- Team from San Francisco Designed ExxonMobil Landscape To Look Like a College Campus [Houston Business Journal; previously on Swamplot]
- Mapping the Most Expensive Places To Rent Office Space in the Houston Area [Prime Property]
- David Weekley Homes Now Selling 4-Story Townhomes in the Heights, Woodland Heights [Prime Property]
- State Transportation Officials Trying To Get Metro To Give Up on Ever Converting Post Oak Bus Lanes To Light Rail, Despite 2003 Harris County Vote [Houston Chronicle; previously on Swamplot]
- Transportation Officials in The Woodlands Want To Expand Trolley Service To Reduce Town Center Traffic [Houston Chronicle]
- Cupcake Cowgirls’ Downtown Galveston Location To Open By Labor Day [Galveston County Daily News ($)]
- Woman Dies After Fire in Royal Oaks Country Club Home [KHOU]
- Residents Complain of Bedbug Infestation at the Coral Hill Apartments on Beverly Hill near Richmond and Hillcroft [Click2Houston]
- A Photo History of the Fifth Ward Double-Barreled Shotgun House Brett Zamore Transformed, and Bert Long Lived In [The Great God Pan Is Dead; previously on Swamplot]
- Inside the Triangle-Shaped Home and Studio Artist Joseph Cohen Built for Himself at Oxford St. and the Heights Hike-and-Bike Trail [The Great God Pan Is Dead; previously on Swamplot]
- The Houston Sites You’ll See on Those Big Red Tour Buses [Houston Chronicle]
- Public Works Dept. Tagged 19th St. Parklet with Violation Notice for Having Furniture, Flowers in Right-of-Way, a Week After Its Inauguration by Mayor [Houston Chronicle; previously on Swamplot]
Photo of 1515 Woodhead St.: Russell Hancock via Swamplot Flickr Pool
Headlines
I’d love to see more photos of that house.
Reading that “no light rail conversion never, ever on Post Oak” makes me feel like I’m living in bizarro world. It’s like WTF!? Why are they so fearful of light rail? It obviously would be the better upgrade after BRT. Time to kick these “stuck in the past” GOP conservatives who are still calling shots in parts of our city, out to the suburban pastures. The inner city residents demand better transportation options, not this limited garbage. Meanwhile, our competition up north just connected its light rail to its airport. How very embarrassing for Htown.
The pictured house is located south of the River Oaks Shopping Center off of Woodhead. I watched it being built over the last 3 years, they finally finished it up earlier this year. I think they own the vacant adjacent lot to the south too. Bottom floor appears to be a 3 or 4 car garage. From what I can tell it’s a HUGE 2 bedroom home with an office space/meeting room on the top floor. One of my favorites in the neighborhood.
I can understand Culberson’s blocking of the use of Federal funds for the Post Oak BRT project as the Feds have no jurisdiction on Houston streets but the massive opposition from State and Metro “officials” seems strange. Why spend all that money then assure that it can NEVER be converted to rail? Sounds like pure poli-tricks.
I don’t think that Culberson is blocking the use of Fed Funds because he thinks that the Feds have no jurisdiction on City Streets. I think it is because he has the same mindset that his Katy-Stinko Ranch constituents have, namely “I have a god given right as a Texan to be able to drive any damn place I feel without restriction.” They feel threatened by anything or anyone who would rather use public transportation. Riding the bus or train is beneath them.
I don’t get this huge opposition to rail. I’ll never use it (or any other public transportation) but I’d love for it to be put in place so other people can…. because then there’s less cars on the road in my way!
I thought all new rail construction was totally off the table until 2023.
Tawnya,
I’m for better transit (I won’t be mode-specific here), but it should never be sold as making the streets less congested for you to drive around on. While it may take some cars off the streets, Houston’s congestion is likely to be massive enough that you’d never notice. Do NYC and LA have uncongested streets? Obviously not, even though both cities have much much better transit than Houston – meaning they have better alternatives to being in congestion and having to find parking. Congestion and difficult parking are our future (I wager even with self-driving cars, if they’re all personally owned) – everyone needs to be at peace with that.
Burrogs-
Do those owners also own the gray Sprinter van? I run past this house all the time (and love it). I always see the van out front but it looks too tall to pull under the “car port”, which seems like a total lost opportunity there.
I can already picture the meeting for the design engineers.
“Hey guys, this is coming down from the top, we want you to design the BRT, whilst also designing it so it can never be converted to a light rail line.”
“uh, How do we do that?”
“10 percent grade will defeat a train!”
“Brilliant”
I really hope Culberson gets caught in some huge scandal so we can get him out of office.
I don’t understand the rationale behind the anti-BRT, pro-light rail crowd who oppose the Post Oak BRT line. BRT accomplishes the exact same thing as light rail, but at a fraction of the cost.
It is a wondeful house, i the grey van does fit into the taller looking garage. I have seen it under the overhang before, but not inside.
I live down the street from the house in the photo. It was fascinating to watch it being built. It is sooooooo much better than anything else that has gone up. on Woodhead. Also, it is really cool when the lights are on. I wish they would have a block part and invite the neighbors.
East end Eddie: generalize much? Conservative innerlooper here. And Montrose resident even! Oh, and I use and like light rail. Walked to it this morning an zoomed to Herman park with my daughter. Took it last weekend downtown to go to discovery green.
.
Hope this revelation doesn’t blow your tiny little pea brain (all liberals have tiny little pea brains, right? See. I can generalize too!)
EastEnd Eddie, let’s lay of the blanket statements as Cody suggested. There are plenty of liberals and conservatives living inside the loop. I work with them on a regular basis whether it be through my HOA, neighborhood association, etc.
I am also of the opinion that BRT is fine, but agree that it doesn’t make sense to not make it convertible for some potentially long-term future transit use. I hate to see things be built only to be torn down and rebuilt just a few (say 5-10) years later.
I also don’t buy the “traffic will disappear” message. Rail will not take away all of the traffic, but it will provide additional options for countless individuals who want to take advantage of it. I live by the light rail and use it regularly. I ride my bike regularly around town. I choose to even during the summer because I like the freedom it affords me. I am not a slave to my car.
Damn the BRT bus crap…it’s like settling for 2nd or 3rd prize because Culberson is f@#king Houston on rail for self gain…and Houston is stupidly allowing him to do it. The Galleria area is one of the premiere business districts in the country and the world, and because of a doo-doo-ass hustler (Culberson), Houston may actually install these rolling trash cans/BRT along our Rodeo Drive/Fifth Avenue instead of sleek light-rail. That’s a GD shame.
GET RID OF JOHN CULBERSON’S SORRY FAT ASS! Houston has enough raggedy-ass belching buses wobbling thru town. Voters approved the University/Uptown lines in 2003, but we all know that Tom DeLay/John Culberson (the anti-Houston/anti-Rail whores) and the other backwards Houston hill-billies still around are hell-bent on keeping Houston in the rail/transit abyss. It’s better to wait on light rail for Galleria/Uptown…BRT is NOT the answer. HOUSTON DESPERATELY NEEDS THE TRANSIT ALTERNATIVE OF RAIL…LIGHT RAIL AND COMMUTER RAIL. For all of Houston’s economic prestige and boom, it’s a f@#king retard on rail/transit. We look like a 20 year old still in 3rd grade…or a 350 pound growing obese woman who refuses to buy a girdle. BUILD THE DAMN RAIL HOUSTON YOU NEED IT BAD!!! AND YES WE LOOK LIKE DAMN FOOLS TO STILL BE WITHOUT IT!
Enough is enough! It’s time for METRO/City of Houston to file a law suit against John Culberson for abuse of power for using a devious and inappropriate congressional slight-of-hand to block the will of the people, and the University/Uptown rail lines they approved in 2003. Houston, take Culberson’s sorry-ass to court to remove the federal block and get on with rail. It’s time to exorcise the anti-rail demon that is Culberson…sue his ass.