htownproud

I vote for not changing the village. It's the most walkable area in town. Why are we going to redevelop it?? And in terms of parks, one mile away is Herman park, connected by a walking path through a gorgeous university with great shade.

i will preface this by saying i know nothing about the hotel industry, but my educated guess is that you need to know your hotel will be on average x% full at an average rate of $y/night.  the problem houston faces is that the hotels will be very full monday through thursday night (hence why we are "booming"), but almost empty over the weekend.  it is tough to make your numbers with three empty nights a week.  

austin is more of a tourist town and with the legislature, it makes sense that luxury brands could make their numbers there.  dallas is harder to explain.  is it more of a tourist destination?  

I don't think they can close off ALDA completely b/c the entrance to the underground parking garage for DG is off of ALDA.  is there another entrance to that parking lot?

In what sense is the parade too big and dangerous?  Is it longer than the parade route?  Are there a lot of muggings?

 

I thought of another example besides the International Festival where relocation to an inappropriate site was fatal.  Remember the Westheimer Street Festival?  It was huge for years, but when they tried to rebrand it "WestFest" *gag* and move it to Eleanor Tinsley Park it folded after like one year.  

 

I still maintain that moving that parade to vacant downtown streets with expensive vendors and paid parking will kill it off in a year or two.  I'd lay money on it.  This may be heresy, but if it really is such a problem having a parade, could it be changed to a festival?  Would that not make crowd control etc easier?

Ten years ago, you could still walk up and down Westheimer the night of the parade.  Now it is too packed to move in certain sections, and becomes a shoving match with thugs trying to start fights.  It used to be something that teenagers could attend (and even little kids could in some sections).  Now there is no way I would let my kids go because of the size and make-up of the crowd.  Sections of it are now no different than the quarter at mardi gras.  

That said, the parade set-up on the feeder streets in the evenings is still fun and not dangerous.  

the parade has gotten too big for its current route, and frankly it has gotten dangerous.  hopefully this helps.  and i think people are forgetting that in a few short years there will be many more people living downtown.  so you can go party at high rises on market square, or by the ball park, or in one of the sky houses, and then walk to the parade.   or you can stay at a fancy new hotel if you are from out of town or the suburbs.  or even better, you can party outside of downtown and then get to the parade from one of several light rail lines that will be operating by then (hopefully).  

admittedly this route isn't the best to interact with the new residential, but the route can easily be changed year to year.  imagine throwing and catching beads from apartments along the route -- I think that would be really cool.  it will, or course, be sad for it to leave the neighborhood, but looking towards the future and the great things i envision for downtown, i think this makes sense.  

all of that said, it better still be at night.  

Freeway architecture at its worst.

 

The glass/prettier side with the garage hidden faces the highway. The concrete/stucco blank walled garage and boring 1970s institutional hospital side faces the Montrose neighborhood behind it.

 

Total a$$hole move

let me preface this by saying i hate the garage and stucco side of the building, and no one should be forced to look at that side.  that said, people drive both ways on Montrose, so an equal number of drivers on Montrose will see the nice and ugly sides of the building regardless of orientation.  So it makes some sense to have the nicer side to the freeway where exponentially more people will see the building (and where the view of the building will be unobstructed).  can you imagine what an ugly welcome mat this would be to downtown for folks coming from 59 South if the orientation was reversed?

of course, a strong argument can be made that the people that live nearby matter most.  so i'm not advocating one way or the other, but there is at least an argument that this orientation is the best.  

Like what?

I thought I saw that the Men's Club was looking for a location in the heart of town.  

A four block (or even two block) park would be a big a park with others fairly close by. Discovery green is in close walking distance, and the superblock will be too. I'm not sure we need multi million dollar parks every 3 or 4 blocks.

i generally think of the parking district as the area to the southeast of this parking deck where all the surface parking lots are/were. this new parking deck and the other ones you mention are needed b/c of all the tall commercial buildings that surround them and line Louisiana (albeit this one is towards the south end of Louisiana)

If you include the cost of the land in the number, then the number will vary from neighborhood to neighborhood (for example, the cost to build in montrose would be higher than the cost in the Washington area). In general, if you are paying $200 per sqft, or more (not including land) then you are building a really nice place with high end finishings.

Yes, I remember Jamail's.  You used to be able to get a Coke from their machines for a nickle in the mid-80's (at least that is how I remember it).  I think there were actually three of them at one point.  Here's a website about them:  http://jamails.com/about-us/history/

 

I thought one of them was on Shepherd where the Pet Smart is (perhaps the third picture in the link), but my memory could be fading.  Maybe it was Montrose like the webpage suggests . . . .

I now see that the third picture is actually the location on Kirby.  

Back in 1986 when Johnny Carrabba and Damian Mandola bought their first little gutted x rated store and turned it into one of the most popular restaurants in Houston at the height of the last bust people thought they were crazy. Then they bought the property around the remodeled, and then rebuilt restaurant, and now have a dynasty at the epicenter of the Upper Kirby district.  I believe Carrabba's, was  one of the early tipping points for that whole area. I worked for them from 86 until 94 working on my masters and they were very savvy to accrue the land they did and have reaped the benefits of those early moves.

They have got to love what has followed.

Just an aside, does anyone remember one of the greatest grocery store/ import markets, right across the street from Carrabbas. Jamail's the original Central Market/ European import and deli, that catered to the River Oaks crowd.

It was one of a kind and way ahead of its time. Now that was a place to see just about anyone who was important in Houston.

Yes, I remember Jamail's.  You used to be able to get a Coke from their machines for a nickle in the mid-80's (at least that is how I remember it).  I think there were actually three of them at one point.  Here's a website about them:  http://jamails.com/about-us/history/  

I thought one of them was on Shepherd where the Pet Smart is (perhaps the third picture in the link), but my memory could be fading.  Maybe it was Montrose like the webpage suggests . . . .

Proof is doing fine. Mongoose vs. Cobra and Leon's are doing fine. It's far enough away that the station isn't an issue.

Okay, I thought this was going in where Wharhol's was. You're right, this far enough away from the greyhound.

Would have liked something nicer, but this is better than an empty lot. And frankly, with all of the apartments in the area this makes sense. Storage around there has gotten very expensive.

best of luck to the folks at Gage, but that location sucks.  the greyhound and mcdonalds scare folks away.  perhaps when skyhouse and alliance are full, there will be a local crowd that can support a bar at that location.  

What is going to be built on the old soccer fields across the street from this?

Nothing.  The soccer fields are a tax dodge for a so-called religious entity that is holding the property to profit on its appreciation.  A disgusting display of the ridiculous tax breaks this country gives to certain organizations.  

Other than the ice house, I think this design sucks. The venue looks like the horrible sheet metal townhouse in parts of midtown. Hopefully it turns out better than these renderings.

I wonder if the circular feature at the top is just a crown or whether that area will be used for something.  It could be a cool amenities room for parties.  

My god. People complain about an old falling down house being town down on this site, as well as complain about a huge 53 story skyscraper going up. Makes me question whether people really want the city to urbanize . . . .

I think it is great something else is being built directly along the rail. And it's great location for the park, museums, and easy access to med center/downtown. Am I sorry to see some old houses go? sure, but high rise condos are much rarer in this city than old houses.

I think the new design is the flat table in the foreground. Oh wait, that's been the design for the last six years . . .

Eventually it will be a parking garage.  It and the stadium are certainly eye sores for an otherwise gorgeous campus.  

I agree with creating a parking garage. Moving the zoo is not reasonable (and no one would go to it if it was an hour away from Houston). Frankly, I think the zoo and Herman park have improved dramatically over the past 20 years.

I think you mean "Filene's" Basement. Correct?

If so.....

Since 2011, there are no Filene's Basement stores. They liquidated along with their parent, Syms.

Correct, that is what I meant.  Sad to see that store go under -- I loved the one in Chicago on Michigan.  

This work should about exhaust their budget for this quarter. Look for another few windows to be taken out in August.