lovett19

I'm shopping around for an insurance policy to cover the common grounds & exteriors of our condo complex. Our 2009 - 2010 policy had five components, the bulk of which was a "Commercial Package" that cost $19k. The other four pieces included: Umbrella, Directors & Officers, Fidelity Bond, and Boiler & Machinery. Total policy cost = $22k. We have a $1000 deductible per occurrence, except for Wind/Hail/Hurricane, which is a 2% deductible. Yeah, after Hurricanes Katrina & Ike, finding commercial insurance for our complex got MUCH more expensive, not to mention -- hard to find. I thought I'd ask around to see if I can find us anything better, since our current policy is up for renewal. Thanks! Lovett19

I refinanced my condo last month with Bank of America. I knocked my interest rate down from 6.625% to 5%. I asked them what qualified me, while so many of my friends are having a tough time refinancing their condos. BoA told me it was 2 things: my credit score, and the fact that I had 40% equity. I bought my condo (in Montrose) in 2002, and according to the appraisal, it has only appreciated $15k. But in today's market, I consider myself lucky that it has appreciated at all! Mark Resident, I'll make a note about Compass Bank! In the meantime, ya might wanna give Bank of America a shot. Good luck!

Not sure what Flashman meant either. My only guess is that if HEB blocks development of the old Blockbuster, that SW corner will soon become a dilapidated eyesore with all sorts of riff raff milling around. And this might scare off potential Kroger customers enough to drive business away? On my original post, I commented that the new tenants seemed to be dragging their heels on moving into the old Taco Cabana. But this weekend, I saw the new Smoothie King sign. So, at least the SE corner will be coming back to life, huh?

Last Sunday I noticed that Prive Lounge is all boarded up. I think the businesses next door (to the east) were also boarded up all the way down to (and including) Felix Mexican restaurant. I searched HAIF for any threads related to this, but couldn't find any. If you can direct me to an existing thread, please let me know. I would really like to know what plans are being made for the space that was occupied by those businesses. I get the feeling that someone may be quietly buying up properties in the Westheimer/Montrose buckle. On the southwest corner, the Blockbuster has been vacant for over a year. Southeast corner, seems like the businesses between the old Taco Cabana and Interfaith Ministries are shuttering. Also seems like the new tenants are dragging their heels on moving into the old Taco Cabana location. And now the northeast corner, you've got a whole strip of businesses boarded up. What's going on?

Needs zoning

Ben, I've seen old City Directories in the Julia Ideson Library downtown. Is that the same thing as the Metropolitan Research Center? It's been a few years since I've looked through them, but if I remember correctly, they were red books that had phone number listings that were sorted alphabetically by street name. I wish they would scan these documents onto a digital format and/or make the data available online. Good luck! Lovett19

Our condo community has a truckload of stuff they would like to donate. Do any charitable organizations pick up anymore? Items to be donated range from clothes to small furniture items such as end tables, lamps, etc. And lots of knick knacks. Any information would be much appreciated. Lovett19

I heard from someone yesterday that the Golden Room Thai Restaurant has been leveled. Does anyone know if this is part of the remodel, or has Golden Room gone bye bye? Lovett 19

It's good to hear that Tremont is slowly but surely becoming occupied. For the past few years, it sat like a vacant building with no lights on or anything to indicate that people lived there. I'm looking forward to seeing signs of life there, as the building stands out so prominently in the neighborhood. I hope that the problems that plagued Tremont are a thing of the past, and that the "entity" did the repairs right. Lovett19

I'm searching for photographs of Lovett Blvd from the 1960's & 1970's. I'm mainly interested in the section of Lovett Blvd east of Montrose Blvd (dead ends @ Taft). I currently live in the 811 Lovett Townhouses complex, and I've been researching the history of the property. HAR.com has us listed as being built in 1972. But after digging around the Julia Ideson Library, I found old phone directories that show 811 Lovett Blvd Townhomes were listed as early as 1963. Prior to that was a residence which was used by the architect firm of Bolton & Barnstone. The phone directory also listed an address of 813 1/2 Lovett, which I thought was odd. I contacted Mr. Bolton (this was probably 5 or 6 years ago) and talked to him for a little bit. He informed me that the odd address was the guest house that stood at the back of the property that was used as a studio by the Houston Ballet. Anyway, I'm a history buff, and would love it if anyone out there had some old photographs of my neighborhood they'd be willing to share on this website?! Thanks! Lovett19

Is this the house we're talking about? This is my first time trying to attach a .jpg to my post, so forgive me if this doesn't work out.

I also agree... HAIF is the best. When I login, I click "View New Posts" which gives you the postings (across all topic folders)from the last 24 hours. So it's like getting the Houston Daily News, but the reporters are US!

I noticed on my way home from work yesterday that the building that once stood adjacent to Niko Niko's newer (expanded) parking lot had been razed. I think it used to be a 1-story office building with darkened glass doors. Funny how you can't remember something that stood there for years. :-( Does anyone out there have info on what may be in store for that lot?? Lovett19

On my way to work this morning I noticed that they have removed all the signage from the Blockbuster store on Montrose @ Westheimer. Does anyone know more about it? Have they closed that location? If so, has anyone heard who the new tenant may be? Sidenote: There are a couple of swanky new-construction developments on Lovett, east of Montrose Blvd. I'm curious to see whether this attracts new businesses/restaurants to the neighborhood. If Blockbuster is leaving, I'm just curious who their replacement may be.... Lovett19

Thanks for the link, SevFiv! I might look in to getting a police scanner, too. I mean, the helicopter got my attention, especially at 2:30 in the morning. But then my imagination gets the best of me: "Did they catch the guy? Was he armed & dangerous? Was he last seen running down Lovett Blvd with an axe?" Makes it difficult to fall back to sleep! Maybe it's just me, but I need closure on things like this! Lovett19

At about 2:30 this morning (Monday July 30th) a low-flying helicopter buzzed my neighborhood about 7 or 8 times. He had his high-powered search light aimed on the area surrounding Katz's Deli (hard to tell with blurry eyes). I was wondering if anybody knew of a local website where I could find information on what was going on. I tried finding info on HPD's site, but no luck. Also tried the local news sites; again, no luck. Any ideas?

I'm looking for any other Condo Associations (in and around the Montrose area) who have had any luck finding Wind & Hail Storm coverage for their exterior structures and common grounds. Our current policy expires at the end of July, so we've begun shopping around. The 1st insurance broker that we approached said that he's not giving out quotes until mid- to end of June. Our condo association does not want to get backed into a corner like last year, when we were told (they day before our policy expired) that our premiums were increasing 270%. So if you do have wind & hail storm insurance coverage for the upcoming hurricane season, I would love to hear who it is with, and how the premiums compared to your last policy. THANKS! LOVETT19

Yeah, we're hoping that if the 2006 hurricane season goes easy on us, insurance companies might realize that there is a huge market waiting for them here in Houston. That would open the door for competition, and with any luck we won't have such a difficult time finding property insurance in 2007. Of course, we've still got to get thru August and September before I begin to ease up. Lovett19

There used to be a small commercial building on Tirrell Street @ Allen Pkwy (between Shepherd and Dunlavy). The building was torn down this week. Any ideas how I can find out what's going to be built? Sincerely, Lovett19

I was interviewed by the Chronicle about our insurance dilemma in Montrose. They ran the story on Saturday. Here's the link to it. http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headli...iz/4080470.html

Yesss!! Awesome! Hadn't heard that one yet.

No, Kro-gay typically refers to the Montrose Kroger located on Montrose @ Hawthorne. Kinda like calling JC Penney "Jacques Pen-nay". But it's funnier, because it's in Montrose, which is why they also call it Disco Kroger. Okay, I've beaten this horse to death. p.s. I've gotta remember the Combat Kroger! Too funny.

Any updates on the future of Interfaith Ministries? They've already leveled La Mora, next door. But Interfaith is still open for business as usual. Anyways, I live one block down, so I'm very curious to know if anyone's heard of definite plans?? Lovett19

Can anyone out there recommend a property management company that you've had good business dealings with? We are a small community of 29 condos in the heart of Montrose, and we are very disappointed with our current property mgmt co. We bought their sales pitch that they manage properties in multiple states, and therefore have the power to negotiate awesome rates on utilities & insurance. Well, they just informed us that our insurance rates are going up 300% (subject of my previous thread). Yes, I have heard the stories on the news that this problem is affecting many condos/townhouses in Harris County. But after doing a little investigating of my own, I come to find out the our property mgmt company uses an insurance broker in Dallas who in turn went out-of-state to find us this "bargain" policy. They've never even SEEN our property before, yet they tell us that Montrose is just as at-risk for windstorm damage as the Tier 1 cities along the coast. So, we've decided to start hunting around for both new insurance AND a new property mgmt co. Any recommendations? Sincerely, Lovett19

You might want to check the link that Sevfiv posted. It's a story that was reported on KHOU this week. This insurance problem is alot more widespread than I first imagined. Lovett19