Tag Archives: Heights

De-industrialization update

Posted on March 21, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

The transformation of the Montrose/Heights border area will soon be complete. After 100 years on Washington Avenue, the Detering Co. has sold all of its prime near-downtown property and relocated to north Houston. The Houston-based building materials supply company had … Continue reading →

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Economic segregation in cities

Posted on March 2, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

From Wonkblog: Concentrated poverty is one of the biggest problems facing cities today, as more of the urban poor become isolated in neighborhoods where the people around them are poor, too. Growing economic segregation across cities, though, is also shaped … Continue reading →

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From industrial to residential

Posted on January 31, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

More changes coming to my neck of the woods. Some of the old warehouses lining a stretch of Sawyer Street across Interstate 10 from the Heights are being primed for new development, as this First Ward area continues to morph … Continue reading →

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Heights-Northside mobility study

Posted on January 15, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Mostly of interest for folks in my area, here’s the city’s report on mobility for neighborhoods in the upper left quadrant of the Inner Loop. Final Report: Heights-Northside Sub-regional Mobility Study The Planning and Development Department, in partnership with the … Continue reading →

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Say goodbye to the Yale Street post office

Posted on January 12, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

The Heights real estate boom continues apace. The next hot property to hit the market in the Heights is nearly 1 acre in size, boasts a large shade tree and fronts two busy commercial streets. The current owner is motivated … Continue reading →

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Heights bike trail connection update

Posted on December 14, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Good news from Swamplot: OVER THANKSGIVING weekend city workers opened a portion of the proposed hike-and-hike trail that will one day link downtown and Acres Homes. Work began last October on this new section, one that heads west from the … Continue reading →

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Revising the historic preservation ordinance

Posted on September 9, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Gird your loins. Houston officials are preparing to revise the city’s historic preservation ordinance, a signature issue for Mayor Annise Parker that spurred a prolonged and divisive fight over property rights in her first term. That contentiousness has never fully … Continue reading →

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Moving out of Fitzgerald’s

Posted on August 9, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Big music news in Houston. The successful concert promotion group behind Houston’s Free Press Summer Festival has secured land just north of downtown Houston to build a three-stage music venue complex with two indoor stages and an outdoor stage. Pegstar … Continue reading →

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Yale Street Bridge replacement set to begin

Posted on July 29, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

And inevitably there’s an issue. Time is running out for the historic Yale Street bridge over White Oak Bayou as its condition deteriorates and surrounding development places increasing demands on it. Some in the Heights- area community believe more should … Continue reading →

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Studemont Junction

Posted on July 14, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Swamplot has an update and some pictures from the to-be-redeveloped Grocer’s Supply truck lot near Studemont and I-10, basically on the north doorstep of my neighborhood. SIGNS ARE UP at the soon-to-be-former Grocers Supply distribution center across Studemont from Kroger … Continue reading →

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Meet your first parklet

Posted on July 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

It’s in the Heights, because of course it is. A parking space converted into Houston’s first parklet brought a mini-media frenzy — and fun street party — to 19th Street in the Heights, where New Living artisans, city officials and … Continue reading →

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Another expansion of single stream recycling

Posted on May 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Mayor Annise Parker and Harry J. Hayes, Director of the Solid Waste Management Department (SWMD), are pleased to announce the addition of 62,000 to the City’s popular automated curbside recycling program. As part of the expansion, residents … Continue reading →

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Enabling bike parking at restaurants

Posted on May 3, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Good to see this effort is making progress. It has taken some time, but a community effort to add bike racks in the Heights is seeing results. Heights resident Mitch Cohen has placed two racks along 19th Street this year … Continue reading →

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First Sunday Streets seemed like a success

Posted on April 10, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The weather was kinda lousy but there were plenty of people out on White Oak Street on Sunday. The city of Houston closed a 2.5 mile stretch of Quitman and White Oak to motor vehicles for four hours on Sunday, … Continue reading →

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Street closings ahead

Posted on March 12, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

This ought to be interesting. Three busy Houston streets will shut down to vehicular traffic on selected Sunday afternoons in an effort to see if car-bound residents will walk, bike and explore each block rather than simply drive through. The … Continue reading →

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HISD gets more diverse

Posted on February 16, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Which in this case means it’s getting a little whiter. After decades of free fall, Houston ISD’s white enrollment is inching upward, suggesting that more families with the resources to choose are selecting Houston public schools. Enrollment of non-Hispanic white … Continue reading →

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Center Street recycling facility is closed

Posted on January 5, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

So says Swamplot. Multiple emails to a couple of Heights neighorhood mailing lists sounded the alarm as well. This has been a long time coming. Originally, it was supposed to have been closed at the end of 2012, but I … Continue reading →

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How to make the warehouse transition something to look forward to

Posted on December 27, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

I have four things to say about this. Houston developers plan to build a mixed-use project, including upscale apartments and retail, on a 15-acre tract close to downtown, replacing a large produce warehouse that’s occupied the space for decades. Capcor … Continue reading →

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The dry Heights

Posted on December 27, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

What’s a guy got to do to get a drink around here? Eighty years after the repeal of Prohibition – the anniversary of which came and went with hardly a toast last week – there is a sliver of Houston … Continue reading →

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Not pissing off your neighbors is generally a good thing

Posted on September 1, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

That’s the message I get from this story about one developer who is trying to not piss off the people who live near his proposed development. Oak trees along the sidewalks? Check. A push to build a dog park? Check. … Continue reading →

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Heights-area bike trails to be linked

Posted on August 29, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Excellent news. Houston’s expanding trail system will soon gain a new leg in the greater Heights area. The addition will be part of Bayou Greenways 2020, a $215 million project aimed at creating a continuous network of hike-and-bike trails and … Continue reading →

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City reaches settlement with developer over Woodland Park damage

Posted on August 24, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Good news. Mayor Annise Parker, the City of Houston Legal Department and the Houston Parks and Recreation Department (HPARD) announced the City has recovered $300,000 to restore recent damage to Woodland Park by a private developer. Woodland Park, located at … Continue reading →

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Parking Panda

Posted on July 28, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Interesting Parking Panda, an online parking reservation system, launches Tuesday in Houston and Dallas. The site’s already up and running, taking reservations for lots around many area venues, including Minute Maid Park, Reliant Stadium and the Toyota Center. The concept … Continue reading →

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Ashbys all over

Posted on July 21, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s that Chron story that I mentioned yesterday, which talks about increasing neighborhood resistance to multi-story residential projects in areas that mostly have single-family houses. Tension mounted as 20 or so Morrison Street residents, armed with city documents and Internet … Continue reading →

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More construction on Yale

Posted on July 20, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

It’s Alexan Heights II: Midrise Boogaloo. For residents near Yale and 6th street, Independence Day fireworks were nothing compared to the sparks flying when news of another proposed apartment complex came to light July 5. A heads-up notification from District … Continue reading →

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The Heights yarn bomb lives again

Posted on July 4, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

This makes me happy: See here for the background. According to Marty Hajovsky, the new installation will be up through July 14th, so go check it out while you can. And if you see anyone approaching it with a sharp … Continue reading →

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What do you have against yarn?

Posted on June 21, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

This is such a shame. An International Yarn Bombing Day installation on a park trellis in the Heights was partially torn down Saturday after it was only up for a week, since June 8. The project was headed by Heights … Continue reading →

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They name the development after whatever they bulldozed in order to build it

Posted on June 13, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

The title of this post is an old joke, but what happened recently at Woodland Park is not. Nonsequiteuse explains. I was alerted to an egregious clear-cutting along Woodland Park, a City of Houston public park at the edge of … Continue reading →

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Alexan Heights gets approved

Posted on June 5, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

The Leader News updates us on the latest news regarding the proposed development on Yale at 7th. Houston’s Planning Commission has approved Trammell Crow Residential’s replat application without variance for the site of its 360-unit Alexan Heights mid-rise luxury apartment … Continue reading →

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The townhomes are indeed coming

Posted on June 2, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this Lisa Gray column. “So the bad stuff we’re going to see today,” I asked, “it’ll be a cautionary tale for the suburbs?” I was driving west from downtown on what I thought … Continue reading →

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Alexan Heights trying again

Posted on May 22, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

The Leader News reports that the proposed mid-rise apartment complex for Yale at 7th Street has been reworked in a way that would avoid the need for a variance. The deed restrictions involved single-family homes within the proposed complex — … Continue reading →

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So long, Skylane Apartments

Posted on May 6, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

This is happening in my neighborhood, and it’s already generated a lot of interest from the locals. The aging Skylane Central apartments, perched near the entrance of the Woodland Heights neighborhood, are headed for demolition as a developer makes plans … Continue reading →

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Don’t expect B-Cycle in the Heights anytime soon

Posted on April 17, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

I know there are a lot of people in the Heights that would like to see some bike share kiosks here, but as The Leader News reports, it will be awhile before that happens. Although running through arguably the most … Continue reading →

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Why we need flexibility in our parking regulations

Posted on March 26, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s the story of Coltivare. As many of you know, we are in the process of opening Coltivare, our interpretation of an Italian-inspired, American, neighborhood restaurant, at the corner of White Oak and Arlington Streets. Undoubtedly, one of the most … Continue reading →

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