Hey, whaddya say we just knock this baby down and put up a strip center?
Another parting shot of the former Hoa Binh Center at Travis and Tuam — plus more from Midtown’s most . . . vocal booster — after the jump.
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Midtown
Earlier this month, Rhea Wheeler told the Houston Business Journal about his plans to open three restaurants in existing buildings in the greater downtown area: Gastropub Hearsay next to Market Square, a Texas cuisine restaurant called White House at Austin and Elgin in Midtown, and . . .
What was that third location? The HBJ wouldn’t say:
The company’s third location is a secret ingredient in the restaurant mix. Wheeler does not want to reveal the location of the large Midtown property, which was purchased two years ago, because he’s trying to buy the surrounding properties.
Below the fold: oops — where it is!
Former Ibiza and Catalan investor Rhea Wheeler and two partners have bought the shuttered Twelve Spot bar on Travis St. — just around the corner from Market Square downtown — and will be turning it into a gastropub called Hearsay.
218 Travis is Houston’s second-oldest building, and originally served as a Confederate Army munitions depot. It’s a dramatic space inside: There are three stories, but the upper floors have been removed and a mezzanine placed in the back.
Wheeler told Jennifer Dawson of the Houston Business Journal he’ll open the new restaurant in the first half of next year.
After the jump: More Wheeler restaurant plans! In actual old buildings!
A reader who frequents Midtown sends photos showing the progress of the new building at 3201 Louisiana, along with comments.
Took this from near the corner of Elgin and Milam. Steel’s all up, and then some. 24 Hour Fitness is supposed to be moving into the top floor. The parking garage [in the foreground] was already there but was shuttered for a long time, has been painted and dressed up. Will be great to have an actual new three-story building with retail in midtown, instead of the usual strip centers and drug stores.
After the jump, plans and fancy renderings of the finished building, plus: our correspondent gets snarky!
A permit was issued late last week. And so sitework begins for the 119-unit, 168,398-square-foot Belle Meade at River Oaks, on Westheimer between Ferndale and Sackett, developed by Grayco Partners:
The project is a 6-story epicore (light steel) construction on top of a 2-story podium garage. The boutique building will resemble the look of turn of the century, old New York hotels in brick with cast stone details, while spacious interiors will include such amenities as hardwood floors, 10-foot ceilings, granite countertops, stainless steel appliances and individual wine chillers. Community amenities will include conditioned interior corridors, heated pool, fitness facility, business center and a resident recreation room.
Grayco is also developing Museum Place, at Fannin and Oakdale in Midtown—a “contemporary design” also on a two-story podium. And Braeswood Place, on North Braeswood just east of Stella Link: the more usual four-story stick apartments hugging a parking garage, but it’ll also include 21 townhouses. It’s meant to look like Rice. All three properties will be managed by Camden Property Trust.
- Grayco is digging right in on apartments [Houston Chronicle]
- Belle Meade at River Oaks [Grayco]
DiverseWorks gave graffiti collaborative Aerosol Warfare free reign to paint the arts organization’s satellite space at the corner of Alabama and Almeda in Midtown, and this is the result.
You remember this house, right? It’s the one that used to have giant Sesame Street characters airbrushed all over it.
- “This Old House†[Houston Press]
- The Official Unveiling of This Old House [DiverseWorks]
Christus Foundation for HealthCare, liberated a year ago from ownership of St. Joseph Hospital downtown, is planning a new family health center in Midtown at the corner of Fannin and McGowen. That’s the recently cleared lot where the Fu Kim Grand Palace complex used to stand.
Foundation president Les Cave tells the Chronicle the new building will be
a 55,000-square-foot “super clinic” designed to keep the uninsured out of emergency rooms whenever possible while giving them specialized care in everything from cardiology to orthopedics to dentistry.
The San Jose Clinic, the oldest charity clinic in the country, will move into the new facility from its current location under Highway 59 near Minute Maid Park, along with social services functions from Associated Catholic Charities.
- Moneymakers: Five questions with Les Cave [Houston Chronicle]
Photo of Fu Kim Grand Palace demolition: Flickr user Dan Sandler
