Tag Archives: construction

Harrisburg line overpass delayed again

Posted on February 10, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Ugh. Just, ugh. A rail overpass vital to completion of the East End light rail line that has divided neighbors and eroded public confidence will be delayed another four months, Metro officials confirmed Monday. “It has been the project from … Continue reading →

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Can you ever truly “fix” the 59/610 interchange?

Posted on February 3, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

I kind of think the answer is “No”, but they’re going to try anyway. With Houston choking on traffic congestion from Clear Lake to Jersey Village, an infusion of $447 million in state funds promises relief sooner than expected at … Continue reading →

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Know any good, solvent highway construction firms?

Posted on January 16, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

TxDOT is looking for a few. Drivers on Interstate 45 will wait longer for better connections to Loop 610 and U.S. 59 because a Woodlands-based contractor will have to be replaced. The jobs, totaling about $102 million, were won by … Continue reading →

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“Bad, but not awful”

Posted on January 13, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Your Houston economy, folks. As Houston enters the second year of the worst oil downturn in decades, its once-booming economy has sputtered, and the strain finally is starting to show. Houston could flirt with recession in 2016 as the oil … Continue reading →

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RIP, Yale Street post office

Posted on January 12, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

It’s gone. Clues could have been the overgrown landscaping, multiple notices taped to the doors and, for the keenest observer, the bare pole without a U.S. flag or clanging metal cables. Headed back to his SUV on Thursday, one man … Continue reading →

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The Katy Freeway cautionary tale on addressing congestion

Posted on January 3, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Turns out that throwing more lanes at the Katy Freeway hasn’t helped all that much. Several years ago, the Katy Freeway in Houston was a major traffic bottleneck. It was so bad that in 2004 the American Highway Users Alliance … Continue reading →

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Would the elevated 610 lanes really reduce congestion?

Posted on December 21, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Color me skeptical. The elevated lane design, officials said, would allow traffic headed around the loop, and not into the Uptown area, to flow more freely. The lanes would have no access to exits for San Felipe, Westheimer, Richmond or … Continue reading →

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More on the proposed 610 elevated lanes

Posted on December 19, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

From Swamplot: Love that rush of vertigo from driving up the entrance ramp at Hidalgo St. onto the southbound West Loop? Freeway thrill-seekers may have some new options in a few years. The above rendering of new elevated express lanes … Continue reading →

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Elevating the West Loop

Posted on December 6, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

I suppose this was inevitable. Planners on Dec. 10 are scheduled to detail plans for elevated managed lanes along Loop 610, from north of Interstate 10 to U.S. 59. Long constrained by the development and parkland along the freeway, the … Continue reading →

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Hey look, a Regent Square update

Posted on November 29, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Sometimes I forget this is still a thing. In 2007, longtime urbanites said goodbye to the Allen House Apartments, a decades-old complex along Dunlavy just south of Allen Parkway. The multiblock property was a Houston institution, housing hundreds of college … Continue reading →

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More on the high speed rail station in Houston

Posted on November 28, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron frets about it not being downtown. After hearing so much about how the proposed Central Texas Railway will help people commute between the central business districts of Houston and Dallas, it turns out that the Houston station will … Continue reading →

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Red lights on the Green line

Posted on November 15, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Alas. Light rail is up and running along Harrisburg on the city’s east side, but Metro’s construction continues to be a sore spot with area residents because it seems at every turn the work is taking longer than promised. The … Continue reading →

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Uptown living

Posted on November 7, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a thing that is happening. Home to the city’s glittering epicenter of retail, with a dramatic skyline dominated by the towering Williams Tower and other office buildings, Uptown Houston is best known for the places where people work and … Continue reading →

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Bondings

Posted on November 6, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Congratulations, Montgomery County! After rejecting two bond measures for new and improved roadways in four years, including one last spring, traffic-weary voters on Tuesday overwhelmingly backed a $280 million plan to unplug bottlenecks in rapidly growing Montgomery County. With all … Continue reading →

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Chron overview of the Montgomery County bond referendum

Posted on October 30, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

The voters there are engaged in this issue, that much is for sure. Life is on hold in the parking lot that is Rayford Road, 4 miles of too many cars squeezing into too few lanes. Even when it isn’t … Continue reading →

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The parks part of the county bond package

Posted on October 22, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

The plans are more specific for the part of the bond package that’s easier to sell. Commissioner Jack Morman thinks of the East Aldine residents waiting outside Crowley Park before dawn for workers to unlock the gates. Commissioner Steve Radack … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Bonds, five bonds

Posted on October 17, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

There are four Harris County bond issues on the ballot this fall. The Chron supports them all, with some reservations. I’m just going to focus on the first one, since it’s by far the biggest and the one for which … Continue reading →

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What next for HISD?

Posted on September 12, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

The board ponders its options for Superintendent while they prepare to search for a successor to Dr. Terry Grier. The Houston Independent School District board is set to meet Tuesday morning to discuss the district’s next steps after Superintendent Terry … Continue reading →

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HISD bond concerns

Posted on September 10, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

It’s always something. A key Houston ISD school board member called Sunday for audits of the district’s 2012 bond program amid estimates of a $211 million shortfall and concerns about breaking promises to voters. Juliet Stipeche, chair of HISD’s audit … Continue reading →

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Three I-45 updates

Posted on September 8, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

From The Highwayman: Texas Transportation Commission members on Thursday approved a $3.6 million contract with Main Lane Industries, based in Houston, to replace the entrance ramp from Allen Parkway to southbound I-45. The ramp, which whips drivers through a steep … Continue reading →

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Bayou trails update

Posted on September 6, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Coming along nicely. Houston’s Bayou Greenways 2020 initiative will build 150 miles of hike and bike trails along the city’s nine waterways, a $220 million effort that Mayor Annise Parker says is “one of the most exciting things I’ve had … Continue reading →

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Metro still dealing with CAF problems

Posted on August 23, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

The more things change… Metro and the maker of its newest light rail cars have had many costly and time-consuming conflicts. The latest is forcing the transit agency to spend $1 million so its mechanics can lift the vehicles. The … Continue reading →

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Allen Parkway 2.0

Posted on July 30, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Changes are a-comin’. Lane closings are scheduled to start soon along Allen Parkway – slowing traffic – so workers can complete a redesign of the road – meant to slow traffic. The long-planned overhaul, which will add parking along Buffalo … Continue reading →

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Downtown post office has a buyer

Posted on July 11, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Redevelopment, here we come. Lovett Commercial, a Houston-based developer of neighborhood shopping centers and urban redevelopments, is under contract to buy the downtown post office property and potentially turn it into an urban complex of shops, offices, housing and perhaps … Continue reading →

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TOP calls for changes in construction incentives

Posted on July 7, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

From Prime Property: Members of the Texas Organizing Project stood with signs across from a 40-story building under construction at Preston and Milam just off the park on downtown’s north side. The group was hoping to draw attention to the … Continue reading →

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Harris County road bond

Posted on June 29, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Harris County voters may be asked to vote on a bond issue this fall. Rapid population expansion and development in unincorporated areas of Harris County have strained roads, facilities and infrastructure so much that for the first time in eight … Continue reading →

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What now for road projects?

Posted on June 28, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

What do we do with road projects that were going to use ReBuild Houston funds now that the Supreme Court has ruled the 2010 referendum to have been illegal? A necklace of neighborhood streets encircling Hudnell’s home is among the … Continue reading →

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Uptown BRT construction begins

Posted on June 17, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

I’m really rooting for this to succeed. Dignitaries will gather Monday to symbolically start construction of wider sidewalks and dedicated bus lanes meant to enhance Post Oak Boulevard and offer improved transit service, even as some residents and business owners … Continue reading →

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More on the proposed I-45 changes

Posted on June 8, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Offcite reads the documents and provides some bullet points. 1. I-45 Would Rival I-10 in Width The plan would dramatically widen I-45 to more than 30 lanes in certain sections. North of 610, I-45 would rival the Katy Freeway in … Continue reading →

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I-45 Coalition gives its feedback to TxDOT

Posted on May 30, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Jim Weston of the I-45 Coalition sent the following feedback to TxDOT regarding their plans for remaking I-45 in and around downtown. Through-out all Segments: 1.1 – All existing sound barrier walls must be replaced. Past agreements to install sound … Continue reading →

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New rail lines officially open

Posted on May 25, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

At long last. Two new light rail lines might have been the ones debuting Saturday, but for many riders it was the East End, Third Ward and MacGregor Park neighborhoods themselves that were on display. After years of construction and … Continue reading →

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More I-45 stuff

Posted on May 4, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

From The Highwayman: Public meetings meant to debut the massive plan to remake Houston’s downtown freeway system might be coming to an end, but it’s hardly the last chance residents will have to poke and prod the plans. Years of … Continue reading →

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Karbach’s new brewery

Posted on May 3, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, Houston has a lot of craft breweries, with the venerable Saint Arnold being the biggest, oldest, and best known. With the forthcoming opening of their new facility, I’d say Karbach is making a strong case to be … Continue reading →

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TxDOT reveals its I-45 plan

Posted on April 24, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Wow. Just, wow. A massive reconstruction of Interstate 45 through most of Houston would topple one of downtown’s most frustrating barriers – the Pierce Elevated – and move the freeway east of the central business district. That’s just one of … Continue reading →

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