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woolie

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Everything posted by woolie

  1. woolie
    I ride the train almost every day, and have never been checked.
  2. woolie
    You can throw Australia, UK, Sweden, Japan, etc. into the mix, and the results come out more or less the same, and all of these countries have comparable quality of life even if nominal GDP differs. The principle components are nuclear/hydro power and good transit infrastructure. that depends completely on the cost of installing the turbines, their efficiency, average windspeed conditions, etc. There's no guarantee (and perhaps unlikely) that the same amount of money invested in West Texas wind production would provide the same kWh. So yes, the downside could be that it produces non-GHG electricity at a rate that isn't competitive with West Texas wind... so it's not the most efficient use of money for displacing CO2 generating sources.
  3. woolie
    I'm results oriented in terms of global CO2 release. My master plan is something like this: on electricity, conservation in the first world, provide a secure nuclear fuel cycle in the developing world, build wind turbines and new hydroelectric whenever it's economically feasible, have a 2040 target of phasing out coal via the above combination (consv./nucl./wind.) On transportation fuel use: it's just a big mess, wipe the slate clean and reboot in the United States. Bulldoze the suburbs and try again with high density TODs. Get rid of cars by building a more appealing, better, less expensive alternative rail-based transit. Surprisingly, this might also affect public health. First world CO2 metric tons per capita 2004: US: ~20 Germany: ~10 France: ~6 The working model should be obvious. Anyway, /end thread hijack. Niche misses the point about conservation; we'll never build our way out of the problem (coal/natgas phaseout) if we can't blunt the growth curve. Conservation may not result in net decrease, but it gives us a better handle on the primary objective.
  4. woolie
    It's very typical of buildings trying to score some 'green' cred nowadays. It's a variation on "give an inch, take a mile," aka "Green-Washing," e.g. that this token windmill, functional at any level or not, excuses the building/owner/tenants from any number of other socially and environmentally irresponsible behaviors. Reporter: Mr. Ceo, your company was just found guilty of directly spraying millions of gallons of oil onto pristine beaches, taking elected officials on baby seal clubbing expeditions, and cynically plotting to infiltrate the EPA with an army of slave robo-commissioners. Blah blah blah... CEO: Yes, sure, sure, But! Our building has vertical axis wind turbines! We are very respectful of the environment! They provide more than enough electricity and carbon offsets to keep our paper shredders operating 24 hours a day!
  5. woolie
    My fellow vampire, the night beckons blah blah blah blah... Anyway, I'll probably put up a vanity thread about it next month, but I'm halfway through buying a house (finally). A tin shack in midtown, near Baldwin park, on a cute street. You seemed interested in my real estate decisions the last time I brought it up a year or so ago. /end thread hijack.
  6. woolie
    Sign is down. Project dead?
  7. woolie
    I take the train or ride my bike, depending on the weather. One of the perks of living in midtown. I don't even have a car to park there if I wanted -- my girl drives it to her office. Anyway, everyone, here is a secret, used by every student in the TMC. Park at the zoo. It's free, and most likely the same distance you'd have to walk from a garage to your destination anyway.
  8. woolie
    I've been in the TMC on a daily basis since 2000. The constant progress and construction has just been internalized as normal -- not exceptional in any sense. What would really disturb me is if the cranes disappeared, all the streets and sidewalks were open, and the dumptrucks went missing.
  9. woolie
    I've gotta say I'm absolutely sick of seeing gimmick decorative pinwheels, I mean, wind turbines. I want to develop our wind resources as much as anyone else -- but this kind of building glitter just gets under my skin. We're talking what, a MW or two of nameplate capacity?
  10. woolie
    yes, that is nice. I'll try to post some photos once the facade gets off the ground. Sure, I recognize this, I know the area well. But we have to take the first steps. Here's what I think: there's a metric ____ton of 4-6 story zero-lot-line apartment buildings all over town now. Each one made this assumption, and so we still have fenced off or concrete street levels even where the density really could support first-floor commercial. No one does it, so no one wants to be the first, excluding a few like Post Oak Midtown, which seems to be successful whenever I'm in that area.
  11. woolie
    fantastic news. let's move it to going up.
  12. woolie
    Is there still time to make it 50 stories? Really, though, I think it's a beautiful structure. I'd be glad to have it anywhere in Houston. I'd love to have it across the street from my current rental in midtown, or the house I'm buying near Baldwin park further up in midtown. It's a high quality design with real attention paid to the street level. However, it's an inescapable fact that the TMC is booming, and everything close in should be redeveloped in this way. It's just silly for neighborhood residents to assume their neighborhood shouldn't change over time as density (destiny?) increases.
  13. woolie
    Why is the development on Almeda so *yawn.* Nice to see a 4 story facade over such a long distance (of course, single-use residential with no pedestrian amenities.. this is Houston, right?), but geez, it's a little bland in the design department. Something interesting, plz. site plan aerial
  14. woolie
    I'm a big time Apple user. Before that, I was a linux nerd. An Apple store downtown would be awesome. I hate driving to the Galleria.
  15. woolie
    I don't think Chipotle is so bad, I eat there about once a week. I believe Jax is wrong, though. The line is never greater than 10-15 mins, even as it wraps around the restaurant and down the hallway. They are extremely efficient at making burritos. I think Jax's photo also actually understates the amount of mid-day pedestrian traffic in this area. If I hit you on the head with a sufficiently large rock, then dumped your unconscious body at the intersection of University and Fannin... provided that no one took you into one of the hospitals, when you woke up, you could easily imagine yourself in a city that was Not Houston based on the density and level of activity. Other acceptable dining choices: Hugo's in the commons Miller's Cafe in Scurlock (or is it Smith?) Rising Roll in the old MH Prof. Bldg. I agree that all the food courts/cafeterias are inedible. We had a BCM run cafeteria that was quite good, until they sold it to Luby's, and now the food is completely unacceptable. I have also been curious about what form the "people mover" might take. I've always noticed it in the Master Plan.I've always imagined it would be a moving-sidewalk system, e.g. airport terminals, and not some kind of fixed-guideway carriage system. The former might be possible to add to existing skywalk system.. the latter would require feats of engineering or tunnel digging I don't even want to imagine. Also, what about the Baylor Hospital. Is it just going to be 10-min frequency shuttle service? Perhaps it'd be fun to build a skywalk even longer than the new MDACC one.
  16. woolie
    This building looks like it was cut off at the knees.
  17. woolie
    take a photo, go to jail.
  18. woolie
    The only worthwhile feature seems to be the arch that echoes Wortham hall.
  19. woolie
    Build two towers of 99 units each.
  20. woolie
    Next time I'll just demand to be arrested if I am in fact breaking a law.
  21. woolie
    Thanks for the support. I'm going to see how far I can take this... I'll report back later.
  22. woolie
    The first couple times this happened, it was scary and hard to stay cool. I've been through it enough times to not really bat an eyelash anymore. Anyway, yes, you tell the person detaining you that you are within your rights to take pictures. That there is long standing legal precedent that protects photography of public spaces. That it is well-covered by First Amendment protections of speech and the press. Then you listen to 10 minutes of "9/11 changed it, the laws are different now." After this, you inform the officer this is not the case, at which point he tells you that he will arrest you if you continue. After the last step, you walk away angry, realizing how quietly the rule of law slipped away as the foundation of society. Then you post about it on the internet, and wait for the FBI to come knocking.... etc. etc.
  23. woolie
    I wouldn't have posted this if it was a rentacop.... I'm not Thomas Hawk (boo hoo, security guard scared me.) It was HPD. I recorded his name and badge num.
  24. woolie
    Yes, downtown at the location in the top photo. This is about the 5th time I've been stopped, but the first time an officer has told me there is a law against it. Usually I'm just taking pictures and an officer approaches me and tells me to stop.
  25. woolie
    --from my other (angry) thread Houston Pavilions New HCC Building
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