Category Archives: Elsewhere in Houston

Christof looks at the Upper Kirby reconstruction project, and sums up the case against widening the traffic lanes succinctly: It’s been the Houston pattern for 50 years to take away trees and pedestrian space in the interest of wider traffic … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I’ve blogged quite a bit about the Sonoma project in the Rice Village for which a one-block stretch of Bolsover has been abandoned by the city to the developer so it can be turned into a pedestrian plaza. (If you … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The Center Serving Persons with Mental Retardation is celebrating 50 years of offering vocational training – yesterday was the ceremony observing the anniversary. KUHF has a brief story, which as far as I can tell is the only mention in … Continue reading → Continue reading →

This sort of thing is becoming more and more commonplace; I’m talking about both the type of project and the neighborhood reaction to it. A standing-room-only crowd packed the Poe Elementary School auditorium on Thursday night to oppose a 23-story … Continue reading → Continue reading →

This sounds interesting. With a little motivation, a group of like-minded people could change the look of one of Houston’s major streets. The idea to revitalize Montrose Boulevard and make it one of the city’s few walkable corridors has been … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I managed to miss this Q&A with Brock Wagner, the head honcho at the Saint Arnold brewery, but thankfully PDiddie was on the case. You may recall that at last report, the venerable (and fast-growing) brewery was seeking new digs. … Continue reading → Continue reading →

On Studemont, just north of Arnie’s and south of I-10 is an old warehouse. A little more than a week ago, demolition equipment arrived on the property and started work tearing it down. Shortly thereafter, this guy appeared: I presume … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I’ve noted before that the Allen House Apartments are not long for this world. While there’s been a construction fence around the property for several weeks now, you can’t really tell how close they are to meeting their doom from … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I got to see Lucy at the Houston Museum of Natural Science this week – free entry as a part of a science education leadership meeting – along with a tour by the exhibit’s curator, Dirk Van Tuerenhout. Dirk is … Continue reading → Continue reading →

And the River Oaks Shopping Center is officially gone: There was a small remnant of the old Black Eyed Pea this morning, but it didn’t last the day. Here’s a view from the rear: You can see the River Oaks … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The Chron editorializes in favor of preserving the River Oaks Theater and the Alabama Bookstop. Since the city has no stick with which to force the owner to preserve the buildings, the mayor is offering carrots in the form of … Continue reading → Continue reading →

As I mentioned before, I had the opportunity last week to take a visit to the Center Serving Persons with Mental Retardation and get a tour of the facility from its executive director, Eva Aguirre. The first time I ever … Continue reading → Continue reading →

This story about the behind-the-scenes efforts to delay or deter the demolition of the River Oaks Shopping Center is interesting, but not particularly instructive. To me, the whole crux of the matter is at the very end: In the end, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

News from my neighborhood. Allegro Builders will soon begin construction on the two-story structure at 1001 Studewood. The 9,650-square-foot building will house an upscale pizzeria on the ground floor and offices above, including a realty firm and mortgage company. Russo’s … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Time for another Astrodome redevelopment update. Entrepreneurs looking to turn the iconic Astrodome into an upscale convention hotel have scrapped a “best of historic Texas” theme for a more modern, streamlined look. A faux Texas courthouse and other features that … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Didn’t get a chance to get to this yesterday… I took a few photos of the ongoing demolition at the River Oaks Shopping Center yesterday. The one above is my favorite – kinda looks like a mechanical dinosaur having a … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The following is a press release from the Center Serving Persons with Mental Retardation: The Center Serving Persons with Mental Retardation, a nonprofit agency committed to offering its clients opportunities for personal growth, is opening three group homes for adults … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Yesterday afternoon there was a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new Looscan Library at Willowick and Westheimer. Brief remarks were made by Rhea Brown Lawson, the HPL Director; Mayor White; Council Member Pam Holm; Bonnie Brooks, the President of Friends of … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I don’t know when exactly it happened, since I was out of town for a few days and just drove past it for the first time in nearly a week today, but demolition has finally begun on the River Oaks … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The future of The Woodlands will be determined by the voters this November. The Town Center Improvement District board voted today to call for a Nov. 6 election that will move the community closer to becoming a city in 2014. … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Let me register my disagreement with Tory Gattis over the question of closing the “condo loophole” for minimum lot size restrictions in neighborhoods that have them. The new ordinance will only allow a single-family home on the lot (which sounds … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I for one certainly hope that the current efforts to turn Buffalo Bayou into a useful recreational resource are a smashing success. This appeals to me as a preservationist, as an environmentalist, and just as someone who wants to see … Continue reading → Continue reading →

More downtown construction activity coming soon. Hines, the Houston-based firm that develops real estate across the globe, is planning its newest building in the heart of its hometown. The new project, to be called MainPlace, will be a 46-story, 1 … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I’ve been driving by the River Oaks Shopping Center on my way to and from work lately, to see when the demolition work would begin. Nothing happened last week, which I attributed in part to the heavy rains from TS … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I finally had a chance to catch up with David Baldwin, the president of the Foundation for the Retarded, which is the fundraising arm of the Center Serving Persons with Mental Retardation, and ask him a few questions about the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I don’t know if Weingarten ever got their sewer disconnect permit business straightened out, but as of yesterday afternoon at least, the River Oaks Shopping Center was the same as it was earlier this week. Basically, there’s some heavy equipment … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Ready or not, here it comes… After much discussion, which mostly consisted of many plaudits to Council Member Anne Clutterbuck for her work during the decisionmaking process, the Hippie Bohemian Attorney project got the green light. City council approved the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

As noted yesterday, I had the chance to ask Frank Michel, the Director of Communications for Mayor White, a few questions about sale of land to the Center Serving Persons with Mental Retardation. Here are the questions and his responses: … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The folks at KPFT had a press conference yesterday to talk about the shooting that took place there on Monday. A volunteer radio host who was nearly struck by a bullet that crashed through the front window of KPFT’s Montrose … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Today, City Council unanimously approved the sale of the land on which the Center Serving Persons with Mental Retardation to the Center, thus completing a deal that was struck in April. As I understand it, there are still a few … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Today’s the day we get to find out if that is going to happen. Houston City Council is set to decide today whether to sell a block of Bolsover in Rice Village to a developer for $1.5 million, after months … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Matt Stiles tells us why the River Oaks Shopping Center hasn’t been demolished quite yet. The owner, Weingarten Realty Investors, can’t raze the building at West Gray and Shepherd until its plumber disconnects the waste water sewers at the various … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I confess, when I first heard about the county bond proposal for the November ballot, which would include money for improvements and additions to the criminal justice center downtown, it didn’t occur to me that there might be a preservation … Continue reading → Continue reading →

It looks like somebody has it in for KPFT: A bullet blasted through a Plexiglas window at KPFT radio early this morning, missing a woman’s head by about 18 inches, said general manager Duane Bradley. The bullet was fired while … Continue reading → Continue reading →