Swamplot’s Daily Demolition Report lists buildings that received City of Houston demolition permits the previous weekday.
It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you demolish.
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- 3363 Inwood Dr. [HAR]
Currently listed for an undisclosed amount on CBRE’s website: a 10.69-acre chunk of the former Union Pacific railyard brownfield property previously sketched up for future conversion to the Hardy Yards mixed-use development. The section up for grabs appears to snuggle up to the west against a piece of land owned by Metro, whose Burnett Transit Center and light-rail Red Line are elevated above that semi-catching segment of N. Main St. tunnel; the parcel extends east to the new-ish segments of Fulton and Leona St., likely not too far from the spot where that rail car full of lithium batteries blew up back in April.
On the other side of the site, meanwhile, the Residences at Hardy Yards apartments are under construction, per photos from the Zieben Group published back in May:
Near Northside Reallocations
COMMENT OF THE DAY: WAITING IMPATIENTLY FOR THE TRENDY DEVELOPER NICKNAMES TO SPREAD NORTH 
“The dumbest is ‘Near Northside’, separating it from the actual Northside, which no one understands unless you live there. So you have to tell people ‘Acres Homes’ (which it is not at all) or say ‘behind the Fiesta’ or ‘behind Gallery Furniture on 45 North.’ What other point of reference is there — across the freeway from Dago’s? Basically I’m waiting for gentrification to name my hood something that gentrifiers can easily recall.” [Robin, commenting on Comment of the Day: When They Move the Neighborhood To Sell the Home] Photo: Dago’s Tatt00 & Piercing Studio
That excavator (pictured above) spotted poking around outside of the former House of Deréon Media Center last week may have disappeared at the end of its brief staredown with a larger than life representation of Beyoncé Knowles and the Destiny’s Child crew — but the structure still looks to be on the chopping block after all, if the demo permits issued yesterday are any indication. Group 1 Realty, an arm of the auto chain that owns nearby Advantage BMW alongside the Pierce Elevated, bought the land last fall from Mathew Knowles; the company also looks to have been snapping up a smattering of other properties in the immediate vicinity since at least early 2015.Â
- Previously on Swamplot: Daily Demolition Report: Final Destiny; Destiny’s Child Mural on House of Deréon Media Center Wins Midtown Demolition Staredown; Demo Equipment Is Now Waiting Patiently Outside the House of Deréon Media Center in Midtown
Photo:Â Jordan
Demo Crews To Get In Formation
Today on Swamplot our sponsor is the renovated Midcentury Mod single-story 4-bedroom home at 13002 Kimberley Ln. in Memorial Plaza, offered for sale by Norhill Realty. Thank you for supporting this site!
This 1960 home with distinctive tall front windows has been extensively renovated. Sited on a 10,255-sq.-ft. lot on the corner of Wax Myrtle Ln., it’s zoned to Rummel Creek Elementary, Memorial Middle School, and Stratford High School. The shopping, restaurants, and nightlife of CityCentre are just a 4-minute bike ride away.
Inside, the plan is open, a brand new kitchen set back from the beamed and vaulted ceilings of the living and dining spaces that face the street. Behind the kitchen a den looks out to the landscaped back yard, which features a new concrete patio, a play structure, and half-a-dozen or so tall pines. Sprinklers and an automatic mosquito misting system have been installed. The master bedroom has views to the back as well; its bathroom suite has been completely redone and features double sinks, both tub and glass-enclosed shower, and a walk-in closet.
Do take a look at all the photos of this home in Norhill Realty’s property listing. If you’d like to see it in person, you’ll have a chance at the open house this Sunday, July 23rd, from 1 to 3 pm. Or contact Vincent Biondillo at 713-449-2416 or vincent@norhillrealty.com to set up your own showing. To keep up with Norhill Realty’s latest listings and real estate tips, follow the Norhill Realty Facebook page or check out the Norhill Realty website.
Got a nice home to share? Swamplot readers are just a Sponsor of the Day away!
Sponsor of the Day
Does tearing down historic Houston architecture run in the family? The 1930’s house built for Harry C. Hanszen at 2945 Lazy Lane Blvd. (which showed up on Wednesday’s Daily Demolition Report last week) did in fact get the full knockdown treatment over the weekend, a couple of stunned readers tell Swamplot. The River Oaks home, designed by architect John F. Staub, was owned for a few decades by John Mecom Jr.; more recently, it was sold in 2014 to Matthew B. Arnold, per county records. The 5-acre-ish lot sits right across the road from Bayou Bend, and from the Lazy Lane spot where the historic home known as Dogwoods used to stand — before former Enron trader and experimental drone surveillance funder John D. Arnold knocked it down to make room for a boxy replacement. (Staub also designed Bayou Bend, and collaborated with Birdsall Briscoe on the Dogwoods design.)
It’s worth noting that the Hanszen house was majorly added-onto between 1979 and 1981, back when it was owned by the Mecoms — and it was largely stripped of its original interiors during that time, archi-historian Stephen Fox tells Swamplot. It’s now been stripped of its exteriors as well — which previously looked like this:
Bye Bye by Bayou Bend
- 4,000 Acres for Sale Near Future Grand Parkway Segment [HBJ ($)]
- Houston Has the Worst Office Absorption in the Country, Finds Cushman & Wakefield [Realty News Report; previously on Swamplot]
- Hines Selling 21 Eleven Apartment Project on Cafe Adobe Site [Realty News Report]
- How Far the Average Houston Home Price of $305,000 Can Get You Around the City [KHOU]
- Montrose the Priciest Area for Renters in Houston, According to RentCafe [Culturemap]
- Slideshow: Creative Ways Houston Buildings Have Been Redeveloped into Retail Centers [Houston Chronicle]
- Dog-Friendly Offices, Artist Studios in the Works for Republic Square [Houston Chronicle]
- A Few New Tenants for CityCentre [Houston Chronicle]
- Houston’s First Lululemon Athletica and Toms Outlets Coming to Houston Premium Outlets in Cypress [HBJ]
- Looks Like Restaurateur Ford Fry’s Planning a Tex-Mex Restaurant in the Heights [Eater Houston]
- Galveston Hotel Revenues for June, July Set To Surpass Same Period Last Summer [Galveston County Daily News ($)]
- Chapter 11 Bankruptcies on the Rise Around Houston [HBJ ($)]
- How Texas Allows Industrial Facilities To Release Unauthorized Air Pollution with Few Consequences [The Texas Tribune; previously on Swamplot]
Photo of O’Quinn Tower: Russell Hancock via Swamplot Flickr Pool
Headlines
Swamplot’s Daily Demolition Report lists buildings that received City of Houston demolition permits the previous weekday.
How can I pretend that I don’t know what’s going on, when every second and every minute another building is gone?
- 419 Alkire Lake Dr. [HAR]
THE ROCKETS ARE SUDDENLY UP FOR SALE 
A surprise announcement from Houston Rockets owner Les Alexander today: he’s selling the team. The Rockets moved to Houston back in 1971 from their original short-lived home in San Diego, where they were reportedly named for the team’s proximity to the plant where General Dynamics was working on the Atlas program. Alexander bought the franchise for some $85 million back in 1993, just before the Rockets earned Houston its first championship win and the nickname Clutch City; management made some noise about moving everybody to Kentucky around the end of the 90’s, possibly to add urgency to the push to secure city funds for a new stadium (which became known as Toyota Center). The Rockets were appraised at $1.65 billion by Forbes this past February.  [NBA.com via KHOU; previously on Swamplot] Photo: Russell Hancock via Swamplot Flickr Pool
COMMENT OF THE DAY: IS ‘ONE BIN FOR ALL’ TOO BIG TO SUCCEED IN HOUSTON? 
“Seems to me this innovative program steps on the toes of so many entrenched industries (and their political, financial and criminal associations.) Too big. If he could start in small communities, gain popular support and a groundswell of political goodwill, it would be better for success — but I suppose small-scale would not be at all economically viable.” [movocelot, commenting on Here Come the Pizza Chains; The Rise and Fall of One-Bin Recycling; previously on Swamplot] Photo of recycling bin in the Heights: Charles Kuffner
Having a little trouble navigating through that 5-bedroom house at 4302 Colony West Dr., packed full of a dizzying array of odds, ends, puppets, paintings, and plants? Never fear — here’s a walkthrough of the property, which has been an object of fascination for well over half a dozen Swamplot readers this morning (several of whom laud the home’s potential as a horror movie setting). That sentiment is fueled at least in part by the full spread of mannequins and large dolls dispersed throughout the various settings of the home (from front yard to back, floor to ceiling, and in various states of undress). Let’s start with the lone capped figure standing guard at the gate to the 2-acre property, just listed for $1.275 million:
Hanging Out by Jones Creek
- Vacant Del Papa Distributing Co. Complex in Galveston Has New Owner [Galveston County Daily News ($)]
- Gaia Real Estate Sells Houston Apartment Complexes in Humble [Houston Chronicle ($)]
- Most of the $53M in Housing Bonds Have Not Been Issued or Spent in Houston [Houston Chronicle ($)]
- Apartment List: Poverty on the Rise in Houston Suburbs [HBJ ($)]
- What Happened After Taking the Houston Bus for a Week [Houston Chronicle ($)]
- After Greenspoint Flood, What’s Next for Vulnerable Residents? [The Urban Edge; previously on Swamplot]
- Google Maps Timelapse Shows Houston Neighborhood Growth Over the Past 30 Years [Houston Chronicle; previously on Swamplot]
- Interactive Policy Tool Connects Equity Issues Such as Affordable Housing to Policy Reforms [The Urban Edge]
- Giant Sinkhole 20 Miles North of Tampa Swallows 2 Houses [Fox8; previously on Swamplot]
Photo of NRG Stadium: Russell Hancock via Swamplot Flickr Pool
Headlines
Swamplot’s Daily Demolition Report lists buildings that received City of Houston demolition permits the previous weekday.
We said we’d never say goodbye, but that was long ago.
