The Great Hizzy!

FWIW I don't know if it was merely for show but today during lunch (approximately 12:30 PM) I noticed a couple of steam shovels on the site, with one of them looking as if it were actually doing some work. But like I said, this may just be all show and no go.

^^ Exactly. The 20% figure was a result of several things happening, including the collapse of Enron, 9-11, the merging of oil companies, and so forth. As a general rule, I've seen it written on a few commercial real estate sites, including C.B. Richard Ellis, that 12% and lower is typically a healthy enough rate for a submarket to take on new construction, thus my comment. This, however, doesn't mean that it's a foregone conclusion. (BTW, CB Richard Ellis currently has a stream/banner on its website that says Hong Kong's Class A vacancy rate is just 3.8%... heh!)

Besides, "cool" is a term used today be a group of self-important yuppies who want first dibs on the first coffee house within walking distance of their overpriced box. NTTAWWT. But it's as subjective as you can get. As for Houston and "trash"... it seems pretty average to me. I've seen some cities (Detroit, Cleveland, parts of Chicago and St. Louis, as well as Jacksonville, Miami and Atlanta) that really take your breath. Philadelphia is pretty bad, too. New York used to be, IMO, the nation's dirtiest city but they've done a better job of controling litter and general filth. Parts of LA are filthy, especially south and east of DT LA. Fort Worth was surprisingly litter-filled my last couple of visits, as was San Antonio. Dallas is immaculate north of DT but pretty filthy south of I-30 (though, not all over). Seattle, Denver and Minneapolis are three of the cleanest cities I've ever visited but I admit to not traveling throughout as much as I have other places. Houston's three biggest problems, IMO: grassy medians that go through either heavily concentrated retail corridors or low income apartment complexes (Fondren South along Bellfort, for example), bus stops where there are newspaper stands and areas around utility stations (Reliant, Centerpoint, etc).

I blame Subdude... getting my hopes like he did a couple of years back.

I was in IF last night meeting with an associate. There are definitely some positives to note relative to the previous few years. The area seems to have less litter than it did a couple of years ago and it looks like fewer houses are on the market (I could be wrong about that but it's my perception). Unfortunately, those apartments on Gulf Bank are just awful. It would really be nice if someone took them over and began remodeling them, like the ones on Kirkwood at Briar Forest. Another positive is that it looks like retail expansion on Antoine & Tidwell is ongoing, which may suggest that nearby neighborhoods like Candlelight Oaks are maintaining their status and that there could be a spillover to some degree, although it's very tenuous right now.

12.5% vacancy!! You know what that means!!

713 to 214 does make a point in Houston's case, however, because there's a Randall's located less than two miles away in Midtown that could serve the needs of residents on the southern side of DT. This would certainly pose an additional impediment toward's the initial success of a DT market. OTOH, if the new grocery DT did its research and was slick, they'd be able to also corner the larger DT employee population. Being able to sell goods during the day to close to 200,000 people can have enough of an overall impact to help it make it through those sluggish sales during the off-peak hours.

So what you're saying is that Colorado is more sprawled than the Greater Houston Metropolitan Area?

Her other issues aside, it's nice to read councilwoman Alvarado's specific comments about retailers like Barnes & Noble. At least it echoes the sentiments we've heard from people who live downtown and Midtown.

Don't forget that Bridgelands will be a large neighbor as well. They expect around 50,000 new homes to be built in this general area over the next 15 years.

Webster traffic is awful as you get closer to the Gulf Freeway. I feel for those people. It's a shame too, because the City of Webster did an admirable job of improving the streetscapes around the core. And that's a very good point about the lack of fast food/strip malls around Taylor Lake and El Lago. I'd never really noticed it before but that might explain why it looks more "comfortable" than some of its surrounding kin.

Easily Dal's best post ever. Of course, that's not saying much.

Now, this we agree on.

Hands on, eyewitness accounts are always appreciated. Thanks a lot, Old Geo.

It looks a lot less overbearing when viewed from the lake itself or from Clear Lake Park. But I agree that it would be nice to see a few more structures of height in the general vicinity, although, like Musicman pointed out, the Seabrook side is fairly well developed already. More than likely, a few of the older developments would have to be knocked down.

This is too funny for words.

I was thinking west of both 59 and MMP instead of east.

The home on Braeswood that SDMarc pointed out has been gagging me out for about a year now. Long time under construction and yet it seems to be getting worse. And the Valkeith home wouldn't be so bad if not for the completely wacky kitchen, the screwed up floors, the out-of-place doors and the patio that's trying too hard. All of that and then the wall in the TV room was basically neglected. You do all that work and then allow the walls to look so misbegotten? Doesn't make sense.

There's plenty of land near MMP and the infrastructure is better suited. I'd imagine that quite a few residents in Forest Hill, Idylwood and Country Club Estates would prefer not to have the potential traffic headaches in their neighborhoods. And... Jeez, that's quite the ambitious dream for the old Astroworld site.

Another to consider is Spring Shadows in West Houston, a suburban type community that's actually closer to Uptown than is Greenspoint and about equi-distant to downtown. Still a solid subdivision with pretty good amenities (although, the area closest to the Gessner/Hammerly intersection has a bit of a ghettofabulous feel to it). I'm assuming that you're looking for something that's nice and clean but not too pricey. There are several other very good neighborhoods in the city proper but you'll pay a little more or a little less depending on particular tastes. I also like Glenbrook Valley more or less, although the apartment complexes along Broadway, especially north of Rock Hill, suck.

But they're not ripping out all of the golf course, right? Just the piece that's furthest west. Or am I wrong?

On the one hand, because DT redevelopment is such an exciting, desired and anticipated phenomena to those who post here, I can understand the heartache and palpitations over the delay. On the other hand... calm down. Other than a couple of delayed ground breakings, there's not much evidence to suggest this project isn't real and in the hand of professionals. The Pavillions in Denver took time to get moving, too. Take a breath and enjoy the sunshine. If you really want to feel better, go to the three block site this afternoon and just stand there imagining it five years from now.

Shoving my pro-Houstonian bias aside... My favorites would be: 1) Seattle (scenery and greenery) 2) Chicago (best-planned city in the U.S., IMO) 3) Los Angeles (audacious, irreverant and yet chic, with wonderful scenery)

Correctol > ExLax