COMMENT OF THE DAY: THE DETAILS THAT MATTER “. . . The .5% grade, bathroom clearances and many of the other minutia of the ADA are the difference between a wheelchair bound person living a diginfied life (being able to go where everyone else can go and do what everyone else can do) and living as a second class citizen. Just try maneuvering a wheel chair around an ADA compliant bathroom or storefront. It is still a serious challenge. But if the door to a ADA stall is too close to the wall, it can be impossible. Poorly graded ramps can mean having to sit in the rain waiting for someone to give a push. And if you think the ADA requirements are an unfair burden that harms businesses, just try living with the burden of a disability. Anyone who wants to build a public building but doesn’t believe that they have a responsiblity to make the build accessible to everyone shoulnd’t be in the business.” [Old School, commenting on GHPA to Weingarten: We’ll Fix That Trader Joe’s Terrazzo Problem for You]
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HELLO FROM THE FIFTH 
Charles Kuffner spots demographic shifts in the Fifth Ward: “To interview the candidates in District B, I made several visits into the Fifth Ward, which is a neighborhood I can’t honestly say I’d been to before. One of these interviews took me past Fifth Ward Jam, which was cool to see. But what really struck me as I drove around was how close this all was to downtown. Gentrification and whirlwind change may not be a part of the Fifth Ward today, but I think it’s inevitable, and frankly is probably just around the corner. If you look at the neighborhoods surrounding downtown, it’s what’s left for redevelopment. The Heights, the Washington corridor, Neartown, the Museum District, Montrose, and Midtown are all pretty much built out — for sure there’s little if any cheap property available in any of them. EaDo and the Near Northside are getting there. But east of 59 and north of I-10, it’s as Gray describes it. If you’re a real estate developer, you’ve got to see the potential there.” [Off the Kuff] Photo: Robert Boyd
THE PLUMBERS SURE WORK FAST AT LENNY’S IN THE TUNNEL According to the Houston Press‘s latest roundup of city Health Dept. inspection reports, the dowtown Lenny’s Sub Shop in the tunnel beneath 1001 Fannin St. was cited recently for not having the minimum number of handwashing sinks available for workers. Not to worry, though: The inspection report indicates the violation was “corrected on site.” [Eating Our Words]
BABY DOLLS STRIP CLUB OWNED BY ACTUAL BABY According to documents presented in a lawsuit filed last week, the now-shuttered strip club Baby Dolls at 6340 Westheimer Rd. past Fountainview was owned between 2005 and 2006 by the estate of its former owner, Aris Mylonas — whose heir was an infant born shortly after the father’s death. From there, the story gets even stranger: The baby’s mother claims in the lawsuit that she sold the baby’s interest in Baby Dolls to a business entity partly controlled by James Cabella, a/k/a Vincent Cabella, whom she later learned was also a/k/a Vincent Palermo and a/k/a Vinny Ocean. He’s the former New Jersey mob boss whose testimony helped take down the DeCavalcante crime family, and who was later resettled in Houston under the federal witness protection program. (He’s also rumored to have been one of the models for TV character Tony Soprano; plus he’s the still-proud owner of this Memorial Drive mansion.) Lisa Hansegard is suing Cabella, his wife, and son to get back the close to $1.3 million she says they still owe her and her child for the sale. [Houston Chronicle; more details]
COMMENT OF THE DAY: HOUSTON MOD LOVERS’ GOOGIE CONDO COLLECTIVE “OK mod lovers, this is your ONE BIG CHANCE. How many of you have commented on Swamplot that you would love to buy that about-to-be-torn-down mod home if you only could afford it? Six of you guys put your heads together and buy this place. You can each have a 1,000+ SF condo unit in an iconic building in a great neighborhood for less than $125,000 per person.” [Bernard, commenting on Penguin Arms, Houston’s Only Googie Apartment Building, Is Now for Sale]
RICHMOND FROM LUCKY BURGER TO THE HARP, READY FOR SOMETHING 
New owners of a 50,000-sq.-ft. site at the southwest corner of Richmond and Mandell in Montrose, which includes Lucky Burger, The Harp Irish Pub, Maria Selma’s Mexican Restaurant, and Orange Bar: a partnership controlled by Braun Enterprises — the same group that bought the former Harold’s in the Heights clothing store last month. Space in the retail buildings totals more than 11,000 sq. ft. Braun tells reporter Katherine Feser his group plans to hold onto the property for now but imagines some new retail development could take place next. Leases for all 4 properties expire in 2014. [Houston Chronicle] Photo: Braun Enterprises
POSSIBLE SCAM TARGETED KATY-AREA HOAS 
Complaints from 3 suburban homeowners’ associations — including the one for the Estates of Avalon at Seven Meadows gated community west of the Grand Parkway near Fry Rd. in Katy — have been filed against Arrow Community Management, alleging the Cinco Ranch management company misappropriated HOA funds. Arrow’s owner, Taggert Mayfield, received a sentence of 3 years’ deferred adjudication earlier this month after he pled guilty to mishandling $20,000 in HOA funds. Sgt. David Schultz of the Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office tells reporter Deborah Wrigley that one new report he’s investigating claims an Arrow-managed HOA is missing about $120,000. The company, which appears to have shut down its operations, had contracts with more than a dozen HOAs in Harris and Fort Bend Counties. [abc13] Photo of Estates of Avalon at Seven Meadows: Keller Williams Premier Realty
COMMENT OF THE DAY: INSIDE THE KNOWLES FAMILY’S WALMART HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS “That sitting area by the fireplace looks familiar — is that where they filmed the commercial with the band members/family opening up all their gifts from Wal-Mart?” [Hellsing, commenting on Is This the House Behind the House of Deréon? Beyonce’s Mom Tina Knowles Selling Farnham Park Mansion]
COMMENT OF THE DAY: COUGARS ON THE PROWL “We have had cougars travel through the rural areas of Harris County for years. I saw one crossing the road near Tomball several years ago. This one was a young one, about a year old, most likely a young male moving on to find a new territory. They will follow creeks and wooded areas to find food and new mates. They have been spotted several times near Spring Creek, south of the Woodlands. They may be coming closer and more bold with the drought and decline of food source. If you live in an area that backs up to a natural area, wooded creek, or other undeveloped area, it would be wise not to leave small pets outside alone from sunset to dawn. That’s when the big cats hunt.” [Lynn, commenting on Very Large Bobcat Visits Sunrise Pines Back Yard, Doesn’t Stick Around for Dinner]
CATCHING PIRANHAS AT THE PARK 
Found in the 23-acre lake at Tom Bass Park, just southeast of the intersection of Hwy. 288 and Beltway 8: a red-bellied piranha. That’s the second piranha ever caught in a Texas waterway, and the first verified catch in 28 years. [Houston Chronicle] Photo: Paula Moore
YOUR NEW DOWNTOWN PARKING HANDICAP That borrowed disabled parking placard trick you’ve been using to get free parking all day in metered spaces Downtown? It won’t work for much longer, Mayor Parker announced today, calling the abuse of the hanging tags an “epidemic.” That’s right: After October 8th you’ll only be able to park free with a placard for about 2 hours, or whatever the posted limit is. After that, you’ll have to feed the meter, or face a $30 fine. Downtown has 4,200 metered spaces; parking officials say as many as 500 of them are occupied for most of the day by vehicles displaying the disabled placards. [Houston Politics]
FREEING UP FUNDS FOR EMANCIPATION PARK 
The Third Ward’s 10-acre Emancipation Park — on Elgin 2 blocks east of Hwy. 59 — is scheduled receive at least $7 million in improvements, though the historic park’s supporters are hoping to raise funds to boost that figure to $18 million. Either would mark a significant step up from the $800 the Rev. Jack Yates and a group of freed slaves pooled to purchase the property in 1872, as a location for Juneteenth celebrations. (It was later donated to the city.) Recent commitments include $4 million from the OST/Almeda Corridors Redevelopment Authority, $2 million from the city, and a just-announced $1 million grant from Texas’s Parks and Wildlife Dept. According to an HBJ report, local landscape architecture firm M2L Associates is currently at work planning an entry plaza, outdoor exhibit area, trails, lighting, historical markers, and a new building with additional parking for the park. Later phases of improvements would renovate or add a community center, pool house, playground, picnic areas, benches, and sports fields and courts. [Houston Chronicle, Houston Business Journal] Photo: City of Houston
COMMENT OF THE DAY: A MONTROSE THANKSGIVING “Can’t we just all get along? Maybe she could, before the next big game, take over a welcome wagon basket with several cases of Smirnoff Ice and some back issues of Big Black Butt. Perhaps add in some other niche publications in case BBB isn’t their style. Kind of like the Native Americans showing the pilgrims how to plant corn and eat oysters – maybe they just don’t know the neighborhood traditions, but will be grateful for the help acclimating. It could make football games infinitely more enjoyable for them, and she’d have people to hose off once again. In the meantime, maybe HIWI can add another few images to their plague series, which currently . . . includes things like the heat, humidity, roaches, mosquitos, traffic. Big, oblivious families in SUVs, annoyed Inner Loopers frowning at lot-line houses, displaced residents of gentrifying neighborhoods, yet all of us still living here because even with all of the real estate angst, Houston is STILL worth it.” [Andrea, commenting on What Really Makes It All Worthwhile]
COMMENT OF THE DAY: MORE EXPERIMENTS ON WHEELS, PLEASE “so what if it’s a passing fad? i don’t see anything wrong with that. if/when the food truck era passes, we won’t be left behind with a bunch of crappy ass buildings that no one knows what to do with. if we don’t like their food or their business, we can just wheel ’em away. wish i could do that to a few mcdonald/king/fil-a/aburgers round here . . .” [cooperella, commenting on Comment of the Day: Can’t You See Where This Is Headed?]
WHAT REALLY MAKES IT ALL WORTHWHILE Meanwhile, Laura Lark is hoping that Houston’s 2 new art fairs don’t overshadow this town’s “wacky, welcoming” feeling: “Because, honestly, the coming of the first art fair in Houston reminds me a bit of my neighborhood, and I’m a tad conflicted. I live in Montrose. It’s a little funky, but it used to be REALLY funky, with drag queens and artist studios and a crack house on the other side of my fence. In the past several years it’s become gentrified. Instead of the charming fellows who used to steal magazines like Big Black Butt and moan while jerking off until I sprayed them down with the hose, I now have a couple from Katy whose friends roar at the game on the outdoor big screen TV and toss Smirnoff Ice bottles into my yard. I’d get in trouble if I hosed them down, which totally pisses me off. The people behind me are soulless jerks and a lot less interesting than even the worst-dressed transvestite, but my property value’s quadrupled, so I don’t complain as much as I should. So let’s hope, as an art community, we can maintain our character and keep the imported assholes to a minimum while still raising awareness of our fabulousness and the market value of works sold. That would make a Houston art fair, like the city itself, worth it.” [Glasstire; previously on Swamplot]