Category Archives: Elsewhere in Houston

From Friday’s Chronicle: Housing analyst sees end to local slowdown. From Saturday’s Chronicle: Houston’s jobs pace hints at economic slowdown. So which is it, fellas? Actually, the two articles themselves don’t really conflict with one another. But it was amusing, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Last November, the Saint Arnold brewery voted to move its operations to a new, larger building just north of downtown. Now Kristin2Go has some more details on that. The brewery expects to produce more than 20,000 barrels of beer this … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Tragic. Storm winds toppled walls at a Rice University dormitory construction site Thursday afternoon, killing one construction worker and sending six others to hospitals, authorities said. The collapse occurred about 4 p.m., as rain and high winds whipped through the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The new Catastrophic Theater show opens tonight, and it will have some familiar elements for longtime fans of the local scene. The Catastrophic Theatre presents the world premiere of THE TAMARIE COOPER SHOW written, directed and choreographed by Tamarie Cooper. … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Washington avenue is a strange and rapidly changing mix of old working-class development, much with a strong Hispanic flavor, and new high-end condos and townhomes aimed mostly at urban hipsters and wannabees. I think this picture captures all that: I’ve … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Swamplot has an update on the Regent Square development, which is what used to be the Allen House apartments. One bit of the developers’ plans caught my eye: They had originally asked the city to make W. Dallas one lane … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Meet the man who will decide what happens to the Astrodome. Edgar Colon, a lawyer with a background in negotiating complex financial deals, has been nominated to serve as chairman of the Harris County Sports and Convention Corp. Colon would … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Don’t like the proposal to turn the Astrodome into a hotel/convention center? Well, how does turning it into a movie studio grab you? Transforming the Astrodome into a huge production studio would preserve the landmark, create jobs and pull revenue … Continue reading → Continue reading →

There’s been so much bad news for preservationists lately that it’s nice to hear about a win every now and then. Like this story, about reusing a historic building instead of tearing it down. “What the heck is that?” That … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Swamplot notes an earlier version of the Chron story about the new Whole Foods coming to West Dallas and Waugh, which says that the accompanying residential high rise will be at West Dallas and Montrose. See this photo, which Swamplot … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Stories like this really amuse me. It’s hard to imagine The Woodlands Waterway as a drainage ditch, but that’s exactly what it was more than 30 years ago. Today, the 1.25-mile linear park and pedestrian/transit corridor is the heart of … Continue reading → Continue reading →

We may finally have an agreement for what to do with the Astrodome. Entrepreneurs seeking to reinvent the Astrodome as an upscale convention hotel have reached a proposed lease agreement with the Harris County Sports and Convention Corp., county officials … Continue reading → Continue reading →

It’s to be built near where I used to live, on the last open plot of land in what’s now a pretty dense corridor. Whole Foods Market plans to build a store between downtown and River Oaks as part of … Continue reading → Continue reading →

When I snapped a picture of David Adickes’ latest installation, on I-10 just north of downtown, I assumed (Adickes being a Presidential-sculpture guy and all) that all four of the giant heads on display belonged to US Presidents. I see … Continue reading → Continue reading →

How sad. The parade was over, and Tom Jones had parked his eye-catching ride, Swamp Mutha, inside the Art Car Museum. He and two friends sat on the curb in front of the museum, reveling in the afterglow of their … Continue reading → Continue reading →

David Crossley uses the recent Houston Area Survey results on attitudes towards city planning as a starting point for this op-ed about a favorite topic of his, form-based codes. [T]he question that has stirred debate was “Are you in favor … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Cool. The president of CityPass wasn’t convinced there was much to do in Houston. Mike Gallagher had been to Houston 25 years ago on business, and as far as he could tell, about the only attraction was Johnson Space Center. … Continue reading → Continue reading →

How about you? Pittsburgh overtook Los Angeles in the category that measures short-term particle pollution or soot. Los Angeles, the country’s longtime soot and smog leader, has enacted aggressive measures to tackle sources of pollution, resulting in a substantial drop … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Six months ago, the Houston Area Survey noted more negativity in local attitudes towards immigrants. That negativity is more pronounced now. The survey found 63 percent agreed that new immigration should be limited, up from 48 percent in 2004. Meanwhile, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

In her report of the first week of business for Green Market, Tiffany wrote: The biggest challenge for Central City going forward will be extending our volunteer base to cover the new market. One of the reasons we can bring … Continue reading → Continue reading →

So I promised I’d be back to give updates on our efforts at Green Market, the Central City Co-op project at Discovery Green. We had our first market day on Thursday the 17th. I am just recovered enough to sit … Continue reading → Continue reading →

You can always count on the Houston Area Survey for some provocative data. Most Harris County residents would support zoning or other land-use planning tools to guide growth, protect neighborhoods and curb suburban sprawl, the 2008 Houston Area Survey shows. … Continue reading → Continue reading →

This sounds like excellent news. The Montrose Boulevard Conservancy’s two-year plan to create a high-quality, landscaped and well-lighted pedestrian pathway with park-like amenities along one of Houston’s main streets got a green light from area residents on April 10. The … Continue reading → Continue reading →

That’s what Houston Politics reports will eventually happen. James Reeder, a co-chairman of the neighborhood group fighting the proposed tower, says it’s likely that the developers will make enough changes in their project to secure the permits they need. Since … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I know that County Commissioners are into building things, but this is a new one on me. Out on prairie as flat as a polished dining room table, where he has no river or even rivulet to dam, Commissioner Steve … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Apparently, nobody really knows for sure. Sugar Land and surrounding Fort Bend County often get a double dose of dirty air from commuters’ tailpipes and what’s blown inland from the Gulf of Mexico, air-quality experts say. But nobody knows for … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The hotel next to the George R. Brown Convention Center is on the block. Houston Convention Center Hotel Corp. has hired real estate firm CB Richard Ellis to sell the property through a process that also will seek development proposals … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Pretty good reviews, I’d say. Those who flocked to the opening “Family Day” event gushed with enthusiasm as they surveyed the green space. While the park is compact, visitors Sunday said they were amazed at how much there was to … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The Chron has a chat with Nancy Kinder, who headed up the private fundraising efforts for Discovery Green. Q: When you started raising money, what was the pitch you made to donors? How did you convince people this would be … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I finally got the chance to photograph those giant Presidential heads that you can see on I-10 eastbound just past I-45: Here’s a map to where they are, in case you want a closer look that doesn’t involve highway speed. … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Many of you may have wondered, “So he’s married, right? And she gets mentioned sometimes, but we’ve never actually HEARD from her…” So here I am to rectify that! As CK has mentioned before, I’ve been involved with the Board … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Discovery Green, the new urban park in east Downtown, gets a nice writeup on the verge of its grand opening. Discovery Green, the 12-acre, $122 million park that opens April 13, represents Houston’s changing self-image as its leaders embrace the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The Catastrophic Theater, which had its mighty fun launch party last weekend, is set to debut its first show this Friday. When Catastrophic Theatre sets sail Friday with the area premiere of Big Death and Little Death, you can expect … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The developers may be moving forward, but the city is saying “not so fast”. City officials have rejected the latest permit applications for the controversial Ashby high-rise, saying the developers must provide more information about traffic impact and take other … Continue reading → Continue reading →