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Wild Oats is opening. https://preview.houstonchronicle.com/dining/wild-oats-opens-today-with-menu-inspired-by-texas-16899085

2601 Baylor has already been renovated and the tea room will just have to build out the interior. Take a look at the address on google maps street view and compare to the finished product. Really nice work on this one. https://www.loopnet.com/Listing/2601-Baylor-St-Houston-TX/21970703/

They started working on this about two years ago and then stopped. There is already a fence up and some modified transport containers set up presumably as shelters for dog owners. I guess it is on again.

Not sure I would cite 3333 Allen Parkway as an example of the "markets know best". It was a flop as a high end apartment complex and the condo conversion was also a mess with the original conversion not getting enough interest (this was back when a developer was trying to pre-sell condos for a reincarnated Shamrock Hotel downtown and couldn't get enough interest to get financing) and another developer swooped in and bought up the remaining units at fire sale pricing. And the building is butt ugly.

Looks like they have leased the spot on 19th Street that used to be Retropolis between Manready Mercantile and Teasip. Not much info on the website, but I am pretty sure it is the same people as in the Chron article. This is a breath of fresh air for the Heights. I would not have thought that anything like this would have even been a possibility at a time when everyone is fighting for a spot in the Heights for restaurants/bars/boutiques/spas, etc. https://houstontoymuseum.com/ https://www.chron.com/entertainment/article/Houston-Toy-Museum-looking-for-permanent-site-2004388.php

Underbelly Burger now open at the farmer's market on Airline. https://preview.houstonchronicle.com/dining/underbelly-burger-now-open-at-houston-farmers-16754168?fbclid=IwAR1MLDghS0h-xk6Lf55R39eOoWcpKdcXvlB2kQlzuB0OLHFPAYtPcpE-33k

Pure speculation, but I wonder whether environmental contamination was a factor. Probably can't dig too deep at that site without ringing up a big bill for remediation. Cheaper to leave it alone and put a big box on top. My other point of pure speculation is that I think money is only flowing to more high end developments and this one is just too close to I-10 to go high end. But, yeah. Markets are dumb. Rents in Houston are way up over every class of apartments in Houston with supply of new units lagging. Katyville could have 2-3,000 more multifamily units had developers built up instead of dedicating scarce inner loop acreage to big box developments. https://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/real-estate/article/Houston-rents-have-soared-to-record-highs-16725899.php

Padre's Wine Shop is coming to the space that used to be Obsidian Theater at 3522 White Oak Dr.

After seven years, I think I was pretty much spot on. I said IH was 5-10 years away from gaining the critical mass needed to really see it turn around. Right now, development in IH is still pretty spotty with mostly entry level townhomes in the $300s popping up on random lots. Lot values are up but appreciation is not as good as the near northside/Lindale. I have a friend who bought a townhome over by Tulane in IH about 4 years ago. The neighborhood is still pretty rough. A lot of drugs and gang activity is still going on even as new construction goes up with doorbell cameras pointing at the street. Police sirens and gun shots are still a weekly occurrence. IH is right now about where Cottage Grove and Shady Acres were in the early 2000s. The pace of development is picking up but there is still a long way to go before it attracts anyone other than urban pioneers who are willing to put up with the crime, stray dogs, etc. in exchange for a close in neighborhood and an affordable townhome. I am still much more bullish on the near northside and Lindale. They are getting some restaurants, bars and coffee shops (Canary Cafe, Trash Panda, Monkey's Tail, Rabbits Got the Gun, Local Brewing, etc.). Bellissimo moved to IH. But that is really it for IH. https://www.theleadernews.com/community/woman-charged-in-fatal-independence-heights-shooting/article_f681b16c-10cf-11ec-8d9e-0b98b106c0e8.html https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/crime/article/Man-charged-in-Independence-Heights-shooting-that-16115473.php https://abcnews.go.com/US/deputy-fatally-shot-injured-ambush-houston-nightclub-police/story?id=80619451

This modern has been under construction (off and on again) since 2013. If you frequent the hike and bike path on Nicholson below 11th, you will recognize this one. Frame is structural concrete. If you are worried about a cat 5 hurricane, nuclear first strike, F5 tornado or Zombie apocalypse, this is the home for you. https://www.har.com/homedetail/917-nicholson-st-houston-tx-77008/9247323

They really whipped this place into shape fast. Trattoria Sofia opening. https://preview.houstonchronicle.com/dining/new-rustic-italian-restaurant-from-berg-16622205

Yup. https://houston.culturemap.com/news/restaurants-bars/11-03-21-bluestone-new-coffee-shop-cafe-australian-heights/#slide=0

Long ago there were plans to build a huge retirement community on the land where Astroworld used to be. That blew up for many of the same reasons a lot of pie in the sky development ideas went down in flames in the early 2000s. Not sure why the land still hasn't been redeveloped other than it is a lousy location. Otherwise, there are a couple of superfund sites around Wildcat Golf Club. I think a lot of the land around there has too many environmental issues to allow it to be redeveloped.

They are selling spicy chicken sandwiches less than a mile from another and very popular place that sells spicy chicken sandwiches and right across the street from a fast food restaurant that sells a very cheap spicy chicken sandwiches. I am thinking that going cheap on building costs is a smart move for this restaurant.

Good question. They closed unexpectedly a few weeks back and took down the big tent they had up. But they reopened for a few days and then closed up again. I wonder whether the city came down on them for the tent. They had live music on weekends and may have pissed off some neighbors. Just speculation at this point.

Turner's recent fumbles are garden variety City Hall stuff that the average voter doesn't care about. And the election isn't until 2023. The city of Houston is decidedly blue and it would take extraordinary circumstances for a Republican to win a mayoral race. And the Republican bench for Mayor is not deep and is mostly old white guys. Anyone remotely aligned with Trump would be DOA. Anyone from the Tex Leg who voted for the abortion ban is DOA. The only shot would be a more ambiguous center right candidate from the business community or a former pro athlete, etc. who has never run for office. Self funded would help too.

This is soooo City of Houston. Inspector No. 1: "Everything looks good. You just need to do A, B and C." A, B, and C completed. Inspector No. 2: "D, E, and F don't meet code. You need to fix that and pull all new permits." And on top of that permitting at CoH is grinding to a halt due to COVID. I know people trying to finish a huge project that is very time sensitive who had to send new plans back to engineering and were told that the reviewer had 600+ plans on his desk and could not even guess at an ETA on approval. I wouldn't be surprised if the connector is completed long before the bridge.

Someone is building a new deck in front of the former El Gallo de Jalisco. No idea who or what is planned. No TABC notice.

The world just kind of sucks today. Golden Bagels is closing. And Angela's Oven is closing their retail cafe on Harvard and will only be at farmer's markets. I think Angela's scaled back because of family reasons (kids who worked in the store going off to college). But no clue why Golden Bagels is closing. https://www.click2houston.com/news/local/2021/09/08/beloved-bagel-shop-closing-in-the-heights/ https://www.facebook.com/112451162140402/photos/a.1730145393704296/4528110877241053/

Yeah. You are correct. No one wants to live in a 1,000 sq ft 2/1. Only option is to knock it down. Nothing else can be done. I have heard about scientists at MIT experimenting with next generation technology where they are able to use state of the art materials like wood, nails and Hardie plank siding to enlarge an existing house. But this is cutting edge stuff that won't be ready for commercial use for another 10-20 years.

Calle Onze closing, but another Mexican concept is taking its place. I thought Calle Onze was great when it first opened, but quality sank like a stone and the crowd after 8 pm would pull a bit too much from Midtown. https://www.houstonchronicle.com/food-culture/restaurants-bars/article/Calle-Onze-in-the-Heights-to-become-Chivos-under-16431145.php

The discussion was about whether the property had any potential to be flipped not whether the owners had any intention to flip it. I am sure you feel special that you know something about the owners and we are all eternally in your debt for such magnificent insight. But your comments are a non sequitur. Niche and Red Scare are gone. Fighting about whether something is actually in the Heights or not because it is a block or two outside the original plat for the Heights is so over even for HAIF.

So, you are saying that a house that was well maintained for decades by someone who lived in it as their residence was never intended to be residential because whether a house is suitable to be flipped or not depends on the intent of the property owner and not the condition of the house. That is a new level of developerspeak that is even a stretch for HAIF. And calling out properties as not being "technically" in the Heights is also so 2000.

House was very well maintained cared for and would have been an easy flip. Location is not the best, but people are beating each other with sticks to buy in the Heights and someone would have been happy to live there. Losing a nice bungalow to nail salon parking is so 2000.

Tommie Vaughn dropped a pretty good bag of cash on upgrading its showroom and moving a franchised dealer can trigger protest right from other nearby dealers and long proceedings before TxDMV. Tommie Vaughn is here to stay. There are a bunch more retail projects like this coming on the Shep side. It will be interesting to see where the market saturation point is on retail space along Shep. So far, there hasn't been much trouble filling these projects but a bunch are in the pipeline.