adr

If you were wondering how this building could possibly be going up so fast, I can report that at almost 4:30am on the dot the tower crane started moving.

From late last week:  This thing is gonna be a great addition.

Actually fits in really well with BG Place.

BONUS:  Drywall arrival beauty shot!

GO AHEAD AND JUMP!

Crane Jump! by Ryan Clark, on Flickr

Look how close the cement robot arm dispenser thingey (blue and white) is to the crane.  They are going to need to jump that again, or this thing is about to top-out.

Untitled by Ryan Clark, on Flickr

This was insane to watch. JUMPING THAT CRANE!

Work now on going at 300 block of Main bar strip.

https://twitter.com/thachadwick/status/620394156582531072

A bird  told me they thought it might be related to drainage issues from the recent storms rather than part of this plan.  Would be great if this was part of that plan, though - only tear the streets up once!

Does anyone know how much water this place took during the Labor Day flood?  

I was on the scene the next morning.  There was quite a bit of debris on the walkway railing on top of the foundation slab, which indicated to me that it took on several feet.

adr, Does Houston Watch Co. have a Twitter handle or Facebook account?  I'd like to tell my friends about it.

 

Yes!  

Twitter: @houstonwatchco

Facebook: facebook.com/HoustonWatchCo

www.houstonwatchcompany.com

Thanks for spreading the word!

will you have signage?

Yes.  Getting a sign on the building takes a few steps.  First we'll need the approval of the Bayou Lofts Homeowner's Association to make a modification on the exterior of the building.  Second, we are in a Contributing Building in the Main Street Market Square Historic District, so we need to receive a Certificate of Appropriateness from the  city Planning and Development Department, which means a review and approval of the plans by the Houston Archeologic and and Historic Commission.  

We'll need to get a sign operating permit from the Public Works department, and we plan to apply for a grant from Downtown Houston.  All of this seems straightforward enough, and now that we aren't working on the inside, we plan to work on the exterior.  

In the meantime, think of us as a well kept secret.

Shamless plug:  The Houston Watch Co. is now open at 913 Franklin St., between Travis and Main.  Open seven days at 4pm.

For the history buffs, we've got some details you might enjoy.  We purchased the Petroleum Club's humidor at auction (seen left) and will be using it to locker private bottles.  The floor tile is hand laid and original to when the building was built (1912).  We restored all of the woodwork you see, hand stripping off several layers of paint (most recently salmon pink!!).  We also have some cool prints of the original Watch Company in 1928 from the Story Sloan Gallery (upper right).  

Upstairs we have a collection of the hand-drawn 1910 blueprints for the Southern Pacific Railroad Building.  We don't have an outside sign yet, but we're easy to find - just to the left of the Bayou Lofts lobby.  

As of this past weekend, both Barringer and Bovine & Barley are now open.  Great spots.  One on the 400 and one on the 100 block of main.  Shameless plug - my place should be open in days.

Not sure if we need a separate thread for this, but yesterday they were pouring the concrete for the bridge under Franklin.

I had a conversation with the guy leasing out the retail in the building last night.  He said they were drilling something like 433 pilings.  

Ran into a guy with a ladder coming out of the former Clutch City Squire last night.  Said the new place, the Commoner, might be soft opening today.  

PUMPED!

New flag on one of the crawler cranes.

Frank's pizza tower by differentryana, on Flickr

Rendering in the Chronicle today.  

This really is one of downtown's gems.  In my mind, it's up there with Esperson and Gulf.  Really satisfying to hear it's going to be renovated into lofts.

Petroleum Building by differentryana, on Flickr

Petroleum/ Great Southwest Life Building by differentryana, on Flickr

I don't remember where it was posted about the suburban styled chase bank in downtown and how it did not fit in that part of town. Just read in the chron that it is now for sale.

 

http://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/columnists/sarnoff/article/Luxury-tower-to-be-built-near-Galleria-50-oil-6079880.php 

Building in question.

Here's the building.

The new Barringer Bar, located at 108 Main in the former Club Next space, had a private event last night.  The space, which is finished but not yet decorated, is long and narrow, featuring a very fine looking wood bar on the left wall, and a DJ stand further back on the right. It's a good size and consistent, capacity-wise, with the 300 Main trend of smaller bars vs larger clubs.  I was told they are on track for a March opening and are keeping the Barringer name.

So, soon on the 100 block of Main there will be one bar plus the existing bail bond shop, with two fairly turn-key bar spaces (Beer Cellar, Copa Cabana) waiting to be picked up - all within sight of the renovated Sunset Coffee Building.  Interesting times.    

Scaffolding is down.

Sunset Coffee by differentryana, on Flickr

Sunset Coffee by differentryana, on Flickr

Main Street at Preston walking south on the west side of the street.  Sidewalk is now totally blocked off just as is the case on the east side of Travis street on the other side of the block.

Clutch City Squire had their last night on Saturday, and now the bar and every other street level entrance, including Fretz's construction office for the State National Building renovation, is completely blocked off from pedestrian or any other access.

The WHOLE BLOCK

looks like the former Georgie's Market space can still be accessed, though.