thedistrict84

On 6/16/2020 at 12:35 PM, Houston19514 said:

I think that's a pretty standard practice among retail project developers.

I feel like the vast majority of developers use generic business names for proposed site plans and renderings when some or all tenants have not been confirmed. Lovett is the only one I can think of offhand that uses the names of real companies in site plans when no agreement is apparently in place.
 

For instance, the Houston Post project on Polk had Sprouts in the original renderings (which caused a bunch of excitement in a neighborhood in desperate need of another grocery store), and a later site plan featured a Walgreens I believe. Neither are going forward.
 

Lovett does this all the time, but it is definitely not normal. 

10 hours ago, mls1202 said:

There are good views of downtown Houston that really show off what downtown is and can be.

 

This angle is not one of them.

 

No offense meant for the photographer, but just a stark reminder that there are parts of downtown that need some development love beyond the high profile views by the bayou.  It really makes me think about boundaries that define the edge of the downtown district.  Whether they are man-made (Pierce elevated and 59) or natural (the bayou), how do you create a signature gateway for someone entering into the area?  Not every entrance can be as grand as approaching from Allen Parkway or Memorial Drive, but coming from the EastDo desperately needs something.

I just happened to be walking by cutting back over from the Bayou. Didn’t set out to photograph anything from this angle intentionally. Sorry.

9 hours ago, cspwal said:

What is the hole for?

Since you had to ask, now they’re going to throw you down there.

3 hours ago, Texasota said:

I wonder if they got permits. If not, the city needs to fine the crap out of them. I don't care how good the project is, developers need to stop taking out mature street trees.

For sure. They set the shadification (is that a word?) of those sidewalks back at least 20 years.

They chopped down all of the trees around the property. There were a few relatively mature trees on both the Polk and Emancipation sides of the property. Since they aren’t currently doing work in the areas where the trees were taken out, it’s unclear why it was done.

5 hours ago, cspwal said:

There's still train tracks embedded in the streets in EaDo between $499k townhouses, so I wouldn't hold my breath on rebuilt streets outside of a few corridors (bike lanes, transit corridors)

Commerce already has bike route signage and dead ends into the Harrisburg Hike and Bike Trail. At the northern end, it runs up along the edge of downtown near the Bayou and could easily connect to the expanded trails after they are extended south past San Jacinto.

Seems like a prime candidate for being redone with dedicated bike lanes added.

4 hours ago, ljchou said:

New business permit for the cajun restaurant as "Acadian Coast".

I wonder if it’s related to the Acadian Bakery on W. Alabama? They’re known for their Mardi Gras king cake, so I assume that a Cajun restaurant would be a logical extension.

1 hour ago, Montrose1100 said:

I agree with your points but closing a street to thru traffic seems more cost effective than replacing all the sidewalks. Also, as I'm sure you're aware, cyclists don't usually commute on McKinney, it's normally the folks that go for leisure rides in the afternoon and/or whatever critical mass has turned into.

Fixing the sidewalks is something that needs to be done anyway, and would benefit more people than just those that live on McKinney. And again, if the sidewalks aren’t fixed, you’ll have people walking in the street, which is ill-advised regardless of traffic volume.

If you’re going for a leisure ride on your bike, you should be heading to the nearest park or the Harrisburg Hike and Bike Trail. City streets in close proximity to downtown aren’t the best for that. This isn’t the suburbs (thankfully).

42 minutes ago, linearmovement said:

I ride a lot and completely disagree with this - maybe it'll be different when the bike lanes are redone, but currently on Polk there's always a ton of debris in the bike lanes (especially under the railroad bridge near Milby), plenty of vehicle traffic, and the miserably long light at Scott. The Hike and Bike trail requires slowing at every street crossing (same with Columbia Tap). As long as you don't get stuck at the train near Milby, McKinney is by far the best cycle connector between Dumble and downtown - it's a straight shot with relatively low traffic, few stop lights, a second lane in each direction, and an easy jog over to Polk to cross 59. I'll always opt for McKinney or Leeland over Polk or the Harrisburg trail.

Aside from the bus stop islands they are installing up and down Polk now, I believe they are also redoing markings and possibly integrating armadillo bumpers in certain areas/intersections to help protect bicyclists. It should be vastly improved when they are finished. And from my understanding, Leeland is also due for installation of protected bike lanes, so that will be one more east/west corridor option.
 

I agree that McKinney between Milby and GRB (through EaDo) is ideal for biking, and use it often myself. And the traffic volume on McKinney between Milby and Dumble is still low enough, even before this pilot program, that it is still somewhat safe for biking. The main issue is people speeding; again, putting in a four-way stop at McKinney and Cullen will solve that problem, without the uneven effects (i.e., unintentionally directing traffic to narrower neighboring streets) that would result from permanently implementing this program.

23 hours ago, ljchou said:

I am also confused by this breakdown of land. Specifically on the right-hand block. Can someone explain why the land division isn't simply rectangular?

 

If you’re referring to the block bound by Sherman, Garrow, York, and Hutcheson, I think those middle “square” lots are the result of the block being marginally narrower than the others. Those lots near the middle of the block should be accessible through shared drives. InTown has no shortage of different floor plans that they can shoehorn into those square lots.

3 hours ago, Montrose1100 said:

I was anti-anti-thru traffic initially, because I thought people would use Walker or Rusk as an alternative. Was worried because those streets are tight with cars parked on both sides. Only one car can really navigate at a time. Who would use Lamar?

 

If your destination is not directly on McKinney but it is in the neighborhood you can still use McKinney. Anyway, Polk is a great alternative east & west as it goes under the tracks already. Harrisburg has the light rail but the lights are quick. Lockwood, York and Sampson are good North & South thoroughfares. 

 

I've seen the reasons to dislike it on Next Door. They're not legit. Just people bitching about tax dollars. Any other reason is a huge stretch. McKinney sees a lot of pedestrian activity, runners, joggers, cyclists, and dog walkers. Come around to thinking this is a good idea since most drivers jack rabbit after the Milby stop sign. A 4 way stop at Cullen would be a welcomed addition as well. Many kiddos and people crossing there.

I walk my dog down McKinney fairly often, so I’m well aware. I realize there are a lot of joggers and walkers out and about there, which is why the East End Management District needs to redo the sidewalks in the area as they have on the other side of Harrisburg. This program almost implies that people should be walking in the street, which is reckless regardless of the volume of traffic.

For cyclists, the bicycle lanes on Polk a few blocks south-southwest (which are currently being redone) and the Harrisburg Hike and Bike Trail just across Harrisburg are much better suited as east/west corridors for recreational and commuter cyclists.

A four-way stop sign at McKinney and Cullen would solve nearly all of the problems, which again came about after they removed the traffic light at that intersection.

Just saw this post here, but the “Slow Streets” project is fresh in my mind after a few recent posts on Nextdoor. 
 

I personally think it’s a bad idea. McKinney gets a lot of traffic because it is one of the main connectors towards downtown, along with Polk and Leeland. It’s relatively high traffic, and even the intersection with Chartres by GRB is designed to encourage traffic to use McKinney (this will be eliminated with the I-45 reroute, but that is somewhat beside the point).

There will undoubtedly be further development on McKinney west of Sampson/York in the coming years as the remaining abandoned or disused warehouses are slowly replaced with townhouses, apartments, and retail developments. McKinney, as an east/west corridor, will definitely see an increase in traffic through to Lockwood and Dumble/Adams (as north/south corridors).

Implementing this program permanently on McKinney is just going to push more traffic to Walker and Lamar. To address the core issue here, the City needs to revisit the intersection at McKinney and Cullen. It should be a four way stop. I understand that a traffic study led to the removal of the light that was at Cullen, but I feel that that study was a bit premature given the predictable future increases in traffic volume.

12 minutes ago, JBTX said:

Yeah, "yikes" is a good way of summing up my feelings towards that roof design.

They’re going to integrate some seating into the roof. Social distancing taken to the extreme.

24 minutes ago, JBTX said:

Not to mention the fact that 2404 is one small lot while East River is a massive development that needs utilities, roads, and all that jazz run before you can even start.

I think people forget this. They are literally building a (very) small city from scratch for East River.

The warehouse at 1119 Commerce St. downtown has a construction fence set up around it. Looks like the Harris County Flood Control District is finally ready to move forward with demolition.
 

https://www.hcfcd.org/Find-Your-Watershed/Buffalo-Bayou/F-82-1119-Commerce-Street

https://imgur.com/gallery/eQ9YOaN

Construction fence is down around the restaurant pad site. Checked the permit in the window and it lists “Cajun Coast” as the occupant.

Google search didn’t turn up much aside from this link from the Triad construction website. Not much use unless you have the password.

http://triadrc.com/2020/04/13/cajun-coast-houston-tx/

2 hours ago, butterfly said:

A cafe would be great. Or an ice house!! 

An ice house would be a good fit for an old gas station like this, but I’m thinking D&W Lounge already has the “ice house demographic” cornered.

(And before you say anything, I love D&W and have been going there for years!)

On 6/18/2020 at 8:26 AM, Montrose1100 said:

And the same reason my house was promoted as "EaDo", when I'm Greater Eastwood. 

 

It's funny how hard they push EaDo. When people ask where I live, I've tried explaining down the list. Eastwood, East End, East Downtown, North of UH, even EaDo, and every suburbanite looks at me funny. I've stuck to landmarks. Vaguely Soccer Stadium-ish, more like Original Ninfas usually sends voltage to their lightbulb.

I just say that I’m in Second Ward. It really throws recent transplants off.

17 hours ago, JBTX said:

I always thought this was a bizarre spot for a recreation site. Same with "el segundo" down the street.

Agree completely, but mostly because of the very close proximity to that concrete and asphalt facility just to the northeast. That facility generates a ton of dust which, depending on wind direction, could cause quite a mess as the it settles.  
 

Seems to be a poor location for anything outdoor-focused.

18 hours ago, truebluez said:

What is your take on claiming this to be inside EADO. Being someone that lives in this neighborhood, I get upset at the over use of EADO when really this project lies inside the East End District. 

Developers and real estate agents will call an area whatever they want, regardless of recognized and/or historic neighborhood and management district boundaries. “EaDo” is being pushed as a trendy, up-and-coming area so naturally they will take liberty with the boundaries and say pretty much anything in the general area is “EaDo,” even when it’s on the other side of the Bayou in Fifth Ward. 

It’s the same reason The Heights now apparently reaches all the way over to Hempstead road. . .

On 6/15/2020 at 9:44 AM, ljchou said:

Do we know if any of the units they'll offer will be affordable housing?

Hopefully none. We have more than enough affordable housing developments between this portion of the East End and neighboring Fifth Ward relative to market-rate apartment stock, especially after HHA acquired The Circuit complex near BBVA Stadium with the intention of converting approximately half the units into affordable units.

We need more market-rate stock like the Marquette property on Navigation and (hopefully) this development to even things out.

22 hours ago, Montrose1100 said:

Ah okay, I see on their site the Ross and Burlington portion were nixed. 

From what I recall, Lovett seems to just randomly list retailers as tenants on site plans to generate interest without any sort of agreement in place. They did the same thing when they used Sprouts on the site plan and renderings for the old Houston Post building on Polk. 
 

Maybe someone involved in commercial real estate could further elaborate?

6 hours ago, j_cuevas713 said:

Lucky’s Pub is closing 😕

Honestly it’s not a big loss. I always found it to be dingy, dark, and kind of gross, and the food wasn’t great. Pitch 25 opening was the beginning of the end for Lucky’s.
 

Plus, my credit card got compromised there several years ago. Manager didn’t seem too interested in investigating. So maybe I’m a bit biased against it. Oh well.

On 6/10/2020 at 10:07 AM, ljchou said:

Gas Station and delapidated house behind it have been purchased by Ancorian. Intent is for the gas station to be single tenant retail: https://www.ancorian.com/polk-cullen

There is a mistake in their listing. It refers to the Kroger as the “east end Kroger” instead of “Kombat Kroger.”