Parks

Parks, Quicklink, West Houston

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TURNING THE FERAL HOGS OF BARKER AND ADDICKS RESERVOIRS INTO PORK CHOPS FOR THE NEEDY J&J Packing Co., 35602 West Hwy. 90, Brookshire, Texas Yesterday county commissioners approved a 1-year contract yesterday with Brookshire’s J&J Packing Co. (pictured at left at 35602 W. Hwy. 90) to slaughter and butcher feral hogs found damaging sports fields and other facilities in and around West Houston’s George Bush Park and Congressman Bill Archer Park and turn them into meat for area food banks. Harris County precinct 3 employees will now be responsible for trapping the hogs and transporting them to the Brookshire plant for processing. “The plan is to trap the varmints in four, 4-acre fenced structures — two in each park — where they can survive for up to several weeks, having grass, water and room to move around,” writes Kiah Collier. “The larger traps will be more effective than smaller ones employees have been using, [Precinct 3 special activities coordinator Mike] McMahan said, because the pigs do not realize they are in a trap and are less likely to panic and warn others. ‘Pigs become very aware of those situations very quickly,’ McMahan said. ‘Pigs are very smart animals.’ But a wildlife disease biologist tells Collier that similar plans tried elsewhere have turned out to be very expensive, and that there are disease risks: “It’s great publicity while it works,” says Brian Mesenbrink with the Texas offices of the USDA’s Wildlife Services, “but the minute something goes wrong, the minute somebody gets sick, there’s going to be all hell to pay. No one thinks about that going into it. They just see the fuzzy and warm side of it.” [Houston Chronicle ($)] Photo: J&J Packing Co.

Critters, Harris County Government, Parks, West Houston

City Selling Off Land, Streets, and a Park on Allen Parkway

Fourth Ward, Land for Sale, Parks

41 Comments

Map of Site at 1701 Allen Pkwy., Houston Having completed demolitions of facilities it owned on the property, including its fleet maintenance facility at 801 Gillette St., a couple of public works buildings at 812 Gillette, and a former HPD SWAT substation at 1500 W. Dallas, the city has now listed for sale the 10-1/2-acre swath of land along Allen Pkwy between the Federal Reserve building and Allen Parkway Village. The land includes San Felipe Park at 1717 Allen Pkwy., which fronts Houston’s premiere waterfront roadway opposite Buffalo Bayou Park. Also included, apparently: Land underneath 3 streets that extend into the property: Hopson St., Bailey St., and Golf Link Pl. The listing from Cushman & Wakefield says bids are due March 14th.

San Felipe Park and All

77019, Fourth Ward, Land for Sale, Parks, Public Buildings

Financing

12/23/13 2:15pm

Crowdwatering, Crowdgobbling Successes

Meadowcreek, Midtown, Parks, Quicklink

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CROWDWATERING, CROWDGOBBLING SUCCESSES Map Showing Planned Locations of New Trees at Meadowcreek Village Park, Meadowcreek Village, Houston Crowdfunding efforts for 2 separate Houston ventures featured on Swamplot last month have achieved their fundraising goals. Rebecca Masson tells Swamplot that “Fluff Bake Bar will happen,” after a campaign on Kickstarter brought in $53,580 in donations. But Masson says she’s “still in talks” with the landlord about the new Midtown retail sweet shop she’s planning; location details won’t be announced until there’s a signed lease. Meanwhile, $3,035 brought in from a campaign on YouCaring means 20 new trees donated to Meadowcreek Village Park by Trees for Houston will have enough water to drink for 2 years. Got concerns about what the trees will drink after that? The campaign still has 9 days to go before it closes. Map: Meadowcreek Village Civic Club Beautification Committee

77006, 77017, Financing, Fundraising, Meadowcreek Village, Midtown, Parks, Retail, Trees

Bellaire

12/05/13 11:00am

A Look at Lake Flato’s Designs for the Bellaire Park Replacing Teas Nursery

Parks, Proposed Developments

11 Comments

Rendering of Evelyn's Park, Bellaire, Texas

Architects of grocery stores, townhouses, and adaptively reusedÂ kayak rental places Lake Flato are now trying their hands at HoustonÂ park pavilions.Â These renderings appeared on the San Antonio firm’s blog late last week, giving an early look at some of the stuff planned for Evelyn’s Park. The park has been in the works since 2009, or so; Teas Nursery had operated on this cornerÂ of Newcastle St. and Bellaire Blvd., just inside the Loop, for about 100 years before that.

Pavilions, Etc.

77401, Bellaire, Parks, Proposed Developments

Financing

11/19/13 11:30am

A Treestarter for Meadowcreek Village Park

Meadowcreek, Parks, Quicklink, Trees, Utilities

2 Comments

A TREESTARTER FOR MEADOWCREEK VILLAGE PARK Map of Meadowcreek Village Park, Forest Oaks Blvd., Meadowcreek Village, Houston There’s no ponderous selfie video to go with the appeal (a more generic promotional vid from Trees for Houston is posted instead), but the Beautification Committee of the Meadowcreek Village Civic Club has taken to a crowdfunding site to raise money for twenty 15-gallon trees they hope to plant at drought-stricken Meadowcreek Village Park on Forest Oaks Blvd. just south of Allendale Rd. The $3,000 the committee hopes to raise from online donations won’t be going to buy the trees, however — Trees for Houston has already donated them. Instead, they’re trying to fund the trees’ watering costs for 2 years, which committee chair Joe Rocha figures will cost $75 per tree per annum. With a mere 43 days to go before the end-of-the-year watering-fund deadline, the campaign is almost a third of the way toward its goal. [YouCaring] Drawing of Meadowcreek Village Park: Beautification Committee

77017, Fundraising, Meadowcreek Village, Parks, Trees, Utilities

Downtown

11/12/13 11:45am

A Park-Size Tunnel Entrance Concept for Downtown

Houston Architects, Parks, Proposed Developments

41 Comments

How about a public park that also serves as a multi-story entrance to Downtown’s extensive underground tunnel system? One that might even provide a little natural light or outdoor seating for below-the-deck diners? This pie-in-the-basement concept for the block-size surface parking lot between One and Two Shell Plaza made an appearance in the Chronicle‘s real estate blog last week — though the architecture firm Gensler had first posted it online this past spring. For the company’s ownÂ “Town Square Initiative,” designers were charged with envisioning a new type of town square for various cities around the globe. Tunnel Loop Square, for the block surrounded by Walker, McKinney, Louisiana, and Milam, was one of several proposals stemming from the firm’s Houston office.

77002, Downtown, Downtown Tunnel System, Houston Architects, Parks, Proposed Developments

Parks

10/30/13 11:00am

Making More Splash in Pasadena

Pasadena, Proposed Developments, Quicklink

5 Comments

MAKING MORE SPLASH IN PASADENA The Pasadena city council got together last week to have a look at a $4 million plan that would expand the community pool at Strawberry Park on Lafferty Rd. and Parkside Dr. into something a bit splashier, reports the Pasadena Citizen: “Progressive Commercial Aquaticsâ€™ Steve Davis explained the success public and private entities have had with water parks, including nearby Pirates Bay, owned by the City of Baytown. In Davisâ€™ plan for Pasadena, the . . . project would add a new bath house, ‘lazy river,’ concession area, multiple shaded areas and lots of other pool features.” But not all council members were sold. Says Pat Van Houte: “To me, itâ€™s not really a priority. I would look at the economics of, â€˜How much is this going to cost long run?â€™” [Pasadena Citizen] Drawing: Progressive Commercial Aquatics

77506, Parks, Pasadena, Proosed Developments, Recreation

10/23/13 4:30pm

Where the Dogs Will Play Along Buffalo Bayou

North Montrose, Parks, Proposed Developments

21 Comments

Here’s a rendering that shows how that informal dog bowl along Buffalo Bayou near Montrose Blvd. will be formalized and capitalized into a Dog Park. Construction, says a PR rep for the Buffalo Bayou Partnership, will begin the first of the year; the park should be open next winter.

Why, you might wonder, would it take that long to build a place for dogs to romp and run and bark and stuff? Part of it will be creating the pond you can see in the rendering. The pond, which will be treated with a “bio-filter” and native vegetation, is meant to keep said dogs 1) safe and 2) away from the bayou, so they don’t muddy up the banks scrambling in and out of the water and contribute to erosion.Â Other additions? A purty fence that will separate the pups from the joggers and 2 pavilions, at the top of the hill, that will provide a bit more shade.

Previously on Swamplot: Whatâ€™s Been Happening at Buffalo Bayou Park, Introducing the Bud Light Amphitheater, the Next Greenspace To Grace Buffalo Bayou, How To Build a Buffalo Bayou Pedestrian Bridge: A Photo Tutorial, The Next New Bridge Going over the Bayou, More Pedestrian Bridges and Other Twists and Turns in the Plans for Buffalo Bayou Park

Rendering: SWA Group

77019, Buffalo Bayou, Buffalo Bayou Park, Buffalo Bayou Partnership, North Montrose, Parks, Proposed Developments, Recreation

10/22/13 3:45pm

Lookee What the Kinder Foundation’s $50M Is Gonna Help Build Along the Bayous

East End, Parks, Proposed Developments

25 Comments

So the city has agreed to hand over maintenance of all the new bayou trails â€™nâ€™ stuffÂ to the Houston Parks Board — it was the one condition that the Kinder Foundation stipulated before it would agree to donate $50 million to the Bayou Greenways project. That donation became a done deal earlier today. This dough, says the Parks Board, is going to allow construction to begin before the end of 2014 on as many as 14 new sections of trail — including even more work along Brays Bayou in Mason Park in the East End, shown in this rendering from SWA Group.

Bayous and Waterways, Brays-Bayou, East End, Mason Park, Parks, Proposed Developments, Trails

Apartments

10/18/13 10:00am

The 25-Story Apartment Tower Hines Plans To Build in the Museum District

Highrises, Museum District, Parks, Proposed Developments, Retail

13 Comments

Here’s a rendering of that 25-story residential highrise Hines says it plans to start building in the Museum District in July. Designed by Munoz + Albin, the 259-unit, 301,000-sq.-ft. apartment building and parking garage will stand next to the Asia Society Texas Center on most of the block bound by Caroline, Oakdale, Southmore, and San Jacinto.

What’s missing from this rendering is that historic home on the corner of Caroline and Southmore whose owners chose not to sell. It appears that the property immediately west of the holdouts’ and next to the light rail line will become a 10,000-sq.-ft. “public-access park,” reports the Houston Business Journal: “In addition, there is potential for small retail space adjacent to the park, such as a cafÃ© or light food services.”

Rendering: Hines

77004, Apartments, Highrises, Museum District, Parks, Proposed Developments, Retail

10/16/13 11:15am

The Catch in Kinder Foundation’s Bayou Greenways Cash Giveaway

Bayous and Waterways, Houston Parks Board, Maintenance, Parks

Parks, Quicklink

9 Comments

THE CATCH IN KINDER FOUNDATION’S BAYOU GREENWAYS CASH GIVEAWAY It’s one thing to get the money to build a bunch of nice parks, and it’s another to keep them nice: Houston Chronicle reports that the Kinder Foundation isn’t convinced that the city will be able to pay for the maintenance of all those miles and miles of hike and bike trails and linear parks it’s setting up through the Bayou Greenways Project. That’s why — before the foundation agrees to donate the $50 million it’s dangling out there to the project — it wants the nonprofit Houston Parks Board to be put in charge of future upkeep: “Under the proposed arrangement, the city agrees to pay the park board up to $10 million a year for maintenance. Although the nonprofit likely will hire private companies and Harris County Flood Control to do some work, the city parks department would be the preferred contractor for the bulk of it, essentially bringing much of the funding back to city coffers. Additionally, the agreement includes an annual 20 percent contingency fund the board can use for capital improvement projects, such as installing new lights or replacing aging trails, or for disaster recovery after flooding or hurricanes.” [Houston Chronicle ($); previously on Swamplot] Photo of hike and bike trail construction on Brays Bayou: Allyn West

Parks

10/15/13 10:00am

Ordinance Opening Checkbooks, Not Spaces

Quicklink

12 Comments

ORDINANCE OPENING CHECKBOOKS, NOT SPACES How much new parkland has the city acquired since 2007, when it passed the so-called open space ordinance meant to encourage residential developers to donate part of their properties to the public? “Not one acre,” reports the Houston Chronicle. Almost all the developers, reports Jayme Fraser, have “written checks” instead. But the city hasn’t spent theÂ $11 million it has garnered in fees to buy land; much of it, rather, has gone to maintain and add amenities to the parks it already has: “Mark Ross, deputy director of parks development, said neighborhoods often want upgrades that can be easier to fund, such as . . . [a]Â playground and water fountains . . . . ‘Most of these might be considered minor improvements, but itâ€™s what people appreciate the most,’ Ross said, pointing to 28 projects completed.” [Houston Chronicle ($)] Photo of Mason Park: Jose Luna

Ordinances, Parks, Public Space

10/03/13 3:30pm

Here Comes More Greenway Mileage for White Oak Bayou

Houston Heights, Parks, Spring Branch

15 Comments

Construction began yesterday on a new 1.35-mile segment of hike and bike trail on White Oak Bayou, the first of 5 planned sections that will more or lessÂ formalize the route that some trail users have taken it upon themselves to blaze. Eventually, the $3.4 million that theÂ Bayou Greenways project will spend here will create about 11 miles of off-street passage from Hollister Rd. in Spring Branch to Downtown.

But first things first: This new segment will span Shepherd and Durham and W. 11th St., where, as this rendering from SWA Group shows, that charred MKT railroad trestle will be replaced with a snazzy new one — somewhat to the chagrin of John Nova Lomax, you’ll remember, who’s on the record lamenting theÂ yoga dads and their ilk that that char might have onceÂ scared off.

Previously on Swamplot: Fearing the Yoga Dads the New Heights Hike and Bike Link Will Bring, Off-Trailing with Houstonâ€™s Northwest Bike Path Pioneers, Parks By Youâ€™s Feel-Good Campaign To Build More Bayou Parks by You, Enormous Plan To Build Bayou-Side Parks: The Movie

Rendering: SWA Group

Houston Heights, Parks, Recreation, Spring-Branch, Trails, White Oak Bayou

Country Club Place

09/25/13 4:35pm

Garden Group Looking To Turn Gus Wortham Golf Course into Botanical Wonderland

East End, Idylwood, Land Development, Parks, Proposed Developments

37 Comments

Board members of Houston Botanic Garden, a nonprofit formed in 2002 that’s been looking to bring a big-time garden to the city ever since, have had their eyes on several properties, including the KBR site in the Fifth Ward. But it’s the 150 acres home to the 18-hole Gus Wortham Golf Course — the oldest in Texas — that they are after now. The course, which includes a driving range, is owned by the city, and Jeff Ross, president of the garden club, explains that the organization hopes to ink a “long-term lease” that would allow it to “repurpose the property,” much like the 55-acre VanDusen Botanical Garden had done with the old Shaughnessy Golf Club in Vancouver. Ross explains that this repurposing could mean reserving as many as 65 acres for a 9-hole course — which could be built from scratch or involve a kind of rejiggering of the existing holes — and setting up the gardens on the remaining 85-90 relatively hilly acres that roll here toward Brays Bayou.