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arche_757

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Everything posted by arche_757

  1. arche_757
    Those are designs from college students in Texas A&M's Landscape architecture program, not anything based in reality.
  2. arche_757
    How so? In terms of high rise living?
  3. arche_757
    Point being - Dillard's probably (assuming they own that lot) wouldn't sell except for a lot of money.
  4. arche_757
    I'll bet Dillards owns that lot (but not the Zone d'erotica) and will gladly sell it for a cool $100 Million, otherwise I'm sure we would have seen a redevelopment there many years ago. Otherwise they aren't leaving. They're not "attached" to the Galleria, but they are essentially a part of that complex and they would be a fool to leave the biggest, best performing mall in this whole region of the US.
  5. arche_757
    Well, there is a traffic circle on Washington Avenue... why not there? As for a large 4 block traffic circle - its too late to redesign Downtown for something like that - but Eastern/Northern Downtown and Main might be able to have something that size or scale?
  6. arche_757
    I'm talking about something like this: http://www.teamusa.org/About-the-USOC/Training-Centers-and-Sites/Colorado-Springs But all under "one roof" so to speak. Again, this is not going to happen. I just think that this is the sort of thing that should* have been pursued from the get-go.
  7. arche_757
    ^Lets not get another thread closed.
  8. arche_757
    We have a lot of athletes that train year-in and year-out for the Olympics. The idea of having a permanent training facility (we have one in Colorado Springs) isn't a bad idea. Anyone involved in an Olympic sport (which is a lot of sports) would be able to use it. Any one training for the Olympics through the US Olympic Committee would use it. I'd imagine it would be a huge training complex that could be indoor/outdoor and have trainers/dorms/weight rooms/medical stuff along with mess facilities etc. It wouldn't just be a big running track. But like I said its beyond doubtful something like that would ever happen. Though it would make sense. Who would pay for it is the tougher question.
  9. arche_757
    ^I like that you remembered our metric friends and included a 50m designation. I like the idea of a multi-use Olympic training venue...but realize that's out'a the question.
  10. arche_757
    You can actually post a new topic with a poll yourself. Or would that be a pole? Or a Pol? Or both?!
  11. arche_757
    In number of floors... building heights can be deciving. Petronas Towers "passed" the Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower) in total height, but certainly not in the number of floors, or even highest floor level. I was going to say a 52 floor tower with 40 floors of residential was looking to be quite ambitious.
  12. arche_757
    Yeah. That is pretty much it. I'm lazy and don't feel like clicking through 3-4 pages and 20 posts trying to find a summery of your reasons for not building an indoor ski-slope... Clearly the Astrodome is a hot topic in this town, and clearly its deserving of some sort of re-use. Aside from my Alpine bio-dome idea (which is probably way too expensive - though I see a future in that sort of thing in 20-30 years), I've long felt the best re-use is a sports re-use. We missed the boat with the US Mens National soccer team training facility, why not repurpose it for an Olympic training facility? That could include trainers rooms, medical rooms, weights, aerobic training center, dormitories, non track and field spaces (for gymnasts etc.). Sure that would be a hefty re-fit/renovation, but we're talking about a fairly extensive renovation to begin with. It seems that the county people have completley taken this reasonable (you can phase it as deemed necessary) off the boards. Why? Why not re-use a stadium for sports related purposes? Seems odd.
  13. arche_757
    Sounds like a 52 floor building including the parking deck. ?
  14. arche_757
    Thanks for that! I was looking for something with an actual figure on the square footage of the Dome, and after I exhausted my interest in the first couple of links I found... I gave up. I wonder where the 9.5 acres came from? Probably the surrounding lawn?
  15. arche_757
    My guess is an indoor ski-slope! That would be a game changer!
  16. arche_757
    9.5 acres = 413,000 sq ft No doubt that a smaller number than that is the actual unobstructed flat "playing field" space. Clearly with all the levels and multiple zones within the Dome we'd come up with a larger square footage than 413,000. Now, what I'm curious about SMF is why do you think the ski-slope/hill idea is so bad? I'm not arguing for it or against it (though it would be unique), I'm just curious why you feel so vehemently against that idea. I mean you're nearly fighting it. Why? The Dome Park proposal will fail if it is not a destination park for average Houston citizens and metro-wide residents. Its not like a covered park is going to attract millions per year. At least not the way that it has been proposed. I still maintain my idea that converting it into some sort of refrigerated Alpine environment with the temperatures of say a Jackson Hole, Wy. would be really fantastic... the problem of course is maintaining the temperatures and climatic feel of the space.
  17. arche_757
    Being serious... Community Health Center - with UH as the anchor. Eventually UH will do something, and this would be a perfect place for a healthcare related facility, particularly given the somewhat lower income population areas nearby. Could be a big help for those neighborhoods? OR - City of Houston could commandeer it for use as a trauma facility. Why not provide a level 2 facilty at least? It'd be good for the neighborhood. Houston has 4 Level 1 facilities: Ben Taub, Memorial Hermann, Texas Children's (didn't know that), and UTMB (which is not in Houston). By my reasonable guess we should have 1 for every million people - maybe for every 800,000? That would mean we'd need 2-3 more - why not have another? Houston has (4) Level 1, (ZERO) Level 2, (12) Level 3, (6) Level 4. I didn't count all Texas cities, but sure saw a lot of Austin and San Antonio in Levels 3 and 4... Clearly we need more given the proximity to so many potentially hazardous chemical plants.
  18. arche_757
    They really spent some ca$hola on those renderings!
  19. arche_757
    Indoor ski-slope! Why just settle for one when we can have two! ......even if the runs are a little bit short!
  20. arche_757
    Yes and No (in regards to San Jacinto)... Its where the battle was, however it would have been great if say the overall design/layout of the Montrose and Main Circle had incorporated a 550' tall monument. Sadly one of the best architectural works in Houston is mostly unseen/unvisted (if thats a word) and largely ignored by Houstonians. I agree we should start pushing for more grandiose civic works that include fountains and statues of great people.
  21. arche_757
    MMP controls the parking lots directly south of the park on both sides of 59/69. I'd like to assume that we could eventually facilitate a 2-3 level (at least) parking structure on one or both of those? I think this sort of stuff is all in due time, as once this part of Downtown fills in enough the demand will be there for parking structures. Also, San Francisco + Oakland + San Jose = a larger Metro population than Houston: 7.44 million MSA, 8.47 million CSA (for San Francisco), compared to: 6.17 million MSA and 6.37 million CSA (for Houston). Hard to compare a Metro area with 2 million more people than we have. Obviously it would have a larger TV audience.
  22. arche_757
    http://www.in.gov/iwm/ That is a monument to the soldiers and sailors - otherwise known as the Indiana War Memorial. We have a larger memorial than that over at the San Jacinto Battlefield, except its so isolated and remote from the rest of the town that few people even visit. It doesn't have any fountains incorporated into it however. A shame that the Monument was built where it was, I've always thought it would have been an impressive addition to our skyline. Oh well. Indianapolis has 3-4 War monuments in and around downtown Indy. Wish we had more monuments to noteworthy people and places in Houston. I can think of DeBakey and a couple other scientists around here that are deserving... much less monuments to any of the past conflicts we've fought in (though I do believe a monument to WW2 or WW1 is a little late in coming now).
  23. arche_757
    Call them. Act like you own the place and inquire about menu's, attire, stuff like that. They don't mind. Remember you have the money, they have the service you would be paying for - while they probably do not need you in particular - they have a reputation and want new customers. I'll add this: Sometimes the best way to check out a place is during a restaurant week, or perhaps when they offer a brunch? The brunch option is how I found and discovered (if that's the right term) Americas. Great place by the way for a brunch, even better for a nice dinner.
  24. arche_757
    COOL! Good to see things like this crop up in town.
  25. arche_757
    Looks a lot like "Greenwater" by them in Austin....
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