Here’s a shot from a recent hard-hat tour of the Hotel Alessandra, under construction on a corner of the GreenStreet don’t-call-it-a-mall Downtown. The view hints at what a poolside scene might look like when the hotel opens in October, though not exactly: Marlowe, the 20-story Randall Davis Company condo seen rising in the left background (in front of the Hilton Americas), should look a bit less stubbly stubby by then.
Next, a few pics from the Alessandra lobby, highlighting the swervy ceiling:
And Other Sneak Peeks
“You can’t just wait until the day that TxDOT asks you what to do with it,†Tami Merrick tells Stephen Paulsen in the Houston Press this morning, in reference to her involvement with 
 
The real value of the long-buried dump uncovered by the 
“Trenched roads include sumps that are capable of keeping the roadways from flooding from ordinary rain events, but are designed to become flooded in an emergency, acting as additional stormwater detention. Every cubic foot of stormwater that goes in there is a cubic foot that isn’t at the same elevation as city streets, businesses, and houses. It is a feature, not a bug.” [
The former Gulf Oil building at 712 Main St. (now the JPMorgan Chase bulding, currently 
Tacos A Go Go’s latest location is currently being set up in the tunnel spot beneath 
Management for 717 Texas (or Calpine Center, if you’re less of a fan of numerically-forward tower vernacular) just sent out word that the tunnel from that building to Chase Tower at 600 Travis St. is now open again. The route takes a turn beneath the 
