sidegate

Wow. That is big news.

At least it would be if this weren't April Fool's.

Based on the map in the Chron it would be Montrose Blvd itself

The pan-Montrose Management District that's in the works will probably play a big role in what this looks like. This from today's Chronicle.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It took about six years to create the East Montrose Management District, but there

Is it just a matter of time until Numbers becomes a Restoration Hardware?

Hey, where else are you going to get those frames for your old LP covers?

I don't know how much character is left to be derived from the gas station, fast food joints and the abandoned Blockbuster. Anything of sentimental value - Ruggles, the Greek place, Mary's...is actually a fair distance away from the actual intersection. I think there's a lot that could be done here, not all of it necessarily bad.

Edit: just re-read subdude's post - yes it certainly "used to" have character.

Didn't I hear Starbucks were cutting jobs - something like 1000 nationwide? I guess Houston must be one of their better markets if they are piling in here with more stores, and that intersection must have some of the highest concentration of disposable income in the city. Why wouldn't they fill their boots? Personally I don't see what all the fuss ius about - gimme a decent cuppa tea any day.

I agree they could have done better in tying it into the hood but at least it's not a mini stripmall.

There'll be a collective groan from the....er....hemp aficionados of Montrose if Liquid goes under the ball.

Now that I think of it there is a little house/apartment at the back of Liquid on Hawthorne - the 1920s part per HCAD (thanks for the link).

And I don't know where the residential is there either. I wonder what they have planned.

What are sanborn maps?

This in this morning's Commerical Real Estate section of the Chronicle

"The Westheimer Montrose Center, a 13,350 sq ft center with retail and residential space has been sold......the property at 1417 Westheimer was constructed in the 1920s and has been renovated several times"

Anyone know exactly where this is? I googled 1417 Westheimer and it came up with Liquid, the store at the curve, but that's hardly a 1920s building...

Driving up and down Kirby is like a whole different world now w/ West Ave. and 2727 Kirby going up.

Totally. It really is exhilirating.

Brick, wonderful brick!!

yeah i tend to think of St Arnold's as fall beers - too much complexity to be simply thirst-quenching. The Lawnmower is probably their best summer beer but there are less expensive options. Tecate, Carta Blanca, Modelo....all with an abundance of limes handy of course.

At last a subject I can speak on with authority.

Pacifico

It was Hippocrates, the author of the doctor's sacred oath, who said, "Wherever the art of medicine is loved, there also is love of humanity."

Oh, the blessed, blessed irony.......

I visited the park for the first time yesterday afternoon/evening...it was one of those surreal I'm-not-in-Houston type experiences (again camera-less, so crummy phone pictures)

I've been having those more and more recently!

Great pictures btw.

Is there any news on getting that old Blockbuster leased out? This is one of the busiest intersections in town and it feels like Flint, Michigan, with that huge abandoned space there.

I agree. There's a lot about that whole intersection that could be radically improved.

Driving North on Kirby and seeing the curve of the building where the pedestrian area starts reminds me of the Virgin Megastore in my native Belfast. this is the biggest pic I could find...

Let's not look West Ave in the mouth. I don't think anyone can seriously say this type of development is a bad thing for the area when one considers the alternative (peering at a thin strip of shop signs across a sea of cars). Give the tenants a chance. This is a market driven economy, and Houston is not spoiled for choice when it comes to eateries. If you don't like a restaurant, don't go. If enough people (white, black, latino, whatever) don't like it, it will close down and something will take its place. Chuy's has stood the test of time, which in Houston is really saying something. unfortunately it doesn't own the land it sits on, so I guess its days are numbered.

And yes the fajitas are awesome.

why is white people's taste in food any less valid than anyone else's?

I don't want to turn this into a food thread, but how dare you.

On a related Chuy's/West Ave. topic, there have been numerous rumblings in the neighborhood (from the Avalon Place homeowner's asociation newsletter, no less) that Chuy's lease is not being renewed and that West Ave. expansion is looking toward the site where Chuy's and Rickshaw are located.

I agree. Chuy's rawks!! Disappointed to hear that, but hardly surprised. Chuy's is the one place that my family remembers in Houston when they talk about their visits here.

I can't wait for this to open. Already that stretch of Kirby has a radically different "feel" to it with the inviting pedestrian mall and the highrise opposite. My enthusiasm is tempered somewhat though by the implications for traffic in the area. I wonder if cops will be on hand a la Highland Village to help keep things running smoothly at busy times.

I agree that the single lanes south and, to a lesser extent, north on to 59 are the weak links in this intersection at peak times. Only going to get worse now that we're one of fastest growing areas in the nation.

This interchange wouldn't be as bad if people showed a little patience got in lane early, didn't do dumb things like come to a stand still in a lane of traffic, and accepted the fact that if they couldn't get in lane safely, just took a detour and resolved next time to get in lane earlier.

I'll put the crack pipe down now.