infinite_jim

I can't say I'm guilty about it, but I  am frequently mocked for my thing for Jason Statham movies. And yes I watched Expendables 2 the first day it appeared on the  Netflix stream. OK a little guilty about that.

 

 

As far as synth pop goes, I'm surprised nobobdy mentioned the album of the summer 2013

I think we have a thread about it somewhere on here - I don't remember exactly what it is supposed to be. I'm sure someone out there remembers.

Well it's to the north of Frank's/BigBad bldg so maybe it's part of this development. Like a faux bldg that's actually a utilites alleyway with a facade-fence.

I'm hoping the CoH is scouting sites for a new park in southeast downtown and buys a a piece of land soon before prices get too high. This is one more piece of evidence of the value of parks in this new urban minded development Houston is having.

There was talk of them buying the old Days Inn for demo and then developing that site as a park.

On the Travis St. elevation what's the little 3 storey bldg with balconies north of the bldg?

Also looks like a complete structural redesign in that there's more and thinner columns compared to before.

For me it's Toto's IV album.

Is this the place next to Christian's Totem?

Demo of the exterior overhangs is in full swing now.

The architect should be announced soon...hint, grocery store.

Flakey Lato?

If DT rents are still at $1700/month by 2017, I will be really happy (as a renter)

That would be the rent floor for an efficiency at only the Houston House, average rent would be in the $2500-3500 range. I'm saying having the low end of the market ($1000-2000) will help churn young professionals through the nab and establish the idea of downtown as a neighborhood. If only older professionals can afford downtown then they will not flock when they can get more space at a discount nearby or will lease the apartments as second homes (i.e. not actually live there like half of One Park Place).

edit:

Downtown's new problem will be a limited amount of the type/designs of available space. Maybe the city will allow developers to build micro-apts in the 300-600 sq.ft. range..

Will downtown still be cheap to live in, in 2017? That's the big question, b/c if only those who can afford $1,700/month rent can live there, then I think it's a bust. If more condo's enter the market, then all bets are off. Downtown is still as sleepy as when I moved here in 2010.

It's all situational whether to construct a tunnel or skywalk for adjacent destinations. Each has advantages and disadvantages.

The first era skyscrapers all had pedestrian street level access so tunneling made sense b/c the lobby was at zero grade (ex. Esperson bldgs)

The second era skyscrapers mostly of international styled modernism typically had a elevated, plinth lobby from which skywalks were a logical choice (KBR complex, Allen Center complex).

This era's skyscrapers seem to engage the street level in a somewhat precedent way and therefore it's probable that tunnels have grown more advantageous to potential bldg developments.

IMO, these transportation amenities don't impede street life b/c the tunnels and skywalks will never directly get you from point A to point B in a straight line nor in happenstance tangent versus taking the sidewalks to get where you want to go. Plus the tunnel system is like walking around at the mall, you get stuck behind groups of people and the airspace smells like grease. On the sidewalk you have more space, fresher air, and the ability to go directly where you want to go.

Since it's been years, when my wife and I were first dating we would go up to the roof of Galleria III to make out and people-watch through the barrel vaulted glass.

Atrocious'Mon

Isn't the Chronicle garage shared with the Hogg Palace residents and office workers?

In addition to banquet/meeting spaces, special discount hotel rooms, dry cleaners, dry storage, parcel delivery, delivery freight, dumpster/garbage collection, valet, put put green, beach volleyball court, convenience store, office space, security offices, nightclub, etc. and covered parking.

Does anyone know what is going up at the corner of San Felipe and Fountain View?  Those old Fountain View apartments look like they are being demo'ed.  New MF?

An HEB

More like the 8 Allen Center site (phase II future spec).

A lot of restaurant owners are just shortsighted market incumbents. I forgot the article it was but the owner of Franks said something so frikkin' stupid that I refuse to eat there anymore (we go to Roma's now).

I say good luck to the city if they try to choose mandating a sidewalk tax after they have screwed over citizens with the water run off tax that didn't work.

IIRC the initial disbursements are not till ~2020.

If I remember correctly from architecture school, Holl uses poetry to construct his initial parti designs.

For height reference, the 717 Texas (Calpine) building nearby (@Milam/Prairie) is within a few floors of this.

There are quite a bit of parallels between this project and that one. First off, the height and the massing of the tower portions will both be elongated on the north-south orientation as it rises above similar sized podiums. I also noticed on the tower base plan that there's a semi-rotunda, curtain wall facade to the north like the Calpine. The cladding schemes look similar too in proportion and color. Both have base podiums that wrap around historic architecture, although I hope we don't end up with the huge, beige firewalls of the Calpine center in between the two mid-rise towers on Main or behind the Bryd's bldg (ever been to the back patio of BB's when it was still open for lunch?), and obviously both of these are/were Hines projects.

The best differences would be that this is a residential project(and I too agree with KinkaidAlum that it would have been nice to have something like a two storey retail/restaurant base with commercial use patio balconies over the sidewalks). I think the "red stone" parking garage is a pretty awful reminder of the McKinney garage and might look design-busy but I'm sure it will help drivers. Residential bldgs also tend to have penthouses on top so we're likely to see some sort of "crowning" element. Also this project is one block north and two blocks to the east of the Calpine so they won't be perfectly symmetrical on the skyline (which is good if they end up looking very different from one another). The Calpine should still look taller by perception b/c of the vertically oriented, double storey fenestration versus the residential tower that will emphasize a more horizontal, stacked look.

It's nice to see something new in the historic district, but I think it needs more glass (to reflect unique things like the Majestic signage).

Worhals is supposed to open a couple weeks from now on 09/05/2013.

Looks like the Avis car rental is gone by the label scar. 

oh that explains why there are old houses in the middle of downtown Houston. i always wondered when they were going to tear them down. i guess never.

i was referring to the small paved over concrete parking lot just west of the parking garage on the triangular plot of land between Dallas and Clay, not the park to the north of Allen Center.

That was the former visitors parking lot for the Sam Houston Heritage park and the other half of that triangular block was developed about 5-6 years ago into a 6-8 storey parking garage for the DoubleTree. It's currently being redeveloped now for another historical house according to the park renovation plans. I have some pics of the construction from my office over the course of this past spring.