midtownsteve

WTF!?! What is this going to be Beyonceland? From the way I see it now that part of Midtown is already a Recreation Complex, cause I don't much of anything in the way of productivity going on over there! What values will they impose on the "young impressionable youth" over there? (youth as being defined as ages 18 to 35) Hand-eye cordination (aka hotwiring) Accuracy and follow-through (one between the eyes and two more clustered around it) Initive (jumping a tall fence) Respect (not keying a SLK or M5) Recycling (reclaiming a set of 20 inch rims) Artistic Therapy (tagging) Relaxation (no comment) All to the tune of Beyonce's "Freakum Dress" You know if this was going to be a freaking themepark then they should have just bought the old Astro/Waterworld park!

Last year when I worked downtown I almost rode the bus one day when the car was in the shop. I waited forever at a bus stop downtown and when it finally arrived I had already set off on foot. I ended up beating the bus home! (16 blocks south of my downtown stop)

The Pierce Elevated would qualify as a roof over your head. Actually compared to the SouthWest Freeway the mix-master area of 59, 45 and the Pierce is quite nice. There are grassy knowles with potential for becoming a nice garden or something. Maybe food not bombs can plant some organic magical bean seeds and we can all ride the magic bean stalk to the giant's penthouse on top. Oops, sorry I must have taken a sip of the koolaid!

It locked them up or forced them too a shelter. Ditto for Dallas and San Antonio and San Francisco and .... Houston is either clueless or naive, the jury is still out. We are the equivalent to a battered spouse in a relationship that refuses to leave or turn the b%%tard in. Bill Whites answer to any call for the city to enforce the law or regulation is "well we would have to raise taxes" Listening to him speak makes me want to blowtorch my ear drums to stop the pain. I'm sure that Homeland Security uses him to interogate suspects on a regular basis. Just Bill White, a bag of jiffy pop and 10 hours of slow conversation has caused many to confess.

I'm glad it is located close to HPD. That will make it much harder to ignore the sounds of gunfire.

You may have missed the high degree of sarcasm in our responses.Beyond the scope of Midtown, shouldn't we help Katrina victims rebuild New Orleans, not Houston?I've made tons of new friends from New Orleans over the past two years and while most like Houston, they long for New Orleans. Most face the same chicken or the egg scenario of jobs and housing. The problem is many are still waiting for flood maps before they rebuild or raise up their houses. (This is for both homeowners and landlords) If something like this was built in New Orleans then you would find a great deal of interest in returning.Knowles is just enabling the continued government gravy train here in Houston, while at the same time not paying his taxes! Scumbag!"My name is Foxy Cleopatra and I've got a whole lot of back taxes!"

Oh thats just fantastic! I was hoping for a W hotel or something, but this is sooo much better! This just further shows you that Knowles just does not care about the tax paying citizens in this city. Mr. Knowles, how about paying your $15,398.90 in back taxes first on your Music World Property? http://www.hctax.net/propertytax/deltax/De...t=1224190010001

Search has gone down hill since its founder left a few years ago. The new person in charge is overwhelmed and generally clueless on what to do. The increase on homelessness in Midtown in the past 2 years can be attributed to 3 specific "changes" Root Memorial Park - Root Memorial park was renovated several years ago and changed dramatically from its reputation as a homeless gathering space. Homeless are no longer allowed. So how is this enforced? Security guards. So who pays for the security guards you ask. The Harris County Sports Authority. They wanted the Rockets new home to be a place where suburban commuters were not afraid to visit, so they barred and prevented the homeless from return by means of security guards. A good portion of the homeless now live in Midtown. Here is the real kicker. When Root Memorial Park was deeded/given to the city it was under the specific condition that the park would always be available to homeless persons. I'm no lawyer, but I believe that guards preventing homeless folks from using that park may constitute a violation. I think someone needs to ask for their park back. Pierce Elevated - The Pierce in many sections is fenced off. The homeless move further south. Duh. The Veterans Initiative / Cloudbreak Motel/Halfway House - The VI rode into Houston spouting how their facility would help develop the area by providing sober veterans a place to stay. They lobbied certain city council members with a free flight to Southern California so that this District D representative could "visit" their SoCal facility. Subsequently the Houston city council voted to give the VI a few million bucks of our money to "develop" their program for homeless vets. Not soon afterward the scope of their operation changed. (They swore it would not) They now accept a large variety of non-vets in their "not a halfway house" halfway house. At one point this for profit entity owed several thousand in back taxes to the same city that gave it a few million. Drive by the VI Hotel now and you will find all the squalor, panhandling and chronic homelessness they claimed would never occur. These three changes are just icing on the cake of an issue that has been the bane of Midtowns redevelopment for years. The true homeless are those who have "recently" owned or rented a home or apartment. I think it's a misnomer to universally apply the homeless moniker to those who beg for a beer not a bed. Most true homeless are invisible, by choice. Having been their myself, we want to quietly get back on our feet with little if any drama. At night we are asleep somewhere secluded as possible, not in the middle of pedestrian areas trying to panhandle. You see many of do have jobs that we return from so that we can make the next step back into a permanent residence. That was my story back in the early 90's. It boils by blood when these businesses masquerading as non-profit social organizations spread their peace and love bs about the homeless. These homeless that they deify as saints are the people stealing all the copper and brass throughout the city. They are digging through your trashing and selling your identity to professionals. The collecting cans thing is just a cover. It is amazing how far down the road of naivety that white guilt will carry you. The only White guilt I have is feeling guilty for electing Bill White.