Frenchifying San Felipe with a Luxury Fortress of Townhomes

On a site just west of where Hines says it is considering building a 17-story office tower and where Randall Davis is building 10 more condos just south of River Oaks on San Felipe, builders Rohe & Wright say they are going to put up these 10 townhomes. The Saint Honoré development is planned to stand right next to the Winfield Gate townhomes — also built by Rohe & Wright — on a property bound by San Felipe, Welch, and Revere. Ranging from 5,000 sq. ft. to 7,800 sq. ft., each 3-story, 4-bedroom home would sit atop a below-ground floor that comes with built-in suggestions for what to do with it, including (but not, of course, limted to) “golf simulator, caretaker’s quarters, wine cellar, home theater, fitness gym, gala room, safe room or space for a car collection.” They’re starting at $2.2 million.

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The homes, according to the website, would face inward to a shared courtyard:

Images: Saint Honoré

17 Comment

  • This reminds me of The Dakota in NY. That area around there appears to be converting into a high-dollar density district.

  • Does being next to these french townhouses mean that ground retail will be considered in the Hines development? I could see it supporting some very high end shops / restaurants with it being in River Oaks.
    We could even call this part of Houston the “Champs Felipe”.

  • I like the look of these buildings. Pretty in my opinion. Now I just need to find a job that will negotiate with me for a 1000% salary increase- that way I can properly make a down payment on of these beauties!

  • #2:
    Ummm, that’s 10 residences. Maybe 20 full-time residents. Probably not enough to base a retail development on.
    .
    BTW, I live the Chron story. 7800 s.f. apparently passes for “living smaller”.

  • Gads. At last…we can all stop believing that we have all be teleported to Tuscany… ALthough, some lucky few can now pretend to live in France. The Clock could be bigger, however. And, I bet you its face will be on Roman numerals.

    Are we sure that this isn’t the Randall Davis Project?

  • @DNAguy

    The Hines development (2229 San Felipe) will include retail.

  • Aesthetically, these remind me of the 60’s/70’s vintage mansard-roofed apartments scattered around town (at least the ones that haven’t been knocked down, yet). I’d bet money these will look similarly ridiculous in forty years.

  • Lest any be misled, a safe room in a $2.2 million condo is where you keep your safes.

  • starting at $2.2 mill. to me that is a joke, I think Ive been in Houston too long.

  • The bad-taste interiors can be fixed, but you would have to be seriously deranged to spend $2.2M for a townhouse made out of particle board and toothpicks. At least in the un-faux St Honore they make them out of stone.

  • Somebody needs a lesson in French architecture. The details are OK, but the massing isn’t. It’s too choppy and broken up. And it can’t decide if it’s a Hotel Particulier, or a Haussmanian block of flats. It’s trying to be both and the result is that it’s neither.
    .
    Honestly, for $2.2 million a unit, I would want something as close to a genuine a french building as possible; not some poorly done knockoff like all those $1400 a month mid rise apartments sprouting everywhere.

  • Let’s be honest, the only people who will probably buy here are going to be ppl from outside the country that want to get fast tracked residency status. I wouldn’t expect too many people living here full time.
    But hey, I could be wrong.

  • To compare this to a Haussmann Second Empire Masterpiece, built at the behest of the enlightened despot Napoleon III, is silly–the stone mason art is dead and to even attempt an authentic Second Empire Hotel would cost a fortune –if these actually look like the renderings I’ll be pleased–we’ll see

  • And the Stop The San Felipe Tower signs have started to pop up. This should be fun.

  • @jack
    Yep, found it on HAIF forum:
    http://stopsanfelipeskyscraper.org/
    Best part on the ‘questions’ page:
    How will this affect safety, especially with regard to River Oaks Elementary?
    During the construction phase, the neighborhood will be filled with construction workers and heavy trucks for well over a year. Children playing in front yards will be especially at risk. Once the tower is built, cut-through traffic and speeders will pose an additional danger to children, joggers, and pedestrians who are often out on the streets at rush hour.

    WON’T SOMEBODY PLEASE THINK OF THE CHILDREN!?!
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qh2sWSVRrmo

  • Oh gag. No children play in any yard in RO. More lame , fear mongering scare tactics. Which failed in the Ashby high rise hood of Southampton,and hopefully will fail big time in and around RO. Those full of themselves pretentious faux-snobs need a good proverbial slap down form a very deep pocketed developer.Hines,Ltd. would fit the bill.

  • Patrick: Plenty of children play in their yards in RO, so don’t use “reverse fear mongering scare tactics” to push you agenda….