wilcal

17 hours ago, Luminare said:

 

This is supposed to be the temp sidewalk. They can close it off for a limited period of time to erect scaffolding. This a completely normal thing to do. They haven't even started demo nor construction.

Houston Public Works actually commented on another discussion of the sidewalk and a lane of traffic being closed for The Sophie on Memorial and they said an ADA alternative must be established if the sidewalk is closed.  Backtracking for wheelchairs is at least feasible on Westheimer. Not so much so on Memorial with one sidewalk. 

I'll see if I can swing by and see if the sidewalk has reopened yet. These covered sidewalk barriers are so NYC! lol

Even if they are under construction, there's still supposed to be a temporary sidewalk if they close the main one. 

2 minutes ago, gene said:

Honestly since this is being done, i wonder if they will begin to make all the surrounding (and eventually all of lower Westheimer) sidewalks better? hopefully! 

There's a great plan in place! It's just been kicked down the road to at least 2023 again.

https://www.houstonarchitecture.com/haif/topic/37468-lower-westheimer-reconstruction

That freshly poured sidewalk patch.... is now closed

On 1/25/2020 at 11:53 PM, hindesky said:

 

This is on Austin? Which cross street is that? I don't recognize it. 

Proposed amendments are up, but I don't have time to dig through them right now: https://www.houstontx.gov/planning/docs_pdfs/Proposed_Walkable_Places_and_TOD_Ordinance_Amendments_Planning_Commission_Public_Comment_Draft.pdf

Public comment open on their site

26 minutes ago, ArtNsf said:

So, is that nasty broken windowed graffiti-ed former EYE SORE that was the Days Inn EVER going to be either renovated or torn down ?  This has been the bane of Downtown's existence now for decades.  Seems the City or County would want to invest in trying to influence the current property owner to do something about it, and fast.  I feel so embarrassed when I pass downtown on the Pierce Elevated and for that area.  It's not like it's just a mid-rise run down apartment complex we are talking about here, that thing is many stories high and visible from so many angles around town.  One can only hope this development will help shield some of that crumbling ugliness soon.

You just spurred me to go back and look at that thread: 

It was "under contract" last year, but now listed as for sale again. 

On 8/13/2019 at 12:53 PM, Triton said:

 

Listing says "Last updated 1/22/20"

Doesn't say anything about being under contract anymore

https://www.loopnet.com/Listing/801-St-Joseph-Pky-Houston-TX/12352462/

Did it specifically say under contract on this page?

1 hour ago, dbigtex56 said:

How's downtown fixed for micro-hotels or youth hostels?

Always thought that the Days Inn would be up for something like that. Doesn't it have low ceilings and small-ish rooms?

2 minutes ago, Montrose1100 said:

I don't think so, the coverage areas in Austin and Lisbon are huge. What I did like about them was the parking areas were defined - and outright banned in others. Obviously no parking in front of the Alamo, Terreiro do Paco, or riding along the Riverwalk, etc.

Wow, I didn't realize Austin's service area had grown so large.

It's right at about 90 square miles. All of the area inside 610 is just under 100 square miles.

The City of Austin's website actually lists out their micromobility operators and the quantity of scooters and ebikes they have available.

Bird - 4,500 scooters

JUMP - 2,500 scooters / 2,000 e-bikes

Lime - 5,000 scooters

Lyft - 2,000 scooters

OjO - 500 scooters

Spin - 750 scooters

Wheels - 500 bicycles

(Plus Revel with 500 mopeds)

18 minutes ago, brijonmang said:

After visiting Dallas this weekend and seeing these scooters all over the place, I am firmly in the no camp for bringing the scooters to Houston.  They look terrible clogging up corners and walkways and people ride them through traffic like they don't have to follow any of the road laws. I don't think the convenience they bring to getting around outweigh the eyesore and hassle for drivers.

Funny, I feel mostly the same way, but with cars.

42 minutes ago, Montrose1100 said:

Why would they be banned from the trails, it's the best infrastructure for them? The point is to get from A-B, not leisurely ride along the Bayou. These would better serve Downtown, East End, Heights, West End, Montrose, and the Museum District. 

I think they're banned because of the speeds involved.

I think you're right on about these neighborhoods. I wonder if that's also a roadblock for the scooter companies as you would need a bunch of scooters to cover that service area. 

15 hours ago, Toopicky said:

I chatted with the owner of 3-6-9 this a.m. and he said his lease isn't up till 01-January-2021. At that time he plans to retire as he will have been in business at that location for 40 years.

 

 

Thanks for the reporting! Interesting info to hear. 

41 minutes ago, Montrose1100 said:

Uber and Lyft initially had difficulties getting into our markets, the latter leaving and then returning. 

 

It's a shame they're leaving San Antonio, but apart from zipping around Downtown and King William, there isn't a lot of places to go. Houston already has a lot of bike lane infrastructure/trails and would be a perfect set up for this. San Antonio has little to no set up (in the immediate areas I was in and wanted to go), and required you to ride on the streets with traffic. Lisbon had a ton of bike lanes. Austin also has bike lanes. Super easy to adjust your navigation to the bike setting and scooter away into the sunset.

 

Guess I'll have to look into purchasing one. They're unbelievably fun and can cart my 6'1" 230 lbs self around just fine - even uphill. 

FWIW, all electric powered vehicles are banned from all trails. Even the electric bcycles have stickers on them saying don't ride them on trails. 

I think Houston Parks Board not wanting anything electric (hell, they don't even allow non-electric scooters) is the biggest road block here. Everyone knows that the best place  in Houston to ride these things would be Buffalo Bayou Park. 

19 hours ago, danielsonr said:

Yes, there is a thread regarding this:

 

 

I'm kind of surprised that's in Going Up when... there's still not any plans about it Going Up.

Also, how could I have missed that extremely descriptive headline haha

2 hours ago, Montrose1100 said:

I'm extremely excited for Lime to come to Houston.

 

I've ridden these things in Lisbon, Austin, and San Antonio. It will be nice to have in the East End, could ride the light rail and scooter home (rather than the 11 minute walk). Or maybe even lime all the way to the bars and restaurants in EADO on the bike paths/trails.

 

They're really extremely fun and help you explore more. Houston will be perfect with our flat surfaces. Just worry about our potholes more than anything. Scooters on rough roads are teeth rattling. 

At this point, I don't think that they'll approve them. At least with scooters in the form that they are in now. Lime just had a pretty significant service retraction.

They left San Antonio, Atlanta, Phoenix, and more: https://news.crunchbase.com/news/as-lime-leaves-12-markets-a-note-on-scooters/

Also, I'm pretty sure the new CoH Sustainability project thing went out of its way to not mention scooters. It said multi-modality transport, but then mentioned bike share and car sharing.

Looks like all of the glass panels will be up in the next 2ish weeks. Looking good!

16 hours ago, wilcal said:

 

Nope, it's evidently still happening but I'm not sure when. There was some additional drama brought up by some residents that opposed it at city council and they told planning to try to come up with solutions. 

This months Bicycle Advisory Committee newsletter said that Hutchins is being developed first.

Saw a thread on Nextdoor that was talking about it possible being torn down and I assumed that it was Montrose Collective, but someone else posted some links to some older articles when it was purchased back in 2012. 

HBJ articles from 2013: https://www.bizjournals.com/houston/blog/breaking-ground/2013/11/happy-retail-tenants-could-slow.html

Quote

The owner of a partially vacant strip center at the high-profile corner of Westheimer and Montrose will have to wait until at least 2020 to redevelop the property because the remaining tenants refuse to leave.

Quote

The property's longest existing lease will expire in about 6 1/2 years, Gregory said.

Note: that article is from Nov 2013, so 6.5 years would be May 2020.

This article from May 2018: https://www.bizjournals.com/houston/news/2018/05/29/pmrgs-ceo-rick-kirk-on-merger-i-couldnt-shoot-any.html

Quote

“The company's also working on development plans for its land at the corner of Montrose Boulevard and Westheimer Road, which currently houses a Half Price Books, a Spec's, a Mattress Firm and a 24-hour emergency clinic. By 2020, Kirk said that all the tenants' leases in the shopping center will have expired. Though specifics are light, he said the company will likely develop a mixed-use project with restaurants, multifamily and maybe even a hotel. ‘It needs to be a little different to fit that neighborhood," Kirk said. "We don’t want to build something that’s totally out of step with the vibe in that area.’”

So, does anyone have the tea?

Lots of commiserating about the loss of HPB, but that lot is like 60-70% surface parking and the appraisal in  2019 was $9 million. 

13 minutes ago, dbigtex56 said:

A construction walkway has been added to the sidewalk on McGowen.

 

We so NYC

On 1/17/2020 at 12:54 PM, jsabo said:

Has there been any update on this? Is any portion of it finished and available for use? I am visiting in early March and was looking forward to biking wherever possible. Thanks.

Nope, it's evidently still happening but I'm not sure when. There was some additional drama brought up by some residents that opposed it at city council and they told planning to try to come up with solutions. 

6 hours ago, wxman said:

 

Agreed. I've also heard that the Houston-Sydney route is struggling as well. I don't know that there's that kind of demand to go down under? Anybody know?

Well, lets put it this way, UA announced in Nov that IAH-SYD would be daily in 2020 and then and it'll be a combo of 4X and 6X per week over the course of May-Aug 2020.

Video looks good! Really gives scale for the different sections. 

https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/City-to-offer-big-subsidies-for-luxury-hotel-near-14978891.php

Quote

Houston’s convention agency is poised to grant developers subsidies worth more than a third of the cost of a proposed luxury hotel atop its downtown headquarters, contrary to the original vision for the hotel and in contrast with industry norms, experts said.

The Houston First Corp. board on Thursday will consider whether to offer the developers of a proposed W Hotel its portion of an estimated $43 million in subsidies over 16 years. If that agency approves, the deal would go to Houston City Council, which would decide whether to grant the project property, sales and beverage tax breaks.