While much of the rest of Houston is recovering from — or still dealing with — high water after last night’s torrential rains, the long-vacant house at 116 Westheimer Rd. is showing off the scars it incurred from a disaster of a different sort. A fire raged through the structure Friday night.
The 1904 building is adjacent to the Jus’ Mac macaroni and cheese outlet in the 106 Westheimer strip center at the corner of Bagby St. A Swamplot reader sent in these photos showing the home as it appeared this morning:
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A reader estimates the home had been boarded up and fenced in for about 8 years, and vacant for an equivalent time before that.
Photos: Swamplot inbox
Fire This Time
Komatsu prefers them well done, but medium well will do… Cleanses the palate after a fresh one.
I always wondered how a property with that much (land) value can just sit there empty for 8 years. The owner just swallowed up the property tax (and whatever other costs) each year and shrugged it off? Why not rehab and rent out the property? At $2,500/month (low), over 8 years, that’s about 1/4 million. That would have gone a long way towards rehab.
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Or sell it. Geeze. Do something! :)
It would be interesting to check and see if the taxes have been paid on that property. I’m betting they have not been.
Cody, it looks like the property belonged to some folks who were elderly and ill for a while, then one of the people who inherited was ill and died. In those situations, maintaining or rehabbing a property is low on the list of priorities.
@anon, the taxes are paid, according to the Harris County tax site.
I did rotten wood work and painting on that house in 1995. A very nice old couple living in Tanglewood owned it and I believe the family still does. There was a night club that burned down next door but I can’t remember the name (studio 13?). Their son lived there for a while. Sorry to see it end that way.
Wasn’t the club next door Goat’s Head Soup? If it’s the club that I’m thinking of, it was torched by the owner. Punk rock legends Rancid were the last band to play there. They had loaded up their equipment and were having a meal at Charlie’s when the fire trucks drove past.
Ross: Agree, but why not sell then?
The father and mother both died in 2010. They had 3 children, 2 sons and a daughter. The daughter died in 2011. The father’s mother was Candace Beryl West Anderson, who was the only sister to James M. West (1871-1941) who built the mansion in Clear Lake. The mother’s obituary states that she and her husband, who predeceased her, owned the southwest section of the Fort Territt Ranch in Sutton County. That ranch was one of the James M. West properties. The current family acquired the Westheimer house in 1976 according to the county clerk’s online records.
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Perhaps they didn’t feel the need to sell it. I read somewhere online that one of the two brothers did live in the Westheimer house at one time.
I live around the corner from that place. Moved in 7 years ago. There seemed to B someone living there off and on until just four years ago. Chairs on the porch. Bikes chained inside the fence. Garage door opened then closed. Furniture you could see thru the window. It’s gone now. They removed house and garage and garden. It looks like they brought in a bulldozer and scoured the whole lot. Shame. Pretty house. Nice features.