Category Archives: Elsewhere in Houston

Houston wins $1 million runnerup Bloomberg prize

Posted on March 13, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

From the Mayor’s office: Mayor Annise Parker today announced that Houston’s One Bin for All idea is one of the five winners in the Bloomberg Philanthropies’ Mayors Challenge, a competition to inspire American cities to generate innovative ideas that solve … Continue reading →

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Hear more about flooding in Houston

Posted on March 7, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Ed Browne, the President of Super Neighborhood #10 and the Chair of Residents Against Flooding and the Flood and Drainage Committee of the Super Neighborhood Alliance, sent me the following announcement: Collusion or Incompetence: Flooding in West Houston On March … Continue reading →

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In the HAUS

Posted on March 6, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Meet Houston’s first housing co-op. Technically, this is HAUS, the Houston Access to Urban Sustainability Project, a housing co-op for those willing to work for their cheap rent and board by making meals, cleaning toilets and recycling – lots of … Continue reading →

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Vote for Houston in the Mayor’s Challenge final

Posted on February 23, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

From the HuffPo: Vote below for your favorite idea among the 20 Mayors Challenge finalists! Voting is open from February 20 through March 6. The Bloomberg Philanthropies’ Mayors Challenge is a competition designed to inspire America’s mayors to generate innovative … Continue reading →

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Fixing our front door

Posted on February 22, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

This sounds very cool. The century-old Sunset Coffee Building, looming in disrepair over Allen’s Landing at the north end of downtown, will become Houston’s “front door” with an $8 million public-private renovation set to begin in April. The three-story brick … Continue reading →

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Alamo Drafthouse at Regent Square

Posted on February 19, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

This is an interesting development. Alamo Drafthouse Cinema, which is opening its second area location Thursday in Vintage Park Shopping Village, just announced that it will open a third location in the Inner Loop mixed-use project Regent Square, where it … Continue reading →

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Alexan Heights update

Posted on February 13, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

The developers of the Alexan Heights project on Yale will go before the Planning Commission tomorrow to get a variance that would remove a single-family restriction on part of the property. Some folks in the neighborhood have been petitioning against … Continue reading →

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Are you ready for the hipness?

Posted on January 28, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Because ready or not, here it comes. A rapper, a ballerina and a host of top chefs are among the locals who will be featured in a new Houston image campaign launching next month. The $425,000 promotional blitz targeting readers … Continue reading →

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You simply must see us this year

Posted on January 22, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

The New York Times commands you. Houston is probably best known as the Texan center for energy and industry, but it’s making a bid to be the state’s cultural and culinary capital as well. The Houston Museum District is a … Continue reading →

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Yale Street Bridge work set to begin

Posted on January 21, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Good to hear. Work to rehabilitate the Yale Street Bridge south of Interstate 10 is scheduled to begin in April. According to the Houston Department of Public Works and Engineering, the process will involve installation of external carbon-strip reinforcement along … Continue reading →

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Alexan Heights on Yale

Posted on January 19, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

If you live in my neck of the woods you’re probably interested in the news (via Swamplot) of the new apartment complex being planned for the empty lot on Yale between 6th and 7th. The RUDH January newsletter has details. … Continue reading →

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More on metal recycling

Posted on January 14, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron has a followup story on metal recycling and hexavalent chromium. Houston air experts plan to deepen their investigation into the air outside metal recycling companies after their measurements showed – apparently for the first time – that the … Continue reading →

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Recycling pollution

Posted on January 4, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

This is unfortunate. The calls to the city of Houston’s 311 help line came in the early morning and the middle of the night – complaints of red smoke, yellow smoke, explosions, fire, a child having trouble breathing. Reports like … Continue reading →

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Your other one-minute real estate update

Posted on January 2, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Basically, real estate good in Houston. Inventory of homes for sale has fallen to a level not seen in more than a decade. Builders are trying to keep up with a growing demand from buyers relocating here for jobs. Realtors … Continue reading →

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Compost that Christmas tree

Posted on December 31, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Let your Christmas tree do some good after you get rid of it. When that Christmas tree comes down this year, take a moment to imagine its next incarnation: Chipped up and mixed into soil, it might soon secure new … Continue reading →

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Your one-minute real estate update

Posted on December 30, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I just have one mostly tangential thing to say about this. Houston will see a modest and steady growth in retail activity in 2013, according to Ed Wulfe’s annual retail forecast. And the following year should be much better, said … Continue reading →

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Soot

Posted on December 27, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

We have it. What are we going to do about it? Harris County, long known for smog, will need to clamp down on another harmful type of air pollution for the first time under new rules imposed by federal regulators … Continue reading →

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Keep Houston hip

Posted on December 26, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Y’all ready for this? 2013 marks the 50th anniversary of the GHCVB and the fifth anniversary of the MyHouston campaign, which according to vice president of marketing Holly Clapham, is “the most successful image campaign in Houston’s history.” As part … Continue reading →

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Chapter 42 is back

Posted on December 19, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

This is going to be fun. Sprawling, boomtown Houston may be in for another battle over land use and development, this time driven by the most significant changes proposed to the city’s building rules in 13 years. The rewrite would … Continue reading →

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Rodeo buys part of old Astroworld site

Posted on December 18, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Unclear what this means. The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo is acquiring half of the old Six Flags AstroWorld property for $42.8 million. The organization’s board of directors on Thursday authorized show officials to acquire 48 acres of the former … Continue reading →

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City wins Census recount

Posted on December 10, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

It’s official: The city of Houston really did have 2.1 million people as of the 2010 Census. The U.S. Census Bureau has adjusted the city’s 2010 population from 2,099,451 to 2,100,263. The difference is only 812 people, but it’s enough … Continue reading →

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Germantown gets historic designation

Posted on December 8, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Congratulations to what may be the last historic district created in the city of Houston. The first historic district created under a stricter rewrite of Houston’s preservation ordinance passed City Council on Wednesday, though conservationists predicted future districts will be … Continue reading →

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Could this be the catalyst for Astrodome redevelopment?

Posted on December 5, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Maybe. The city of Houston and Harris County are preparing to create a mammoth, two-part economic development zone covering more than 11 square miles along the South Loop and at the northeast end of downtown. The plan stems from a … Continue reading →

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HouZE

Posted on December 4, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

This is very cool. Independence Heights earned a place in history as Texas’ first African-American city, settled in 1908 and sovereign until it was swallowed by the city of Houston 21 years later. But tomorrow’s residents may be pioneers of … Continue reading →

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Rodeo kicks in for tree replanting

Posted on November 21, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Trail riders coming into Houston for the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo traditionally camp overnight in Memorial Park on their way to the event. Last year they did this as many of the trees around them were dying from the … Continue reading →

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The helium shortage gets real

Posted on November 20, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

It could affect Thanksgiving. “We’ve secured helium to meet some of our parade needs, and we are working to secure more,” Kim Stoilis, president and chief executive officer of the Houston Festival Foundation, said in an email Wednesday. “We’re excited … Continue reading →

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We need infrastructure, yes we do

Posted on November 19, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

But paying for it is often a problem. That doesn’t work very well for a chant, I’m afraid. The American Society of Civil Engineers Houston branch assessed the structural and economic viability of roads, transit, solid waste, wastewater and drinking … Continue reading →

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Mount Rush Hour Park

Posted on November 19, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

It’s actually called American Statesmanship Park, but either way it’s awesome. Harris County on Tuesday accepted a donation of a small plot of land near the intersection of Interstates 10 and 45 where 18-foot concrete busts of Stephen F. Austin, … Continue reading →

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Washington Avenue parking

Posted on November 18, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The city of Houston has been trying to tackle the problem of insufficient parking in the busy Washington Avenue entertainment corridor. What to do about Washington Avenue is Houston’s latest public policy discussion of what government’s role should be in … Continue reading →

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“One Bin For All” in the running for prize money

Posted on November 12, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

This happened before the election, which now seems as a remote a time as the 19th century. Houston is one of 20 finalist cities from among the 305 nationwide that applied for a $5 million grant from the Bloomberg Philanthropies … Continue reading →

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Why does Midtown need a big box store?

Posted on November 12, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

This story is about a forthcoming six-acre “superblock” being developed in Midtown, and about Midtown’s rise as a successful residential/entertainment area. What caught my eye was this bit at the end: Still, Midtown has yet to see any significant new … Continue reading →

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That big East End KBR site has been sold

Posted on November 11, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

There’s one less huge tract of land on the market these days. A Buffalo Bayou-front parcel spanning 136 acres just east of downtown has found a buyer. The mostly vacant tract is under contract and expected to close by the … Continue reading →

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More bike racks

Posted on November 9, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron notes that Houston is on the verge of becoming an actual bike-friendly city, and that we ought to recognize that and do something to help facilitate it. Notably, many downtown buildings lack accessible and visible bike racks. For … Continue reading →

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More on Ashby Heights

Posted on November 8, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

That’s not this project‘s name, but it’s how I think of it. Canadian developers of a condominium project on a wooded 1.4-acre plot near the Heights Bike Trail and White Oak Bayou late have dropped their request for a variance … Continue reading →

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