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IronTiger

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Everything posted by IronTiger

  1. IronTiger
    I don't understand why people are still wrapped up in the building collapses. I mean, in the Kennedy assassination, there's more than enough stuff to play around with (like why Jack Ruby shot LHO), but 9/11? Nah. The thing is, fire-related collapses have happened before, just on a much smaller scale. While trying to debunk one of Slick's fears about "oh no, bridges 50+ years old are imminent to collapse" or something, I pulled up the Wikipedia list of bridge failures, and a small portion of them involve a fire that weakened the bridge, leading to its collapse, like the MacArthur Maze collapse in 2007, a 2004 incident with 8000 gallons of home heating oil, which is far less combustible than gasoline. In 2001, you had instant damage with burning gasoline, which ignited everything else inside the towers (paper, lots of paper) and gave the fire fuel (Interstate highways, comparatively, are not known for being flammable—drop a match onto concrete vs. a piece of paper and tell me what happens). The extreme heat ended up melting the superstructure and it just got worse. Remember the fire at the Axis, and how they had to demolish the parking garage later? The parking garage had gotten weakened by the fire, making it unsuitable for heavy use that it would've been. Now imagine if the garage was filled with flammable objects inside and if the fire department wasn't able to reach it in time (it burned for hours). Most of the "evidence" of September 11th just redirects to other blogs and a strange need to elevate Cheney from shifty ambiguously-corrupt politician into some sort criminal mastermind supervillain.
  2. IronTiger
    Gosh, you think so? I think it's ugly only because its been closed for years. Some "Texas donut" apartment complex won't be an improvement.
  3. IronTiger
    Mattress stores cost next to nothing (comparatively) to operate, which is why fly-by-night mattress stores tend to crop up in even depressed areas. I *should* also bring up that the other exception is if there's already a formerly operating grocery store in the area that already has recently unemployed employees and everything set up, thus creating scenarios like two Publix stores operating across the street from each other, or if you want a local example, 5 Krogers in a 3 mile radius (roughly north of the intersection of Beltway 8 and NW, but two of those were old Albertsons (the second Publix was another Albertsons, btw) and the only others to speak of are one HEB and a Food Town. Inner Loop Houston will never achieve that type of saturation because it's a far more diverse market in the same area (density helps too): two H-E-B stores, a Central Market, at least three Krogers, at least three Randalls, at least two Whole Foods, at least two Fiestas, a Trader Joe's, and probably others I've inevitably missed. With the Inner Loop supermarkets being consistently packed even into the wee hours of night, it's likely that there IS room for another supermarket, but land is an issue and would H-E-B allow them to build there? (Answer: No)
  4. IronTiger
    Better than stucco?
  5. IronTiger
    Looks like a scaled down version of many Houston projects I've seen
  6. IronTiger
    That's not really how grocery stores operate, though, it's in their benefit to be packed, not yours, and with the placement of two upscale, full-line H-E-B stores in the area means that everyone in the area that wants an H-E-B has one, and all a third H-E-B would do is just cannibalize the sales of the other two, which isn't good because these types of stores are expensive to build and operate (especially Central Market) and grocery stores are still a low profit margin business. This paragraph wouldn't hold true if Buffalo Speedway or Montrose were Pantry-era stores built 20-25 years ago, but they aren't.
  7. IronTiger
    FWIW, I never read the Swamplot post, which does mention that. I'm sure HEB's not building a store there, but it is a mystery of the non renewal.
  8. IronTiger
    I'd be surprised if it will be an H-E-B at all, since it's smack dab between Buffalo Speedway and Montrose Market. Knowing what I do about H-E-B, it sounds more like a defensive move to prevent any other food or drug stores moving in.
  9. IronTiger
    We're not getting into an argument over highways, and if we're arguing that the HSR should be taxpayer subsidized, then congratulations, you just gave the opposition a valid reason to fight back.
  10. IronTiger
    I seem to remember that some of it was placed OVER the stucco.
  11. IronTiger
    They did.
  12. IronTiger
    Probably not, it would be a pain to retrofit it for modern trucks. That's why urban supermarkets are grandfathered in or new-builds.
  13. IronTiger
    I parked in the garage, but getting to downtown was another issue. First, I had to drive down Commerce and was on the part where the railroad spur runs down the street (deep down, I was secretly hoping that there would be some activity, as that would at least make a neat shot), then got stuck, I think, at the Fannin intersection (and I hoped I wouldn't get ticketed by a cop for blocking the intersection, I know I heard a siren turn on), then had to make sure not to repeat that incident at Main (otherwise, it'd be the end of ol' IT). I ended up parking in the garage partially because it was raining, and I eventually found myself into the parking garage below ground (and almost had to go back out of the parking lot, because I turned into the loading dock). Then I missed the lobby, so I had to get out through this grimy staircase. In the end I paid $4 for about an hour and a half, I think. I circled around the block because I missed the garage entrance, and part of that was because the bike lane (with cool zebra-patterned curbs to prevent cars getting in the lane) caught my eye.
  14. IronTiger
    I'm back from my trip! I did visit the archives for a few hours, and did get a large part of what I wanted to know, except what "Exclusive Furniture" was. Maybe they built it later. In a few 1980s directories, the number wasn't even covered. Bummer.
  15. IronTiger
    Here at the bike lane right now. High friction stuff, like sprayed concrete.
  16. IronTiger
    The closed On the Border location? There seems to be no vacant land nearby. Unless they tore down OTB.
  17. IronTiger
    I believe the vote was to spend $217 million to a convention hall, not to "not demolish it". Those are two significantly different things, despite some media chatter to the contrary.
  18. IronTiger
    Well, mostly to look for directories from before the age of the Internet and after sevfiv's archives. Headliners include the following: 1) What was Exclusive Furniture at 290 and Jones? It sure looks like it was a supermarket and was built in the early 1980s, but the Houston Chronicle archives (that I access with my library card I got mailed-in) don't have the answer. Sometimes Googling the address works, sometimes it does not. (HAIF did not help either) 2) Where were the Safeway/AppleTree stores, and what were their store numbers? There are at least 26 stores unaccounted for between the initial round of closings in 1992 and when the chain was split up in late 1993. Granted, some of these could be in Austin (one of them was a Waco location for sure), but there were at least a handful in Houston, including near Kieth Harrow and Highway 6 (near the K-Mart), and where Más Club was. Those are at least the bigger questions I want answered. I'll probably discover something else cool there too. Hopefully I can share some cool stuff.
  19. IronTiger
    First comes an appointment in the East End (I'll be taking Lockwood down there) and I do hope to see parts of Washington before high-tailing it back to Interstate 10 and home. Unfortunately, because of that prior appointment, I can't take too long, though I did enjoy taking a Friday off about a month ago and visiting the Heights, where BANG, suddenly in I'm on a street with buildings coming up to the side of the road like someone plopped a small Texas town right into Houston. TxTag/EZ Tags are out of the question, since I don't have a full-time job (of course, with this interview I plan to change that) that can justify either (like if I'm going to move to Houston or Dallas or somewhere else, or if I'm going to sell my car), nor am I going to do anything where a tollway would be especially conducive to my transportation (gotta say--Bellaire to 290 on the BW8 frontage roads in rush hour--NEVER AGAIN)
  20. IronTiger
    Definitely a product of the times, but it was also a time when the inner city sucked, leading up to the era of suburbs when those that could afford it left. New Urbanism kind of sounds like a similar concept tho.
  21. IronTiger
    I kind of like it that a Dallas person is here to make the deals more "fair" (admittedly, one Whataburger for an In-N-Out isn't a fair trade. I'll throw in some taquerias). We can also spare an H-E-B too for something similar. I'm sure they'll build another one anyway. I'd also be willing to part with the extensive downtown tunnel system for the extensive DART light rail system.
  22. IronTiger
    Memorial Hermann is stupid-looking, but at least it doesn't pollute the downtown skyline like Reunion Tower does. (Sorry. RT looks a bit too cartoonish)
  23. IronTiger
    I'd rather not see the Astrodome gone, but frankly, the fact that it's still standing since the Astros left is rather fortunate to say the least.
  24. IronTiger
    Actually, I originally considered going through 45 to my destination, but decided against it since I would be likely hitting morning rush hour traffic, and the Pierce already has enough cars on it as it is.
  25. IronTiger
    I'll be going to Houston on Tuesday for an interview, and I'm thinking about going to downtown since it's not very far away from where my interview will be (for reference, less than 4 miles by road). My current plan is to grab lunch in the tunnels but also spend some time in the archives where old directories and what not are kept. Problem is, I don't know where this place is exactly or what times they are open, and I don't know where I can safely park my car and have a reasonable chance of something bad happening to it (towed, broken into, etc.) The last time me and a colleague parked in Houston, it was a Saturday and we found a relatively empty parking garage but had to pay a few dollars in cash anyway. If it's a weekday, I imagine the price will be even higher.
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