple directions. The dangerous aspects aside, it really is an interesting part of town to live. The Bayou, The slightly rolling terrain of Riverside Terrace, The beautiful big houses surrounded by delapidated shacks, the history, the food, the University culture (however shall it was at the time).

My favourite thing to do was bike riding along the path down brays Bayou to Hermann park.

As to the lower income people moving out, the ones I know have been moving to the burbs.

Really beautiful setting.

HOUSTON IS BEAUTIFUL.

Funny, I used to live about a mile south of this area and didn't know about it.

The google earth view is reconstruction, while the satellite view is after construction started. It looks like they tore up the parking lot and removed a lot of trees. I hope they do put back in a lot of trees and keep the area green.

As Texasota pointed out, you won't be able to like those arches for too long. That building is potentially on the chopping blocks across the street.

I like those arches.

Its great that the school is getting far away from its commuter school image.

U of Houston is improving all around. This is great for the city.

Its Law School pulled up in the us news ranking last year edging into the top 50 with Baylor and SMU.

There is talk of creating a Med School (seems like overkill to me) but a good med school would help.

Anyway sites anyone know a ballpark figure for the number of rooms catering to UH students? IM talking about both on campus apartments and dorms and private off campus housing