innerloop

Not much is happening.  Here is a view looking south from the bike trail.

You beat me to it.  And I agree that it looks taller than I expected, taller than a regular freeway overpass.  But that's a good thing as the more elevation, the better the views of the Galleria and Downtown.

Demo is continuing.  Here is a photo from White Oak.

They have removed all of the trees from the median of Memorial Drive between the two traffic lights at each end of Picnic Lane.  And there is fencing up on the north side of the street along parts of the jogging trail.  I couldn't tell for sure, but it may be part of re-routing the jogging trail during construction as early reports said that the trail would remain usable. 

The steel structure has been up for a week or so.  

I was at the park last night.  They have installed fencing along the south side of Memorial through this area.

The project and this thread are back from the dead.  They've been working on it for the last few weeks.  For years it was the steel work, the roof and the back half of the building was cinder blocks.  Lately they painted the blocks, added the brick work and windows and they have paved some or all of the parking lot.

Here's a photo of the work that has gone on for the last couple of weeks.  It's not really visible, but there's a fairly sizable hole where the building is supposed to go.  In the back they're setting up the forms for the parking lot.

Wolfsmiths Heights has opened on 26th Street just east of Shepherd.  They bill themselves as "Houston's First Moto Café".  And it's exactly that, a combination motorcycle repair shop and coffee bar.  I'm really into cars so I think it's cool.

https://wolfsmithsheights.com/

We're mixing locations here.  The thread is for the main campus and the Harvey flood pictures are of the Downtown campus.

16 hours ago, thatguysly said:

Gentrification is complicated and there is not a single solution to the issues caused by it. It shouldn't stop development from occurring but should also respect the neighborhood with roots in the area (like East End). Create jobs for the locals and help them lift up with the development.

Well said.

I am on an unrelated Board for U of H, but we were briefed a number of times on the Medical school and choosing the location was a tough, but very well consider decision.  They seriously considered being in the Medical Center and even identified an available piece of land, but in the end the choice was to be near campus to reinforce the ties to the university.

As for the exact location and preserving the trees, I'm afraid that whole area will probably be developed over time.  If you're not familiar with the U of H area, the campus is pretty hemmed in on the north by I-45, the east by the railroad tracks (with the exception of the Innovation Center (ex. Schlumberger facility) which is really a separate location) and the south by viable residential in University Oaks/Riverside Terrace.  So I think that area of land to the southeast is destined to become part of the campus.  There is political pressure from Third Ward leaders for U of H to not expand to the west as they feel that it would diminish the historically African American nature of the neighborhood.  Plus TSU and Yates High School are right there on the border already.  There is some room to expand to the north right up against I-45, but that land is currently serving as sports fields and personally I think that's a good idea as intramural sports add to the University experience and the mind boggling to me 6000+ students who live on-campus need recreation areas. 

14 hours ago, crock said:

 

I'm also really concerned/saddended that there is no obvious connection with the MKT trail

Yes, huge disappointment.

On 5/17/2019 at 7:43 AM, CrockpotandGravel said:

 

...Total Wine and Ulta Beauty have finalized leases for the retail space underway, but the developer would not reveal names of the other tenants it is talking to.

 

Seems a little premature, but Ulta Beauty is already running an ad for the General Manager position for this location.

18 hours ago, Houston19514 said:

 

Has a gondola system ever been put into use as a serious transit system, in place of where a trolley might go?  I wonder how the costs would compare versus a trolley street car or light rail.

They tried it in Rio de Janeiro, but some people say that was just a vanity project for the Olympics.  They built a 2.2 mile line and they say it cost $70M.  The trip took 10 minutes, I couldn't quickly find any information on capacity/hour.

A quick look on Google Maps shows the distance from the Post Office to KBR is about 1.5 miles, so about 30% shorter than the Rio line.  And I love the Brazilians, but there's got to be some inefficiencies and graft in their numbers.  So maybe $35-$40M?  I'll leave it to others to investigate the access question and operating costs.

But it would be cool!

On 1/12/2019 at 7:08 AM, CrockpotandGravel said:

From Houstonia:

Meanwhile, we Houstonia staffers have a spring in our step, for signage has been installed at La Vibra Tacos, set to open at 5th and Yale. The concept, specializing in tacos and sides popular in Mexico City, will soft open soon, per a representative.
 

La Vibra was open last night when I drove by.

I'm still hoping that they incorporate some sort of specific entrance from the bike path up in the northeast corner.  Something inviting and landscaped with bike racks obviously.  Don't see anything like that in the drawings.

12 minutes ago, CREguy13 said:

I'm not sure how a high-rise fits in with this area.

If we're going to have them then that is the place: downtown, always been commercial, not towering over many single family homes.

On 5/11/2018 at 2:29 PM, Angostura said:

 

One tenant will be a taco concept out of Mexico City called "La Vibra". Still looking for a 2nd restaurant tenant.

These guys are progressing as there is a TABC permit notification in the window of the south end of the building.

19 hours ago, s3mh said:

I have heard as many people call it the "Airline Farmer's Market" as the "Houston Farmer's Market" as "Canino's".  So, I do not see this as a big name change.  Canino's will still be there.

 

 

I think the Houston Farmer's Market is a bad name from a Marketing perspective.  Houston is a huge sprawling place so "Houston Farmer's Market" lacks specificity.  We're already seeing lost tourists in the Heights on Saturday mornings stopping to ask directions to "the farmer's market" that they've heard about, but they don't know which of the many different one's they're really looking for.  It could be Canino's or many times it's one of the many small collections of individuals at places like Onion Creek, etc.

Retaining Airline or Canino's in the name would help them stand out from the rest.

New sign for Dunkin' Donuts spotted at the old Schlotzsky's on the northeast corner of Yale and 20th.

Or maybe it was a Quiznos?

18 hours ago, Timoric said:

 

How about bulldoze it all and make it the best park in Houston for 10 years for concerts, dog play, picnics, art, food trucks, and some pick up volleyball or kickball games

No way!  The beauty of that site is all of that indoor space just waiting to be built out.  With the realities of Houston weather, having indoor recreational space would be a great compliment to the adjacent outdoor space along the bayou.  My wife and I were at D4N and during one of the breaks we started listing some of the possibilities: indoor electric go-kart track, bowling alley, shooting range, miniature golf, pool hall, arcade, skating/hockey rinks, lawn bowling, cornhole, RC car track.  I'm sure that there are more.  Maybe carnival rides for kids that can work within the existing ceiling heights?

All of those other things you mention are great, but can't we do those at Eleanor Tinsley park?

There's already a four story parking deck across the street for the Heights Medical Tower that I bet doesn't get much use in the evenings and on weekends.  Maybe they could arrange something with those guys.

They've been clearing trees for the last couple of days.

21 hours ago, s3mh said:

I suspect it largely depends on everyone's sense of how to time the market 

I think that's where you're right.  I give the owners credit that they know how much money they could make by selling.  But then where are you going to invest the money next?

With the uncertainties of Trump, Brexit, sub-$50 oil, etc. I bet that these people and many others figure that land in the Heights, even with increasing taxes, is still a wise investment with more potential upside.