15-Home Westmoreland Place Development Clears Hurdles, More Tree Space

15-HOME WESTMORELAND PLACE DEVELOPMENT CLEARS HURDLES, MORE TREE SPACE Sign for Masterson Oaks at Westmoreland, Westmoreland Place, HoustonWhen last we left the 0.83-acre lot tucked up against Spur 527 between Marshall and Alabama St. (catty corner from the Broadstone at Midtown second block), developer Carnegie Homes was seeking city approval for a variance for reduced setbacks from the spur and Alabama St. The variance was approved last November; the site plan, which lays out space for 7 homesites within the Westmoreland Historic District (on the north portion of the property) and another 8 tighter townhome lots on the free-range southern end, has been adjusted slightly to allow a 5,000-sq.-ft. promenade and private park area leading up to and surrounding the enormous live oak tree (branches visible in the above photo) near the property’s northwest corner. A new sign announcing the development went up last week. It’s been renamed a couple times too. The former Carnegie Oaks at Westmoreland — described on the company’s website as The Oak at Westmoreland — is now Masterson Oaks at Westmoreland, Carnegie’s Arpan Gupta tells Swamplot, after the Masterson Mansion that stood on the site as recently as the 1950s, but was torn down after the spur bisected its grounds. Gupta is still seeking approvals within the Westmoreland historic district for a reduced setback along Marshall St. [Previously on Swamplot] Photo: Swamplot inbox

12 Comment

  • These guys have a development on Stella link that has been sitting fallow for 4 months. They are focused on slamming the most house on the smallest space. They have 4 story homes that they are asking 600k that they haven’t sold or work on in months.

    The homes are taller than anything in the neighborhood and are completely out of character for the area plus they are so greedy, for a 4 story home, they offer the ‘option’ of an elevator or the option of walking 60 stairs from the garage to the 4th floor.

  • Build it, and someone will buy it.

  • 4001 A, C & D Lanark are all under contract since January and have closing dates of June and August shown, although that’s subject to change. Unit B is still active. All four are listed in MLS.

  • To confirm, my previous comment was about the properties referred to in the first comment from The kid. They are on Lanark @ Stella Link.

  • Nuthin’ says “luxury living” quite like cleaning freeway debris on your juliet balcony.

  • HoustonRealtor,

    there are two still waiting for stucco to be placed and have been like that for 3 months. the other two don’t even have the foundation poured. in that area, if the house is under contract, they are building it fast.

    in aryshire, the neighborhood, homes sell for above asking price and are often have contracts within a day of hitting the market.

    there is no inventory in that part of town and given that they are about to build 35 free standing patio homes at the intersection of edloe and bellaire that don’t require supreme stairclimbing skills, it seems a smart builder would have finished those four and had them out.

  • They have a nerve naming this shit after the gorgeous Georgian Masterson Mansion. Kinda like bulldozing Bayou Bend and calling the development Bayou Bend Place.

  • Yeah its kind of like naming Southampton after Southampton, NY. No correlation whatsoever.

  • lubbinit gets my vote for comment of the day.

  • I thought all of that area was in a historical district? I guess that goes to show that a historic designation doesn’t mean much in this developer-friendly town. Good luck selling at $800K within spitting distance of the downtown split!

    @the kid, I’ve also noticed that work has apparently slowed down or stopped at several townhome and apartment projects around the city. You’d think that with our “white hot market” at least some of the rental units should have been finished and occupied by now. That makes me nervous and tends to confirm my suspicions that we are overbuilding once again.

  • The units being built at Lanark @ Stella Link are so stupid-looking. They’re so ridiculously tall for the area and look out of place.

    I’m curious how Carnegie Homes managed to get permission to build 4 stories high, but I do note that this location is NOT under the control of the Braeswood Homeowners Association, so Carnegie wasn’t held to the 2.5 story height restriction.