brian0123

So last night, the Management Board had it's quarterly night meeting and they had representatives from some of the service organizations (and a formerly homeless guy), talk to residents about the homeless and what their organizations do. I found the discussion to be very interesting, learned a lot, and wanted to share some advice that the former homeless guy had for residents. Note: This is advice directly from a former homeless gentlemen that was pulled out of homelessness by an org. in Midtown (Career Recovery Resources)... 1. THE HOMELESS ARE NOT ALL ALIKE. Treat them as human beings, not monsters. Some of them have mental illness and are confused. Most truly want to be nice, stay out of trouble, and try to get out of homelessness. Unfortunately, it's the aggressive ones that not only prey on residents (panhandlers), but also prey on fellow homeless... that are the problem. Try to keep in mind that most homeless are people that come from homes, but have made mistakes and are looking for a second chance. He said most homeless respect and admire the property owners nearby because they realize how hard we have worked for what we have. He said that it's the aggresive panhandler ones that not only make residents uncomfortable... but also take advantage of the other homeless. 2. DO NOT GIVE MONEY TO INDIVIDUALS. He said if you give them money, they will go buy drugs/alcohol with it. Instead, donate to an organization directly. If it's after 5pm, he said it's pretty much a given they are looking for something to last them for the night... even if they say it's for dinner. 3. DO NOT OFFER SMALL JOBS TO THEM. If a guy wants to pull weeds, clean your car windows, etc... politely say no. By allowing them to live off of small, pointless tasks to make money... it incorrectly reinforces that it's okay to make a living like that. By turning them down, they will eventually realize that they need to get a real job. 4. WHAT TO DO IF YOU ARE ASKED FOR MONEY. Politely say no, and ask them if they have tried to find help with Search or one of the organizations down the street. After the meeting, I actually got to try this out and it worked! I was approached by a guy while at CoCo's that asked me if he could wash my car windows. He said he needed some money to go to McDonald's. In the past, I would have said "NO"... and he would have tried to hit up everyone else around. Instead, I said "Sorry man, but have you ever tried hooking up with Search or one of the organizations down the street?" He said they denied him, and he can't work because he has messed up tendons in his arm. He then just outright asked for money. I said "We'll that doesn't mean you can't do anything. I know there are places right down the road that would love to help you find something." His demeanour totally changed (sort of a look like, wow... this dude actually cares about me). He said he tried working offshore in the past, but that didn't work out for him. I said "Well I'm sure there's something for you. Take care and have a good night." The guy said bye (sort of shocked), and walked away from the entire area. He didn't even ask anyone else for money. They also had a representative from the San Jose Clinic talk about the new building and organization. They provide medical care for people that ARE employed... but their employers don't offer medical insurance. In other words, the people that will be utilizing it are blue collar, working people that can't afford medical care. In the past, I read on HAIF worries that it would attract crime. In reality, it only adds a ton of money to our tax rolls, they help working people, and people will only be there during business hours (they are not a shelter).

Do the constables show up and do anything about it... or just let them be? If they are just hanging out... no laws are being broken and there isn't much that can be done. If they are camping out... the constables should be able to move them along. BTW, I live around the block from here and have noticed this in the past; however, it seems like it hasn't been a problem lately.

Yeah, my wife called the Met Dance Academy and they said they were still trying to line up funding. The building owner was trying to get them into a 30 yr lease... but their funding fell short. It's a shame because that would have made a tremendous impact on the area. Maybe if it goes up for auction, they might be able to convince the new owner to let them in at a cheaper rate?

Drove by over the weekend and they have already started clearing the lot across the street. My guess is that these will end up being as the Chron article states... having a parking garage across the street with a skywalk over Bagby to the complex itself.

Not sure about lunch specials. I think we might have been given the dinner menu. All of their prices (at least dinner) seemed on par with other tex mex places around town. I just remember being excited about the cheap margaritas. They also have this other margarita that I haven't seen before, that is basically a margarita w/ a Dos Equis bottle sticking out of it upside down. The mixture of beer w/ the margarita was surprisingly good.

I got to attend the private parties on Thursday and Saturday and found the food (enchiladas, tamale, tacos) to be like Cafe Adobe's. However, Ruby's did have some really awesome fajitas (highly recommended). The best part of this place are their margaritas. Very tasty, and happy hour (Mon-Friday) 4-7pm, they have .99 draft beer and 1.99 house margaritas. My wife and I will probably be coming here weekly just for the happy hour. BTW, service was awesome, and the inside of the place is nice. We are excited to have this place in Midtown.

Sorry about that. I misread the post and for some reason thought it said HUD housing. Never the less, this development will be great for the area. The more people in Midtown... the better.

Well that makes sense then. I was told on the phone that they were luxury apartments... so that wasn't an overstatement I guess.

The floor plans aren't bad... but are definitely a little pricey. They do have some additional amenities from other apartments I've seen... Expanded cableHigh-endurance fitness zoneParking garage with direct apartment accessResident gaming loungeSocial network cafe with Wi-FiSpectacular pool with Wi-Fi accessTAEXX in-wall pest control systemValet waste front door trash pickup

It could also be for elderly or disabled. EDIT: Never mind. Just called and was told that it will be HUD funded "luxury" multi-family, 185 units.

Yep, HUD is lower income. I guess they scraped their plans for high-end stuff and went the HUD route. I guess the service related businesses within Midtown will have a new workforce of people that they can hire from.

Just noticed that Camden now has info about Camden Travis online (including floor plans). Link Camden Travis Street is all about location and style! Choose from a variety of spacious one and two bedroom floor plans. Great features include crown molding, ceiling fans, large soaking tubs, full size washers and dryers, and so much more! Our pet-friendly community with a dog run also offers direct access to garages, resort-style swimming pool with cabanas, and a state-of-the-art fitness center. If convenience is what you’re after, this community boasts loads of exterior amenities sure to make your life more relaxing. Best of all, residents of Camden Travis Street are just a short distance to surrounding destinations such as recreational venues, popular area dining, entertainment, shopping, and night life. Camden Travis Street is within close proximity of the Metro rail line and convenience to Downtown and the Medical Center. Come experience living excellence today at Camden Travis Street, where a world of convenience awaits you!

Ah, that makes sense. Thanks for the info.

I have heard that there are serious talks about the super block. Also, I found out that talks have started regarding these two blocks in discussion.

I know nothing about construction... but what makes something like this "too expensive"? Ashby doesn't seem to be "too expensive". Their are other four-five story residential buildings being planned... so what's different about this one area of Midtown?

The city put $100,000 toward a planning study of the area, which also includes the Ensemble Theatre and Continental Club. I'd love to know the results of this study. This area could be huge with everything around it. Heck, even the parking garage for HCC has places under it along Main that could probably house some sort of retail.

Is it this thing finally coming alive? Chron Article The sign around the property makes it look like Farb still owns the land. BTW, what's with the huge pile of dirt on that land? It looks like they are going to build it on a mountain. EDIT: I just found this thread on HAR about CitiPlace... Thread

There is more construction activity occurring at another store front at the Mix. Looks like they have more tenants moving in!

That's exciting news! Reef is a little too fancy for my taste. If this place caters to a different demographic (mine)... it will work great. I've always wanted something like a Shrimp & Stuff (in Galveston) nearby in Midtown.

Well, it looks like the awesome rendering they made for this block was a lie! I drove by again and they aren't selling the land... they are just leasing the one building on it with a sign saying you can lease the entire block. I guess they are hoping some restaurant (or a blockbuster:wacko:) will move in and they will have a huge parking lot for customers.

Uh oh... I just drove by and there were guys about to put a sign on the one remaining building on the block that said something like "One entire city block available." Is Crosspoint seriously going to abandon this ?!?!?!

Yeah, I drove by after work again and am amazed at how quickly they tore it all down. I drive past there every day and honestly can't remember seeing any crews. I have a feeling this is a sign of more good things to come (otherwise why tear down income producing apartments). BTW, I never realized how large that lot is. Hopefully it actually ends up looking like this...

Maybe I'm going crazy, but I just drove by one of the lots for the future Mix expansion (Elgin @ Louisiana) and did not see the old apartment building that used to be there. The fence that used to be up around the block is also gone. This is the block that the cool rendering (somewhere earlier in this thread) showed a bunch of other stores. Any chances that they are going to go forward with the next phase of development?

FYI, they have now put up metal beams for future walls in the rest of the Mix. There is also a bunch of construction materials laying around inside it (the non Japanese restaurant part). I also noticed some (what looked like blueprints) laying on a table along the back wall. This is how the Japanese restaurant looked before they began construction... so everyone cross your fingers that they start building out the rest!

This is technically a couple of blocks from the center of Midtown... and yes, with the all of the development occurring at the Mix, Camden, the area around Crave...etc, it's nice to see things starting to work their way beyond the NW corner.