IamHouston

I've been in the area for about 4 years now. I originally grew up in the Heights and moved to the Northside as we've had family in the area for a few generations. I wasn't really feeling connected to any of the new residents in the Heights. I leased my house and made the jump across 45 to join childhood friends and family. Most of my family that previously lived in the Heights lives here now as well, as most were slowly pushed out over the last 10 years. It still blows me away when people act like Northside is newly discovered or an "up and coming" area. It's pretty much always been here, and has always had a really tight knit community. I know it's likely going to way of the Heights, and it's a tough pill to swallow. But I'll be the first to admit I'm going to miss "Sabor del Northside", the Christmas Slab parade on Fulton, Day of the Dead altars on Paschal street, the mini pop ups at Houston Warehouse Studios, and the carne asadas every Sunday. North Main is in need of a face lift it's true, and while I do hope to continue to see some change, I hope it doesn't come in the way of overpriced and "trendy" bungalows like Refuge builds. Living across the street from one of their recent remodels has been a bit of a pain. The developers really could care less about the neighborhood, but I can't really judge them for it. It's just capitalism at is finest. But until it all comes down, you can find me on my front porch swing politely waving at the new Columbus' and crew driving through in their fancy Teslas and germans discovering the neighborhood. 

30 minutes ago, Triton said:

Waaaait.... Wtf, they are building a bar in our neighborhood????

Yep, added beauty next to that gaudey contemporary house they just built on Hyacinth. 

There is also the Side Out Beach Bar being built out in Glenn Park just across the street as part of WOMH extension. Jesus I feel awful for that neighborhood. It's already such a mess driving through there most days. 

Volleyball Ice House coming soon. 

I noticed they had police barriers blocking off entrances into the Glen Park neighborhood to prevent people from parking there. Just so happened to be driving down Houston avenue later that afternoon only to get stuck in a clusterf*ck of traffic with everyone then attempting to park in the Germantown neighborhood (east of Houston Ave, west of 45); looked like it was already to the brim with parked vehicles. Noticed one home owner yelling at a bunch of kids walking down the street with beers in their hands. It was a bit amusing. Very happy I don't live within a 10 block radius of this place. Not a complaint here either, but I do feel terribly sorry for all those that live close by it. 

On 2/12/2015 at 0:48 PM, Triton said:

As stated by someone earlier, the fence is now down. Perhaps the markers are for roads... looks very similar to the outline here.

 

20150213_122903 by marclongoria, on Flickr

It's pretty impressive how far this has come in one year considering it's a 55 acre site that previously had no city utilities or other infrastructure. 

I went by last night to see how the show was going. Upon coming around the bayou (from the Near Northside), the chaos was immediately apparent. I truly feel awful for those living in Glen Park. The neighborhood had cars parked along the street on every single block. In several places it was impassable due to the narrowness of the streets and cars being parked on each side. This sleepy neighborhood couldn't of had more honking and traffic. I'm incredibly fortunate to have passed on both houses I looked at in this neighborhood two years ago and decided on another just a few more blocks south. The venue itself is really incredible and a great addition to the city. It's just a shame it's in such a crammed location. 

I wonder what they mean by outdoor gathering place. So much stuff popping up in this area as is. 

With work this major, don't they still have to get a sign-off from a city inspector before opening, or no?

They do but that's no problem. I've had multiple inspections scheduled on the same day and done within 18 hours of my initial request. Helps even more so if they already know you down at the permitting office.

There are tons of really good pictures on KUEHNinc Facebook page of the progress and how the rooms and stages will be laid out on the interior. They've done most of the contract work up until now. Pretty sure this info was already posted on here. But if it hasn't, enjoy.

Is that a huge parking lot across the bayou? How scenic. *gag*

http://dallascityhall.com/government/Council%20Meeting%20Documents/hou_2_disaster-recovery-round-2-a-community-revitalization-model-for-houston_combined_120715.pdf

Additional detail of cost and progress, including photos, of CDC projects in the Near Northside, 5th Ward, and OST area including the Hardy Yards. 

http://archpaper.com/news/articles.asp?id=8337#.Vk35gXarTbg

Shuttle service? Interesting. Makes absolute sense though. Wouldn't be surprised to see it taken a step further. Offer parking at UHD lots beneath the elevated Burnett station, and hop on the train one stop to get up to the venue. Because lets be real, very few will actually walk to this place. 

Just for shoots* and giggles, if I may add to the redundancy, ..we can all for very obvious reasons see that this is unlikely. But the mere fact that it was mentioned, gave it enough recognition for me to post it as a positive. The HY aren't going completely unnoticed as many here seem to believe, or therefore acknowledge.

Dallas/Houston high speed training has the Hardy Yards as 1 of 3 options to build Houston station. Maybe unlikely, but interesting to see it as be on the final 3 list. 

http://www.houstonpress.com/news/the-houston-bullet-train-station-might-be-in-downtown-7924302

http://www.texasbids.net/bid-opportunities/2015/09/12/6568386-TIRZ-21-Landscape-Improvements-for-Hardy-Yards-Redevelopment.html

Next bidding will be soon. Landscaping, lighting, bike racks, etc should be done by December.

I drove through the Hernandez Tunnel this morning. It's officially re-opened. 

Has there been any update on this project? They are about to open the new intersection of Burnett/N Main and the renovated tunnel next to this site.

I contacted the architect on this project and he stated that his client requested he not share any information regarding the future Lofts on N. Main. Though he did acknowledge the specific location we'd speculated.

Update. Progress is still going a bit slow.

I can't seem to find the info on any of these minutes. I'd really be interested in knowing the name of the contractor that had the winning bid. 

Here as some pictures I took yesterday of the new Fulton and Leona extension recently paved south of Burnett St. The new Fulton extension running south and the Leona St extension running west both ending where they meet. 

Thanks IamHouston.  Would you mind pointing us in the direction of those City Agenda Minutes?  Thanks!

 

I dropped in on the live webcast for the agenda a few weeks ago. Not sure where I can locate the minutes. Anyone else know where I could find these? I'd be interested as well to read them since I only got a chance to listen for a few moments. 

Take it for what it's worth, but I spoke to a future neighbor of mine on Everett, who said he had talked to one of the architects that was working on the Hardy Yards design. According to this AOAA (acquaintance of an acquaintance) news, Phase I of the Hardy Yards project is supposed to start in about 18 months. The guy showed me some images he supposedly was directed to by the architect, but they were those old "Hardy Yards Plaza" renderings that were posted here in 2013, including the miniature Eiffel tower. Since I can't find anything current, I take the construction start with a big grain of salt.

Odd, according to the recent City Agenda a winning bid has been accepted for construction to begin late August or beginning of November on the actual Residences at the Hardy Yards portion. This construction phase is estimated to take up to 18 months to complete. 

Also here is an update on the Hernandez tunnel that was posted last week on District H Councilman Ed Gonzalez's website. Looks like the tunnel itself will be reopening in the next few weeks. I haven't driven by here in a while so I haven't gotten to see the portion of Burnett that opened July 17th.

After having gone several times to visit my sister at this building I've noticed they've had several construction issues. Multiple floors flooded recently after a few pipes burst; affected tenants were offered to walk away from their lease at no penalty or be moved to a different floor. The patio area on the ninth floor has a fairly large water wall that wasn't installed correctly and is now having to be completely rebuilt. The gas fire pit area is about to be replaced for the third time. They have yet to get all the elevators working. Last I was there 2 were functional and everyone seemed to be excited about having more than one. I've also noticed some concrete walls to be uneven in several areas, enough for it to be noticeable even with a quick glance. The trim and paint on many of the apartment doors and surrounding walls seems to have been cut and painted far too quickly; takes away from there being a quality feel. When I first visited this place everything seemed amazing about it, but the more often I go the more corners I notice have been cut.