LOOKS LIKE THAT PUBLICITY CAMPAIGN FOR THE NEW MONTROSE H-E-B HAS ALREADY BEGUN If H-E-B can figure out a way to keep this sort of thing going even after the new store is built, that Fiesta won’t have a chance: “The Montrose Land Defense Coalition will hold a rally this weekend at Menil Park to raise awareness of H-E-B’s plans to build a new store on the site of the long-gone Wilshire Village apartment complex. The group will walk from the park to the property at the southwest corner of West Alabama and Dunlavy on Saturday around 1:30 p.m. Last week, H-E-B confirmed that it’s under contract to buy the nearly eight-acre site across from a strip center anchored by a Fiesta. Resident Maria-Elisa Heg recently formed the Montrose Land Defense Coalition to call attention to the property and attract investors who might be interested in buying it with the city of Houston for use as a public space.” [Prime Property; previously on Swamplot]
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It’s amusing that they think someone would be able to afford this land to donate for public use space. And that the city would be interested in giving up the tax revenue.
LOL!
I’m sure HEB looks at these guys at useful idiots. Any publicity is good publicity.
You’ll probably have more people drive by and think, “GREAT, A NEW HEB”.
Personally, I’d prefer to see a mixed use development there. Something with shops, galleries, residential units and green space.
I want all the HEB we can get. Competition increases services and selection, and decreases prices. As regards trees, it’s good business to save all the oaks they can save. I’ve seen them design their parking lots, entrances, and exits around old oaks in other locations; can’t see why they’d abandon that practice here.
After the way Wilshire Village’s neighbors ignored the plight of poor and aged residents and welcomed the demolition of buildings that architecturally outranked their petty swankiendas, I hope HEB puts the biggest, loudest, smelliest, and cut-priciest megastore on that property, that will continually clog up Alabama and Dunlavy with hordes of SUVS, all turning left, perpetually.
Why do they keep using the term “investors”? Giving the land away is not an investment. They need philanthropists. Good luck getting anyone to donate $20 million for a park when there is already a nice one two blocks away.
Carol, you need to understand the people that are going to protest have no concept of reality. They don’t live in the real world.
After the way Wilshire Village’s neighbors ignored the plight of poor and aged residents and welcomed the demolition of buildings that architecturally outranked their petty swankiendas,
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What did you want the neighbors to do, pitch in and buy the property to keep those people living there?
I’m sure you would have loved to have that eyesore next door to you right?
People on this board seem to get stupider by the day.
Why doesn’t the coalition put their energies toward maintaining the Ervan Chew Park mudfields, or fixing up the undeveloped Mandell Park, or getting Menil to replace the broken benches in their park, or green up their embarrassing street front on Richmond, or how about taking the concrete industrial parking lot in front of the Fairmont and making that a park instead? I like parks, there are lots of them within a few blocks of this location that can use some help before another un-maintained park is added.
“From Candace:
Personally, I’d prefer to see a mixed use development there. Something with shops, galleries, residential units and green space.”
I think that would be pretty cool too. Even if someone had the money and was willing to do that, do you think they would be willing to risk an ashby highrise type fiasco?
Oh, god, here come the tacky yellow yard signs again. “Stop HEB.”
No doubt our new mayor will start huffing and puffing and trying to blow the nasty old HEB down.
And probably get the city sued for a second time by a developer who abided by the rules but found the rules don’t matter to some who can pull strings.
From Matt Mystery:
Oh, god, here come the tacky yellow yard signs again. “Stop HEB.â€
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Hey, that gives me an idea. What if they built a 23 story condo ON TOP of the HEB? Kill two birds with one stone. :)
Any similarities between this potential development and the Ashby boondoggle begin and end with importance of those who form the opposition. Undoubtedly, the unwashed hippy denzins and illegal immigrants living in this area will fail to muster the support or interest from anyone at City Hall.
Diggity you’re the idiot if you think that this stretch of Alabama and Dunlavy can handle the sort of traffic that a huge grocery store or mixed used development will create. Besides the fact that Houston doesn’t need another big grocery store, whereas it is losing its heritage day by day.
Neighborhood residents should not have been so shortsighted to urge the demolition of a property that could have been renovated and made beautiful and useful again. Your inability to tell shit from shinola has landed you a fabulous new heat island and traffic snarl.
I don’t know how people are saying Houston doesn’t need another grocery store.
HEB has been planning to put a store in the area for years. This site was rumored, but before it was by Shepherd at Richmond which HEB does own. I don’t know what some of you know, but HEB employs and/or contracts out scouting work to determine if the demographics exist to support these stores.
Outside of Fiesta across the street and the highly overpriced and and extremely overrated Whole Foods, the nearest grocer is Randalls and the Montrose Kroger unless you want to venture across Kirby to Buffalo Speedway across the Southwest Freeway. I used to live right by the Whole Foods (behind Berryhill on Westheimer) but never shopped there. I went to the Kroger at Buffalo Speedway. This HEB would have given a good option. I avoided the Randals at Westheimer because it was way over priced like Whole Foods.
Scott,
You ignored his question. What did you want the neighbors to do? Pitch in and clean it up? WTF? The demolition of the property was hardly due to any pressure from nearby residents. You sound like a bitter former resident. If so, given your attitude then good riddance – welcome to the real world of paying an actual rent or mortgage. Even if the property had been renovated, the former tentants would have been booted – I’m sure you’ll blame the neighbors for the hastiness of that, too
Any similarities between this potential development and the Ashby boondoggle begin and end with importance of those who form the opposition. Undoubtedly, the unwashed hippy denzins and illegal immigrants living in this area will fail to muster the support or interest from anyone at City Hall.
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Actually there are some very well-washed political-insider attorney types living to the north of West Alabama. Not everyone in Montrose is a hippy or illegal.
Do you think the city would make them improve Dunlavy? I mean, the ditches on that block are fierce. Every time I drive down that block I worry about nosediving into one. And I’m a sober driver!
What I read from Scott’s comments is reflection and sadness regarding the irony that so much of the attention and assistance for transition of the elderly and upper-class income disabled residents into their new situations came from sources outside the neighborhood; a far cry from the Montrose many once knew and loved. The property itself was in no worse shape than the recently-rehabbed Elder Street Lofts (AKA the Haunted Jeff Davis Hospital)- surely the neighbors had to realize that if the building conditions were not seriously addressed, some sort of venture not exactly in keeping with the single family residence surrounding area would most likely take its place – where were all the protests and petition signatures then?
kjb434 writes:
Outside of Fiesta across the street and the highly overpriced and and extremely overrated Whole Foods, the nearest grocer is Randalls and the Montrose Kroger unless you want to venture across Kirby to Buffalo Speedway across the Southwest Freeway.
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What about the West Gray Kroger a few blocks north on Dunlavy? I’m sure that big retailers consult some oracle or another about where to build their stores, but you’ll never convince me that the tea leaves or chicken entrails have any basis in reality. That area needs another grocery store about like it needs another Barnes and Noble (oh well…) Besides, I don’t see that lot being anywhere near big enough for a suburban style HEB or a Central Market type store. It’s more like the size of an HEB Pantry, and there’s already a cheap basic grocery store right there. What that area needs? How about a beautifully maintained 1940s garden apartment complex with mature trees and reasonable but affordable rents? Naah, can’t make any money with that!
It’ll probably be the size of the HEB at Buffalo Speedway.
It’ll have everything you need but wont’ go overboard.
I’m guessing it’ll have as nice sized prepared foods section since that is becoming more and more popular.
It’s pretty obvious that H-E-B is out to take a bite out of Randalls and Kroger. Randall’s has lost it’s identity know that it is a Safeway store and Kroger is so overcrowded at West Gray and the Montrose Kroger is just skanky for lack of a better word.
HEB doesn’t have everything I need. The one and only time I tried to shop at the new Buffalo Speedway HEB, they didn’t carry the brand of laundry detergent I went there to buy.
Kroger on West Gray… ah yes, we call that the “poopy Kroger” in our house. The first time we shopped there, shortly after it opened, we encountered an unprotected pile of human excrement in the middle of the back aisle by the dairy section. We immediately alerted a store employee and continued shopping. Finally after about 40 minutes, someone placed a Piso Mojado sign over the poop. When we left after about an hour in the store, the pile still had not been cleaned up. Oddly enough, we have returned there a few times, mostly because it’s open late and occasionally carries our detergent brand.
I <3 the neighborhood Fiesta. I shopped there when it was AppleTree, and Safeway before that, but the Fiesta is its best incarnation in my memory (~25 years in the neighborhood).
Scott
Why so angry? Anyone would think you lived there.
And if you weren’t so bone idle and read a newspaper once in a while you’d know that area residents long supported the restoration of Wilshire Village (talk to Mike Reed at the Examiner, Nancy Sarnoff at the Chronicle.
Try to include some facts in your next post.
The goal is to gt H-E-B to incorporate the plans into their own. They (HEB) would pay for it, of course. It would be great PR for them and good for the community they are hoping to serve.