Category Archives: Elsewhere in Houston

The Facebook group I Will Not Shop At The West Gray Barnes & Noble has reached the 200 member mark, with another 300 invitations outstanding. I continue to be amazed at how much this thing has grown on its own. … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Nice post on Houstonist exploring some of the fun things to see and do on Westheimer east of Montrose. It does my heart good to see vitality in that area, because when some friends of mine and I were looking … Continue reading → Continue reading →

We’re now at 135 members in the I Will Not Shop At The West Gray Barnes & Noble Facebook group, and counting. Woo hoo! Looks like the Rice U network has been a big force in recruiting new members. Many … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Wow, a little more than a day and my Facebook group I Will Not Shop At The West Gray Barnes & Noble has 89 members, many of whom were invited by other people. Boy, this whole social networking software thing … Continue reading → Continue reading →

As expected, today the Houston City Council granted historic landmark status to the River Oaks Shopping Center, River Oaks Theater, Alabama Shopping Center, and Alabama BookStop. But the 11-3 vote was largely symbolic, and does nothing to prevent demolition of … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I took these pictures yesterday morning on my way to work: This is the Shepherd end of the center, where the Black Eyed Pea used to be, viewed from the Starbucks lot. The For Fun, For Life, For You sign … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Houstonist has the scoop. Tuesday, August 7 at 2pm is the last chance for the public to speak about the pending historic landmark status of the River Oaks Shopping Center, River Oaks Theater, Alabama Shopping Center, and Alabama Theater in … Continue reading → Continue reading →

This sign has been on the fence behind the soon-to-be-demolished River Oaks Shopping Center for a few weeks. One presumes that it’s the new-and-supposedly-improved Center to come that is “for fun, for life, and for you”, but there’s no identifying … Continue reading → Continue reading →

At long last, City Council has finally approved the much anticipated historic district ordinance for the Old Sixth Ward. Preservationists hailed the 12-1 vote as a new era in Houston’s cultural consciousness. The 33-acre protected district contains the highest concentration … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Rich Connelly has an update on the sudden shutdown of Infernal Bridegroom Productions, which unfortunately appears to substantiate my speculation about the possibility of malfeasance. “Insurmountable financial difficulties” was the official word, and IBP employees, ex-employees and board members were … Continue reading → Continue reading →

At last report, the Center Serving Persons with Mental Retardation had signed a letter of intent to buy the land they now lease from the city. That agreement was contingent on City Council approval of the deal, which should be … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Good article in yesterday’s Chron about the issue of homelessness in Houston’s suburbs, where the problem is often invisible. Although homelessness in the suburbs has not yet reached a critical level, service providers say they are nearly stretched to the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

After an instant-replay review, it turns out the city of Houston has more green space than you might have thought. Or that it might have thought, for that matter. A report released Monday by the Trust for Public Land shows … Continue reading → Continue reading →

This is a shame. Infernal Bridegroom Productions, Houston’s foremost avant-garde theater company, has ceased operations because of “insurmountable financial difficulties.” The news was made public late Tuesday in an e-mail released by IBP board president Chet Farmer. The company’s own … Continue reading → Continue reading →

This story gives some idea of how far the idea of historic preservation has come in Houston over the last decade or so. A year ago, Houston’s small but passionate preservation community was galvanized by warnings that the River Oaks … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I’m still not sure what I think about this story from Friday, which proposes Seven Wonders of Houston. I guess I don’t necessarily object to any of them, though I feel like the Astrodome is a Wonder of Ancient Houston, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

You all remember this picture, right? When last we checked on my favorite proposed real estate project, it was still all about marketing and area residents’ concerns. Now, thanks to Carolyn Feibel, we have some data to chew on as … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Remember the expanded smoking ban that the city passed in October of 2006, which forbade smoking in bars? The ordinance contained a few exceptions, including one for “bars that promote cigar smoking and derive significant revenue from tobacco sales”. Unfortunately, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Well, so much for being designated as landmarks. Contractors removed a line of trees, including several large oaks, from the edge of the River Oaks Shopping Center Wednesday as Weingarten Realty Investors continued its preparations to demolish part of the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

As someone who’s spent a few hours in the past couple of years photographing the demolition of various local landmarks, I can totally relate to this guy. Every March for almost 30 years, David Purdie waited in the same line … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I’ve read this story on Kent Robertson, the new boss of the Bureau of Animal Regulation and Care (BARC), and it occurs to me that I just hadn’t realized how bad things had been there. “We hear it all the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Apparently, the site of the former AstroWorld has become an overgrown eyesore that has attracted the city’s attention. This week, the city gave the owners 30 days to clean up the former AstroWorld location or possibly face fines up to … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Unfortunately, I’m sure this story will be met with another uproar about irresponsible parenting: Weeks after his daughter, niece and two of their friends crashed into a train and died, Doug Moyers is readying himself for a mission: upgrading safety … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I’ll also be guest blogging while Kuff is laid up. I usually blog over at Houstonist, and I’m thrilled to be called up (to continue the baseball metaphor) to Off the Kuff. I can’t promise the magic of Hunter Pence, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

The following was on the marquee at Jimmy’s Ice House near White Oak and Studewood this week. Which would you rather be? Yes, yes, ignore the spelling error. I’m thinking that since the job of a lightning rod is to … Continue reading → Continue reading →

There’s nothing really new in this story about how funding for the West 11th Street Park came out of the Lege, but it’s a useful overview for those who hadn’t been following it all along. Just as the fate of … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I’d call this a step in the right direction, if nothing else. The Houston Planning Commission recommended Thursday that two iconic shopping centers be designated as landmarks, making them eligible for tax breaks intended to discourage their expected demolition. […] … Continue reading → Continue reading →

I have three things to say about this story about a price hike at the Houston Zoo. 1. Get a membership. If you go to the Zoo more than once a year, it pays for itself. (And if you go … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Nancy Sarnoff reports that big changes may be in the works for the Saint Arnold Brewery. The Saint Arnold brewery has become something of a tourist attraction in Houston. But its outer-loop location has the owner thinking a closer-in spot … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Remember the story about the Houston Museum for Natural Sciences offering a twenty-five cent per-bug bounty on live cockroaches for an upcoming exhibit? Been wondering how it turned out? Well, wonder no more, as SciGuy Eric Berger asks entomologist Nancy … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Tory Gattis responds to some of the criticism of his Opportunity Urbanism op-ed that was in last Sunday’s Chron, including one of the charges leveled by Lisa Falkenburg. He’ll get another chance to do some responding after seeing David Crossley’s … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Another story about another step forward in obtaining financing for the Astrodome redevelopment project. A company that aims to reinvent the Astrodome as an upscale luxury hotel has gotten preliminary approval to obtain financing for the $450 million project, county … Continue reading → Continue reading →

As we know, the city of Houston struck a deal with The Woodlands a few months ago to take any future annexations off the table. That deal was later codified into legislation, which has since been signed into law. One … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Miya Shay has been doing a nice job keeping track of what’s going on with the River Oaks Shopping Center and the imminent demolition of its north half. She speculated about the effect of the recently-approved tax abatements for historic … Continue reading → Continue reading →