Friday, July 3, 2009

La Maison in Midtown: The Power of a Good Night’s Sleep

There’s a new $2 million bed and breakfast going up in Midtown? The Chronicle’s Nancy Sarnoff reports that the project’s developers were “able to persuade a lender” to finance construction of their 3-story “New Orleans-style” B&B, which has already broken ground at 2800 Brazos, at the corner of Drew St.:

“It was a little challenging early on in the process,” [developer Genora] Boykins said. “The thing that made the difference is we really didn’t give up on the vision we have.” . . .

That sort of positive thinking is apparently nothing new for Boykins, an attorney for Reliant Energy who serves on the Downtown Management District board of directors — along with her La Maison partner, Centerpoint Energy community relations VP Sharon Owens.

Kirbyjon Caldwell, the pastor of 14,000-member Windsor Village United Methodist Church, provides more insight into Boykins’s real-estate techniques in Chapter 3 of his now-decade-old bestseller, The Gospel of Good Success: A Road Map to Spiritual, Emotional and Financial Wholeness:

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Daily Demolition Report: Summer Freeze

Where will the next demos be? We don’t know either: There’s still no permit info from the city databases. Yeah, suspense kills. Stay tuned.

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Thursday, July 2, 2009

Neighborhood Guessing Game Over: Horses Okay!

Now who won that box of Crave Cupcakes?

Someone who played this week’s Neighborhood Guessing Game — and made one of these guesses: The Woodlands (there were 5), Kingwood (also 5), Tanglewood (3), “somewhere along Buffalo Bayou” (3), Tomball (3), Champion Forest (2), Conroe (2), Magnolia (2), Cypress (2), near Kingwood Country Club (2), Spring, Sherwood Forest, Hunter’s Creek Village, “the area around Briar Forest and Gessner somewhere along Buffalo Bayou,” near Memorial and Voss, “the Wirt/Westview area,” “north of The Woodlands, maybe on the east side of I-45 near the Crighton Ridge neighborhood off Crighton Road, south of Conroe,” Bayou Woods, Memorial “just off one of those small streets east of Gessner,” “between Kirby where it veers east into Allen Parkway and Shepherd,” near the Raveneaux Country Club, near Lake Houston, near Briar Forest and the Beltway, “inside the Beltway along Memorial Dr. between Voss and Gessner,” Lakeside Forest, Ponderosa Forest, “somewhere off Cypress Creek,” Clear Lake, Brook Forest, Lakewood, Friendswood, Broad Oaks, Briar Manor, Crestwood, Glen Cove, “around a bayou,” “on Saddlebrook, right off Memorial east of Chimney Rock,” “Waller/Tomball somewhere nestled along Spring Creek,” “the Hudson area off Memorial,” Lake Livingston, Panorama Village, Hunterwood, Splendora, “in them thar hills to the north and west of Tomball proper,” “in the Hirsch-Little York-Homestead-Tidwell box near Tidwell Park,” Saddlewood, Sandalwood, “down Baytownish,” “in the back of The Woodlands,” Spring Branch, Hilshire Village, near Memorial and Piney Point, Rivercrest north of Briar Forest, Briargrove Park, near the Lakeside Country Club, off Briar Drive next to Tanglewood.

Whew! That’s a lot of househunting. This week’s winner is the mysterious IHeartSwampLot — for this entry:

This sucker is on a MONSTROUS lot with tons of pine trees. That could be just about anywhere in the northern fringes of the metro area. How we gonna narrow this down? Well, the furniture and kitchen just SCREAM 80s and the windows, they lead me to believe there’s quite a sight to behold out in the backyard, such as a lake but the trees are too close for that. Creek? Big hill? It also would appear that it is either a two story or the back of the house is raised. Maybe it is just a hill. Can’t be the Woodlands…the setting feels to secluded. Magnolia probably was still waaaaay too far out back in the 80s. Conroe area is kinda trashy, and this is a nice house. Could be non-lakefront property near Lake Conroe, but again, the seclusion would indicate otherwise. Tomball doesn’t seem right either, flat as a pancake out there. Time for the maps…where do we have hills and pine trees, and possibly a water feature on the fringes of 1980s Houston civlization? Kingwood comes to mind, but it isn’t terribly hilly. Further up the road we have Splendora but that seems kinda far out. Panning back to the west it would appear that there’s creeks in them thar hills to the north and west of Tomball proper.

Congratulations! A dozen cupcakes from Crave Cupcakes in Uptown Park will soon be on their way to you! (Thanks to Crave Cupcakes for sponsoring the prize this week.)

Also in the neighborhood: runners-up elnina, CK, and Jessica1. Great work!

A special commendation goes to Cynthia, who knew the home, wrote in with the listing, and then posted this deceptive guess:

Oh, I love it! It reminds me of my grandparents’ patio home built in the 80s out near Briar Forest and the Beltway…all that modernism mixed with wood and stone but more traditional, yet stylish, furniture.

BUT this is what they dreamed of owning. It’s definitely bigger than a townhome, with more greenery, and requires much more $$$.

I’m guessing my grandparents’ dream house is more inside the beltway along Memorial Dr between Voss and Gessner.

Did that knock you off track?

And where is this place?

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Comment of the Day: The Supermarket Standstill in Timbergrove

   

“Outside of internal remodels, they can’t do anything with the [H-E-B] Pantry location [at T.C. Jester and 18th St.] except leave it. The Shopping center along with the one located across the bayou (old K-Mart) are located in the Floodway (not just floodplain). There isn’t much they can do [to] those [sites.] HEB would need an entirely new location.” [kjb434, commenting on Buffalo Modern: The New H-E-B in West U]

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Leaner and Meaner: The EDI Architecture Story

A reader fills us in on the toll the nationwide downturn has taken over the last year on EDI Architecture, once one of the largest architecture firms in Houston. EDI, which specialized in multifamily projects, had more than 120 people on its highrise team not too long ago — plus an additional 80 employees in New York, California, and Angola offices.

As of June, the reader reports, the firm was down to fewer than 30 employees, total.

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Buffalo Modern: The New H-E-B in West U

Two new buildings designed by regional architecture stars Lake/Flato Architects will open in Houston in the next couple of months: Rice University’s new swimming-pool and palm-tree festooned Wellness Center . . . and this sleek new H-E-B on Buffalo Speedway and Bissonnet.

Strangely, the San Antonio architecture firm didn’t get the late-nineties memo that specified an Alamo flavored Mission Revival strip and shopping center style for the inner Westpark corridor, and opted instead for a modern-looking hangar with a reflective butterfly roof, lots of glass, and a bunch of eco-features. Plus, fancy foods:

Buffalo Market will feature a Central Market Cafe on the Run, offering gourmet to-go items; a cheese shop with, for example, 54 varieties of bleu cheese; 2,000 varieties of wine; and a sushi and cooking demo station.

Half of the 68,000-square-foot H-E-B store will be devoted to perishables. Typically, supermarkets give perishables about one-third of the store space, [H-E-B and Central Market President Scott] McClelland said. There will be less general merchandise.

Buffalo Market will be similar to the H-E-B/Central Market hybrid in The Woodlands, only it will be an updated version, he said.

A few more photos sent in by a reader:

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Daily Demolition Report: Wanted

Regularly scheduled demolitions will return as soon as technical difficulties with the city’s permit reporting system are resolved. We know you want your rubble. Thank you for your patience.

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Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Comment of the Day: Galveston Offshore Platform Eco-Gambling Escapes

   

“. . . a ‘Santa Monica’ pier at The Flagship location would be golden, would be the DESTINATION for a lot of folks! But couldn’t there ALSO be an offshore gambling venue?? Imagine an elevator takes gamblers to a secret bullet-train in a tube, which whisks them to an oil derrick with gaming (no horse-racing, of course, haha!) The Island needs an injection of edgy intrigue since The Balinese is gone. Also, George Mitchell is another Player on Galveston; the gambling train could offer eco-tours to see Gulf habitat and thus receive some federal matching funds or something…” [movocelot, commenting on Roller Coaster on the Pier: Crunch Time for the Flagship Hotel]

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The Passing of the San Luis Pass

   

Galveston will . . . survive! “‘The current predictions for sea level are that it will rise somewhere between two feet and three feet over the next century,’ said [Rice University Oceanographer and Geologist John] Anderson. ‘I think most scientists would agree from about Jamaica Beach west will probably disappear by the end of this century.’” [11 News]

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Houston Pavilions Goes Office

And suddenly, Houston Pavilions gets some action:

NRG Texas and Reliant, NRG’s retail electric company, have agreed to lease 240,000 square feet of the 11-story Pavilions Tower, which comprises most of the building at 1201 Fannin.

NRG/Reliant will take 10 floors. The law firm Sheehy, Serpe & Ware has the top floor.

The bottom three floors of Pavilions Tower have always been designated as “swing space,” which could have been used for retail or office space, Houston Pavilions co-developer Geoff Jones said. NRG/Reliant will take all of the swing space, as well as some additional space on the second floor that initially had been designated for retail, Jones said.

How much of that lonely and vacant retail “additional space” on the second floor is being turned into office space?

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Daily Demolition Report: De Nada

So sorry. No demos to report. Will try to do better tomorrow.

Update, 7/2: Your wish is granted: We got one!

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Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Comment of the Day: Away from the Ropelines

   

“I’m new to the area, and am trying to learn about different neighborhoods. I thought [Rice Military] was a good place, but these posts are making me rethink. I want an area close to restaurants and neighborhood bars, maybe a few shops, but not late night strobe light clubs with velvet ropes and VIP sections. Are there any areas in Houston inner-loop that are cool like this, or are they all either club areas or suburban areas where everyone lives in a house with a yard? Why aren’t there any cool areas for the 30-something crowd that doesn’t want clubs and drunk drivers, but does want shops, bars and restaurants?” [Joe, commenting on Coming Soon: Late Night Rice Military Action]

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No Local Sprinkler Controls for Texas

   

That ordinance passed by West University’s city council that would have required sprinklers in all new West U homes won’t go into effect — despite the lobbying efforts of local fire chiefs. Earlier this month Governor Perry went ahead and signed a bill that takes away the right of local municipalities to create sprinkler requirements. An amendment to the bill was added shortly after West U’s ordinance passed, but is retroactive to the first of the year. [Off the Kuff; previously on Swamplot]

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Neighborhood Guessing Game: Bedside Manor

Sweet! The winner of this week’s Neighborhood Guessing Game will receive a dozen cupcakes from Crave Cupcakes in Uptown Park, a $36 value. Never been to Uptown Park? Don’t think you can find 1151-06 Uptown Park Blvd.? No problem: The prize comes with free delivery (which normally costs $10-$45, depending on your Zip Code). If you just know you’re gonna win this week, you can pick from Crave Cupcakes’ PDF menu online.

All you’ve gotta do to win, of course, is guess the location of the pictured home. If more than one of you guesses the correct neighborhood, the prize will go to the player who gave the best explanation for the guess.

If you already know this home, or if you come across it or the listing while we’re playing the game, don’t ruin the fun for everyone else by blurting out the answer. Instead, send Swamplot an email with a link to the listing. Then enter your own super crafty and deceptive incorrect guess, just to throw the other players off. If you do this well, you’ll earn special recognition when we announce the winner. And if no one guesses the actual neighborhood, you could win the prize!

Ready to poke around the place?

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Roller Coaster on the Pier: Crunch Time for the Flagship Hotel

There may be a buyer for Galveston’s Flagship Hotel, reports Laura Elder in the Galveston County Daily News. The hotel suffered about $7 million in damage from Hurricane Ike last year. But Landry’s Restaurants, the current owner, has a fallback plan in case the sale doesn’t go through:

If the 225-room property at 25th Street and Seawall Boulevard doesn’t sell, Landry’s likely would demolish the hotel and develop a “pleasure pier” with amusement rides, officials say. . . .

Landry’s is pricing demolition for the hotel, built in 1965 as a show of confidence after Hurricane Carla, Jeff Cantwell, senior vice president for development, said.

Perched on a pier overlooking the Gulf, the Flagship fell into disrepair on its own after 1990, when The Flagship Hotel Ltd. took over management.

Landry’s paid the city $500,000 for the hotel in 2004, saying it planned to spend $15 million transforming the property into an entertainment plaza with amusement rides, including a roller coaster.

Landry’s attempted to move ahead, but was stymied by agreements that gave Daniel Yeh, head of The Flagship Hotel Ltd., control of the hotel until 2031.

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