Headlines

• Sueba USA Corp. To Develop 22-Acre Portion of Katy Boardwalk District Near Katy Mills Mall [HBJ]
• Houston Homebuilder Tipler Design and Build Constructing 3 New Office Buildings Near The Woodlands [HBJ]
• Houston’s First Baptist Church Picks Up 32.4 Acres To Build 100K-SF Church in Bridgeland [Prime Property]
• Developers Like Rise Communities, Homebuilders Like Trendmaker See Huge Opportunity for Residential Development in Manvel [HBJ]
• Greater Houston Partnership’s Upskill Houston Tackles Shortage in Skilled Construction Workers [HBJ]
• Colvill Office Properties’ Chip Colvill on the Next Cycle for Houston’s Office Market [Realty News Report]
• Architect Richard Keating Talks Kirby Collection, Houston vs. LA, Architecture Industry [Houston Chronicle]
• Kroger Opens First Texas Marketplace with Beer and Wine Bar in Katy [Prime Property]
• Why Are Neighbors Angry that the Glenbrook Golf Course is Becoming a Botanical Garden? [Houston Press; previously on Swamplot]
• Why Mass Transit Experts Have Their Eyes on Houston’s Bus System [PBS]
• New Contractor To Work on Stalled US-290 Segment from Pinemont to W. Little York [The Leader]
• Slideshow: Where To Find the Worst Streets in Houston [Houston Chronicle]
• How Many Major U.S. Cities Can Fit Inside Houston? [Mental Floss]

Photo of Buffalo Bayou Park: Mark Longoria via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Stream Realty Partners Buying Land in Copperfield, Cinco Ranch To Develop High-End Senior Apartment Complexes [Houston Chronicle]
• Rise Communities’ Marvel Community Meridiana To Feature Educational Campus with Schools, Learning Labs, Football Stadium [HBJ]
• Judge Orders Long-Troubled Crestmont Village Apartments To Close By Oct. 30 [Houston Chronicle]
• Star Cinema Grill To Build Fifth Houston-Area Dine-In Theater in Cypress’s Miramesa Town Center [HBJ]
• Hobby Airport’s New $156M International Terminal Set To Open in a Few Days [Click2Houston]
• Truck Accidents on Texas Rural Roads More Frequent, Severe Due to Traffic from Oil Well Development, Finds Texas A&M [The Highwayman]
• Uptown Houston To Be Honored as an ‘Exceptional Patron of Architecture and Urban Design’ by Rice Design Alliance [Prime Property]

Photo: Russell Hancock via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Houston Moves from No. 1 to 30 on Urban Land Institute’s List of Top Commercial Real Estate Markets [Prime Property]
• Houston Slips from No. 5 to 8 on Coldwell Banker Real Estate’s Fall Luxury Market Report [HBJ]
• Petra Oil Co. Breaks Ground on New Campus at 11085 Regency Green Drive in Cypress [HBJ]
• Hopdoddy Burger Bar, The Tuck Room, Baanou, Les Copains Headed To the Newly Opened River Oaks District [Prime Property]
• ITEX Group Rumored To Be Converting Vacant Downtown Galveston Medical Arts Building into Apartments [Galveston County Daily News ($)]
• Memorial-Area Mansion in Hunters Creek Built by Kenneth Lay on the Market for $2M [HBJ]
• Drivers Annoyed By Delayed Construction Project Along Shepherd Drive in the River Oaks Area [Click2Houston]
• Microbrewery BackPew Brewing Opening in Former Church in Porter [HBJ]
• City Council Streamlines Houston’s Historic Preservation Ordinance [Houston Public Media]
• Main Street Cocktail Bar Moving Sidewalk Has Drinks Menu Dedicated to AstroWorld [Houston Chronicle]

Photo of Westheimer at Edloe: Russell Hancock via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• ConocoPhillips Buying Energy Center Three in the Energy Corridor for $275M, According to Real Estate Alert [Prime Property]
• Schlumberger Moving its North American Headquarters to Sugar Land with Tax Abatement, Performance Agreement Approved [HBJ]
• Inside Amegy Bank’s New Headquarters Under Construction at 1717 W. Loop South [HBJ; previously on Swamplot]
• Westmount Realty Capital Acquires 376-Unit Summer Cove Apartments in Southeast Houston Near Ellington Field [Realty News Report]
• First Phase of Rice Village Shopping Center Renovation To Begin, Including Improved Parking, Street Enhancements, Landscaping [Prime Property]
• Healthcare Construction Boom in Houston’s Suburbs Expected To Slow Down [Realty News Report]
• Land Tejas’ Cypress Residential Community Miramesa at Canyon Lakes West To Open Oct. 17 [HBJ]
• Houston Home Prices Have 40% Chance of Declining Over the Next 2 Years, According to Arch Mortgage Insurance [Prime Property]
• Houston Plan a ‘Compass’ for City Leaders in the Coming Years [The Urban Edge]
• Niko Niko’s To Open New West Houston Location at I-10 and Beltway 8 By Early Next Year [Prime Property]
• Houston B-cycle Set To Become Largest Bike Sharing Program in Texas and the Southwest [Culturemap]
• City To Launch $40K Pilot Project To Remove Vehicles from Sims and Brays Bayous [Houston Public Media; previously on Swamplot]

Photo: elnina via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Downtown Marriott Marquis Houston Opening Next Year Already Has Almost 200,000 Room-Nights Booked [Realty News Report]
• Transwestern Arranges Financing for Randall Davis Condo Tower Arabella in River Oaks [Realty News Report; previously on Swamplot]
• 3 Buildings Inside Pinto Business Park at Beltway 8 and I_45 North Sold to TIAA-CREF [HBJ]
• Montrose Plot with Community Garden in the Audubon Place Historic District To Give Way to 2 ‘Prairie-Style’ Homes [Houston Chronicle]
• First Residents Begin Moving into New Master-Planned Community Cane Island in Katy [HBJ]
• 64-Acre Park Planned for Bacliff [Galveston County Daily News (S)]
• What Copenhagen and Houston Tell Us About How Trust Affects Cities [The Urban Edge]

Photo of Downtown: Marc Longoria via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Construction To Start This Month on Memorial City Hotel ZaZa [Houston Chronicle]
• New 24-Acre Industrial Business Park Apex Distribution Center in Former Goya Foods Manufacturing Site Signs 2 New Tenants [HBJ]
• Inside Oxberry Group’s Art-Inspired Condominium The Mondrian Proposed for Museum District [HBJ]
• Lionstone Investments’ Jane Page on Making Mixed-Use Work in Downtown Houston [Realty News Report]
• River Oaks District Design Based on New York-Style Street Grid System Where Visitors Stroll Under Storefront Canopies Along Tree-Lined Streets [Prime Property]
• Texas Ranked Second in the Nation for Relocation Activity in 2014, Finds Texas Association of Realtors [Prime Property]
• Buffalo Bayou Park Officially Open Following $58M Makeover That Added Nature Play Area, Running Trails, Bikeways [Houston Chronicle]
• Next Segment of Buffalo Bayou Park To Include Downtown District, Allen’s Landing, East of Downtown [HBJ]
• How Houston Became the Model for Green Space in Cities [Texas Monthly]

Photo of Buffalo Bayou Park: Marc Longoria via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• More Than 85% of Retail Space Has Been Committed in River Oaks District [Houston Chronicle; previously on Swamplot]
• Behind The Woodlands Development Co.’s Strategy for Buying Back Commercial Properties [HBJ]
• Judwin Properties Planning First Luxury Apartment Project in Fulshear with 4-Lane Bowling Alley, Other Amenities [HBJ]
• Houston’s Real Estate Market Feeling the Effects of Oil’s Price Drop [Texas Monthly]
• Broadmore Health Realty Acquiring 7.5 Acres Near IAH for Senior Living Facility [HBJ]
• Inside the New Krispy Kreme Store Opening Later This Month on Highway 6 [Isiah Factor]
• Historic Bungalow Moved from Heights to 2-Acre Plot in Acres Homes for ‘Pocket Neighborhood’ Restored [Houston Chronicle]
• Transit, Development Issues Face Houston Mayoral Candidates [Urban Edge]
• Rice University Radio Station KTRU Rice Radio Returns to FM Today After 5-Year Hiatus [Culturemap; previously on Swamplot]

Photo of El Real Tex Mex: Bill Barfield via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• River Oaks District Grand Opening Today with 20-25 Stores Opening To Start [Click2Houston; previously on Swamplot]
• Allied Orion Group Breaks Ground on 242-Unit Apartment Community Downtown Near St. Joseph’s Medical Center [Realty News Report]
• Houston Ranks No. 26 Among Major National for Affordable Housing, Transportation Costs in Rice University Report [HBJ]
• College of the Mainland Rumored To Be Buying Former JC Penney Building at Mall of the Mainland [Galveston County Daily News]
• Arch-Con Corporation President Michael G. Scheurich on the State of Houston’s Economy [Realty News Report]
• A Bottom-Up, Unofficial Guide to Cigna Sunday Streets on Washington Avenue This Sunday [OffCite Blog]

Photo of I-10: Russell Hancock via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Thor Equities To Start Construction on $125M Mixed-Use River Oaks Project Kirby Collection in October [Wall Street Journal; previously on Swamplot]
• NewQuest Crosswell Breaks Ground on Mixed-Use Project Northwest Park Crossing in Northwest Houston [HBJ]
• HPI Holdings To Buy 34 Buildings Totaling 875K SF in the Greenspoint Area [Realty News Report]
• Avenue CDC Plans To Build 47 More Affordable Houses on Avenue Place in Near Northside [HBJ]
• Texas Home Sales Increased 7% Year Over Year in August, According to Texas A&M Real Estate Center [Prime Property]
• Economists Forecast Lackluster 2016 for Houston with Shortages in Construction, Exports, Demand for Oil Field Services [Houston Chronicle]
• H-E-B’s Joe V’s Smart Shop Opening Seventh Houston-Area Location Today at West Fuqua Street and Beltway 8 [Prime Property]
• Treadsack To Open Hunky Dory Oct. 5, Foreign Correspondents 2 Weeks Later and Bernadine’s in November [Culturemap]
• City Council Considering Plan That Would Give All Residents Access To Parks Within a 10-Minute Walk [Houston Chronicle]
• The Push for More Walkable Communities To Promote Physical Activity [The Urban Edge]
• 14 Photos of Houston Under Construction Dating Back to 1910 [BuzzBuzzHome News]

Photo of the Rice Lofts: elnina via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• PM Realty Planning Residential and Retail Development in Midtown Along Main Street’s Light Rail [Houston Chronicle]
• A Tour of the 29-Story, 1,000-Room, Topped-Out Marriott Marquis Hotel Opening Downtown Next Year [HBJ]
• Greater Houston Area Lost 3,700 Construction Jobs Over Year Ending in August [Houston Public Media]
• Petition Seeks To Bring Sugar Land’s New Development Code to a Vote [Prime Property]
• Spindletap Brewery Opening Nov. 7 at the Lightning Logistic’s Headquarters in North Houston [HBJ; previously on Swamplot]
• Inside Food Truck Pappa Charlies’ First Brick-and-Mortar Location in EaDo [HBJ]
• Slim Chickens Opening First Houston Restaurant in Katy Nov. 2, Dozen or So More Locations Planned in Market [Prime Property]
• Construction of New Yale Bridge To Start Later This Year or Early 2016 [The Highwayman]

Photo of McGovern Centennial Gardens, Hermann Park: elnina via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Mayor Parker Halts Plans To Turn Former Exxon Tower into New Police and Courts Complex Over Uncertain Financial Outlook [Houston Chronicle; previously on Swamplot]
• U.S. Post Office Considers Sale of Energy Corridor Post Office Property [Houston Chronicle]
• Houston Ranks No. 6 Among 36 Major U.S. Cities for Fastest-Growing Home Values, According to Zillow [HBJ]
• What Houston’s Average Home Price Buys Around the Country [Houston Chronicle]
• Median Houston Rent Price 17% Higher Than Renters’ Expectations at $1,330 Per Month, According to Apartment List [HBJ]
• Transwestern’s Kevin Roberts on the State of the Houston Office Market [Realty News Report]
• Feedback Wanted on Southwest Freeway Study Aimed To Ease Congestion [Houston Public Media]
• Houston-Galveston Area Council’s Transportation Policy Council Approves $3.4M for Houston B-Cycle [The Highwayman]

Photo of Skyhouse River Oaks: Marc Longoria via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Houston Homebuilders Losing Sales to Resale Market Amid Growing Construction Costs, According to Metrostudy [HBJ]
• Declines in Energy Business Expected To Lower Hotel Demand by 6% by 2017 Just as Supply of Hotel Rooms Set To Increase by 8% [Houston Chronicle]
• Houston’s Creative Economy Has Generated Billions of Dollars, Grown in Employment by 22% in 3 Years [Houston Public Media]
• Texas Medical Center Could Break Ground on New Research Project in the First Quarter of Next Year [Prime Property]
• An ‘Old-School’ Renovation Planned for Old Cheek-Neal Coffee Building [Houston Chronicle]
• Austin-Based Dine-In Movie Theater Moviehouse & Eatery To Open Near Cypress Creek Lakes [HBJ]
• The Durham House To Open Oct. 9 in Former Woodrows Heights Location at 1200 Durham [Houston Chronicle]
• Mama Sumba Sports Bar & Grill Opening in The Pub Room 101’s Former Location in Humble at 9522 N. Sam Houston Parkway E. Today [HBJ]
• Texas Freight Mobility Plan Addresses Challenge of Moving Goods Around the State By Truck, Railroad Car and Barge [The Highwayman]
• Energy Corridor Gets a ‘Woonerf’ Street for Cyclists and Walkers [Houston Public Media]
• Remembering Houston Architect and Landscape Architect Charles Tapley [Glasstire]

Photo: Marc Longoria via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• Houston Sales Contracts Down 15% in August from a Year Earlier, Closings Off 20%, According to Metrostudy [Prime Property]
• InSite Realty and Urban Construction Southwest Start Phase II of Katy Office Complex Grandway West [HBJ]
• Alley Theatre Among Houston’s Newest Historic Sites [Prime Property; more here]
• Fayetteville, Arkansas-Based Slim Chickens Plans To Open 20 Houston Stores Over Next 5 Years, Starting with Katy Opening Nov. 2 [HBJ]
• Audi Dealership for Sugar Land and a Mercedes Benz Dealership for the Energy Corridor in the Works [HBJ]
• Former Mayor of Milwaukee John Norquist Says To Tear Down Pierce Elevated To Reduce Congestion, Improve Walkability [The Urban Edge]

Photo of 2929 Weslayan: Marc Longoria via Swamplot Flickr Pool

• City Council To Weigh Houston’s First-Ever General Plan Today [Houston Chronicle]
• ‘Exxon Effect’ Slower Than Expected in North Houston Suburbs as First Phase of New Campus Is Complete [HBJ]
• Shopping Center Magnate Woody Mann on How the Oil Downturn is Affecting Houston’s Retail Market [Realty News Report]
• Video: A Sneak Peek at the Convention District Upgrades [Houston Chronicle]
• Momentum Indoor Climbing Bought Nearly 4 Acres in Katy for Its First Houston Location [Prime Property]
• Why Car-Crazy Cities Like Houston Are Building New Light Rail Lines [The Urban Edge]
• Bike Sharing Program B-Cycle Would Get $4.7M for Expansion in Transportation Improvement Plan [The Highwayman]
• Meyerland Homeowners Are Still Recovering from the Memorial Day Storm [Houston Press]
• New $1.34M Convention Center Sculpture ‘Fountain of the Americas’ Will Feature a Pool, Moving Polycarbonate ‘Feathers’ [Houston Chronicle]

Photo of Market Square Tower: Marc Longoria via Swamplot Flickr Pool