Headlines

• Bistro LeCroy Leaving Trolley Station To Move to Another Downtown Island Spot [Galveston County Daily News]
• Henri Bendel Coming to the Galleria Next Month [West University Examiner]
• New $85M HMNS Dinosaur Hall Opening June 2 [abc13; previously on Swamplot]
• Stop Ashby Highrise Group Stages Bissonnet ‘Park-In’ To Show Potential Traffic Problems [Culturemap]
• Harris County Property Tax Protest Deadline is May 31 [Your Houston News]
• Why You’re Still Paying for Toll Roads That Have Already Been Paid Off [abc13]
• Texas Has Same Amount of Water Storage Capacity Per Capita Today as in 1953 [Houston Chronicle]
• Rare ‘Flesh-Eating’ Bacteria Common in Gulf Coast Waters [KHOU]
• 7 Houston High Schools Whose Architecture Is Worth Appreciating [Hair Balls]

Photo of Lamar High School: Chris Adams

• Arhaus Furniture Filling Empty Barnes & Noble Spot in Galleria’s Centre at Post Oak [Prime Property; previously on Swamplot]
• Groundbreaking for Grand Cay Subdivision Inside Texas City-La Marque Hurricane Levee [Galveston County Daily News]
• Ronnie Killen of Pearland’s Killen’s To Open New Steakhouse in Shuttered Stella Sola Heights Location [Houston Chronicle; previously on Swamplot]
• 10-Year Tax Deal Aids Renovation of Condemned Carter’s Grove Apartments at Shepherd and 34th [Houston Chronicle]
• Landry’s Employees Test Out Pleasure Pier; Opening Day To Be Announced This Week [Galveston County Daily News]
• Council Gives Preliminary Approval to Zoning Change for Pearland Pkwy. Medical Development Amid Homeowners’ Protests [Pearland Journal]
• UTMB Gets Nearly $3M from FEMA To Repair Ike Damage to Primary Care Pavilion [Click2Houston]
• Greater Houston Partnership, Convention Bureau endorse Hobby expansion [Houston Business Journal]
• 350 Pounds of Honeycomb Removed from Walls of Sugar Land Home [Click2Houston]
• ‘EaDo’ Light Rail, Dynamo Stadium Attracting Empty Nesters, Lake Flato Townhomes [Houston Chronicle]
• From Concrete-Lined Bayous to Detention Ponds: Flood Control District’s Evolving Flood Strategies [Houston Chronicle]
• Houston Home Tours Act as Fundraiser and Promotional Tools [Houston Business Journal]
• Forgetting Houston’s Flag and Official Song [Houston Chronicle]

Photo of solar eclipse from the Central St. bridge: Christopher Newsom [license] via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Mac Haik To Break Ground on Spec 17-Story Office Tower Next to Technip at I-10 and Kirkwood This Summer [Fuel Fix]
• Houston First Eliminates Five Developers in Running for New Convention Center Hotel [Houston Business Journal]
• Brookfield Leases Downtown Heritage Plaza Space to Rosetta, More Former Continental Center Space to Chevron [Houston Business Journal]
• Outdoor Solar-Powered Kitchen Designed by UH Students Coming to Palm Center Park at Griggs Rd. This Fall [Prime Property]
• City of Tomball May Use Eminent Domain To Expand Medical Complex Dr. [Tomball Potpourri]
• Council Vote on Hobby Expansion Could Be May 30 [Houston Politics]
• Ocean Prospector Rig Docked in Galveston Harbor for 14 Years Headed for Offshore Assignment [Houston Business Journal]
• Residents of Unidentified New Neighborhood Near Lake Houston Complain of Smelly, Discolored Tap Water [KHOU]
• 7-Foot Alligator Discovered in New Caney Grandma’s Backyard [Cleveland Advocate]
• Conroe High’s Bronze Memorial Tiger Statue Painted Blue in Prank [Montgomery County Police Reporter]

Photo: Montgomery County Police Reporter

• Unofficial Texas City Tanger Outlets Plans Detail 80 Stores Signed On or Negotiating Leases [Galveston County Daily News]
• Austin Firm Buys 550-Acre Former Flamingo Isles Waterfront Development in Hitchcock from Bank [Prime Property]
• Galveston Park Board To Consider New Plans for Seawall Parking [Galveston County Daily News]
• Tea Party Collecting Signatures To Remove ‘Unconstitutional’ Red Light Cameras in Cleveland [Cleveland Advocate]
• 5,000 Bees Invade Construction Crane at 22-Story Whiteco Residential Tower at Brownway and Sage [abc13]
• First Phase of Memorial Park Reforestation Project Begins [Bellaire Examiner]

Photo of Texas City Tanger Outlet Center: Tanger Factory Outlet Centers via Galveston County Daily News

• Houston Single-Family Home Sales Jumped 9.6 Percent in April [HAR, via Prime Property]
• Mia, First of 3 New Carrabba’s Family Restaurants, Opening in New Kirby Compound Early Next Month; Grace’s and Johnny IV Next [Culturemap; previously on Swamplot]
• Windsor Hills in The Woodlands Recognized as Firewise Community by National Fire Protection Association [Houston Chronicle]
• You Can Now BYOB To Approved Events in West U Parks [West University Examiner]
• State of Texas Sues Owners of Gang-Ridden Le Promenade Condo Complex on Bissonnet Near Fondren, Calls It a Public Nuisance [Hair Balls]
• Stonefield Terrace Man Fights Neighborhood Association To Keep His New Burglar Bars [KHOU]
• All Westbound North Loop Lanes To Shut Down at Ella This Weekend [abc13]
• Hirsch Rd. Bridge Project To Begin within 90 Days [Houston Business Journal]
• Texas Windstorm Insurance Association Rates Going Up 5 Percent Next Year [Galveston County Daily News]
• Texas One of the Worst States in the Country for Earnings Growth, Finds Pew Report [Culturemap]

Photo of gutted Leeland St. apartment building: Christopher Newsom [license] via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• BBVA Compass Post Oak Tower Will Include 2 Local Restaurants; Hotel and Residences Axed [Prime Property; previously on Swamplot]
• Galveston Restaurant Group Expanding Again with Nonno Tony’s at Pier 21 [Galveston County Daily News]
• State Agencies Spent $253.1M on Drought, Wildfire Damage Control Last Year [Culturemap]
• Texas Forest Service Launches Drought Survey To Get More Accurate Count of Dead Trees [KUHF]
• United Express, US Airways Express Operator Colgan Air To Close IAH Location [Houston Business Journal]
• West U Finally Finds Buyer for Lot Where Half-Built Home Was Demolished [InstantWestU.com]
• ‘Grand Canyon’ Gorge in Richmond Continues To Grow, Warn Ditch Neighbors [Click2Houston]
• High-Tech Billboards Being Installed Around Houston To Alert Drivers of Weather Emergencies [abc13]
• Houston’s Most Outrageous Restrooms [KHOU]
• 1987: The Year Houston Became a More Livable, Interesting City [Culturemap]
• Dozens of Junk-Food-Loving Raccoons Loitering Behind Stop N Save in Richwood [KHOU]

Photo: KHOU

• Group Aims To Raise $10B for Houston-Dallas High-Speed Rail [Fort Worth Star-Telegram via Newswatch]
• Language for Metro Ballot Measure To Extend ‘General Mobility’ Payments to Smaller Cities Due in June for November Vote [Houston Chronicle]
• Upper Kirby Borders Getting Cleared Out for Ulta Cosmetics, Texas Children’s Hospital [Culturemap; previously on Swamplot]
• Ashford Place Homes Built with Chinese Drywall Getting Repaired [Tomball Potpourri; previously on Swamplot]
• Checking In on Houston’s Once-Famous Neon Signs [Culturemap]
• Andrea White Writing Book on 100-Year-Old Baker Family Playhouse [Culturemap]
• Canton’s Monday Flea Market May Be the Best-Kept Shopping Secret in Texas [abc13]
• 300,000-Plus Attend 25th Annual Art Car Parade [Houston Chronicle; slideshow]

Photo of Percy Peacock on Allen Pkwy. during Saturday’s Art Car Parade: Candace Garcia

• Katy, Waller, Cypress Fairbanks, Spring, and The Woodlands Face Biggest Local Wildfire Risk [Houston Chronicle]
• H&M’s First Houston Store — at Baybrook Mall — Opening May 31 [Shop Girl]
• Dallas Developer Behind Carter’s Grove Apartments Renovation May Get $250K Tax Break it Doesn’t Need [Houston Business Journal]
• Sugar Land Group Aims To Fight Construction of New Apartments [Sugar Land Sun]
• Kinkaid School Expansion in Middle of Piney Point City Council Election Fight [Culturemap]
• Walnut Bend Homeowner Association Director: Call Police if You See Black Youths in the Neighborhood [Hair Balls]
• Drainage Dispute Between Piney Point Village, Hunters Creek Village Proceeding to Trial [West University Examiner; previously on Swamplot]
• Testing the Med Center’s Giant Metal Flood-Proof Doors [KUHF]
• Half of Laniers’ Tag-Sale Items Have Sold So Far [Houston Chronicle]
• 26 Vehicles Burglarized at Metro Park-and-Ride Near 59 and Bellfort [Click2Houston]
• Galveston Tourist Bureau Launches Discount Attraction Pass [Culturemap]
• Bellaire New Home Showcase This Weekend Will Showcase New Homes in Bellaire [Houston Business Journal]
• Mortgage Interest Rates Hit Record Low; Houston Housing Inventory Dropping [KUHF]

Photo of “Elvis” on Allen Pkwy. in last year’s Art Car Parade: Candace Garcia via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Bar Owners Say Noise Ordinance Attacking Their Livelihood, Damaging Houston’s Reputation [Houston Press; previously on Swamplot]
• Four Houston Communities Getting $151M in Ike Funds [KUHF]
• ‘Maginot Line’ of Galveston Beach Bulkheads Predicted in Aftermath of Supreme Court’s Open Beaches Ruling [Houston Chronicle]
• Galveston Art Boom as Galleries and Businesses Open, Expand [Galveston County Daily News]
• Hundreds of Shoppers Turn Out for Laniers’ High-End Tag Sale [KHOU]
• Galleria Owner Now Largest Real Estate Company in the World [Click2Houston]
• Time Running Out To Use State Funds for Proposed Bellaire Town Square Disc Golf Course [Bellaire Examiner]
• Officer Pins Alligator in Conroe Back Yard [Courier of Montgomery County]
• Houston Named One of Top 25 U.S. Travel Destinations, Ranked Ahead of Sedona, Napa, Austin, Philadelphia [TripAdvisor via Houston Chronicle]

Photo of the Fred Hartman Bridge: Jackson Myers via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Landowners Fear New Texas A&M Dorms, Housing Authority Plan Will Flood Galveston with Unnecessary Units [Galveston County Daily News]
• Closed Since Ike, Magic Island Dinner Theater Plans To Reopen on Southwest Fwy. This Year [Prime Property]
• Pet Resort BoneVoyage Opening on Galveston’s Harborside Dr. This Summer [Galveston County Daily News]
• Downhouse Owners Revamping Heights Icehouse D&T Drive Inn; Opening Planned for Summer [29-95.com]
• Houston’s John Daugherty Realtors Sets Record with $136.2M in Home Sales in March [Houston Business Journal]
• Laniers’ High-End Tag Sale at Houston Design Center ‘Vaguely Reminiscent’ of Final Scene in ‘Citizen Kane’ [KHOU; previously on Swamplot]
• Half of All New Homestead Exemption Applications Denied This Year Under New Rules [Houston Politics]
• Residents of Townhomes Built on Jim West Estate Complain of Pond Scum, Stench, Dead Alligator [KHOU]
• Mayor, Council Must Consider Southwest Plan for Hobby, Says City Lawyer [Houston Chronicle]
• Leaving the Seaweed on Galveston’s Shores [Galveston County Daily News]
• Photos of Old Movie Palaces Across the Country, Repurposed or Decaying [Flavorwire]

Photo of Museum District light rail station: Candace Garcia via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Dismantling Sheraton-Lincoln Hotel Downtown Cost $8M [Houston Business Journal; previously on Swamplot]
• Baytown Galveston Bay Waterfront Subject of a UH Architecture School Design Study [Prime Property]
• Galveston Housing Authority Hoping To Change Perceptions of, Get Owner To Make Improvements at Sandpiper Cove Apartment Complex [Galveston County Daily News]
• Craigslist Real Estate Scam Targeting House Renters Resurfaces in Houston [Click2Houston]
• Goals of New Dynamo Stadium Design: Keeping Fans Cool, Close to Field [Houston Chronicle]
• Neiman Marcus Last Call Studio ‘Discount’ Store Opening in Strip Center Across from Galleria [Culturemap]
• New $6M Tomball ISD Administration Headquarters Recreates Original 1936 School Building [Tomball Potpourri]
• Conroe Retention Ponds at Hwy. 105 To Be ‘Centerpiece’ of I-45 Between Houston and Dallas [Courier of Montgomery County]
• The Beginnings of the Art Car Parade — in Photos [Culturemap]
• Mac Whitney’s Vandalized ‘Houston’ Sculpture on White Oak Bayou Trail [Texas Liberal]
• Why Are Real Estate Commissions So High in America? [Economist]

Photo of 1704 Westheimer Demo: Karen Dressel; more info

• House of Blues Suing Houston Pavilions Over Scott Gertner Move into Complex [Prime Property; previously on Swamplot]
• Shell Close To Construction on 2 New Buildings at its West Houston Campus at I-10 and Dairy Ashford [Houston Business Journal]
• Sawbuck’s HomeSnap App Lets You Stalk Properties in Your Neighborhood [Prime Property]
• Katy City Council Candidate Reports 71 Campaign Signs Missing [Houston Chronicle]
• Metro Moves Tree at OST and MLK Blocking Southeast Rail Line Construction to MacGregor Park [Houston Chronicle]
• City Speeding Up Water Shut-Off for Delinquent Property Owners [KUHF]
• United Report Says Expanding Hobby Would Cost 3,700 Jobs, $295M in Annual Economic Activity [Houston Chronicle]
• Dead Fish Washing Up on Lake Houston Shores [abc13]
• 17 percent of Texas Is Drought-Free [StateImpact Texas]
• Tour LEED-Certified ‘Wareloft’ Residence on Hiram Clarke Rd. Today [Houston Business Journal]

Photo of Wareloft: Miro Dvorscak/Houston House and Home (PDF) via Environment Associates

• Houston Ranked One of America’s Fastest-Growing Cities, Behind Austin and Dallas [Forbes, via Prime Property]
• Bullritos, Qdoba Mexican Grill Opening near Chipotle in Webster Area [Galveston County Daily News]
• Slideshow: Inside Southern Living’s $1.4M Showcase Home in Bellaire [Houston Business Journal]
• Driver Accuses League City of Misusing Red Light Ticket Funds [abc13]
• Licensed Hunters Now Allowed To Remove Alligators from Texas Neighborhoods [abc13]
• Greater Houston Partnership Supports Hobby Expansion [Houston Politics]
• Study Painting for Sam Houston Mural from Houston’s Demolished Grand Central Station Shows Up in Dallas Auction [Culturemap]
• Tour of Private Living Spaces in Downtown Residential Buildings This Saturday [Houston Chronicle]
• 1875 Farmhouse in Woodland Heights Designated Historic Landmark (PDF) [Houston Planning]

Photo of Klunkert Farmhouse, 2911 Julian St.: Houston Planning & Development Dept.

• Houston Homes Sales Jumped 9 Percent Last Year, Finds Texas Quarterly Housing Report [Prime Property]
• Office Tower at Shepherd and Fairview, Renamed ‘The Bellevue,’ Undergoing $2.7M in Renovations [Houston Business Journal]
• The Woodlands Now a ‘Destination for Diners’ [Houston Chronicle]
• Invasion of the Breastaurants: Austin’s Bikinis Sports Bar Opening in The Woodlands; Bone Daddy Next [Houston Business Journal]
• Man Chains Himself to Tree Metro Plans To Move to MacGregor Park [Houston Chronicle]
• Verizon Wireless Theater Changes Name, But Not Sign [Culturemap]
• Buffalo Bayou Brewing Co.’s Cottage Grove Brewery Opens for Sneak Peek [Eating Our Words; previously on Swamplot]
• City To Expand Single-Stream Recycling to 30,000 to 50,000 New Homes Over Coming Year [Houston Politics]
• ERCOT Returns More Power Lines to Service in Preparation for Summer [KUHF]
• Houston Could Slip Back Into Dry Spell, Warn Drought Experts [KUHF]
• First Major Wildfires of 2012 Tear Through West Texas [StateImpact]

Photo of Williams Tower: Candace Garcia