JLWM8609

So now, they also want to eliminate parts of I-45 and I-30. http://www.bizjournals.com/dallas/blog/morning_call/2015/02/business-leaders-form-pac-to-inject-i-345-teardown.html?s=image_gallery

Everyone knows that River Oaks residents have access to downtown via a secret subterranean expressway underneath Buffalo Bayou. It has its own exit to the hidden driver's license office with no wait line that only a privileged few in Houston know about .

I saw some photos of the skylines of NYC and Chicago taken 30-40 miles away, and it got me to wondering how far away from downtown you have viewed Houston's skyline. The furthest point north from which I've been able to make out Houston's skyline is I-45 at Cypresswood, which is about 20 miles from downtown. Down south, I've been able to see Houston's skyline from the flyover ramp at I-45 and NASA Rd. 1, which is just over 20 miles south of downtown. When I'm coming back from Galveston on the causeway, I look at the horizon from the top of the causeway to see if I can barely make out the faint outline of Houston's skyline some 48 miles away. I've never been able to see it, but I suspect that haze and pollution may prevent that, or maybe the tops of tallest buildings are just barely visible (Chase Tower, Wells Fargo Plaza), but I wouldn't be able to make them out without binoculars.

Airline travelers don't want to step into cars at all, either, yet airports accommodate vehicles. Yes, I realize international/long distance travel is often impossible by car, but there are a lot of people flying HOU-DAL, IAH-SAT, IAH-BPT, HOU-MSY that could drive, but would rather fly for whatever reason.

Meanwhile, in Dallas, some residents there believe that locating the HSR on the south side of Dallas would've resulted in an economic boom for the south side. http://blogs.dallasobserver.com/unfairpark/2015/02/houston_dallas_bullet_train_stations_harm_development_chances.php Looks like we're not the only ones bickering over a line terminus site.

I like your plan. It keeps the connection of Memorial to Prairie and Texas. For some reason, the advance design wants Prairie and Texas to terminate as ramps to and from I-45, realign Memorial with Walker and McKinney and eliminate the ramps there to and from I-45, and connect Houston Avenue to Rusk and Capitol streets.

It's an interesting project, especially considering that most of the support comes from the notion of having no freeway barrier between midtown and downtown in order to reconnect the two areas. I haven't seen any discussion about the impact of having dual freeways between downtown and the East End, Fifth Ward, and Near Northside. Wouldn't those areas have to endure a wider barrier between them and downtown for the sake of more affluent and/or more influential midtown residents and business interests?

Except, that building was in Southside Place.

It went off the rails.

I'm betting it was a typo, like the old Jetero Blvd. (now Will Clayton Pkwy.) that was supposed to be called Jetera Blvd.

The original DC-9 (DC-9-10) had a wider fuselage than today's regional jetliners and could accommodate a 5 abreast cabin and thus, a more mainline, less cramped feel for passengers. Modern regional jets are only good for 3 to 4 abreast seating.

I submitted some of this information to the Abandoned and Little Known Airfields site. The curator of that website was able to find that the airfield was also known by the name of Erwin-Newman Airport. The Erwin-Newman Company was an aircraft dealer. http://www.airfields-freeman.com/TX/Airfields_TX_HoustonS.htm#cunningham

The Cadillac CT6 will make its debut on March 31. Sounds good on paper. I hope I won't be underwhelmed when it finally makes it appearance. http://jalopnik.com/the-twin-turbo-hybrid-cadillac-ct6-flagship-will-debut-1681094358

I'm trying to contact a local Houston aviation historian. I believe he'd know the story behind Cunningham Airfield. Regarding the Air Reserve Training Center, I wonder if it's related to the Army Reserve Center that was on OST next to Kroger?

I may have found the answer. I found a snippet of a an old Section Chart on the abandoned air field site from 1943. In that location is an airfield called Cunningham. Other images of sectional charts from 1934 and 1950 don't depict Cunningham, so looks like its operation was short lived like other fields in the area.

Main had been extended past Holcombe by 1949. It was US59 at the time.

It's not Sky Ranch. Sky Ranch is a good 5-6 miles away from this location.

Earlier today, I found a photo of the Naval Hospital (now the VA site) under construction in around 1949. In the background of the photo just beyond OST, you can see some grass runways and some hangars. I remembered seeing a reference to this airfield on some old map of Houston, but I don't recall where I saw the map, or the name of the airfield. It's close to the Houston Main Street Airport, which is shown on a 1930s map of Houston (located at the current intersection of Broadmead and S. Main), but interestingly, I can't find any reference to this field on maps I've found from the 30s through the 50s. Here's the photo of the Naval Hospital with the airfield in the background. You are looking due southwest from the intersection of Almeda and Holcombe. The boundaries of this field were OST to the north, Almeda to the east, Knight Rd. the west, and El Paseo St. (which didn't exist at the time) to the south. Google Earth shows the airfield in a 1944 aerial view with 3 unpaved runways: an E-W runway measuring about 1300 ft, a NE-SW runway measuring about 3000 ft, and a NW-SE runway measuring about 2700 ft. By 1949, there are more runways (or else more runways are viewable in the imagery): a N-S runway measuring about 2400 ft (north threshold located where Kroger is now), and an E-W runway measuring about 2300 ft that seems to have replaced the old 1300 ft E-W runway that was closer to, and more parallel to OST. By 1953, Google Earth shows the airfield to be abandoned with a road or pathway running through some of the runways. In the 1960s, Historic Aerials shows development on the site as there was encroachment of one of the runways by the old Army Reserve Center. Sometime between 1973 and 1978, the hangars and buildings were demolished. The outline of some runways could be seen in the land behind Kroger (then Safeway) in an aerial view from 1981. By 1989, the land behind Kroger was developed into a park, and no trace of the airfield remained. What was the name of this airfield? Was it for civilian use? Or perhaps Air Force training?

I think you're both right. Thanks for the help.

There's a building in the background of this photo of the Astrodome that I cannot identify. It's just to the right of the crown of the dome. It looks to be roughly in the location of the VA or somewhere along Holcombe between Almeda and Braeswood. It might be the old St. Anthony (currently Alta Lofts) under construction, but I think that would be a bit to the right of that building. I also thought it was part of the old Naval Hospital (currently where the VA is), but it looks too tall to be a structure from it. Any thoughts or guesses? http://ww1.hdnux.com/photos/34/07/01/7368776/3/622x350.jpg

Schlumberger announced that 9,000 layoffs are coming. The layoffs started during the last quarter of last year and will continue through 2015. http://abc13.com/business/schlumberger-confirms-9000-layoffs-coming/476864/

From Chron.com: Read more here: http://www.chron.com/neighborhood/memorial/news/article/H-GAC-to-give-pedestrian-bike-plan-update-6015368.php

I think Futureworld may have been filmed in some of the tunnels downtown. I know it was filmed in Houston.

Buick unveiled two cars this week. One is a RWD concept, the other is a production vehicle that's basically an Opel with Buick logos. 2016 Buick Cascada (known as the Opel Cascada elsewhere) http://jalopnik.com/2016-buick-cascada-this-is-it-1678788536 Buick Avenir Concept http://jalopnik.com/buick-avenir-concept-the-gorgeous-rwd-buick-weve-been-1678872596

LED lighting in the ceiling that would slowly change hue depending on the time of day would help provide some context when there's no sunlight. There's similar lighting on aircraft that changes during the day on long haul flights.