Cambria Hotel At 1314 Texas Ave.

[urbanize713]

On the walk home noticed fencing has actually started going up. Building door also now says closed. 

[bobruss]

Sure sounds like something positive is happening.

[H-Town Man]

Looks like they have been active in Texas. Very similar project just completed:

 

https://www.cpexecutive.com/post/fourth-cambria-hotel-opens-in-dallas/

[Naviguessor]

So, while CAMBRIA and Choice Hotels in general do not have the brand recognition of other larger, upscale national brands, the Dallas Property doesn't look half bad.  Better than I was expecting for this property.   Check it...

 

https://www.choicehotels.com/texas/dallas/cambria-hotels/txi93?brand=BR&tapad_cookie_id=ee5f1311-479b-11e6-8fea-005056a23ccd&mc=smgogousbrl&cid=RLSA|Cambria|US|Texas|Exact|CPC|Desktop|EN|B_G&ag=US|TX|Dallas&pmf=GOOGLE&kw=cambria hotel dallas

[cspwal]

To be honest, I didn't realize Cambria was a chain and I thought it was a play off it being the petroleum building

[J Money]

Now I'll never forget that it was the petroleum building in the pre-Cambrian era...

[MarathonMan]

Parking lot is fenced off and windows are coming out of the south side of the building.  Renovation looks to be under way!

[j_cuevas713]

21 hours ago, MarathonMan said:

Parking lot is fenced off and windows are coming out of the south side of the building.  Renovation looks to be under way!

This quarter has been crazy good!

[urbanize713]

On 4/10/2018 at 1:13 PM, urbanize713 said:

This project appears to be starting very soon. There are markings around the building for a hoist/gates etc. This morning I also spotted some fencing that was un-assembled.  Did we ever get additional information/renderings?

 

 

 

For all those that doubted the chalk lines... see my post below. 

 

 

Edited May 23, 2018 by urbanize713

[cspwal]

Quote

ADULT CONTENT

This content is for mature audiences only.

User discretion is advised.

 

What are you trying to show us @urbanize713?

[urbanize713]

 

 

 

[rechlin]

[UtterlyUrban]

This will be a good project.  Hopefully, they tastefully merge the old and new (perhaps like the JW on main?) to create something entirely lovely.  I’m rooting for them.

 

 

[Texasota]

Well, hopefully not like the JW on Main, since there is no remaining historic material on that building, but otherwise I agree.

[ArtieFufkin]

Yesterday the Archaeological and Historical Commission denied the developer's request to replace the current Great Southwest Sign with this one:

 

Which would've been lit up at night like this:

 

http://www.houstontx.gov/planning/Commissions/docs_pdfs/hahc/App_Materials_2018/june/1314_Texas_Alt_Sign_DRAFT.pdf

[H-Town Man]

On 6/15/2018 at 9:38 PM, ArtieFufkin said:

Yesterday the Archaeological and Historical Commission denied the developer's request to replace the current Great Southwest Sign with this one:

 

Which would've been lit up at night like this:

 

http://www.houstontx.gov/planning/Commissions/docs_pdfs/hahc/App_Materials_2018/june/1314_Texas_Alt_Sign_DRAFT.pdf

 

Good for them. It's a great sign. "The Petro" sounds like a sketchy bar.

 

Is this a permanent rejection or do they just have to wait 90 days?

[ArtieFufkin]

3 hours ago, H-Town Man said:

Is this a permanent rejection or do they just have to wait 90 days?

 

Good question.

 

I'm not actually clear on how that rule works in the first place. What's the deal? On certain proposals you can just do what you want anyway as long as you wait 90 days after a rejection and on others the rejection is permanent? And how do they determine which rule to apply in which case?

[Twinsanity02]

People with poor eyesight  might think it says "The Petco" and take their doggies there for treatment. 

[mollusk]

28 minutes ago, Twinsanity02 said:

People with poor eyesight  might think it says "The Petco" and take their doggies there for treatment. 

 

GFR!!!! 

[H-Town Man]

14 hours ago, ArtieFufkin said:

 

Good question.

 

I'm not actually clear on how that rule works in the first place. What's the deal? On certain proposals you can just do what you want anyway as long as you wait 90 days after a rejection and on others the rejection is permanent? And how do they determine which rule to apply in which case?

 

I think if it's in a Historic District, then no means no, they can't make the change. Not sure if this is inside the Downtown Historic District or not. If it's not in a Historic District then it might still be a Landmark. If it's a Landmark then they can wait 90 days and then make the change, if it's a Protected Landmark, then no means no, they can't make the change. I'm pretty sure this is not a Protected Landmark since those are almost always either houses or government buildings (the owner has to be the one to make it Protected, which private owners of commercial buildings rarely want to do).

 

[Specwriter]

Great Southwest probably has little or no meaning to the general population these days but "Petro" sounds like some cut-rate gas station. Why not "The Cambria" in backlit letters?

 

For the curious, Cambria is another name for Wales. It is the Latinized version of the Welsh Cymru. If it is associate with Great Britain it must be classy.

[H-Town Man]

6 hours ago, Specwriter said:

Great Southwest probably has little or no meaning to the general population these days but "Petro" sounds like some cut-rate gas station. Why not "The Cambria" in backlit letters?

 

For the curious, Cambria is another name for Wales. It is the Latinized version of the Welsh Cymru. If it is associate with Great Britain it must be classy.

 

I'm sure there are few still around who remember the Great Southwest Life Insurance Company, but "Great Southwest" still evokes an authentic sense of Houston's past and its embodiment in the surrounding region. I agree though that "The Cambria" is a better hotel name than "The Petro." Almost any name would be.

 

Edited June 20, 2018 by H-Town Man

[bobruss]

I think of the Cambrian period. I think that relates to the time of the extinction  of many species of trilobites and other sea creatures which helped create the oil industry.

I like Cambria much more than Petro. 

 

"The Cambrian Period marks an important point in the history of life on Earth; it is the time when most of the major groups of animals first appear in the fossil record. This event is sometimes called the "Cambrian Explosion," because of the relatively short time over which this diversity of forms appears." 

UCMP Berkeley

[mattyt36]

Didn’t the building open as the Petroleum Building and later became Great Southwest? Not that I like the name ...

[H-Town Man]

On ‎6‎/‎24‎/‎2018 at 8:29 AM, mattyt36 said:

Didn’t the building open as the Petroleum Building and later became Great Southwest? Not that I like the name ...

 

If a sign has been there for most of the building's history, that becomes its history. If they could show that when it was the Petroleum Building, there was a sign there called "The Petro" and that they are merely restoring this sign, then there might be an interesting argument for reverting it back. Or if the building was especially famous when it was the Petroleum Building and no one ever really called it the Great Southwest building, sort of like Transco Tower vs. Williams Tower or Sears Tower vs. Willis Tower, then you could revert back. But it's sort of like a legal precedent... once it has amassed a considerable history a certain way, that becomes the history. An analogous case is the AC by Marriott hotel on Main Street, where they are retaining the building's modern-style renovation because it has been that way long enough that that is legitimate history. (And because whatever is under that façade is probably too ruined to be worth retrieving.)

[mattyt36]

16 minutes ago, H-Town Man said:

 

If a sign has been there for most of the building's history, that becomes its history. If they could show that when it was the Petroleum Building, there was a sign there called "The Petro" and that they are merely restoring this sign, then there might be an interesting argument for reverting it back. Or if the building was especially famous when it was the Petroleum Building and no one ever really called it the Great Southwest building, sort of like Transco Tower vs. Williams Tower or Sears Tower vs. Willis Tower, then you could revert back. But it's sort of like a legal precedent... once it has amassed a considerable history a certain way, that becomes the history. An analogous case is the AC by Marriott hotel on Main Street, where they are retaining the building's modern-style renovation because it has been that way long enough that that is legitimate history. (And because whatever is under that façade is probably too ruined to be worth retrieving.)

 

So, in short, yes?

[H-Town Man]

8 minutes ago, mattyt36 said:

 

So, in short, yes?

 

Pretty obvious from what I said. Is this a courtroom?

 

[mattyt36]

8 hours ago, H-Town Man said:

 

Pretty obvious from what I said. Is this a courtroom?

 

 

More like a forum for a self-published novel.

[urbanize713]

Opening in August

 

 

[BeerNut]

Link to Choice Hotels booking page.

CAMBRIA HOTEL HOUSTON DOWNTOWN CONVENTION CENTER