COMMENT OF THE DAY: YES, A RING ROAD EVEN FURTHER OUT THAN THE GRAND PARKWAY “I hate to be the one to break the news, but the next outer loop beyond Grand Parkway is already being planned. If you look at the land plan for Cross Creek Ranch, there’s a big right of way built into the western portion of the development. It is right close to the proposed terminus of the Westpark Toll Road and roughly aligns with FM 2855 to the north and Spur 10 to the south. Some of the economic development corporations and chambers of commerce out there have even begun tracing its route on their planning maps.” [TheNiche, commenting on The Swamplot Award for Special Achievement in Sprawl: The Official 2011 Ballot]
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COMMENT OF THE DAY: BIG DEMOLITION NEAR THE SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH “Just make sure you are upwind of the implosion. The dust cloud is full of nasties like respirable Silica and Aspergillus.” [Rocco, commenting on M.D. Anderson Tower Will Go Out with a Bang]
COMMENT OF THE DAY: THE APPLE HOUR OF POWER “Believe it or not. Just a few weeks ago I posted a mail to Tim Cook, no reply till now :), in which I suggested to buy the Crystal Cathedral Campus in Garden Grove. I have been there on several occasions (although I am a dutch citizen so it is not around the corner). It would be an excellent Apple campus where people can meet Apple and each other and where we all can build a platform where contemporary speakers like Deepak Chopra, Lynne McTaggart and many others who can tell us new things that can make this world a better place can be invited to share their knowledge. Can you imagine streaming to or downloading by the devices like the iPad, Apple TV iPhones and Macs in every corner of this planet? In that way preserving the heritage of that beautiful place and at the same time give it a destination that will appeal tot the entire world (community). Now it will be sold to a catholic church, in my opinion a loss of possibilities.” [Hans Noordsij, commenting on Comment of the Day: Apple’s Crystal Cathedral]
COMMENT OF THE DAY: APPLE’S CRYSTAL CATHEDRAL “Also, does anyone else think that the design looks more than a little like a protestant church, with the vaulted roof, minimal design, and the identical tables setup in rows looking like pews?” [JL, commenting on Comment of the Day: Apple Store Symbolism]
COMMENT OF THE DAY: APPLE STORE SYMBOLISM “Given that none of Apple’s execs are women, a glass ceiling is entirely appropriate.” [Brad, commenting on Highland Village Apple Store Will Have Glass Ceiling, Front, and Back]
COMMENT OF THE DAY: WE’VE MOVED ON “Most of Houston gets its drinking water from Lake Houston. It’s full of old cars, batteries and tires. There’s no need to worry about a little gasoline in the groundwater. :)” [jgriff, commenting on Harris County Sues AT&T for Leaky Underground Fuel Tanks]
COMMENT OF THE DAY: WHY I WON’T MISS THE SANDBOX AT LUPE TORTILLA “It was always a hassle with the kids running around while I was trying to sunbathe.” [Chad, commenting on Lupe Tortilla Axes Kiddie Sandbox]
COMMENT OF THE DAY: TEARDOWN STREET CRED I love the nothing but exterior shots – particularly the one down the street to indicate “See – there’s ONE other McMansion on this block already . . .†[mollusk, commenting on Daily Demolition Report: A Stitch in Tyne]
COMMENT OF THE DAY: INSIDE POLITICS “I’m amazed nobody who ran against him had pictures of this interior . . . this alone would sink a lesser candidate. For Example, ‘Bob Lanier claims to represent Houstonians, but how can he relate to the common man when perched on his pretty, pink, princess bed!?!’ -or- ‘11 Bathrooms?!?! What is he trying to hide?!?!’ -or- ‘Bob Lanier is such a clown, his ceilings are painted like a circus tent!’ I do kinda like the ceilings though . . .”
COMMENT OF THE DAY: BIG LOTS “In regards to crazy land values inside the loop, I have an opinion as an active RE broker. Anything that is 2 to 5 acres seems to be in huge demand from institutional multi-family developers. They have lenders that want to lend on apartment projects and the scarcity of larger in-fill tracts result in the $75psf average that hits a range between $60 to $85psf. What is missed here is that owners who sit on dirt in the same dense areas with smaller parcels way under 2 acres, have no market driving forces paying anywhere over $50psf. Home builders used to drive the market, but they have gone on a diet. Hope this helps put it all in perspective; there is just a higher premium paid for larger tracts.” [Janak, commenting on West Ave-Style Apartments and Retail Planned for Dunlavy Fiesta Site?]
COMMENT OF THE DAY: THE ADMIRAL MOTEL HIS CASTLE “I would kill for a moat like that. Even if it couldn’t keep the riff raff out, I could mock all those that are subject to water restrictions.” [Hawthorne Mike, commenting on Houston Property Listing Photo of the Day: Flooded with Offers]
COMMENT OF THE DAY: EASIER TO CONCEAL THOSE SECRET YOGURT BEHAVIORS “I prefer the self-service kind of yogurt place. That way I can put blueberries, white chocolate chips, cap’n crunch and cheesecake bites on my chocolate and pistachio flavored froyo mix – and not get that judgement from the person making it.” [Britt A, commenting on Rice Village TCBY Leaves Franchise, Avoiding Self-Serve Fro-Yo Redo]
COMMENT OF THE DAY: THE RENTS ARE TOO DAMN HIGH “Finally some progressive thinking from a Houston property owner. Houston is filled with vacant junk space left over from failed retail projects priced at ridiculous, speculative prices. The kind of development necessary to pay the outrageous rent asked by property managers and owners for dilapidated spaces just isn’t supported by the market here. There are only so many Applebees etc. that can be crammed into a given area. I’ve never figured out why keeping a space vacant is better than reducing the rent and making it accessable to artists, creatives, and small business owners. If things go well for them the neighborhood becomes more viable and lively, crime goes down, rent goes up and it’s on to the next neighborhood. It’s a win for everyone.” [JE, commenting on New Arts Complex Planned for Abandoned JCPenney at West Oaks Mall]
COMMENT OF THE DAY: FEEDING THE WEST OAKS MALL JCPENNEY ARTS BEHEMOTH 
“At 100,000 square feet, it is more than twice as big as all the alternative/artist-run spaces currently in existence in Houston combined. If it can actually be filled with stuff and events in a compelling, convincing way, it moves the center of gravity for Houston art to the west purely by virtue of its size. The more I think about it, the challenge will be figuring out ways to effectively use that space. Usually the issue for an art exhibit is a lack of space — a show at, say, Labotanica can feel uncomfortably cramped. For a curator or artist, this space presents the precise opposite problem. A good model in this regard might be Mass MOCA, the enormous museum in North Adams, MA. Filling the cavernous old factory buildings required big, bold artworks. Are there Houston artists who could step up to this challenge? I’d say yes — for example, Sharon Engelstein’s inflatables.” [Robert Boyd, commenting on New Arts Complex Planned for Abandoned JCPenney at West Oaks Mall] Photo: Sharsten Plenge
COMMENT OF THE DAY: A WORKDAY BEGINS AT THE NEW H-E-B MONTROSE COFFEEHOUSE “While having a cup of coffee in the cafe area this morning, I watched a woman walk around with her laptop looking for an outlet. When she didn’t find one and looked very confused, I suggested it was intentional, that HEB didn’t want people working for hours in the cafe. She looked even more confused by this and then plugged the cord into the outlet behind the Coke machine and left the cord stretching all the way across the floor. Welcome to Montrose!” [lanola, commenting on A Tour of the Lake Flato-Designed H-E-B Montrose Market, Open Today]