innerloop

It ended up being about $100 per step. It could have been less, but I wanted stained wood on both the steps and the risers. If you go with painted risers, I think you can use cheaper wood and there's less labor involved. That sounds high at first, but to be fair, there's a whole lot of labor in a small space so putting it in terms of $ per ft2 isn't really fair.

I'll second the recommendation for Prudencio. He was referred to me by some friends who were happy with his work and I had him replace the carpet on my stairs with wood. Great work, good price and they really kept the mess of installation and sanding to a minimum.

Are there any grasscrete areas that are open to the public near the Heights? I'm seriously considering a grass driveway installation this spring so if anybody knows of one that I can go take a look at, I'd appriciate any leads. I know there's a big one by the Texans' practice facility so I'll drive by there when I get the chance, but I'm afraid that it's going to be locked most of the time and I won't be able to walk and drive on it. I really want to experience one close up. The reason that I'm considering grass is because with the addition of a pool and a big concrete deck, I now have very little green in my backyard, only two thin strips 3' and 6' wide down each side of the yard. So plowing up my existing gravel driveway and replacing it with something like grasscrete would definately help balance out all of the hardscape and look a little more natural. For the front I'm planning to go with twin concrete tracks leading to the gate. The grass driveway would go from the gate back to the detached garage at the back of the yard, about 60 ft long and probably about 850 ft2. I'd also appriciate leads on any local installers. I think the official distributer for Grasscrete for this area is out in Baytown.

Are there any grasscrete areas that are open to the public? I'm seriously considering a grass driveway installation this spring so if anybody knows of one that I can go take a look at, I'd appriciate any leads. I know there's a big one by the Texans' practice facility so I'll drive by there when I get the chance, but I'm assuming that it's going to be locked most of the time and I won't be able to walk and drive on it. I really want to experience one close up. The reason that I'm considering grass is because with the addition of a pool and a big concrete deck, I now have very little green in my backyard, only two thin strips 3' and 6' wide down each side of the yard. So plowing up my existing gravel driveway and replacing it with something like grasscrete would definately help balance out all of the hardscape. Plus, I want to get a dog one day and having something more natural would be good. For the front I'm planning to go with the city required approach from the street to the sidewalk and twin concrete tracks leading to the gate. The grass driveway would go from the gate back to the detached garage at the back of the yard, about 60 ft. P.S. One downside of gravel driveways that has not been mentioned here is that a woman's spike heel will sink down and they tip backwards. My wife nearly fell a couple of times until she learned to walk on her toes. If you're not going to have a separate walkway, then it's something to factor in.

I love my alley. In fact, is was one of my requirements in selecting my house that it had to have an alley. By having a rear facing garage, there's no need for a driveway all of the way through the front and back yards, so you end up with more useable yard space. An important consideration with some of our small lot sizes. And asthetics are a personal choice, but I much prefer the look of a house that is not burdened with the front facing garage doors.

This would be a great location for a gym. Large open space with a big parking lot. Everybody please go to www.24hourfitness.com and leave a comment inviting them to the neighborhood. Or you can call them at (800) 432-6348.

Yes, it's the 15 ft alley between two blocks.

Can anyone recommend a reliable paver to do the alley behind my house? There's crushed rock there now, but it's getting a little thin. I was thinking about a thin layer of crushed asphalt (~185 ft). Thoughts, expected cost? Thanks.

The outdoor patios are more crowded lately, but that's not all because non-smokers are hanging out with the smokers. The weather is getting cooler once the sun goes down so I'm enjoying the chance to be outside. Plus, I sat outside at Cobain's the other night because it was freezing inside.

So did anybody actually get their garages built? I'm ready to move forward with my garage expansion project and I'm looking for recommendations. I'm trying to reach Harvard Heights, but I haven't made contact yet. Any other recommendations out there? Just for context, I need to go from a 2-car garage (20 x 20) to a 3 1/2. My idea is to build a smaller 20 x 14 on the other side of the back yard and connect them with a breezeway that will provide a shaded patio area in the back yard. And I hope that two smaller buildings will be more aesthetic than one large one.

Thanks for the info and the link. -Alan

Can someone point me to the correct place to get Houston's requirements for fences/gates around a private swimming pool, in this case a single family house in the Heights. Is there a height requirement for the fence, self latching gates, what about doors from the house leading out to the yard? Thanks, Alan