Proposed Developments | Swamplot

09/12/13 10:00am

A Look at Midway’s Mixed-Use Plans in Upper Kirby?

Office Buildings, Parks, Proposed Developments, Upper Kirby

Update, 5:45 p.m.: A rep from Midway tells Swamplot that these plans are “nearly a year old” and “conceptual in nature” and writes in an email: “We should have a better idea in the next 60 days of what the project will actually entail.”

Marketing materials on the website of Midway Cos. — developers of CityCentre and GreenStreet — include this rendering of a 16-story office building standing at the corner of Richmond and Wakeforest in Upper Kirby. The materials show the building as part of a “mixed-use pedestrian-focused transit node,” with additional restaurants and retail, that Midway appears to be planning with the Upper Kirby Redevelopment Authority here to jazz upÂ Levy Park. An application to reduce the setback on this site along Richmond was approved in July.

AlsoÂ included in the materials are renderings of a 300-unit loft building facing the Southwest Fwy. and flanking aÂ greenspace:

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77098, Lofts, Mixed Use, Office Buildings, Parks, Proposed Developments, Upper Kirby

Demolitions

09/11/13 4:00pm

A New Restaurant in an Old Industrial Spot in the First Ward?

by Allyn West

First Ward, Industrial Properties, Proposed Developments, Restaurants, Retail

14 Comments

Note: Story updated below.

A reader sends this photo of the demolition of the 1950s metal warehouses across the street from the former Johnny Franks Auto Parts at the corner of Sawyer and Edwards St. in the First Ward. County records show that both this 1.2-acre lot and the larger 2.4-acre Johnny Franks lot are owned by the same entity: Westheimer Retail Center Ltd., located at 1520 Oliver St.Â And it just so happens that retail developer Lovett Commercial, also located at 1520 Oliver St.,Â has posted on its website a pair of pretty pictures of a new cafe — at the corner of Sawyer and Edwards!

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77007, Demolitions, First Ward, Industrial Areas, Proposed Developments, Restaurants, Retail

Apartments

09/11/13 10:00am

Apartments Could Replace Closing Landry’s on Westheimer

by Allyn West

Briarmeadow, Demolitions, Openings and Closings, Proposed Developments, Quicklink, Restaurants

8 Comments

APARTMENTS COULD REPLACE CLOSING LANDRY’S ON WESTHEIMER The Landry’s Seafood House at 8816 Westheimer Rd. has lost its lease, apparently, and will close: This Sunday, reports Food Chronicles, brings the restaurant’s 20-year run in this spot to an end. But it doesn’t appear that the 4.5-acre site at Westheimer and Fondren will remain without activity for very long:Â “The landlord . . . sold the property to an apartment builder. According to Landryâ€™s, the restaurant and other buildings . . . are slated for demolition.” [Food Chronicles] Photo: Landry’s Seafood

77063, Apartments, Briarmeadow, Demolitions, Openings and Closings, Proposed Developments, Redevelopment, Restaurants

Bayous and Waterways

09/09/13 12:30pm

What’s Best for Buffalo Bayou?

by Allyn West

Flooding, Memorial Park, Parks, Proposed Developments, Quicklink, River Oaks, Wildlife

15 Comments

WHAT’S BEST FOR BUFFALO BAYOU? Let it flow, or let it be? Environmentalists and the Harris County Flood Control DistrictÂ disagree — at least when it comes to theÂ 1.5-mile stretch that contributes to the “jungly ecosystem” of theÂ Hogg Bird Sanctuary in Memorial Park, reports the Houston Chronicleâ€™s Lisa Gray.Â A “restoration” plan proposed by the flood controllers, explainsÂ Gray, “would change the bayou’s course in places, fill in an oxbow here, reinforce banks there, widen the bayou’s channel, raising and lowering landmasses and generally move an enormous amount of dirt. [They argue] that the proposed measures are desperately needed to reduce erosion and improve water quality.” They’d do it here as they did it at Meyer Park along Spring Creek, reports Gray. But the environmentalists don’t seem to consider that to have been a “restoration” project, really: “‘Look at that!” [Memorial Park Conservancy board member Katy Emde] told me, outraged, showing me a picture of Meyer Park on her phone. ‘There’s no diversity! It’s not natural! It’s not habitat! It’s horrifying.'” [Houston Chronicle ($); previously on Swamplot] Photo of Hogg Bird Sanctuary: Bayou Shuttle

77007, Bayous and Waterways, Buffalo Bayou, Flooding, Memorial-Park, River Oaks, Wildlife

Downtown

09/09/13 10:00am

Louisiana Elevated: A Peek at the See-Through Skybridge of Chevron’s New 50-Story Skyscraper

by Allyn West

Office Buildings, Proposed Developments, Skyscrapers, Streetscapes

25 Comments

A reader sends this rendering of the skybridge that would hook up the existingÂ Chevron buildings Downtown with the new 50-story big blue tower planned to rise at 1600 Louisiana and Pease, on the site of Kenneth Franzheim’s torn-down Downtown Y. The reader says that the new HOK-designed tower could rise as high as 830 ft., “making it the third tallest building downtown.” (Which, this rendering suggests, would invite backpack-wearing tourists to gawk and take photos.) A few other details: “The 4th floor will have an outdoor cafeteria and event space while the recently purchased parking garage will have two new floors added to house a new fitness center.”

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77002, Downtown, Office Buildings, Proposed Developments, Skyscrapers, Streetscapes

Bellaire

09/06/13 11:15am

Park That Bus: Bernieâ€™s To Open 3 Non-Mobile Locations

by Allyn West

Katy, Openings and Closings, Proposed Developments, Restaurants

7 Comments

Justin Turner of the cheddar-colored, school-themed burger bus — a frequent visitor to the can-you-hear-me-above-the-generators Houston Food Park in East Downtown — tells Eater Houston that he’s planning to open 3 non-wheeled restaurants in the next 5 years. That’s in addition to the stand he set up at Sections 114 and 115 inside Reliant Stadium to cook patties while the Texans play. Bernie’s will still operate 3 buses to serve close-in â€™hoods, but it appears that all the restaurants will be outside the Loop: The first to open, says Turner, will be on Bellaire west of 610, the second in Katy, and the third “another place out in the ‘burbs.”

Bernie’s Burger Bus to Open Three Brick-and-Mortar Spots in the Next Five Years: An Interview with the Owner [Eater Houston]
Previously on Swamplot: East Downtownâ€™s Food Truck Parking Park

Photo of Bernie’s Burger Bus at Inversion at 1953 Montrose Blvd: Yelp user Jason T.

Bellaire, Food Trucks, Katy, Openings and Closings, Proposed Developments, Reliant Stadium, Restaurants

Buildouts

09/06/13 10:00am

A Grander Galleria: More Retail, More Restaurants, More Revenue — And a Residential Highrise Too?

by Allyn West

Demolitions, Galleria, Highrises, Houston Landmarks, Malls, Proposed Developments, Renovations, Restaurants, Retail, Shopping, Uptown

36 Comments

Remember that unusable and really vague tip sent to Swamplot back in January? The one promising that a “major (non-residential) Houston property is about to make a significant change”? And it wasn’t Macy’s? Well, the in-the-know tipster now reports, we can let that cat out of the bag, since the Houston Business Journal and Houston Chronicle already have: The “Houston landmark” the tipster couldn’t tip us off about is the Galleria — which, it was announced yesterday by developer Simon Property Group, will be undergoing extensive renovations and partial demolition to create about 100,000 new sq. ft. of retail and restaurant space.

The plan calls for the Galleria III portion where Saks Fifth Avenue is currently located to be demolished — though the tipster says the Philip Johnson faÃ§ade will be maintained — to make room for a bumped-out food court (shown in the rendering above). That freed-up Saks space will provide room for 35 new retailers and restaurants. Meanwhile, Saks will be moving into the Macy’s spot on Sage, and that Macy’s will be merging with the other Macy’s on Hidalgo. (Makes sense.) Also, a standaloneÂ box will be built in the parking lot for a few tenants who can afford to be more conspicuous to the stop-and-go crowd on Westheimer.

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77056, Demolitions, Galleria, Highrises, Macy's, Malls, Proposed Developments, Relocations, Renovations, Restaurants, Retail, Shopping, Uptown

Fort Bend County

09/05/13 3:45pm

What Sugar Land’s New Performance Hall Might Look Like

by Allyn West

Land Development, Proposed Developments, Sugar Land, Telfair

25 Comments

Here’s a look at the recently approved designs of the new arts and concert venue that could start being built as soon as 2014 in Sugar Land. Drawn up by Washington, D.C., firm Martinez & Johnson, the 200,000-sq.-ft., 6,500-seat theater will eventually sit on 39 undeveloped acres in Telfair, just off the Southwest Fwy. and University Blvd.

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77479, Concert Venues, Fort Bend County, Proposed Developments, Sugar-Land, Telfair, Theaters

Highrises

09/05/13 11:00am

Hines Not Stopping San Felipe Skyscraper

by Allyn West

Neighborhood Disputes, Office Buildings, Proposed Developments, Quicklink, Vermont Commons

26 Comments

HINES NOT STOPPING SAN FELIPE SKYSCRAPER Speeches? Yard signs? Websites? Alarming maps portraying the inevitability of equally tall Petco and Red Lion Pub towers popping up nearby? Apparently, Hines has been unmoved by the various media deployed by concerned neighbors, telling the Houston Chronicle that it will start construction before Thanksgiving on that 17-story office building at the corner of Spann and San Felipe, just outside the boundaries of River Oaks. Erin Mulvaney reports that John Mooz, senior managing director, says that Hines plans to get going on the 167,000-sq.-ft. tower “in the next 60 days.” [Prime Property; previously on Swamplot] Rendering: Hines

77019, Highrises, Neighborhood Disputes, Office Buildings, Proposed Developments, Vermont Commons

Cinco Ranch

09/04/13 4:30pm

Trader Joe’s Opening New Store Outside Every Loop in Cinco Ranch

by Allyn West

Katy, New Construction, Openings and Closings, Proposed Developments, Retail

15 Comments

Here’s a look at Houston’s next Trader Joe’s, set to open in Cinco Ranch sometime next year. It’ll be at 2643 Commercial Center Blvd., right in the center of all that commerce just west of the Grand Pkwy. This new 12,500-sq.-ft. store will be the 4th in the area. The last to open was the one onÂ San Felipe and Voss in January, across the street from the Randall’s that has since been torn down to make way for a new Whole Foods.

Rendering: Trader Joe’s

77494, Cinco Ranch, Grocery Stores, Katy, New Construction, Openings and Closings, Proposed Developments, Retail

Deer Park

09/04/13 12:00pm

Preserving the Deer Park Prairie with Sardonic Teevee Power

by Allyn West

Land Development, Land Sales, Proposed Developments, Quicklink

1 Comment

PRESERVING THE DEER PARK PRAIRIE WITH SARDONIC TEEVEE POWER The mad dash to raise the $4 million to buy up 53 acres of the Deer Park Prairie and save it from development got an early $2 million boost from a minor Houston celebrity, long-time environmental activist Terry Hershey; now, with the landowner’s once-delayed deadline just a week away and $650,000 still needed, the Bayou Land Conservancy is appealing to an even higher power, reports Lisa Gray: “‘There is only one man who can save us now,’ proclaims the [conservancy’s] website . . . ‘Stephen Colbert!’ In hopes of winning a mention on ‘The Colbert Report’ and enjoying the resulting ‘Colbert bump’ in popularity, [the conservancy] urges prairie fans to rally the Comedy Central TV host to their cause.” [Houston Chronicle; previously on Swamplot] Image: Bayou Park Conservancy

77505, Celebrities, Deer Park, Land Sales, Preservation, Proposed Developments

Hyde Park

09/03/13 12:15pm

Pushing the Pizza Back a Bit from Montrose Blvd.

by Allyn West

Montrose, Proposed Developments, Public Safety, Quicklink, Restaurants

11 Comments

PUSHING THE PIZZA BACK A BIT FROM MONTROSE BLVD. Concerns about howÂ that newÂ Pizaro’s Pizza had been drawn to cozy up to theÂ blind corner at W. Gray and Montrose — and how that might affect people on the street —Â have caused aÂ change in plans, reports The Highwayman: “Situating the entrance at an angle provides more visibility to pedestrians and people in a wheelchair. Drawings also seem to indicate two directional ramps that provide a little more safety and security for disabled pedestrians.” The new set of drawings — one of which is shown here — will go up before the Planning Commission this Thursday. [The Highwayman; previously on Swamplot] Rendering: Braun Enterprises

77019, Hyde Park, Montrose, Pedestrians, Proposed Developments, Public Safety, Restaurants

Apartments

08/30/13 10:00am

Texaco Redo a Go: The Next Residential Highrise Downtown To Begin Construction Soon

by Allyn West

Buying and Selling, Downtown, Highrises, Proposed Developments, Retail

29 Comments

Provident Realty closed yesterday on the formerÂ Texaco Building at 1111 Rusk, catty-corner from BG Group Place, and says it will begin renovations and new construction on this Hnedak Bobo Group-designed residential highrise just as soon as it can get the permits.

Yesterday’s announcement doesn’t specify how high the new highrise will rise, but info that Swamplot published in May suggest that it could stand as tall as 38 stories. Houston Business Journal reports that the project, on the block bound by Fannin, San Jacinto, Capitol, and Rusk, will tap into the tunnels, and there will be 309 units in all, with a 550-car parking garage and 8,000-sq.-ft. of ground-floor retail.

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77002, Apartments, Downtown, Downtown Tunnels, Highrises, Proposed Developments, Retail

Houston Heights

08/29/13 12:00pm

Heights Telephone Museum To Be Renovated Into Lofts

by Allyn West

Lofts, Museums, Proposed Developments, Renovations

18 Comments

Hold the phone! Rumored to be a goner, the 1957 Telephone Museum on the corner 18th and Ashland, which was sold about a year ago, will soon be cleaned up and converted into 24 luxury lofts, says Donna Sonne Wright of homebuilders Rohe & Wright. And Wright also tells Swamplot that 21 cottages will be built here too, replacing the fenced-in surface parking lot off 17th. Unfortunately, no renderings of the project are yet available. Rohe & Wright is the same firm responsible for the Saint HonorÃ© gated community under construction off San Felipe.