Big E

2 hours ago, editor said:

Wait… Are there people who really believe that five stars on a social media platform is the same thing as a real five star rating?

Guilty!

The star rating of the hotel is listed separately from the user rating sir.

3 hours ago, Houston19514 said:

Further to this topic, I personally wouldn't give much credence to Google Maps star ratings. Forbes Travel Guide and other such publications are better sources.  Forbes shows two 5-star hotels in the entire state of Texas.  1 in Houston (The Post Oak) and 1 in Dallas (The Ritz-Carlton).

Forbes 5-star and 4-star hotels:

• Boston:  5 5-star and 5 4-star
• Chicago:  3 5-star and 3 4-star (all in Mag Mile area)
• Houston:  1 5-star and 4 4-star
• DFW:  1 5-star and 2 4-star 
• Philadelphia:  1 5-star and 1 4-star
• Seattle:  1 5-star and 1 4-star
• Atlanta:  Zero 5-star; 3 4-star
• Denver:  Zero 5-star; 2 4-star
• Austin:  Zero 5-star; 5 4-star
• San Antonio:  Zero 5-star; 1 4-star

Again, it looks like we're not as far behind as we routinely tell ourselves we are.

Huh. Forbes doesn't consider the St. Regis or Four Seasons to be 5-star? Interesting.

12 hours ago, Houston19514 said:

Just curious -  whose star ratings are you looking at?

Google lists hotels by their star ratings. You can go to Maps and simply search for Five-star rated hotels, or search Google itself. Just search "Five star luxury hotels in Houston"

On 2/2/2023 at 1:12 PM, Jas3 said:

So none of the hotels that are in downtown are considered luxurious like the Marriott, Hilton etc? 

Houston has only five 5-star hotels, and only one of them is downtown: the Four Seasons. The only other five star hotel remotely close to the area is La Colombe d'Or. The remaining three are in the Galleria Area.

5 hours ago, Montrose1100 said:

Just tear down the pierce elevated FFS. The views from it aren't even that great.

That's what I've been saying!

On 1/27/2023 at 2:28 PM, cityliving said:

That poor little Four Seasons just looks sad in this picture. The poor short thing. This building should go over and give it the hug its giving the Embassy Suits right now. Tell it that its okay to be mediocre.

On 1/22/2023 at 9:59 PM, LosFeliz said:

The main reason I rule out a Ritz is 531 rooms is very large. I've stayed in the Ritz in Boston and Denver. Boston has 193 rooms. Denver 202. I was curious so here's what I found;

444 rooms in Atlanta

434 in Chicago

336 in San Francisco

301 in Philadelphia

299 in St Louis

253 NY Central Park

251 in Portland (hotel opens this summer)

218 in Dallas

206 in Cleveland

202 in Denver

193 in Boston

146 in Charlotte

123 in Los Angeles

No way Houston can support 531 rooms if this is what other cities have. I expect we will eventually get a Ritz but it will be a mix of condos and hotel rooms. I'd love to see it Downtown but it will most likely end up along Post Oak/Galleria area.

 

 

They could do what they did at L.A. Live and split the building between two hotels; half the rooms would got to the Ritz-Carlton, the other half to another hotel, like a J.W. Marriott.

8 hours ago, MidCenturyMoldy said:

The St. Regis started off as a Ritz-Carlton. I don’t remember how long it remained a Ritz-Carlton.

Ah, I see. That must have been the infamous Ritz-Carlton Houston that was one of the four hotels to lose the use of the Ritz-Carlton name in 1997.

33 minutes ago, KirbyDriveKid said:

Hmm, guess they weren't ones for a temporary greenspace. That surface lot is a little harsh and, given the size of the parking garage, it feels pretty unnecessary? Hope they can move forward with more of the master plan sooner rather than later!

I wouldn't have my hopes up for "sooner". Look how long its taking to finish this!

5 hours ago, Houston19514 said:

Fifth and Sixth Hyatt Regencies are opening soon (Baytown and Conroe).  Unlikely to be a Hyatt Place or Hyatt House because it's not planned to be that type of hotel.  It could still be a Hyatt Regency.  No reason a city of 7+ million people is limited to six Hyatt Regencies.  Nevertheless, among Hyatt brands, it seems Grand Hyatt might be the most likely. (And Hyatt is far less well-represented in Houston (and everywhere else for that matter) than Hilton or Marriott.)

Similarly, a city of 7+ million people is not limited to only 2 Autograph Collection hotels (We actually already have 3 in the metro - Grand Galvez is now flying the Autograph flag).  But for other reasons this is very unlikely to be an Autograph Collection.  Same applies to Tribute Portfolio - just having two (also Tremont House) already doesn't make it impossible or even unlikely we would get another.  But for other reasons, very unlikely to fly that flag. Similarly, the fact that we already have a JW Marriott (actually we already have 2), doesn't exclude that flag from consideration.  In fact, I would consider JW Marriott to be a pretty strong contender. W doesn't seem likely - to me W seems like kind of a tired brand anyway, but it doesn't really seem like the vibe a Medical Center conference hotel would be going for.

That's why I hedge my bets and put "probably" in front of my predictions. I know its not impossible for most brands to have more than one hotel in a metro. but I figured that existing upper upscale brands, being already represented, are probably unlikely to put another hotel of the same brand in the same city and cannibalize sales from existing hotels unless there is a real need. Houston isn't the most happening market in this segment, so I would consider a major hotel like this attracting a brand that isn't already present because that will draw more immediate interest.

I would consider JW Marriott more likely than not. I only discount W because there's one already planned and its yet to get off the ground. I'm actually curious why you see W Hotels as a tired brand, other than the simple fact that Marriott already has similar hotels in that market segment. Among Marriott brands, I'm pulling for a Ritz-Carlton, though.

As for Luxury brands, you generally only ever see one of those in a city, unless its a really large and world class metro area. You won't find two St. Regis Hotels in one city generally, so, its unlikely this is a second St. Regis, for instance. Houston lacks five star hotels in general as there are only five: Hotel Granduca, The Post Oak, The St. Regis, La Colombe d'Or, and the Four Seasons. That's pretty pathetic for a metro area of this size, compared to metros like Greater Miami, Greater L.A., Greater Chicago, and Greater New York. So, if they are shooting for that market segment, they have room to do so, but it won't be under a brand that's already here.

Hyatt Regency is possible because, outside of downtown, all the other Hyatt Hotels are in West Houston or North Houston, so Hyatt underserves the area. But this isn't that far away from downtown or the Galleria area, which are served by Hyatt Hotels, including Hyatt Regencies. Hyatt may not see a point in pointing one here. In terms of the major hotel companies, though, I do agree that Hyatt is actually quite underrepresented in Houston, though that is probably by Hyatt's choice. They lack the shear number of brands Marriott International, for instance, has.

5 hours ago, Houston19514 said:

Also from the earlier post, InterContinental seems like one of the least likely, as they already have a location in the Medical Center.

Yeah, I forgot that Houston's one InterContinental is already in the area.

5 hours ago, Houston19514 said:

Kimpton is unlikely as it's just not that kind of hotel.

Explain.

5 hours ago, Houston19514 said:

Among the Hilton brands, the most likely flags would be Waldorf-Astoria and Conrad.

If it is a Hilton brand, I'm hedging my bets its one of these. I think a Waldorf-Astoria, in particular, would be a huge boon for Houston. Those are status hotels that will bring in a lot of attention to a city that "doesn't get tourists" as we so often hear.

9 hours ago, LosFeliz said:

I'd love to see a Mandarin or Ritz but I just can't see it since this will be a work/medical conference/patient family hotel. Not enough high end leisure. If it were on the north side of the TMC I could see it because it would front Hermann Park and could be marketed as a museum district hotel as well since Houston does see some high end arts travelers. 

Considering the rest of the project, I figure that this hotel will be pulling in the rich doctor and researcher clientele. People who bring in a lot of money in the healthcare and medical research segment. That's why they are focusing on Luxury and upper upscale brands. Thus, I wouldn't put a Ritz or Mandarin completely out of the running. I do agree that a Fairmont or Kimpton are probably more likely though.

3 hours ago, asubrt said:

Grand Hyatt is my rather uneducated guess, with Fairmont a close second. Kempinski has a total of zero hotels in the US so I don't think that's very likely. I would be flabbergasted (but extremely happy!) if it was a Mandarin Oriental.

Unlikely to be a Hyatt. Houston already has multiple Hyatt Hotels, including four Hyatt Regencies, along with multiple Hyatt Places, and Hyatt Houses. Not impossible, but Hyatt is pretty well represented in Houston.

In the same vein I mentioned the Autograph Collection in my previous comment. But this being one of those is also unlikely. The Autograph Collection already has two hotels in Houston, The Hotel ICON, and The Laura. Unlikely they will put another one of those here. You also probably won't see a Tribute Portfolio hotel for the same reason; Houston already has one, the Magnolia Hotel.

I figure that Fairmont is a reasonable guess.

On 1/19/2023 at 11:22 AM, Lux said:

MeetingsNet writer Rob Carey reports that the soon to be constructed 521 room hotel will be operated by an “upper-upscale” or “luxury” hotel brand not yet chosen.  The STR Chain Scales document names 114 such hotels currently operating in the US market.

"Upper upscale" or "luxury" is it? That narrows the field quite a bit.

Well, when it comes to Marriott International, Houston already has a JW Marriott and a St. Regis, so it can't be one of those. It could be a W Hotels, but there were already plans to build a W Hotel next to the convention center over the Houston Partnership building, if I'm not mistaken (though we haven't heard about that project for awhile). A Ritz-Carlton is also a possibility as is a Bulgari Hotel. It could be a part of The Luxury Collection, or an Edition Hotels hotel. It could also be part of the Design Hotels or the Autograph Collection, though these are less likely.

If they go for Hilton Worldwide, that limits the luxury options to Waldorf-Historia, Conrad Hotels, and LXR Hotels, while the upper upscale options would be Hilton, Canopy, Embassy Suites, Signia, and The Curio Collection. All of the Upper Upscale brands already have hotels in Houston (the Curio Collection actually has two, C. Baldwin and The Sam Houston), so that leaves only the three luxury brands as likely candidates).

If you consider Hyatt Hotels, That leaves you primarily with Hyatt Regency, Park Hyatt, and Grand Hyatt. Houston already has a Hyatt Regency, which is their top tier brand, and I consider the other Hyatt brands less likely. As for their independent collections, their Destination Hotels collection used to include Hotel Derek, but I don't see them reopening a new hotel here. Their Joie de Vivre collection is mainly made up of boutique hotels, not big ones like this one. It could be part of the Unbound collection I guess. As for their Boundless portfolio of Hotel brands, Houston is already getting a Thompson Hotel via the Allen (if it ever finishes), and I don't see them opening any of their other brands here anytime soon.

If we consider Accor, the most likely candidate would be a Fairmont Hotel, of which there is already a prominent one in Austin. A Raffles Hotel is unlikely.

If they go with an IHG Hotel, it could be a Regent Hotel, InterContinental, or Kimpton Hotel (which recently had a canceled hotel development in Midtown; Houston is the only one of the top five largest cities in Texas that lacks a Kimpton). Hotel Indigo are small boutique hotels, so unlikely this will be one. As for the Premium Collection hotels, Houston already has a Crowne Plaza, Voco doesn't operate in the U.S., and I doubt its an Even Hotel, of which there are only 20.

If we look at Wyndham Hotels, Dolce only manages historical properties, and while Houston lacks a Wyndham Grand, I don't see a chain that minor being a premier brand to put here.

For independent chains, Houston already has a Four Seasons and an Omni Hotel, and there is already a hotel in Houston that is part of The Leading Hotels of the World (Hotel Granduca Houston), and there were plans, at one time, to build a Hard Rock Hotel. It could be a Mandarin Oriental.

3 hours ago, Paco Jones said:

Parcel H

A 25-story Hotel and 18-story residential tower on top of a 4-story podium structure that includes a convention center and retail space.  The roof terrace and pool deck is approximately 95,000 SF.  The residential tower includes a rooftop pool deck that is +/-15,000 SF.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Are they finally starting on this? Bout time. This is the largest piece of phase one and it hasn't started yet.

5 hours ago, steve1363 said:

GRB is in an awful location?  It’s an ugly building but to me the location is fine.

I'm not sure, but I think he was talking about Dallas's convention center?

9 hours ago, texan said:

Guess it was all political theater 🤷🏼‍♂️

If you actually read the MOU, this crap is so vague, a lawyer could drive a semi through those holes.

Read under the heading "Reducing the NHHIP Footprint during detailed design" on page 35. It doesn't actually commit TxDOT to reducing anything, and in fact gives them so much wiggle room in regards to what they will consider when discussing any potential "reduction" in the footprint, and gives them an all encompassing out in that "any proposals to reduce the Project footprint must not compromise the safety, flooding mitigation, design standards, freight mobility, and evacuation effectiveness", that that section might as well not exist at all.

18 hours ago, texan said:

Some things of note in the MOUs from the Downtown TIRZ January meeting minutes:

Cap in Segment 2 at N Main. (I think this was already committed to as the structural cap from N Main to Cottage St.

Cantilevered frontage roads to reduce project footprint along depressed sections in Segment 2.

http://www.downtowntirz.com/downtownhouston/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/230110-DRA-TIRZ3-Board-Materials.pdf

https://www.txdot.gov/nhhip/project-segments/segment2.html

These may have been discussed and I might have missed it but these seem like much more concrete commitments for segment 2.

What I seem to be getting, and what I've heard others articulate, is that, based on these memorandums of understanding, the TxDOT isn't really obligated to do anything but "try" to mitigate certain impacts, like housing loss. This agreement isn't requiring them to do anything they weren't already planning to do anyway, except pay people more money to move. Am I understanding this correctly? Someone help me out.

On 1/12/2023 at 8:11 PM, strickn said:

Could anyone please comment on whether TxDOT's press conferences about the demand for the widening have referenced I-14 at all?

I-14 is probably decades away from being completed, if its completed at all. It has to go through some of the poorest states in the Union, which lack the money to build it. We know this, because two of those states are also states where I-69 will go through, and only one of them has done the bear minimum of effort to do any work on I-69 and the other has done absolutely and will do absolutely nothing because there is a laundry list of projects ahead of it, and I-14 is almost certainly behind that.

1 hour ago, jadebenn said:

You know with all the inflation and delays this could end up being a pyrrhic victory for TxDOT and the highway supporters. From a very cynical point of view, if you can't kill it, pushing back construction into an era of high federal rates and inflation is a great way to ensure the budgeted funds are absolutely inadequate to proceed with the original plan. A descope by fait accompli, as it were.

I guess TxDOT can be stubborn and try to power through without reducing the project scope at all, but every dollar they'll spend here is a dollar they won't be able to spend elsewhere in the state, and considering the scope of the overruns we're looking at in the construction industry in general... I genuinely don't think a doubling of cost is out of the question.

You act like cost overruns weren't built into the projections. Look at the Big Dig; it cost billions more than what the projected budget was, but was built as originally planned, and Boston is all the better for it.

Looks like this is the tallest tower planned for this development. I am glad it will have GFR. leave it to Hanover to build a marquee residential high rise.

11 hours ago, steve1363 said:

So far on this forum there is a dearth of ideas, but plenty of excuses to do nothing.

Because the only real realistic idea...is to tear it down. We can argue till we are blue in the face about what to do about the space after the building is gone.

2 hours ago, Ross said:

There is no open space on Harrisburg large enough for any sort of stadium..

There's no other open space anywhere inside the Loop large enough for any sort of stadium outside NRG park.

I don't know about the rest of you, but I for one am glad that all this BS stalling has ended. This project has been held up long enough. The sooner it starts, the sooner it ends. The whole region has been waiting in limbo for this to finally start happening. It needed to happen sooner, if only to prevent the costs from skyrocketing, but better late than never.

6 hours ago, steve1363 said:

No doubt.  Where are the men like Jesse H. Jones and Judge Roy Hofheinz when you need them?  Men with a vision and the leadership to get things done.

I don't consider lack of vision to be the issue with this particular idea. Its just not feasible to put a stadium that big at that location.

On 12/17/2022 at 6:31 AM, editor said:

Except that Houston does need a stadium, as illustrated above.

Illustrated how? What illustrates this? Houston has a stadium for every major league in the U.S., numerous college stadiums, high school stadiums, etc. Who needs a stadium, and why couldn't they just build one themselves?

On 12/17/2022 at 6:31 AM, editor said:

Once again, supporting a car-focused society strangles progress.

This really has nothing to do with cars or automobiles. The stadium is already surrounded by hundreds of parking spaces. adding a few more means nothing.

On 12/17/2022 at 6:31 AM, editor said:

  Too bad the county-owned building isn't being used for the best interest of the public that the county is supposed to represent, instead of a small set of private millionaires.

It being county owned is irrelevant. It has no purpose and serves no uses. Its a money pit, which apparently no one who actually lives in the county cares to actually put money into. 

On 12/17/2022 at 6:31 AM, editor said:

Funny how the 15 largest stadia in America are all older than the Astrodome, yet they still keep chugging along, and aren't left to rot and embarrass the city.

All of those are college stadiums that get regular use and have permanent tenants in college teams that aren't going anywhere, with the exception of the Cotton Bowl, which at least gets regular event games in the form of the Red River Showdown, State Fair Classic, and the First Responder Bowl, even if it lacks a permanent regular tenant.

On 12/17/2022 at 6:31 AM, editor said:

Just because it's a dome doesn't make it any more special or fragile than other stadia.

And yet you are arguing against tearing it down?