zandago

The likelihood of Exxonmobil moving it's corporate HQ from Dallas to Houston as part of the proposed campus has always been slim to nil. This doesnt have any bearing to the proposed campus just south of the woodlands which has always been reported to be primarily for the upstream portions of the company. The spring/woodlands campus is still being studied with no official word.

The recent reports of a housing subdivision being built in the vicinity of or next to the proposed campus is interesting. Various newsclips suggest uncertainty about who is actually building the reported subdivision. With Exxon's desire for security cited as one of the reasons for the proposed site on a large piece of undeveloped land, having a large housing subdivision right next to it wouldnt be ideal.

Met a woman who worked at Continental at dinner several weeks ago. Sounds like workers involved with day to day activities at IAH would be staying but most others are being asked/told to move to Chicago. She said many of her coworkers are really nervous about the upcoming year. Her feeling was that even if people did move to Chicago with the company, being laid off in the next year or two was still a strong possibility.

I've used Andrew Ashby for some tree trimming of some big oaks in my front yard a while ago. He did great work for us that was reasonably priced. Certified arborist so he's knowledgeable on how to trim a tree without harming it.

Andrew Ashby

Arbor And Forestry Associates

ISA Certified Arborist # TX-3311A

832.275.3147

andrewashby@arborforestry.com

Had a chat with a continental manager at the gym today and asked him about the continental-united talks. His take was that it was likely to happen but was still a toss-up for where headquarters would be. He was also certain that Houston would continue to be the Continental hub. The location is great for access to South America and the SW US plus it was pretty rare for a single airline like continental to be the primary air carrier for a city the size of Houston so leaving wouldnt make sense.

The PeeTroll Station had lousy coffee when they started out as a coffee house, and it felt like the owners were living in the place.

Discovered the Petrol Station recently and think the place is great. Awesome microbrew selection and small but very good men, great burgers. Small indoor seating and more outdoor seating. Still a work in progress but based on some reviews I've read of the place when it first opened, the Petrol Station has evolved a bit and I think for the better. There's usually 1-2 people tending the bar so when the place is busy, it can back up a little bit.

I'm looking for a good tailor to make some minor suit alterations and alterations in general (e.g. hemming pants). Any recommendations or comments for tailors in the heights/oak forest/garden oaks areas? Any opinions or experiences with Leo's Fine Tailoring on TC Jester?

If yours is like mine, then you have to attach one of those gauzy things to the tip, and then just use a lighter stick to light it, as gas is always being emitted. It's a pain for sure, so I try my best not to mess with it.

The gauzy thing is called a mantle that you can pick up at any outdoor place that sells camping equipment. They're used for propane and white gas lanterns. At least I think its the same thing from inspection of my neighborhood gas lamp posts.

On a related note, bought a house earlier in the year that has one of these gas lamp posts but it's not on/working. Didn't really think too much about it until recently and now trying to figure out how to make it working again. Don't see any sort of knob/switch on the post itself. Anyone have experience with getting one of these working again? I've noticed some people in our neighborhood have switched the lamposts to an electric setup.

I'm surprised no one has mentioned The Petrol Station on Wakefield. I hadn't been in almost 3 years and stopped by one night to meet some friends who live on the area. GREAT lamb burgers and a huge draft beer selection. Good coffee too.

Great to hear about the Petrol Station. Found something online about it a while ago and driven by once or twice and have been wanting to give it a try and definitely will now.

We tried Cavatore's for the first time last week (next to Tony's) and found a fun atmosphere with the piano playing, kitschy but interesting decor and good food.

We also like Rainbow Lodge, essentially across the street from Cavatore's, which has great tasting inspired wildgame dishes.

I like Mytiburger too but wish some good restaurants that would open on 43rd between Ella and TC Jester, seems like an area that could really use a couple great neighborhood restaurants.

Suzanne Anderson, a regional leasing director with Weingarten, says the parking lot will be restriped to maximize the number of available parking spaces.

compact cars only.

what it will also mean will be plenty of big trucks/suvs attempting to park in compact car spaces.

I was living in the 12th/Studewood area up until half a year ago and recall reading about Karen Derr floating the idea of getting a constable program started for the area (not sure which part of the Heights). There was some information posted about it (similar to what was posted above) but didnt hear anything about it since nor did I notice constables in the area when I was living in the area. Did the constable program get started?

I have used it, but I don't think I was provided a great service and the $60 service fee each time, regardless of if anything was fixed, was a bit excessive.

If you look up reviews for different companies that offer home warranties you'll find that most get a grade of 'C' at best. No one is ever consitently satisfied about the service they get when something does come up. Thats probably because the service you get will vary greatly on the vendor who's contracted to work with the warranty service company.

I bought a house half a year ago and the seller included a home warranty for a year. It was included as part of the sale so we didnt need to pay for the service BUT we do have to pay the $60 dollars on any housecall. If they come up diagnosis for the problem, you need to pay for the parts to fix it. No biggie if its an inexpensive part but if you decide not to do it, you're out the $60. So it comes down to the contracting company that does come to work on the problem, sometimes they can be good at what they do and be very efficient but you never know. We've had two housecalls for minor things (light/electrical switches and garbage disposal) and I would say we're 1 for 2 in terms of being satisfied with the outcome but both were fixed adequately.

Since home warranty services rarely cover big problems, you can probably do without it if you're pretty handy with small fixit things or have a friend who is .

I used Sundance Gutters and am very happy with the job. For the money, the others arent worth it in my opinion. I think my friend paid like 8k for a 1200 sq ft house for one of the expensive brands. Lifetime cleaning (it has leafguards?). I spent around 3k for about 80% of a 2900 sqft house.

Our house is about 2100sqft and one story so that gives me an idea on a pricepoint. Thanks for the info.

I personally think gutters are a waste of money unless you use them with a rain water recovery system (or you have a stucco home). But if you are going to get them make sure you get one that attaches by some sort of clip system and not with spikes and ferrules. Also high quality aluminum gutters are at least .032 inches thick.

Actually the plan includes getting some rain barrels to capture some of the runoff but also to help control where the water runoff is directed. When a deluge does happen (thankfully we got some rain today), I've watched rain run off the roof in sheets and waterfalls that eventually allows water begin to pond up against the back of the foundation. The water does eventually drain away from against house and dow the driveway once the rain stops but it is a little disheartening watching water slowly rise against the foundation. The gutters we want to put in are part of a larger plan that includes french drains and minor regrading of the backyard to help with drainage.

Just bought a house in the Oak Forest area and we'd like to put in some rain gutters. Does anyone have recommendations or recent experience with gutter installations? I've seen brands like guttermax, leafguard, seamless, etc... out there but wondering if anyone has positive or negative experiences with these or any others. Thanks.

Doing a little thread recycling here...

I have a meeting in the Heights this afternoon...anyone have suggestions on a restaurant. I was thinking Jack in the Box on 20th & N Shep. for the .99 menu , but then thought I might see if I could get some nice cheap/yummy suggestions for a place I've never been before.

Thanks in advance

Try Asia Market on the north side of Calvacade between Studewood and Airline. Small Thai market with a little kitchen in the back and a small but tasty menu. Not an expert but seems like pretty authentic homestyle cooking given that I think its the owners grandparents cooking with the produce and other goods they actually sell at the store.

I have similar sentiments about McCain's as many of the previous posters. I have only been in the store twice but it struck me more as a boutique along the lines of what you might see at a wine tasting room. A various assortment of jams, chutneys, chocolates, tidbits to eat rather than an actual local market. There was a meat counter but the onsite selection didn't really inspire. I'm sure the owners are very nice people and the staff were pleasant both times I've been there but the go local... go fresh slogan didnt really apply.

If anyone from out of state has heard or shopped at Trader Joe's, I think that would be a perfect small grocery store for somewhere in the greater Heights. I'm not sure why there aren't any in TX but I've heard rumors its because Whole Foods is based in TX and has too much of a presence in the state for TJ to come in and open a store.

the project kinda gives me a feeling that it is a "half-assed" effort.

totally agree. the website is terrible and it pretty strongly suggests that the project will be half-assed. such a shame because there are quite a few old boarded up storefronts on 11th that would look great if rennovated.

...it started in California and there are more locations in Austin that in College Station....yep, definitely an Aggie thing!

Just moved here from Santa Barbara, CA where where we had a Freebirds in Isla Vista next to UCSB. I saw the Freebird's down next to Amy's Ice Cream a little while ago and was wondering what the chances were that they're related since it looked like a similar setup on the inside. Just saw the Freebirds website never realized it's a tiny chain that started in Santa Barbara. Small world.