Category Archives: Elsewhere in Houston

How was the FIFA World Cup for Houston’s restaurants?

Posted on July 20, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

It was okay. Kind of depended on where they are. For months, Houston restaurant owners prepared for a World Cup windfall, with some people comparing the tournament’s expected economic impact to hosting seven Super Bowls. Now, with Houston’s seven World Cup games … Continue reading →

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Rainbow Pride banners

Posted on July 18, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Our crosswalk replacements. Where Montrose’s rainbow crosswalks once stood, new rainbow banners will serve as indicators of LGBTQ+ pride. In October, the city removed the neighborhood’s iconic rainbow crosswalks to comply with Gov. Greg Abbott’s directive to remove “non-standard surface … Continue reading →

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Half Price Books to return to Montrose

Posted on July 13, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

And there was much rejoicing. Five years after Half Price Books left Montrose, the booksellers purchased the former Soundwaves building and plans to return in 2027. Soundwaves announced it was closing its last remaining location that sat off 3509 Montrose … Continue reading →

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You can’t sing that in The Woodlands!

Posted on June 30, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Hilarious, and ridiculous. Leaders at The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion rejected a township official’s proposal to try to censor profane and sexually explicit performances, citing free speech in a statement that was echoed by the township’s attorney on Thursday. Township … Continue reading →

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The Civic Art Map

Posted on June 28, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

I love this. The Houston Arts Alliance has launched an online map helping people find and view hundreds of public artworks across the city. The Civic Art Map website launched last week, offering a searchable, regularly updated database that currently has 873 artworks created … Continue reading →

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On dealing with hotter summers

Posted on May 25, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

From Inside Climate News, a report on how summers are expected to be hotter soon, and what we can do about it. Temperatures can vary across big cities like New York and Houston, depending on the landscape and the amount … Continue reading →

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Harris County is still where the Texans and the Rodeo want to be

Posted on May 7, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

I never really thought that other places were a live possibility, and now that has been confirmed. Team owner Cal McNair said the Houston Texans and the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo have decided to make things work in Harris … Continue reading →

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Checking in on that sewage consent decree

Posted on May 6, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Five years into a landmark 2021 federal consent decree requiring Houston to fix its sewage system, a new independent engineering review commissioned by Bayou City Waterkeeper finds that progress is falling short of what residents need and … Continue reading →

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Astrodome to be considered for National Historic Landmark status

Posted on April 14, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Wow. It’s hard to believe that the Astrodome, which became the world’s first domed sports stadium when it opened on April 9, 1965, doesn’t already have National Historic Landmark status. Often nicknamed the ‘Eighth Wonder of the World,’ the Astrodome is now one … Continue reading →

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Schools in flood zones

Posted on April 2, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

This isn’t good. Nearly 400 Harris County schools could move to higher-risk flood zones, according to new maps released by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The new maps dramatically expand Harris County’s 100-year and 500-year floodplains, moving hundreds of schools and other … Continue reading →

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When the sky actually is falling

Posted on March 27, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Because sometimes it kind of does. Picture a space rock. This one was 3 feet wide, but it weighed about a ton and moved at a speed of about 35,000 miles per hour across the sky, just 50 miles above Houston on Saturday. … Continue reading →

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NASA’s wildlife

Posted on March 15, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Great story. Matthew Strausser was called to Ellington Field after a Texas rat snake slithered inside one of NASA’s T-38 jets. He sometimes coaxes alligators from beneath vehicles, routinely counts the local deer population – 268 this year – and … Continue reading →

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The 1940 Air Terminal Museum has closed

Posted on March 8, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

This is a major bummer. The 1940 Air Terminal Museum, a longstanding tribute to Houston’s aviation history, has closed because it was no longer economically sustainable, according to its president. The museum is adjacent to Houston’s Hobby Airport. Karen Nicolaou, … Continue reading →

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FEMA produces new draft flood map for Harris County

Posted on February 14, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

We’ve been waiting for this. After years of delays, the Federal Emergency Management Agency has quietly posted a draft of Harris County’s new flood maps online, kickstarting a review process that could lead to the first major update to the … Continue reading →

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Ashby 2.0 is now open

Posted on January 17, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

And boy howdy is it expensive. A long-anticipated apartment tower rising on the former Ashby high-rise site is set to open next month with rents that could set a new ceiling for luxury apartments in Houston. Residents are expected to … Continue reading →

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Is there an Astrodome decision coming soon?

Posted on January 12, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Maybe. But probably not. The fate of the Astrodome — a beloved Houston landmark that’s sat largely unused for more than 20 years — could soon be decided. Commissioners are expected to discuss options for the 1 million square-foot building at … Continue reading →

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Recycle those old Christmas lights

Posted on December 31, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

You’ve hopefully already made a plan to recycle your Christmas tree. Now you can do the same for old and broken Christmas lights. The Houston Zoo is accepting old and broken Christmas lights to recycle them and keep them out … Continue reading →

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Christmas tree recycling 2025

Posted on December 27, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

You know what time it is. The City of Houston Solid Waste Management Department is inviting residents to recycle their natural Holiday trees and help give them a second life. Beginning on Friday, December 26th and continuing through Friday, January … Continue reading →

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The Rice Gateway Project

Posted on November 16, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Looks cool. Rice University is launching a massive $120 million project to renovate its historic Rice Stadium and to connect the west side of campus to Rice Village with a new pedestrian walkway. The so-called “Gateway Project” is expected to … Continue reading →

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The Ismaili Center has its opening

Posted on November 9, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

I’m really looking forward to seeing it for myself. After nearly two decades of planning and construction, a vacant property near Buffalo Bayou has been transformed into a majestic, 150,000-square-foot Ismaili Center — a new cultural and religious landmark that … Continue reading →

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Time once again to compost those pumpkins

Posted on November 2, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

You know what to do. The City of Houston Solid Waste Management Department, in partnership with Council Member Sallie Alcorn, is excited to announce the return of the 5th Annual Pumpkin Compost Drop-Off Program. Don’t toss your pumpkins in the … Continue reading →

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RIP, CityCast Houston

Posted on October 25, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

I’m sad to see them go. Hey, there! I can’t believe I’m writing these words. After over 800 newsletters, today is my last one to you. Hey Houston and City Cast Houston officially shut down on Oct. 24 😢 I truly enjoyed … Continue reading →

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Ismaili Center to open in November

Posted on October 19, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Been a long time coming. The decades-long quest to bring the first-ever U.S. location of a massive religious center to Houston is almost complete. Ismaili Center Houston, a five-story, 11-acre religious center for Ismaili Muslims, is poised for a grand … Continue reading →

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There may be a lawsuit over the rainbow crosswalk

Posted on October 16, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Good. A legion of Houston’s elected officials gathered at the Taft and Westheimer rainbow crosswalk Tuesday as a show of force against Gov. Greg Abbott’s call to remove it or risk the loss of state transportation funding, and some even … Continue reading →

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Still more on Elon’s flood tunnels

Posted on September 19, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

I once again call your attention to an episode of CityCast Houston, in which host Raheel Ramzanali chats with the host of the CityCast Las Vegas podcast about the experience they’ve had with Elon Musk and the Boring Company and … Continue reading →

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More on Elon’s flood tunnels

Posted on September 16, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Insecure man makes defensive response to fair questions about his wild idea. Film at 11. Billionaire Elon Musk is taking issue with a recent investigation by the Houston Chronicle and The Texas Newsroom that raised questions about a flood tunnel … Continue reading →

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Less funding for homelessness means more homeless

Posted on September 11, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

It’s just math. An annual survey of the homeless population in the Houston area suggested that the region — which has attracted international attention for its ability to reduce homelessness — is at an inflection point. As the emergency funding … Continue reading →

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Please don’t lie about the amount of poop in Houston’s waterways

Posted on September 4, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t think that’s too much to ask. Two former employees of a wastewater testing lab in Conroe are facing federal conspiracy charges after authorities alleged they falsified test results to conceal high levels of feces and other contaminants released … Continue reading →

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Do we still want flood tunnels if Elon is building them?

Posted on August 30, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Fascinating stuff. The devastating flooding in Houston caused by Hurricane Harvey in 2017 killed dozens of people, inundated hundreds of thousands of homes and left the community desperate for a solution. Since then, local flood experts have extensively studied the … Continue reading →

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Leave the “Be Someone” artists alone

Posted on August 20, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

How is this a good use of HPD’s time? Investigators are searching for the people who repainted Houston’s popular “Be Someone” graffiti mural in June after a video of the act was posted on Instagram. Three people participated in repainting the … Continue reading →

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Mayor’s anti-bike obsession claims another victim

Posted on August 4, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Sorry, Telephone Road. You should have thought about the possibility of the next Mayor being a bike hater when you began this work five years ago. The Harrisburg Redevelopment Authority has tapped the brakes on approving a scaled-back $12 million … Continue reading →

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The Astrodome at 60

Posted on July 21, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

We still don’t know what we’re going to do with it. In the winter of 2018, Ed Emmett thought he found the perfect plan to save the Astrodome and make it useful for the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo — … Continue reading →

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The Montrose texts

Posted on June 23, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

A look behind the curtain at what was happening with the Montrose TIRZ as the original plan for redoing Montrose Blvd got significantly changed by Mayor Whitmire. For over a year, Montrose residents have fiercely debated redesign plans for their namesake boulevard, … Continue reading →

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LurkingHouston

Posted on June 16, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

I can’t be too mad at this. The Astrodome hasn’t seen a crowd in over a decade—but it got some unexpected visitors this week when three 18-year-old urban explorers slipped inside the iconic, long-shuttered stadium, exposing the eerily dilapidated “Eighth … Continue reading →

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