Category Archives: Elsewhere in Houston

More on Houston’s sustainability efforts

Posted on November 30, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

This Trib story about Houston Sustainability Director Laura Spanjian and her efforts to make our fair city a greener place, which also appeared in the Sunday New York Times, can be considered a companion piece to the earlier CultureMap story … Continue reading →

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We’re #1 in misleading rankings on annoying lists

Posted on November 29, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

So what else is new? Mayor Annise Parker lashed out at an controversial annual study released Monday that placed Houston among the most dangerous cities in the United States with a population of 500,000 or higher. “Crime Rankings 2010-2011,” published … Continue reading →

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Preservation reconsideration

Posted on November 23, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

One of the pieces to the new historic preservation ordinance was the designation of a period in which already-existing historic districts could submit a petition to have the city reconsider their status. The deadline for that has passed, and 8 … Continue reading →

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What the Planning Department says about the new preservation ordinance

Posted on November 17, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Via The Heights Life, here are a series of YouTube videos produced by Planning & Development Director Marlene Gafrick to explain what the new preservation ordinance is all about: Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRJrDd6cb7A Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ae5DyFiwuk4 Part 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tp81p1Yq2HQ Part 4: … Continue reading →

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Mobile billboards

Posted on November 7, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, City Council passed a more restrictive billboard ordinance in 2008, and just recently got a favorable resolution in a lawsuit about billboards in the extra-territorial jurisdiction. But that doesn’t mean the billboard battle is over. Nonsequiteuse wants … Continue reading →

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Why HEB is not like Wal-Mart

Posted on November 6, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I read this story about how residents near the old Wilshire Village Apartments site, where HEB plans to build a new store, will be voting on possible designs for that new store, and I wondered what might have been. Residents … Continue reading →

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“Houston Have Your Say: Energy, Economy & Environment”

Posted on October 26, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Time again for another edition of Houston Have Your Say on KUHT: Worried about air quality? Concerned about environmental regulation costing jobs in the Houston region? Join Patricia Gras for Houston Have Your Say: Energy, Economy & Environment: Making It … Continue reading →

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Census participation numbers

Posted on October 26, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Good news. Seventy percent of Houston households returned their 2010 census forms by mail, up 6 percent from 10 years ago. That could translate into millions of dollars in additional federal funding, according to city officials. Bragging rights, too. Just … Continue reading →

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Billboard battle finally resolved

Posted on October 24, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Nice. A protracted wrangle over 59 billboards illegally erected in Houston’s 5-mile-wide extraterritorial jurisdiction ringing the city ended Thursday when U.S. District Judge Kenneth Hoyt ordered bankrupt RTM Media to dismantle the outdoor advertising within 12 months. The judge’s order … Continue reading →

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The Mayor’s email to Council regarding drainage and street repair

Posted on October 22, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

This email from Mayor Parker to City Council members about the estimated costs of street and drainage repairs found its way into my Inbox, and I’m sharing it with you because it’s something you should know about, too. Any long-term … Continue reading →

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Council passes revised historic preservation ordinance

Posted on October 15, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I’m glad to see that City Council finally passed the long-awaited and much-revised historic preservation ordinance, and even more glad to see that the 90-day waiver for demolitions has been excised, so that what we have now is an actual … Continue reading →

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Email counts, too

Posted on October 14, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I have one thing to say about this. City officials involved in negotiating a tax reimbursement deal with the developer of a controversial Walmart-anchored retail project near Washington Avenue made dismissive, and sometimes derisive, references to citizens opposed to the … Continue reading →

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The preservation ordinance fight

Posted on October 11, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The revised preservation ordinance came before Council last week. It got a lot of feedback in addition to being tagged. Mayor Pro Tem Anne Clutterbuck also opposed the changes to the ordinance, which include a provision that would prevent property … Continue reading →

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What if they built it someplace else?

Posted on September 28, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

For better or worse, the argument against the Washington Heights Wal-Mart mostly boils down to the fact that it’s an inappropriate location for a suburban-style big-box store. There are also concerns about traffic, and about the nature of Wal-Mart, both … Continue reading →

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Adickes studio sold

Posted on September 24, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

From Swamplot: THE LAUNCHING pad for I-45’s Mount Rush Hour, that presidential muck circle in Pearland, and more outsize sculptureprojects has a buyer. David Adickes — creator of the giant Sam Houston of Huntsville and the disembodied cellist in front of the Lyric Center … Continue reading →

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Council approves the Wal-Mart 380 agreement

Posted on September 23, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

No surprise. Over strong neighborhood objections, City Council this morning passed a package of economic development incentives worth more than $6 million for the developer of a future Walmart store near the Heights. City Councilwoman Anne Clutterbuck offered two amendments … Continue reading →

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Nobody likes the Dome options

Posted on September 23, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Remember the three options for the Astrodome that the Sports and Convention Corporation presented a couple of months ago? That recent KHOU poll included questions about those three options: Harris County is considering three proposals for the Astro Dome. I … Continue reading →

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Public Hearing on Final Draft of Historic Preservation Ordinance

Posted on September 19, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

From the Inbox: Final Draft of Proposed Amendments to Historic Preservation Ordinance Released Houstonians, After a two-month process involving public input from stakeholders, I have released the final draft of proposed amendments to the City’s Historic Preservation Ordinance and a … Continue reading →

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RUDH recommendations to the city

Posted on September 18, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Whether you think the Stop Heights Wal-Mart effort is a righteous cause or the annoying whine of a bunch of fancypants elitists, I recommend you go check out this post to read the recommendations made by Responsible Urban Development for … Continue reading →

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What could be done with the Wal-Mart site instead

Posted on September 15, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

If you read through my previous post, you may be wondering “if not Wal-Mart there, then what?” For that, I turn to Andrew Burleson, wearing his President of the Houston Chapter of the Congress for the New Urbanism hat, who … Continue reading →

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Falkenberg’s Wal-Mart strawman

Posted on September 15, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Where to even begin with this bizarre Lisa Falkenberg column? I’ll probably get banned from my favorite Heights coffee house for saying so, and it’s not that I’m a fan of Walmart. Some of their business practices led me years … Continue reading →

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The 380 agreement

Posted on September 14, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s the proposed 380 agreement between the city and Ainbinder for the site now known as “Washington Heights”. It’s all fairly dense legalese, and I confess my eyes glazed over while reading it. If there’s something in here that’s unexpected … Continue reading →

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SN22 public forum and panel discussion about the Wal-Mart

Posted on September 11, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: OPPORTUNITIES AND INCENTIVES FOR RETAIL DEVELOPMENT IN THE URBAN CORE: A PUBLIC FORUM AND PANEL DISCUSSION PLANNED IN LIGHT OF MAYOR PARKER’S INTENT TO PROVIDE TAX INCENTIVES FOR A SHOPPING CENTER ON YALE STREET AT KOEHLER (HEIGHTS … Continue reading →

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Another Wal-Mart meeting

Posted on September 4, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

There was another meeting about the proposed Wal-Mart on Wednesday, this time for residents only. [I]n the second public meeting in eight days addressing concerns over the Walmart-Ainbinder Company development, the city’s proposed 380 Agreement with the developers took center … Continue reading →

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Laura Spanjian

Posted on September 4, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Meet Laura Spanjian, the new Director of the city’s sustainability office. She has some ambitious goals. Most ambitious, but most important, to Spanjian is getting every Houstonian access to single-stream, curbside-pickup recycling. You may have heard happy tales of those … Continue reading →

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Angelika says it’s looking for another location in Houston

Posted on September 3, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron notes that the relationship between the Angelika Theater and its landlord had deteriorated considerably. Angelika’s landlord, Bayou Place Limited Partnership, filed suit more than a week ago claiming the cinema was threatening to remove equipment from the theater … Continue reading →

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Videos of the city’s Wal-Mart presentation from last week

Posted on August 31, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

You can see three videos on Mayor Parker’s YouTube channel from last week’s meeting at the GRB to discuss the Wal-Mart development on Yale. This includes the Mayor’s opening remarks and the city’s slide show presentation, a bit less than … Continue reading →

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The next Wal-Mart public meeting

Posted on August 30, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Mayor Annise Parker Cordially invites you to attend A 2nd public meeting regarding the Koehler Street Development Wednesday, September 1, 2010 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. High School for Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice 4701 Dickson Street … Continue reading →

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Angelika Theater closes

Posted on August 29, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Bummer. “After 13 years of continued service to the Houston community, the Angelika’s lease has been terminated by the Angelika’s landlord….” No word yet as to whether the Angelika, one of a global group of affiliated theaters, will reopen outside … Continue reading →

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The Wal-Mart meeting at the GRB

Posted on August 26, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Lots of sound and fury, that’s for sure. The city is negotiating a deal with the developer of Washington Heights — a proposed Walmart-anchored shopping center near Interstate 10 and Yale – that would reimburse the local builder for as … Continue reading →

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There’s supporters, and then there’s “supporters”

Posted on August 25, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

This Chron story is about “supporters and opponents” of the “Heights” Wal-Mart debuting their webpages. See if you can spot the problem with this: The opponents, led by a group of concerned citizens who began organizing around a Facebook website … Continue reading →

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Public meeting regarding Koehler Street Development

Posted on August 23, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Public Meeting Regarding Koehler Street Development Mayor Annise Parker Cordially invites you to attend A public meeting regarding the Koehler Street Development Wednesday, August 25, 2010 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. George R. Brown Convention Center 1001 … Continue reading →

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CultureMap previews the Wal-Mart

Posted on August 22, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Some interesting stuff here. Restaurants and stores on Heights Boulevard, along with new pathways and landscaping on the boulevard’s esplanade, will be part of Ainbinder Company’s Walmart-anchored retail development in the Inner Loop of Houston, the developer of the project … Continue reading →

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Regent Square update

Posted on August 22, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I drive down Allen Parkway several times a week, and I’ve been wondering when the Regent Square site, which has been vacant since the old Allen House was demolished in October of 2007, will begin construction. Ralph Bivins provides an … Continue reading →

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