MetroMogul

What rail line were they planning to use?  In my five years of riding the 50 - Harrisburg to work I've only seen two trains on the Galveston Rd. track.  I seriously thought the line was abandoned.  Then one day I saw a crew working on it and the next day the first train I ever saw ran on the track.  

It's only fair to give Tata Nanas to every individual in the Metro service area, even children.

Sounds like most of that was done under Frank Wilson's watch surprise surprise. The only thing I fault the "New" Metro for is the continued light rail-centric policy while the bus system continues to be mediocre. But, I suppose that's better than the atrocious system we had under Wilson and cronies.

Correction; there is ONE old, large mansion on Milam and McGowen. It's used as a CPA office and is in decent shape.

And I could be a trillionaire if I were born under different circumstances. We're not talking about what COULD be. We're not talking about options. We are talking about the situation AS IS. AS IS, the city does have a transit agency that is supposed to be funded by a ONE CENT sales tax. A WHOLE penny, not .75 of a penny. So, with that being said, your outrage at Metro spending a projected 750K on a "non transit" expenditure is laughable when the city has "legitimately" robbed the agency of close to, if not, a billion dollars over the past 20 years.

It's funny the same people who have a problem with Metro spending $750K on this tree relocation/memorial combination have no issue with the 20+ year siphoning of Metro funds for non-Metro purposes including the depletion of a $650 million transit surplus in early 90s.

Re: "Issues" with the homeless....

Those "dreaded" churches and charities were feeding the homeless in parking lots when the neighbors were abandoned railroad tracks and dilapidated warehouses. Now that the tracks have been paved over and the warehouses remodeled into cheap, cookie cutter lofts doesn't mean the church should pack and go and leave the homeless to suffer. If you're afraid to take little Hayden for a stroll because of "street people," Katy and the Woodlands are calling you. Not too many dark---- er I mean "thugs" out there either. Maybe this whole "urban living" thing is not for some of you, what with all the diversity and this thing called reality beating you over your little yuppie heads.

Well, I hate to interrupt with actual news about the line, but as a fequent rider of the 50, I feel it is my duty...

New utility poles have been placed about 15-20ft. behind the current utility ROW for perhaps a few blocks along Harrisburg near the new CVS.

METRO is poorly managed. They hedged their fuel prices when fuel prices were high; their financial status is not good and the results are manifested by construction delays. METRO officials (and some other poorly-run transit agencies) are hoping for Federal intervention but it is unclear that they will receive it. Their situation is their own fault after all.

If you live in a municipality that participates in METRO, write your local officials. Ask for dramatic reforms and the replacement of officials. Whether someone is for or against light rail is irrelevant; we need competent leadership.

In most of the Niche vs. Red debates I side with Red, but as a frequent Metro rider I cannot disagree that it has piss poor management. It is constantly sinking money into gimmicks with little return such as the Airport Direct. It constantly grows it's commuter services (which it should) but development to local routes has been stagnant at best. A BRT like route along the busy Bellaire line is entering it's 2nd year of delay, and Metro is pushing ahead with Quickline service along lines that have only moderate ridership at best. Metro scheduling is pathetic. Buses are poorly spaced (the 82 runs every 45 minutes on a weekday, come on!), poorly timed (too much or too little running time), and just piss poor overall. The buses are dangerous to operate with many out of alignment but Metro continues to cram cost intensive gadgets into them (Zonar). Metro bus drivers have low morale which spills over into performance of their jobs and all that excrement rolls down to the riders. I'm paying 25% more for a bus service that has a dismal 59% on time performance. That's Wall Street bad.

Even though I no longer care for light rail, it'd be nice for them to deliver on that at least since a 50% increase in bus service was deemed not necessary. But, besides a few scant blocks on Harrisburg, there is nothing to show for years of legal wrangling and public hearing hell.

I ride the 50 to work quite regularly now and um, there was no construction going on during my last run through this past weekend. All the barricades and equipment I'm used to seeing was moved for some reason. I'm assuming construction work has resumed but things seem to be progressing EXTREMELY slowly.

I don't see too many white people sipping "40s" during the middle of the day or sagging their pants around Sharpstown Mall. Well, come to think of it, I don't see too many people of any race or culture drinking a "40" and walking down the street near the mall. But of course, we know the demographics of both the mall and the apartments around the mall. And these are the people that many in here are railing against.

As far as laziness goes, how do you even know they don't have a job? Have you polled every assumed "thug." Hmmmm, I'm supposing not. I wish those lazy housewives would get a job and stop walking their ugly dogs in that McMansion infested neighborhood of West University! Oh, they offend me so!

just because "black and Mexican" pops into your head when you hear stories of areas filled with crime and areas that have been trashed does not mean you have to transfer your guilt about thinking that to the rest of us.....if you hate it being veiled then come right out and admit that is what comes into your mind......or is that what your post was trying to admit

I suppose you'd prefer your racism guilt free?

I've come to realize that I hate veiled racism a bit more than the bare, unadultered kind.

Guys, just say blacks and mexicans. Everyone already knows who you're talking about.

Well let's start with their customer service.

.....Okay....let's......

Wow, no one has ever brought up this interesting topic before.

And it's not just the bums, I also blame those "hip hop thugs" for keeping downtown mired in mediocrity. If we could just keep out all of the bums and "Gangster Grizzilles," we'd have an entertainment/residential/retail center that would rival New York Times Square and the Vegas Strip, COMBINED~!

The north end tunnels are for the courts and have restricted access. Creepy indeed. Which other north enders are you speaking of?

I'm thinking around the Chronicle building. I didn't even walk around some of those tunnels because they were just so isolated.

I don't mind the tunnels and don't mind the bums as they are quite easy to ignore. The only issue I have with the system is that some of the tunnels on the north end of downtown are clammy and somewhat creepy.

because Bayou Place was supposed to be a place with eating in the day for workers, eating at night for those living in the area, eating at night for those coming into the theater district, entertainment for those coming into the theater district for after the show and entertainment for those living in the area, and most importantly to actually DRAW people to it at night for the entertainment venues offered....IE to give a "night life" to that part of Houston...from reading this entire thread it seems to me that many felt HP was going to actually do the same thing....especially draw in the night life and drive business to the other tenants of HP

Last I saw one of the new main tenants at Bayou Place was going to be a server farm....which is about as far from day or night life as one can get

Exactly. People did not expect HP to be "just another shopping center." They expected a mixed use development with heavy emphasis on shopping and entertainment with a moderate residential component. To say the demand for that is less than 100 people in the whole of the city is a tad silly. HP was conceived due to that demand.

The Houstonians craving this are unaware of The Galleria. I think <100 sounds about right.

On a serious note, a comparison to The Galleria is valid, I think. When that mall was introduced into a seemingly illogical setting -- It was considered the middle of nowhere at the time -- it focused on destination retail and the novelty of an ice rink in hot, humid Houston, to draw people who were curious. It also was designed as an enclosed city unto itself, with a nod to "public spaces" (ironically on private property) that had rarely been seen outside much older cities. It invented (or more accurately re-invented) an architectural type, further distinguishing itself and sealing its longevity as a model for others to follow.

I hate to think what "Marq-E on Main" will look like when it turns The Gal's age.

HP would not have been developed at all if what you and Meme allude to is true. The original concept of HP was to cater to those that wanted the whole mixed use/entertainment feel. I doubt multi-million dollar projects are conceived on the whims of less than 100 REGULAR people. I suppose we'll just have to agree to disagree on that.

While the comparison to the the Galleria is valid, the lure of HP is that it was supposed to breathe a bit of new life into a somewhat revitalized downtown.

Personally, I don't have a dog in this fight. Whether HP becomes close to what it was envisioned to be at the onset or just another bathroom and bookstop doesn't really matter to me. I will say though that it was incredibly short-sighted to open only four stores in such a hyped project. The opening would have gone over better if they decided to wait until more tenants were ready.

Eh? HP is disappointing because it's an ugly, empty mall. I've been to lots of malls, all over the world. HP is one of the ugliest, and the only one I've ever seen open with only 4 stores tenants. I'd bet there are fewer than 100 Houstonians craving those words you wrote.

Judging from the sentiment of some on this site alone, I'd beg to differ.

Well, I personally know of many people off site that would love an entertainment/shopping district that rivals Times Square (it's not going to happen) or the Vegas Strip (also not going to happen). Many thought that HP was going to be the beginning of something like that and looking at the end result they feel letdown in a way. Me personally, I don't mind it too much and I see alot of potential. At the very least it's a new place to use a bathroom downtown.

who's craving this? it surprises me many have never heard of hp.

Well, many people on this forum for starters.

I think the disappointment lies in the fact that so many Houstonians are craving that ONE entertainment/shopping district that will draw world and national renown like so many other cities currently have. Fairly or not, HP was hyped as the realization of these urban fantasies since it's inception and when you look at what it was proposed to be and what it is now, I can understand a fair bit of letdown. HP went from urban hipster fantasy to a curiously designed Park Shops. I seriously doubt that is what many people were expecting when it was announced.

However, to deem HP a failure is very premature and giving it a three month life span is utterly ridiculous. I think HP has a good chance of limping along into something respectable or at the very least an alternative to the Tunnels and the Park Shops.

Well, I will say that HP provides another great public restroom when Macy's and the CVS close. The restrooms are on the second floor tucked into a somewhat undeveloped section of the mall and a little difficult to locate so if you have a "potty emergency" of sorts I wouldn't recommend HP. I'm sure the placement of these restrooms will attract a bit of that "local flavor" downtown is known for.

In somewhat related news, Houston WASPS may be disappointed to see women they could only describe as "some rap guy's girlfriend" frequenting the scant selection of shops obviously dashing their hopes that riff raff would be safely relegated to decaying suburban malls. That's what happens when you plunk a Forever 21 into any shopping center. Me? I don't mind at all, hoochies and a clean public restroom are all a young man needs on his Metro journeys.

Overall, very underwhelming, though I do like the BAM.

It depends on where you live. I highly doubt that too many people in Cypress will be flocking down to HP, but what about the people in Midtown, East End, Montrose, the Heights, and Rice Village? The next closest Forever 21 is in Pearland, and (once it opens) HP will have the only Lucky Strike lanes in the city... it'll also be the only bowling alley anywhere near these neighborhoods. For those of us who are inner loopers and actually LIKE the thought of spending time in downtown, HP is a step in the right direction.

BTW, last year, most people thought that only "very few Houstonians" would be visiting Discovery Green. Now there is city-wide buzz about the outdoor ice rink.

I guess the Forever 21s in Memorial, Willowbrook, and Sugarland don't count?

I never understood the whole "Westpark" argument in the first place. Every alignment that Metro has shown to the public included a significant section along Westpark Dr. I think the "Westpark" designation had less to do with where the line would go and more to do with the ultimate terminus at Hillcroft TC, which is *drum roll* on Westpark Dr! Most rail opponents aren't familiar with bus routes so I'll excuse their ignorance of the 11 - Nance bus route, a former streetcar line. If you look at the route or ride the bus, you'll see the 11 - Nance runs along it's namesake for about 1/4th of a mile. Whether it be Nance or Westpark, the name of a bus route or rail line does not restrict it to that street. It'd be nice to bury the whole "Westpark" argument once and for all.

With that said, Metro is still a subpar and wasteful agency and Frank Wilson needs to be run out of Houston on a rail (Westpark or Richmond, take your pick).