EATSIE BOYS TAKING OVER KRAFTSMEN CAFE SPACE IN MONTROSE 
The end of the month will mark the end of a 10-year run for the cafe run by Kraftsmen Bakery in the small enclave of eateries carved out of the former Church of Christ building at 4100 Montrose, just north of Richmond. But Eater Houston reports Scott Tycer’s bakery operation plans to keep its Heights cafe and open an additional location within the next few months. Meanwhile, moving into the space next to the Black Lab, beginning in June: the first non-mobile location for the Eatsie Boys. Ryan Soroka and Matt Marcus say they’ll keep their original food truck available for private events, but otherwise will keep it parked outside Agora on Westheimer or their not-yet-opened 8th Wonder Brewery in East Downtown. Their new Montrose cafe will add pastries and coffee to the food truck’s sandwiches-and-ice-cream mix. [Eater Houston] Photo: Emily Duff
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COMMENT OF THE DAY: JUST TO DRAG A SHUTTLE MOCKUP INTO HOUSTON “. . . I contacted the JSC’s PAO Office and found out that it was originally due here on March 10th but an area from the channel to JSC’s dock would have to be dredged in order to accommodate the tug pushing the barge. Current estimates have pushed the delivery time to some time in July. . . . I feel that the mock-up coming to JSC is a ray of hope on an otherwise bleak future. . . .” [Neal_K, commenting on Space Center Houston Getting KSC Space Shuttle Mockup Hand-Me-Down, Compartment Trainer, New Building]
COMMENT OF THE DAY: THE NATURAL WAY TO UPDATE YOUR HOME “Oh, I don’t know . . . wait just 20 years, and wood panelling will be right back into fashion, and wood floors out of fashion. The house just needs to be a little patient.” [Angeli Wahlstedt, commenting on Bayou-Side 1964 Meadowcreek Mod Features Built-in Catalog of Wood Paneling]
LAWSUIT CLAIMS PINEY POINT VILLAGE IS USING HUNTERS CREEK VILLAGE AS DETENTION POND 
A waterflow restrictor the city of Piney Point Village secretly installed in a new stormwater system it shares with Hunters Creek Village is now the focus of 2 separate lawsuits. The latest, filed last week, includes claims that the bricked-up storm drain — narrowing a culvert under Hedwig Rd. connecting the 2 Memorial villages from 36 to about 8 inches — effectively turns Hunters Creek Village into a stormwater storage facility for its downstream neighbor. Piney Point Village officials claim the restrictor prevents Hunters Creek from draining more water from Kemwood Dr. through the new culvert than the 2 municipalities had originally agreed upon. Rainstorms on January 9th and 25th flooded Kemwood with 4 ft. of water, which backed up into residents’ yards. Hunters Creek’s second lawsuit calls the narrowing of the culvert “deliberate sabotage” put in place to force the city to sign off on a drainage study. [Memorial Examiner] Photo of Kemwood at Hedwig Rd.: Rusty Graham
HOUSTON PRESERVATIONISTS MOVE TO STRIP CENTER, CHANGE NAME 
The Greater Houston Preservation Alliance’s days as a scrappy preservation organization housed in offices in the historic 1929 Gulf building downtown are over. From now on, it’ll be a scrappy preservation organization housed in offices in a Westheimer Rd. strip center. Okay, it’s that fancy brick-clad River Oaks strip center with the argyle tower across at 3272 Westheimer, across from Lamar High School. And it’s name is gonna change too. The GHPA shall now be known as Preservation Houston. [GHPA Preservation Houston; previously on Swamplot] Photo: Jim Parsons/Preservation Houston
STOLEN FROM A CLOSELY GUARDED GARDEN 
Yes, those bees were under camera surveillance; don’t even think they aren’t watching the radishes too. A beehive on the small garden campus adjacent to Haven Restaurant on Algerian Way near the corner of Kirby and the 59 feeder was stolen in the early morning hours Saturday, by someone driving a dark truck with a camper — reports chef Randy Evans after reviewing security footage. Film at 11 5, promises KTRK reporter Miya Shay. [Twitter] Photo: Miya Shay
COMMENT OF THE DAY: THE RARE MONTROSE BLOCK “Whatever happens to this property will be of little consequence to the rest of Westhiemer in Montrose. As noted above, this lot is a rare bird for Westheimer as, with the exception of the JITBox pad, it encompasses the entire block. Almost very other lot from Shep to midtown on Westheimer is split with residential lots behind the commercial lots that front Westheimer. Unless you can buy out a block of single family homeowners, you will never have another chance to build on a complete block like on this lot. Thus, whether it is a high rise, mid rise, or low rise mixed use or Walmart, it will not mean that the rest of the neighborhood will be likely to follow suit. I do not think that a high rise will go in because the capital markets are still risk adverse and would prefer something that will go up faster and provide a safer and faster return. Look for another 4-6 story apartment complex, hopefully with some ground floor retail. If the JITBox is an issue, it may end up staying a strip mall. There are plenty of people in town who could make a quick buck by sprucing it up and filling it with the usual junk. This is Houston afterall. Expect the worst, hope for something slightly better.” [Old School, commenting on Big Block on the Corner of Westheimer and Montrose Goes Up for Sale]
COMMENT OF THE DAY: THE LURE OF THE NOT SO COMPLEX APARTMENT “I’ve personally lived in all types of Montrose apartments — funky one-bedrooms, duplexes, town homes, and anthills. While the charm is nice, the real amenity older stock apartments offer is proximity to the street. Many of the big complexes are difficult to navigate and make it almost impossible for visitors to get to you. I would gladly live in a big complex if it took the same amount of time to get from my door to the street as my current place.” [paulbtucker, commenting on Comment of the Day: Funky Montrose Apartments Are in High Demand]
CONFIRMED: NEW IPAD WILL HIT NEW HOUSTON APPLE STORE ON OPENING DAY 
To guarantee there’ll be Apple addicts camping outside the new Highland Village store on its opening day next Friday, Apple announced today that March 16 will also be the day the new iPad — yes, that’s what it’s being called — goes on sale for the first time. The Highland Village Apple Store, the company’s first not-in-a-mall store in Houston, will also be the first glass-front, glass-back, and glass-roof location to have entrances at both front and rear. Does that mean there’ll be 2 separate lines too? [Mashable; previously on Swamplot] Photo: Vinson
WHAT IS PAPPAS GOING TO DO TO MAMA’S? 
Pappas Restaurants is the new owner of Mama’s Cafe at 6019 Westheimer, west of Fountainview. The restaurant shut down over the weekend “after 30 years of serving Huevos Hofbrau and CFS,” reports the b4-u-eat newsletter. A Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen is next door; a new restaurant in the former Mama’s location is expected to open in about a month, possibly with the same name. [b4-u-eat] Photo: City-Data
COMMENT OF THE DAY: FUNKY MONTROSE APARTMENTS ARE IN HIGH DEMAND “Here’s what I am seeing in Montrose this year and last year: Every nice garage apartment, side-by-side duplex, fourplex, etc brings on multiple applicants. (Sometimes renting for more than the stated price.) With several to choose from, the Landlord’s pick will have excellent credit and high income — a lot higher than you would expect for say a garage apartment. These tenants could afford to live in those shiny new apartment complexes. Easily. But they don’t want to. They want to live in the neighborhood, on a residential street. This doesn’t apply to every tenant — obviously there are more who want to live in the beehive. But the demand for funky old Montrose housing isn’t diminishing — It is tighter than ever.” [Harold Mandell, commenting on The Coming Flood of New River Oaks-Area Apartments in Montrose]
JURY: STANFORD GUILTY ON 13 OF 14 COUNTS Houston real estate and Ponzi scheme impresario R. Allen Stanford has been found guilty of 13 counts of fraud, obstruction of a federal investigation, and conspiracy to launder money. The charge he bought Super Bowl tickets for an Antigua securities regulator didn’t stick, though. [Houston Chronicle; previously on Swamplot]
THE COMING FLOOD OF NEW RIVER OAKS-AREA APARTMENTS IN MONTROSE Some local stats from research firm Axiometrics: 32 new apartment properties, holding a total of 8,700 units, are currently under construction in Houston. Of that total, 15 of them — accounting for 4,300 apartments — are in the “Montrose-River Oaks” area. Occupancy rates for similar existing properties in the same neighborhoods are currently in the mid-90-percent range; rents have been increasing at an annual rate of 9.1 percent as of January. [Real Estate Bisnow]
KELLER WILLIAMS’S NEW OFFICES ARE IN THE OLD STANFORD FINANCIAL GROUP BUILDING 
“To this day, people still refer to 1400 Smith as ‘the old Enron building,’ even though the company collapsed more than a decade ago and Chevron now owns the property. Will 5050 Westheimer face a similar fate? That’s the building that housed Stanford Financial Group, whose founder, R. Allen Stanford, is awaiting a jury verdict on federal charges that he ran a $7 billion investment fraud. . . . Bruce Kink of Keller Williams said the company chose the space for its prime location directly across from the Galleria mall. He doesn’t focus on who used to occupy it. ‘They removed the name out front,’ Kink said. ‘To us it’s 5050 Westheimer.'” [Houston Chronicle; previously on Swamplot] Photo: Wikimedia Commons
COMMENT OF THE DAY: LIVE HUMBLY, THEN CASH OUT “. . . Best success I’ve seen is those who buy cheapest house in a bling neighborhood. Live humbly, leisure frequent, maybe do a little renting later, then sell the land to guy who wants to tear it down for his monstrosity. Relax with your new found cash. Kind of like buying a brand new car . . . why do it? Let the other guy have the 2-week splendor of bragging of the brand-new car he just bought. I’ll take the car with 6k miles for 8k less and the same warranty.” [drew, commenting on Comment of the Day: When I Hear the Word ‘Culture,’ I Reach for My Wallet]