Category Archives: Elsewhere in Houston

Swamplot and the Houston Architecture Info Forum both point to this subscription-only HBJ article that says there may be another highrise in our future, this one on Shepherd near Alabama, where the eclectic jewelry store Fly High Little Bunny now … Continue reading → Continue reading →

In December, I mentioned that Infernal Bridegroom Productions, which had unfortunately shut its doors due to financial woes, had been reborn as The Catastrophic Theater. I’m pleased to announce that they are gearing up for the launch of their first … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The long-awaited highrise ordinance, which was put off by City Council back in November, is still on the drawing board because it apparently satisfies no one and doesn’t actually impact any existing development projects, including the Ashby highrise itself. But … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The week before last, County Judge Ed Emmett asked the Harris County Sports and Convention Corps’ board not to give an extension to Astrodome Redevelopment to negotiate a lease (which they eventually finished anyway). He was critical of their ability … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Back in October, I observed that there was some ground-leveling going on at the old Ed Sacks Waste Paper site on Montrose/Studemont just north of Allen Parkway/Memorial. I thought it meant construction would start real soon. I suppose that’s true, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Astrodome Redevelopment: Not dead yet. A group of entrepreneurs missed a Tuesday deadline for reaching a deal to turn the Dome into a convention hotel, but have negotiated a proposed long-term lease for the aging sports venue. Astrodome Redevelopment Co. … Continue reading → Continue reading →

In this video, Chron football writer John McClain asks Texans owner Bob McNair what he thinks about the Astrodome Redevelopment project. Forward to about 2:50 in the clip to hear the Q&A: If you don’t feel like watching, McNair basically … Continue reading → Continue reading →

This article on the continuing planning/anti-planning debate is quite good, partly because it gives some depth and nuance to the question about how much effect regulation has on housing prices, and partly because it shows the inanity of the anti-planning … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Miya reminds us that the ongoing planning/anti-planning debate is more than just theoretical, because the anti-Ashby highrise ordinance, which was put off in November, is set to come back before Council soon. Of interest to me is her connection of … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I confess, this is a bit of a surprise to me. A company’s bid to reinvent the Astrodome as a convention hotel suffered a major setback Wednesday when a county board refused to give it more time to negotiate a … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I had wondered where we stood with the Astrodome convention center/hotel deal. Now we know. The Harris County Sports and Convention Corp. expects to work out a proposed lease within two weeks with the company that wants to turn the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I just have one question regarding this story about another proposed convention center hotel for downtown: “The current convention center hotel is filling up, and Houston can attract more conventions if it had more hotel rooms in the Central Business … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Here’s a little tidbit from anti-planner Randall O’Toole’s op-ed on Sunday that caught my eye: Cities with strong planning authority, such as Portland, Ore., and San Jose, Calif., almost invariably have the least affordable housing, the fastest growing traffic congestion … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Did you miss Sunday’s implosion of the old Montagu Hotel? Well, HouStoned and Houstonist have pictures, with the latter including video. As yet, no shadowy figures near a doorway have been spotted just prior to the kaboom, but it’s early … Continue reading → Continue reading →

So we went to Beavers Barbecue, the new Monica Pope place, the other night. As we drove down Sawyer towards Washington, I told Tiffany that the Mahatma Rice silos were going to close down, and that the owners were seeking … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Following up on Sunday’s extravaganza of stuff related to the new developers’ PAC, here’s some oppo research by David Crossley. [Randall] O’Toole calls himself “The Antiplanner” and publishes a Cato Institute website by that name, “Dedicated to the sunset of … Continue reading → Continue reading →

No, no, nothing to do with politics. Another old hotel implosion. Cherry Demolition crews have been chipping away at buildings on the block bounded by Main, Fannin, Rusk, and Walker since October, to make room for a 46-story pipe wrench. … Continue reading → Continue reading →

According to Nancy Sarnoff, the high rise development on Kirby must be going well, because the developers there are looking to expand it even before it’s finished. The West Ave development that’s going up on five acres at the southwest … Continue reading → Continue reading →

This article, about the new developers’ PAC in Houston, is fascinating on many levels. Over lunch with Mayor Bill White on Monday, former Mayor Bob Lanier laid out his concerns that new regulations on real estate development threaten the city’s … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Nancy Sarnoff brings the news. Homeowners aren’t the only ones feeling the sting of rising property taxes. The owners of the Arabia Shrine Center said mounting tax bills caused them to sell their property. “It’s regrettable, but the ever-increasing taxes … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The Chron editorialized about the Mayor’s billboard reduction proposal that has been put off until some kinks an be ironed out. I’m still not quite sure what they said, however. The mayor said he shares the same goal as opponents … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I think the better question is why this? After trotting out and discarding a series of slogans over the years, Houston’s official marketing agency is taking a new approach as it prepares to launch a $3 million campaign to enhance … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Boy, the things I miss by not going out at night more often. At least there are people I know to document them for me so I can ooh and aah over them later. Continue reading →

Well, here’s an unlovely Christmas present. The Greenway Theatre, which has screened films in the basement of Greenway Plaza for 35 years, will close at the end of this year. Employees say Landmark Theatres lost its lease at 5 East … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Looks like we’re about to have some more action on the billboard-reduction front. Under a proposed ordinance, billboard owners could remove some signs in exchange for relocating other ones, city officials said. The exchange would be based on the size … Continue reading → Continue reading →

There will soon be fewer billboards in Houston. This is a good thing. Clear Channel Outdoor Inc., one of the largest outdoor advertising companies in Houston soon will begin removing more than 800 of its small and mid-size billboards across … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Got a couple hundred million bucks burning a hole in your asset portfolio? If so, you can purchase a Houston architectural icon. The owner of Williams Tower, the 65-story skyscraper that dominates the Galleria-area skyline, has put the architectural icon … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Lisa Gray gives a downer update on the Alabama Bookstop, which is not what I needed after a great weekend. “Well, there’s one,” says David Bush, wearily eyeing a two-foot discoloration on Bookstop’s high ceiling — one of several such … Continue reading → Continue reading →

It’s Lights in the Heights time again, with today being the 20th anniversary of this most excellent neighborhood festival. I give you Marty Hajovsky for most of what you need to know. The best place to start is the WHCA’s … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Remember the Crowne Plaza implosion, and how some people thought that a video recording of it showed a person entering the building just before the big boom? Well, HPD says that didn’t happen. The Houston Police Department opened an investigation … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The theater troupe known as Infernal Bridegroom Productions, which shut its doors several months ago due to financial strife, has been reborn under a new name. You wouldn’t think anything “catastrophic” would prompt an eager welcome. But when theater fans … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Christof takes a look at the Bissonnet Tower controversy, and asks just what it is we’re aiming to do about it. To start with, the residential part of this project isn’t actually a traffic issue. Bissonnet is a major arterial; … Continue reading → Continue reading →

On Sunday, the Chron editorialized in favor of keeping the Astrodome. The county spends $1.5 million a year simply to maintain the Astrodome in its largely unused state. That is an untenable situation that cannot extend indefinitely. County commissioners are … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The attitudes about immigration found by the 2007 Houston Area Survey are not as bad as the Chron headline make it sound. It’s a fairly mixed bag and there certainly are some disheartening things, but it’s not all negative. “Anglos … Continue reading → Continue reading →