The colorful faces behind the chain-link fencing surrounding the former Mental Health and Mental Retardation Authority building at 2850 Fannin St. have been joined this week by a few pieces of bright yellow knock-down equipment. Permits came through last week clearing the site for clearance in advance of a planned 27-story apartment highrise going by the name Main Midtown. The tower was okayed for a parking variance in late October, as part of which Australian developer Caydon Properties agreed to install over 200 bike spaces. 

The long-empty MHMRA structure got its last hurrah this fall when much of the street-level wallspace was painted over in tan, making way for new muralage. A nearby resident buzzed around the site recently taking some final snaps of the paintings (like the one featured at the top of the page) before the demo gets going in earnest — here’s a sampling below:

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The blog Houston Streetwise also caught some in- and after-process shots of some of the newest murals on the building — check them out here.

• Previously on Swamplot: Daily Demolition Report: Willowbroke; Midtown Muralist Outed by Metro, Has Day Job . . . at Metro; Among the Giant Bugs of Midtown, Up on the Roof; Thanksgiving in Midtown: A Bird Is Born; How You Can Help Large-Scale Graffiti in Midtown Get Off the Ground; Daily Demolition Report: Freed at Last

Photos: Judson Tate