Houston Heights

Houston Heights, Openings and Closings, Restaurants

7 Comments

Textile has closed its doors, reports Katharine Shilcutt, the Houston Press‘s food-critic-in-waiting. But chef and owner Scott Tycer only plans to hang the concept out to dry over the summer: “We were seeing a little bit of a downturn, and business was not as good as it could be. So my thought was that we need to get on with our ideas of moving,” Tycer explains. He tells Shilcutt he’d like to find a new location that will accommodate a separate gastropub, with a distinct but fabric-friendly name. But the Heights won’t be on his shopping list:

Tycer and his partners are currently looking at three different parts of town for the new restaurant: downtown, River Oaks and — most surprisingly — the Post Oak/Galleria area. Tycer lamented the lack of truly inventive restaurants in that area: “It’s either Robert Del Grande and RDG + Bar Annie, or it’s a bunch of chains,” he sighed.

Not moving from the former Oriental Textile Mill on 22nd St. at Lawrence: Tycer’s Kraftsmen Bakery in the same location.

Textile Takes a Summer Vacation [Eating Our Words]
Previously on Swamplot: No White Tablecloths: Kraftsmen and Textile in the Heights

Photo of 611 W. 22nd St.: Heights Blog

77008, Galleria, Houston Heights, Openings and Closings, Restaurants

06/21/10 11:38am

Heavy Metal Sound Machine: Turning 19th St. into a Quiet Neighborhood

No Comments

They’re living in the middle of that loud and crazy Heights shopping district on 19th St., but it’s been real quiet for the owners of 226 Recordings, in the front part of the honking metal building completed a couple of years ago next to Gen’s Antiques, between Yale and Rutland. Maybe that’s because the interior has all those baffles and angles:

Once you’re buzzed in through the gate, you enter through a small reception area. A computer is set up for entertainment while you wait. Another door will take you to the “live room” which can accommodate an average sized band. . . . The live room has all kinds of stuff to prevent echos and “keep pure sound.” From ceiling diffusers to bass traps to an absence of right angles, everything is set up to prevent bounce backs and help the band get only the sounds they produce.

The exterior makes up for the lack of right angles in the recording studio inside. One of the owners, who lives in back of the building with her family, tells The Heights Life they like living in the “opposite of a neighborhood . . . full of activity during the day and then totally quiet at night.”

77008, Houston Heights, Recording Studios

06/15/10 11:45am

Grocery Shopping Sounds

Quicklink, Retail

18 Comments

GROCERY SHOPPING SOUNDS After visiting the newly renovated Heights Kroger on Shepherd at 11th St., John Whiteside decides he likes what he hears better at the Heights Fiesta on 14th and Studewood: “Because itâ€™s an old store, they play music. Kroger, on the other hand, plays a constant soundtrack of ads. As you stroll along through the aisles, you are bombarded by loud, insistent messages telling you what to buy, and insisting that the latest high fructose treats are really healthy for your kids because they were once in the same room as an apple, and that the new soup packaged so you can consume it with one hand in your SUV while making phone calls is just what a busy person like you needs, and so on. And itâ€™s all punctuated with boops and beeps designed to keep you from easily tuning it out, and which often make me think Iâ€™m getting text messages.” [By the Bayou; previously on Swamplot]

77008, Grocery Stores, Houston Heights, Renovations, Retail

06/09/10 11:15am

Heights Kroger: Okay, Now We’re Really Big

Redevelopment, Renovations, Retail, Shopping Centers, Timbergrove Manor

77 Comments

It was only closed for a few evenings during construction, but the Merchants Park Kroger at 11th and North Shepherd in the Heights is marking today as its grand re-opening. Work on the project began 13 months ago. A new section of the store, which was expanded by 39,184 sq. ft., opened last October. Today, all the expansions and renovations on the 24-hour market are complete. Total tally: 88,988 sq. ft.

What’s new? A Starbucks with free wi-fi; a “Kitchen Place” featuring small appliances, cookware, and dinnerware; and the now-de-rigueur drive-thru pharmacy. Plus: an “open-air” seafood market, an order-on-the-computer deli kiosk, a “Cheese Shoppe” with more than 300 cheeses, and an Artisan Bread gallery that features store-made tortillas in your five favorite flavors: white, wheat, butter, salsa and cinnamon sugar.

There’s more:

77008, Grocery Stores, Houston Heights, Redevelopment, Renovations, Retail, Shopping Centers, Timbergrove Manor

Comments

06/08/10 3:00pm

Comment of the Day: Kickin’ Back at the I-10 and Studewood Bayou Lounge

Houston Heights, Land for Sale, Parks, Quicklink

3 Comments

COMMENT OF THE DAY: KICKIN’ BACK AT THE I-10 AND STUDEWOOD BAYOU LOUNGE “Park or Strip Club? You make the call!! Before this gets out of hand, please rest assured that all attempts have been made to the Houston Parks Board, Annise Parker, Bill White, Ed Gonzalez, Greater Houston Offroad Bike Association and the list goes on and on. I have been working for 2.5 years to make this a public-use site. I urge ‘you people’ to, instead of defacing property, get the facts first and please take this up with the â€œParks and Woodsâ€ people you speak of. Make it happen. Therefore, go at it: *City of Houston* -CouncilMember Ed Gonzalez – 832.393.3003 -Mayor Annise Parker – 713.837.0311 *Houston Parks Board* -Exec. Director Roksan Okan-Vick â€“ 713.942.8500 -Chairman Tom Bacon â€“ 713.533.5860 -Whatever does happen with the site, I can ASSURE you that it will be in good taste and a benefit to this great City of oursâ€¦.as long as I have anything to do with it. Feel free to email me with thoughts, suggestionsâ€¦.or with money! -Now that I am done pursuing greenspace, I am leaning towards a nice place to sit on a deck and relax with a toddy, look at the skyline from the best angle imagineable. Perhaps walk down the bike trail in the AM, grab a cup of coffee and read my paper . . . Ohhhh there will be plenty of trees left on site since I will need a place to mount my hammock. How does that sound to ‘you people’??” [JEzer, commenting on This is Woods. Park Is Not Available Right Now. May I Help You?]

77007, Comments, Houston Heights, Land for Sale, Parks, White Oak Bayou

06/08/10 10:32am

This is Woods. Park Is Not Available Right Now. May I Help You?

Land for Sale, Signage

41 Comments

What is it with the signage for Metro Realty Group properties? It’s attracted gentrifying Shepherd Jesus over by Center St.; and (as commenter Nord noted yesterday) this bit of snarky graffiti in the woods by White Oak Bayou at the Studewood overpass, just north of I-10.

Oh, and it looks like there’s more to say on the other side:

77007, Graffiti, Houston Heights, Land for Sale, Signage, White Oak Bayou

Comments

05/28/10 2:36pm

Comment of the Day: The High Cost of Building Small

Financing, Historic Preservation, Home Design, Houston Heights, Quicklink, Renovations

8 Comments

COMMENT OF THE DAY: THE HIGH COST OF BUILDING SMALL “As a homeowner in the Heights I agree that scale is a factor in new construction but I would like to point out one important financial reality. It is next to impossible to finance the new construction of a smaller home. Given that the average lot costs $250,000 and the average cost to build new is another $135 per square foot, a new 1200 sf â€œBungalowâ€ will set you back $412,000 plus. You are now sitting in a new bungalow with a total cost of $343 per square foot. The average appraised value of homes in the Heights is around $200 – $225 per square foot. Banks will not finance this project unless you make up the difference in cash, so your looking at bringing $162,000 to the closing table plus a 20% down payment. Hopefully the HAHC realizes this reality and continues to allow larger homes to be built. There has to be a happy medium square footage wise. It is also important to point out that it is not cheap to do a major renovation to an existing bungalow. If you want to redo the plumbing, electrical, insulation, sheet rock etc you soon find yourself spending more for the renovation than you would spend on a new home. Many of the â€œremodelsâ€ are simply saving the studs and the sub floor, I donâ€™t see the value in such a â€œpreservationâ€. And once again, the banks simply will not finance a project that is not in line with the local comps.” [chester, commenting on Big Changes for Houstonâ€™s Preservation Ordinance? Mayor Parker Wants a Temporary Ban on Those 90-Day Exemptions]

Comments, Financing, Historic Preservation, Home Design, Homebuilding, Houston Heights, Remodeling, Renovations

Commercial Real Estate

05/28/10 11:10am

Swamplot Street Sleuths: On the Banks of Greenway

Foreclosures, Greenway Plaza, Houston Heights, New Construction, Redevelopment

1 Comment

Got a question about something going on in your neighborhood you’d like Swamplot to answer? Sorry, we can’t help you. But if you ask real nice and include a photo or 2 with your request, maybe the Swamplot Street Sleuths can! Who are they? Other readers, just like you, ready to demonstrate their mad skillz in hunting down stuff like this:

Some fine sleuthing and rumor-mongering by Swamplot readers this week! Here’s what you dug up about the 2 properties in question:

Greenway Commons: That building going up at the corner of Richmond and Cummins is . . . an Iberia Bank! Just a little pad-site action for the sprawl-eriffic Costco Plus retail-and-parking-lot development that replaced the former HISD headquarters building a few years back. The most polite and knowledgeable-sounding response came from Amir, who added info about a nearby corner, for all you bank fans out there:

The location currently going up on the CostCo pad site is an Iberia Bank ground lease. The property located at Richmond and Weslayan is owned by BBVA Compass, which operates the drive thru behind it and will eventually build a location there.

What about that Heights church building?

77008, 77027, Commercial Real Estate, Foreclosures, Greenway Commons, Greenway Plaza, Houston Heights, New Construction, Redevelopment

Comments

05/27/10 2:57pm

Comment of the Day: Pumping the Heights

Houston Heights, Price Trends, Quicklink, Real Estate Investing, West University

26 Comments

COMMENT OF THE DAY: PUMPING THE HEIGHTS “I grew up in West University in the 1980s and watched it change from a shabby lower middle class neighborhood to what it is today. I now live in the Heights, and the area is remarkably similar to the way West University was during my childhood. The similarities include everything from housing stock, neighborhood amenities, and eclectic mixture of residents. The location is also similar to West University, in that it is convenient to all of Houstonâ€™s major destinations. Mr Kelleyâ€™s prediction that the Heights will follow the same upward trend as West University is probably correct, and I think investing in the Heights is a wise move. As the Heights continues to improve, the demand to live in the area will continue to increase and real estate prices will reflect that. If I had more cash right now, Iâ€™d buy another house in the area and hold on to it.” [Obsolete, commenting on Comment of the Day: Priced Out of the Conversation]

77005, 77008, 77009, Comments, Houston Heights, Price Trends, Real Estate Investing, West University

Buying and Selling

05/25/10 12:38pm

Comment of the Day: Priced Out of the Conversation

Comments, Houston Heights, Price Trends, Quicklink, West University

44 Comments

COMMENT OF THE DAY: PRICED OUT OF THE CONVERSATION “The fact that ‘many’ people think the Heights is overpriced is meaningless – if other people besides yourself think that home prices in the Heights are spot on and actually buy the homes, it doesnâ€™t matter what everyone else thinks. For the record, the way you feel about the Heights is how I feel about West U. I think the neighborhood is completely overpriced and I would never pay the going rate for West U. But – clearly, many people disagree with me, as those houses continue to fetch what I consider to be ridiculous prices. I can argue as long as I want that West U is overpriced and I can take my money elsewhere, but all that means is that Iâ€™m clearly out of step with hundreds of people who feel differently.” [LT, commenting on Swamplot Price Adjuster: The Heights of 2-2ness]

77005, 77008, Buying and Selling, Comments, Houston Heights, Price Trends, West University

Greenway Plaza

05/25/10 10:30am

Swamplot Street Sleuths: Nestled â€™Neath the Costco Oaks

Houston Heights, New Construction

11 Comments

Got an answer to any of these reader questions? Or just want to be a sleuth for Swamplot? Here’s your chance! Add your report in a comment, or send a note to our tipline.

Greenway Commons: What’s that going up at the corner of Cummins and Richmond, tucked “amongst the Costco Oaks?” asks a reader:

I assumed it was a bank – there’s only one in that parking lot now which falls woefully short of standard Houston bank-to-block ratios. But the odd, football shaped structure in the background that they’re rigging appears to be for signage. Can’t find anything online.
The Heights: First Saturday Arts Market proprietor Mitch Cohen wants to know what the workers are up to at the Heights Christian Academy activities building on the corner of 17th St. and Ashland. Signage is down and something’s going on, he tweets:

77008, 77027, Greenway Plaza, Houston Heights, New Construction

Buying and Selling

05/24/10 4:16pm

Comment of the Day: Local Experts

Comments, Homes for Sale, Houston Heights, Quicklink

No Comments

COMMENT OF THE DAY: LOCAL EXPERTS “Wow, these comments are amazingâ€¦quite obviously you arenâ€™t the target audience for a renovated Heights bungalow. Not to sound like Jeff Foxworthy but if you donâ€™t like subway tiles, craftsman style, small (to Houston) homes or high prices per square foot you arenâ€™t a good person to guess on the price of a house in the Heights. Similarly I wouldnâ€™t make a guess on a Katy home because I wouldnâ€™t ever have the desire to live there. . . .” [Wannabe, commenting on Swamplot Price Adjuster: The Heights of 2-2ness]

77008, Buying and Selling, Comments, Homes for Sale, Housing Prices

Homes for Sale

05/19/10 10:02am

Swamplot Price Adjuster: The Heights of 2-2ness

Houston Heights, Price Adjuster

49 Comments

The Swamplot Price Adjuster runs on your nominations! Found a property you think is poorly priced? Send an email to Swamplot, and be sure to include a link to the listing or photos. Tell us about the property, and explain why you think it deserves a price adjustment. Then tell us what you think a better price would be. Unless requested otherwise, all submissions to the Swamplot Price Adjuster will be kept anonymous.

Location: 1447 Oxford St., Houston Heights
Details: 2 bedrooms, 2 baths; 1,498 sq. ft. on a 6,600-sq.-ft. lot
Price: $421,500
History: On the market since the beginning of last December. Price cut $5K in mid-April.

How long could Swamplot readers go without some good old-fashioned price-sniping in the Heights? The latest submission for the Price Adjuster focuses on this little 1920 home on the corner of 15th St.:

Thereâ€™s just so much a 2/2 can go for in the Heights. Also, it has no garage. The kitchen has been updated but itâ€™s not a nice kitchen. Nice backyard for sure with trellis and a bit of storage, but at the end of the day, itâ€™s still a 2/2.

Well, then . . . what price would sell this place?

77008, Homes for Sale, Houston Heights, Price Adjuster

Construction Problems

05/14/10 11:31pm

The Heights Townhome That Came Back from the Dismantled

Demolitions, Houston Heights, New Construction, Redevelopment, Townhomes

18 Comments

First it was up, then it sat unfinished for a good long time, then it was down, and now it’s been . . . resurrected! Viula from the Heights Life blog sends in the latest photo of the corner townhouse unit in the former Waterhill Homes development at 8th St. and Nicholson in the Heights (where 8th Avenue Elementary School used to be):

Remember the one they were breaking down on the end? Well, they built it back up again. My husband thinks the ground floor (garage) is the same but I disagree.

Real progress doesn’t always follow a straight-line path, no? Last time we studied this well-weathered unit, you’ll remember, it was indeed on its way down: