Headlines

• NASA Likely To Unveil New Manned Missions Beyond the Far Side of the Moon [Space.com]
• Now at 40 Stories, 2929 Weslayan Will Be One of Tallest Residential Buildings in Houston [Prime Property]
• Gulf Greyhound Park Leases Parking Lot, Lobbies for Casino-Style Gambling in Fight for Visitors [Galveston County Daily News; previously on Swamplot]
• Another Washington Wine Bar Block 7 Shuts Doors for Good [Eater Houston]
• Native American Tribes Want Grand Pkwy. Burial Remains To Be Left in Place, Sites Sealed in Concrete [Bellaire Examiner; previously on Swamplot]
• ‘Fearless’ Feral Hogs Running Amok in Clear Lake’s Norfork Neighborhood [abc13]
• Houston’s 63-Foot White Fir Holiday Tree To Use LED Lights [Culturemap]
• Candlelight Park Replaces 120 Trees Damaged in Last Year’s Drought [The Leader]
• 2,000 Shade Trees To Be Given Away This Saturday in Ike Replanting Program [Galveston County Daily News]
• Today Is the Last Day To Submit Comments to TxDOT on I-45 Plans [Off The Kuff]

Photo of Gables Tanglewood: Russell Hancock via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• After Closing Stafford Site, Texas Instruments Planning $35M Sugar Land Facility [Prime Property]
• HSPVA, DeBakey HS for Health Professions To Be Rebuilt in New Locations Thanks to HISD Bond Passage [Prime Property]
• TCBY To Open Up to 20 More Self-Serve Franchises in Houston Area [Houston Business Journal]
• Texas City Jimmy Changas Opening November 19 [Galveston County Daily News]
• Tiff’s Treats Opening Second Houston Store Saturday on OST near Reliant Stadium [Culturemap]
• Houston Club To Move into Plaza Club Space on 49th Floor of One Shell Plaza [Culturemap; previously on Swamplot]
• Galveston Council To Consider Removing ‘Highly Unpopular’ Specific-Use Permits from City Code [Galveston County Daily News]
• Galveston Wants To Become Texas’s First Port of Call, Attract Millions of Tourism Dollars [Houston Business Journal]
• Bike and Transit Riders Wanted for Metro, Houston-Galveston Area Council Focus Group [KUHF]
• Planning ‘Framework’ for Washington Ave Corridor To Be Unveiled Next Week at Open House [The Leader]

Photo of Constellation Field, Sugar Land: Real Estate Bisnow

• Obama Victory Spurred by Demographic Changes [Houston Chronicle]
• President Ahead in Harris County By 2 Votes with 99.15% of Precincts Tallied [Culturemap]
• Voters Approve $2.7B in Bond Propositions for HISD, HCC, City Projects [Houston Chronicle]
• Metro Referendum Passes By Wide Margin; General Mobility Program To Continue; Opponents See Blow for Rail [Houston Chronicle]
• League City Bans Red-Light Cameras [Galveston County Daily News]
• Sugar Land Council Approves $1.3M Installation of License Plate Recognition Cameras [KHOU]
• Montrose District Working to Re-Light Bridges Over US-59 with LEDs [West University Examiner]
• Of 10 Largest U.S. Metros, Houston Region Spending Most per Person on Roads [Houston Tomorrow]
• Downtown’s Hotel Icon Evacuated After Bomb Threat [Click2Houston]
• Scenes from DiverseWorks’ Last Day at ‘The Docks’ Downtown [OffCite; previously on Swamplot]
• How Long Will Houston’s Real Estate Boom Last? [Culturemap]

Photo of Hotel ZaZa: Russell Hancock via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• San Francisco-Based Developer of Twitter Headquarters Negotiating To Buy ExxonMobil Tower [Culturemap]
• 136-Acre KBR Property in East End Sold — To Whom? [Prime Property; previously on Swamplot]
• Buc-ee’s Finalizes Acquisition of 18-Acre Parcel Near New Texas City Outlet Mall [Galveston County Daily News]
• Killen’s, Hubcap Grill Owners Opening CK’s Steakhouse on W. 19th St. Early Next Year [29-95.com]
• Hotel ZaZa Ranked Among Magazine’s Top Texas Hotels [Texas Monthly via Houston Business Journal]
• Houston’s Recycling Center Idea Among Top 20 Finalists for $5M Bloomberg Philanthropies Prize [Culturemap; previously on Swamplot]
• Hermann Park Getting Special Gardens, Sculpture Promenade, Glass Pavilion To Mark 100th Year [Houston Chronicle]
• Portion of U.S. 290 from Beltway 8 to Waller County Now Labeled Ronald Reagan Memorial Highway [Cypress Creek Mirror]

Photo of new U.S. 290 sign: Rusty Graham/Cleveland Advocate

• St. Luke’s Exploring Sale of Hospitals to Memorial Hermann, Methodist, or Ascension Health [Houston Chronicle]
• Heights Tower Senior Housing Facility on 19th St. Could Get $8M Makeover [The Leader]
• 1,000 Undeveloped Acres Planned for Commercial Space, 3,300 Vacant Residential Lots Remain in The Woodlands [Woodlands Villager]
• Heights’ Dragon Bowl Shuts Down, To Reopen as ‘Swag Chic’ Witchcraft Tavern [The Leader]
• Green Valley Estates and Ridgemont Residents Getting Tickets for Parking in Their Own Driveways [Houston Chronicle]
• TxDOT Closing Inside Lane on I-10 West for 1 Month To Construct Sign Column [KUHF]
• Sam Houston Park To Undergo $2M Renovation To Relocate Landmarks, Art Pieces [KUHF]
• Sandy May Have Killed ‘Ike Dike’ Concept in Galveston, Diverting Federal Funding to New York [Houston Chronicle]
• Mayor Dedicates First Urban Garden Program on City Property at Sunnyside Lot [Houston Chronicle]
• Woodlands Township Has Spent More Than $2M Removing 24,684 Hazardous Trees So Far [Paper Magazine]
• Possible Tornado Damages Fire Station, Storefronts in La Marque [Galveston County Daily News]
• Killed by Drought, 100-Year-Old Richmond Tree Carved into Angel [abc13]

Photo of Station Museum gas station painted by Daniel Anguilu: Candace Garcia

• Main Street America New-Home ‘Theme Park’ in Spring Will Give Homeowners Building, Remodeling Ideas [abc13]
• Galveston Historical Foundation Purchases Former Sears Building, Plans to Restore It [Galveston County Daily News]
• A Taste of City Acre Brewing Co.’s Eastex Freeway Brewpub [Culturemap; previously on Swamplot]
• 1,200 Customers, Including Pleasure Pier, Lost Power Briefly Yesterday [Galveston County Daily News]
• Cypress Family Unknowingly Moves into Former Marijuana Grow House [Click2Houston]
• Conroe Begins Tree Replacement Along Retention Ponds at I-45, Texas 105 [Courier of Montgomery County]
• Annexation and Why Houston is So Prosperous [Keep Houston Houston]

Photo of Maximus Coffee: Russell Hancock via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• 2 Mama Ninfa Legacies To Anchor Walkable District of Shops, Restaurants on Navigation Between Delano, St. Charles [Houston Chronicle]
• League City Breaks Ground on $31M Public Safety Building [Galveston County Daily News]
• Kemah To Consider $12M Park-and-Ride, Parking Facility [Galveston County Daily News]
• City Exploring Managed Paid Parking System Along Washington Ave. To Prevent Strip from Becoming Next Richmond Ave. [The Leader; proposal]
• School Bus, Trucks Seen Crossing Yale St. Bridge Illegally After Load Limit Lowered [KHOU]
• Most Voters Still Not Sure What Metro Referendum Actually Does; 1 in 4 Undecided, Finds Poll [KHOU]
• More Smelly Dead Fish Likely To Surface on Lake Madeline [Houston Chronicle]
• Bats Keep Visiting Woman’s Apartment at Lakeside Place Complex in Southwest Houston [Click2Houston]
• Texas City Suit Claims Man Swindled Woman Out of $200,000 in House-Flipping Scheme [Hair Balls]
• Investigating Houston’s Haunted Houses, Buildings [Click2Houston]

Photo: elnina999 via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• $71M Acute Care Hospital Planned for Hwy. 288 and County Rd. 2234 [Pearland Journal]
• Elaine Turner To Open Boutique in The Woodlands Late Next Month [Houston Business Journal]
• Ziggy’s Bar and Grill Changing Its Name, Closing Downtown Location [Culturemap]
• Master-Planned Community Planned for 993 Acres off West Lake Houston Pkwy. in Humble Area [Houston Chronicle]
• Midtown Getting More Apartments and a Park, But Still Lacks Big-Box Stores [Houston Chronicle; previously on Swamplot]
• Short-Lived Fire at BP Refinery Sent That Black Plume of Smoke Over Texas City Yesterday [Galveston County Daily News]
• Permanent Signs To Be Installed Along Texas’s Fastest Tollway To Warn Drivers Not To Hit Wildlife [Houston Chronicle]
• Heights Residents Want More Bike Racks in Front of 19th St., White Oak Businesses [Ultimate Heights News]
• The History Behind Bissonnet St. [Ultimate Bellaire News]
• More than 15,000 Floating Dead Fish Stewing on Lake Madeline [Galveston County Daily News]
• Lawsuit Claims Commercial Fishermen Weren’t Warned About Dioxin in San Jacinto River Until 2008 [abc13]
• MLB Blames Third Astros Logo Leak on Sandy [Ultimate Astros]

Photo of Carrabba’s demo, 3115 Kirby Dr.: Loves Swamplot

• Huge Damage to Northeast in Sandy’s Path; Millions Without Power [New York Times]
• ‘Mutiny on the Bounty’ Ship Bound for Galveston Sunk by Hurricane Sandy off North Carolina’s Outer Banks [Galveston County Daily News]
• More Cartoon-Like Renderings of Exhibits Planned for New Downtown Tourism Center [Culturemap; previously on Swamplot]
• Texas’s First Driver’s License Megacenter Opens in Pflugerville Today; Spring and Rosenberg Locations To Open by End of January [Houston Chronicle]
• Sears To Close 2 Woodlands Product Rebuild Centers Next Year, Cut 117 Jobs [Houston Business Journal]
• Nonno Tony’s World Kitchen Slated To Open in Time for Biker Rally Thursday at Pier 21 [Galveston County Daily News]
• TxDOT Officially Awards $1.04B Contract To Design, Build, Maintain 38 Miles of the Grand Parkway [Houston Chronicle; previously on Swamplot]
• Deadline for Public Comment on Plans for I-45 Expansion Is Nov. 9 [The Leader]
• Councilman Davis Takes Hands-On Approach to Cleaning Up District B [Houston Chronicle]
• Houston Politicians Using Tax Dollars To Put Their Names on Hundreds of Road Signs [KHOU]
• Slideshow: Houston’s Largest Boutique Hotels [Houston Business Journal]
• East Montgomery County Improvement District Spent 2 Full Years of Tax Revenues on Stalled New Caney Theme Park, Donations to Defunct Nonprofit [Click2Houston; part 2; previously on Swamplot]

Photo of Annunciation Orthodox School: Russell Hancock via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Planned Island Public Housing Would Only Accommodate About 30 Percent of Current Applicants [Galveston County Daily News]
• LongHorn Steakhouse Opening Third Houston Location Today in The Woodlands [Houston Business Journal]
• BB’s Cafe Wants To Expand Po-Boy Empire Outside the Loop [Culturemap]
• Galveston OKs First Beach Renewal Project Since Supreme Court Decision Turned Public Beaches Private in West End [Houston Chronicle]
• Neighbors Complain About Kimberley Lane Halloween Display Featuring Bloody Mannequins, Hanging Dolls, Chainsaws, Body Parts [Click2Houston]
• Houston Flights to Nearly 30 Destinations Canceled Because of Hurricane Sandy [abc13]
• New Astros ‘Lone Star’ Logo Leaked in Academy Store, Online [Ultimate Astros]
• Sugar Land Recognized as ‘Clean Air Leader’ for Commuting Initiatives [Sugar Land Sun]
• J. Patrick Homes Model in Fort Bend Wins Greater Houston Association of Builders Design Award [Sugar Land Sun]
• Affordability, Light Rail, Historical Architecture Draw Arts Organizations to Midtown [Houston Chronicle]
• Alley Theatre Would Make a Defensible Outpost During Zombie Apocalypse [Houston Chronicle]

Photo of Sawyer Park, Candace Garcia via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Walmart Opens Today Near Heights Despite Opposition from Some Neighbors [Houston Chronicle; previously on Swamplot]
• Reduced River Oaks District Plans Now More ‘To Scale’ with the Neighborhood, Says Leasing Agent [Houston Business Journal]
• Scottish Oilfield Services Company Hampco Building Own Industrial Park on 11 Acres Next to Grand Parkway in Katy [Katy Times]
• Neighbors of Willowick Court Protesting Street Widenings, Entrances for Planned Apartments and Townhomes [abc13; previously on Swamplot]
• Two Hogs, One Deer Hit by Cars on Opening Night of Texas’s Fastest Tollway [Houston Chronicle]
• Bellaire, West U. City Councils Want Metro Referendum To Pass, Funding To Continue [Ultimate Bellaire News]
• Texas City Benzene Levels Are Nothing To Worry About, Argues TCEQ Toxicologist [Galveston County Daily News]
• City Council Approves Application for Grants for Island’s First Community Pool [Galveston County Daily News]
• Pre-Halloween Christmas Decorations at Some Houston Shopping Centers Are ‘Stupid and Irritating,’ Tweets Mayor [abc13]
• The Strand, Hotel Galvez Among Galveston’s Ghostly Haunts [Houston Chronicle]
• Beer Can House To Star in HGTV’s ‘Home, Strange Home’ Show Tonight [Glasstire]

Photo of Greenway Plaza: Russell Hancock via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Preview of ‘Party Kroger’ Opening Tomorrow on Studemont [Houston Chronicle; previously on Swamplot]
• Burger Guys Opening on Halloween in Old Korma Sutra Spot Downtown [Eater Houston]
• New Garden Oaks Spot Cottonwood Honors Alamo-Shaped Façade of Building with Its Name [Culturemap; previously on Swamplot]
• The Details Behind Springwoods Village’s ‘381’ Agreement [Houston Politics]
• Metro Board Endorses $147M Uptown Transit Plan for New Transit Center Near Bellaire [Ultimate Memorial News]
• Displaced Wildlife a Concern Along New 85 MPH Toll Road [Houston Chronicle]
• Texans Owner Thinks New Reliant Scoreboard Could Help Houston’s Super Bowl Odds [Ultimate Texans]
• Hundreds Come Out for New Galveston Farmer’s Market [Galveston County Daily News]

Photo of new Kroger at 1440 Studemont: Candace Garcia

• Commissioners Court Approves ‘380’ Agreement To Pay Developer for Roads, Parks Around Springwoods Village Neighborhood Next to New ExxonMobil Campus [Houston Chronicle]
• Isle Commissioners OK Plan To Build Bolivar Peninsula Sewage Plants Using Federal Disaster Relief Funds [Galveston County Daily News]
• Texans Owner Says Something Must Be Done About Astrodome To Protect Houston’s 2017 Super Bowl Bid [abc13]
• Christian Louboutin Says He Wants To Open a Standalone Boutique in Houston in 2014 [Culturemap]
• The Fastest Toll Road in Texas Opens for Reals Today [abc13]
• ‘Tourist Friendly’ Seawall Parking System Would Scan License Plates, Link Cars to Warrants [Galveston County Daily News]
• Hidden Cameras Capture People Illegally Dumping Trash All Over Houston [KHOU]
• City of Cleveland Hires Contractor To Build New Park [Cleveland Advocate]
• Shadyside Home Listed for $12M Ranks as Houston’s Most Expensive Home Sold Last Year [Houston Business Journal]
• Transportation Costs Put Houston Among Nation’s Top 10 Most Expensive Cities for Moderate-Income Families [Houston Business Journal]

Photo of apartments at 3788 Richmond Ave. (previously on Swamplot): Russell Hancock via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Transwestern Breaking Ground Next Month on 30-Acre Spec Industrial Complex in Mason Creek Corporate Business Park [Houston Chronicle]
• River Oaks District Development Resurfaces, Minus Some Retail Space, Apartments, Hotels [Houston Chronicle; previously on Swamplot]
• Dallas-Based Cadence McShane To Build Spec Tiltwall Warehouse Facility in Central Green Business Park near IAH [Houston Business Journal]
• Cheesecake Factory, P.F. Chang’s Coming to Baybrook Mall [Galveston County Daily News]
• ‘No Parking’ Signs on Public Streets Near Reliant Stadium Mislead Texans Fans [KHOU]
• The Bloody History Behind Glenwood Cemetery’s Avenging Angel [Hair Balls]

Photo: Bill Barfield via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Thousands of Shoppers Show Up for Opening of Texas City Tanger Outlet Mall [abc13]
• Opening of Outlet Center Comes with Big Traffic Snarls [Galveston County Daily News]
• Sugar Land Skeeters’ Constellation Field Named Atlantic League Park of the Year [Houston Business Journal; previously on Swamplot]
• Demand Builds for Teardowns as Residential Demolition Permits Increase 22 Percent in Houston [Houston Chronicle]
• On the Bayou, the Most Structurally Complex House that Stern and Bucek Architects Has Ever Designed [Houston Chronicle]
• Talking Master Planned Communities with Johnson Development Corp.’s Doug Goff [Houston Chronicle]
• League City’s Red Light Camera Issue, by the Numbers [Galveston County Daily News]
• Texas General Land Office Commissioner Wants To Restore Open Beaches Act [Galveston County Daily News]
• Beautifying the Once ‘Forgotten’ Woodland Park [KUHF]
• Meet Mike Garver, the Trashman of Buffalo Bayou [Houston Chronicle]
• The Homes on This Weekend’s AIA Houston’s Self-Guided Tour [Houston Chronicle]

Photo of former Ruggles Grill at Westheimer and Grant: Candace Garcia