bachanon

If the Museum District is not already a TIRZ, should it be? Creating a Museum District TIRZ could bring pedestrian friendly elements similar to the Uptown TIRZ and perhaps common lighting features, benches, etc.? Is a TIRZ going to do well in a Museum (non profit, charity driven) District?

hopefully this structure will garner international attention. i'm sure it wouldn't receive attention on the scale of say the modern in ft. worth by tadao ando, but international attention none the less.

As a resident who moved to midtown with the first wave of apartments, Live Oak now Oakwood; apartments bring the upwardly mobile professionals who embody the so called creative class. Houston and especially midtown needs this to thrive.

the "creative class" and "upwardly mobile professional" are not the same thing. the so called creative class are artists, musicians, writers, photographers and students of such endeavors that are being priced out of neighborhoods such as montrose by the upwardly mobile professional. the creative class will be served by "affordable housing" and live/work co-ops, not affordable $140,000 townhomes and $900/month efficiency apartments.

please, please, do not refer to the upwardly mobile professional as anything but upwardly mobile professional. no offense to you UMPs out there.

i agree; however, that the chances of midtown becoming a ghetto are slim to none. my wish is that midtown planners would embrace the "creative class" and make room for real affordable housing in close proximity to the rail.

Although he hits it home with Houston being itself and capitalizing on its own identity, he is over simplistic in his complete disregard towards a denser, transit-oriented, and cultural city.

i don't believe he's against a good urban core. i think he's taking an objective look at people's behavior and commenting on it.

his comments provide insight on what could become a new kind of urban core not seen in other metropolitan areas. (see my last comment).

awesome interview. it would be great to hear more. this guy is on target about our self image as a city.

houston has the ingenuity and the gusto to reverse this trend (suburban being where the quality of life is). REAL family housing near the city core that's affordable will make all the difference. the near north side and the east side (of downtown) could be our answer. let the empty nesters and the young professionals have downtown; let the hipsters and artists have midtown; families will only want to visit these places anyway. being close to the amenities (stadiums, theatres, restaurants) with "floorspace" (3-2) and safety is what is needed. schools and retail will follow.

good design, conscious investors can make it happen.

i read that there were more than 30k people considering a move downtown over the next several years and that speculators are betting on 10k new downtown residents in just a few years.

with that said, moderate income housing is a must. midrise residences with more floorspace and less "luxury amenities". ground floor retail (of course) and close proximity to the light rail line are also important.

moderate income housing needs to be more affordable than 150K.

thank you , thank you, firstngoal. in a city where private development reigns (which i support) it's wonderful that this park is in the works. it's easy to list ideas for a perfect park; however, it's not easy to get the city to create a downtown park. the idea for park bench sponsorship is ideal. let's not wallow in imperfections. i'm happy it's being done.

my biggest concern is the development around the park. please, please please, developers.......first story cafes and/or stores opening out towards the park!!!

certainly prostitutes and women who dress like them shop at the galleria.

the original thread made me think someone was privy to new stores going in at the galleria. other than the fox sports cafe/bar, does anyone have any news?

Anyways, I guess it depends on what you are talking about. I know that in the Hispanic community, when it comes to their party allegiance, it is largely liberal and consistently votes democratic. If we are talking about something as different as how women dress, then I would submit that Houston has some of the most awesome and liberal styles around: I remember on my last two trips to NYC, one in June and the other in July...I hardly saw any women wearing mini skirts, short dresses, and in general, hardly any highly arousing and revealing apparel. Maybe its because I am Hispanic and I am used to beautiful, non-pretentious Hispanic women wearing gorgeous sexy clothing and leaving only a little to the imagination. From this perspective, the New York women seemed snooty and conservatively dressed. But again, that

Becuase developers are ready to turn a quick buck.  Why else would they "dontate" land and money?

That part of DT is just about "developed" already. 

Imagine how much they could do with the struggling Warehouse District. 

Still, I'll take a park whereever, but this project has "Houston Developers" written all over it.

uhhh, check the list of people who created the "main street project" (which included light rail) and the buffalo bayou partnership.

like you said....."houston developers written all over it". is this a bad thing? the city gets a large park and crescent, who owns land around the perimeter and sold land to the park effort will benefit as well as the city.

i've secretly hoped for this space to remain open. i'm very happy to see it solidifying.

.....now if we could just land some significant park space in midtown.

there is a southland hardware store at 1822 westheimer near river oaks and a buffalo hardware (ace-true value) store at kirby and westheimer.

couldn't the parks dept purchase a lot or two before prices get higher? maybe the midtown TIRZ could purchase park land in the area.

in fact, a one block park for every 9 blocks would be a great ratio. no chance of that happening though.

The new Federal Reserve Bank building was designed by Michael Graves. PGAL has some part in it as well.

Thanks for the rendering, HoustonRetail.

In addition to the discreet parking, I also applaud that the design takes cues from the 1920s-30s storefronts in Midtown. Here's hoping that other developers follow this example. Some continuity of architectural style would make Midtown seem more like a 'real' neighborhood, instead of a mish-mash of unrelated development.

what a suburban thought dbigtex, "continuity of architectural style..."? ..."a 'real' neighborhood"? come on, i thought it was diversity, old and new, contrasting structures that created a 'real' urban fabric.

actually, i agree somewhat. the statement you made seems to contradict what many people love about being in an urban environment. i do prefer that an architect consider the neighborhood before designing; however, i'm really sick of red brick here in suburbia.

i would love to see a big book seller like borders or barnes and noble develop a main street parcel which connects to the tunnels below; a multi-level store with sales floors below and at street level. if security is an issue, close the tunnel level entrances when the tunnel schedule requires

come on!! i love this building. it's a cube with perfectly square windows spaced apart in a perfect gridlike symmetry. it simple. each window, from the inside, makes each view look like a framed picture.

greenspoint mall itself could actually become a great mixed use location. the combination of residential, commercial, retail, north harris college, hotels, proximity to the airport, etc. is already represented in the area. with new urbanist type construction and a smart, affordable residential element added to the mall itself, a new breed of mall renovations could emerge. connecting the mall with the towers to the east via mall extensions and skywalks would further enhance a concentrated mixed use purpose.

i went to a halloween party in this building several years ago. i'm not sure what floor it was on, it was a private club or something. the view was amazing. when the fog came in it became perfectly erie (sp?).