04/19/17 4:30pm

2241 Richmond Ave., Upper Kirby, Houston, 77098

Pothole in Parking Lot for Hobbit Cafe, Blue Fish House, and Yelapa Playa Mexicana, 2241 Richmond Ave., Upper Kirby, HoustonThe folks at Rim Tanon (the Thai place that recently replaced the former Blue Fish House sushi spot on Richmond) send word that the hole-spangled brick, asphalt, and rubble parking lot at the center of the Portsmouth Square restaurant clump has been freshly paved over. The spot, which won top honors on a 2011 list of Houston’s worst restaurant parking lots, was resurfaced from Richmond to Portsmouth St. just in time for Tax Day. Above and below are a couple of damp shots of the lot circa some 2010 gawking:

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Flattening the Competition
04/19/17 12:30pm

801 W. 11th St., Houston Heights, Houston, 77008
Here’s a ghost-dotted sketch of what may soon inhabit that empty lot at the northwest corner of W. 11th and Nicholson streets; Adolfo Pesquera notes over on VBX that the project’s developers may break ground soon. (That’s both figuratively and literally — there’s a fair bit of concrete and asphalt removal involved in the job.) The medical-themed project is catty-corner from the 2-story building already housing the Heights Clinic (along with a Stewart Title office). There should be some kind of grassy buffer between the 31,010-sq.-ft. building and and the rail-turned-trail Heights hike & bike path running along Nicholson to the east, as well as a bit of open to the west toward recently opened Presidio:

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Doctoring Heights
04/19/17 12:00pm

8042 Glenforest Ct., Glenbrook Valley, Houston

8042 Glenforest Ct., Glenbrook Valley, Houston

Today on Swamplot we’re talking about the 4-bedroom home at 8042 Glenforest Ct. in Glenbrook Valley. It’s our Sponsor of the Day. Thanks for supporting this site!

This is how they did it in 1959: There’s Roman brick all around this 2,846-sq.-ft. U-shaped Ranch-style home. It’s set back from both street sides of its 18,400-sq.-ft. corner lot. The home was designed by Bill Hoff, once the business partner of architect William Jenkins and later the founder of Hoff Architects.

There have been only 2 owners. The home has received a number of structural and system updates and repairs, but still includes original midcentury features — including leaded glass windows in the front living room, a wraparound flagstone fireplace with mod-shaped cutouts (seen in the den photo above), pegged hardwoods in the den, a few cove lighting installations, and some brightly tiled bathrooms (2 full, and 2 half). And it’s in a northern portion of Glenbrook Valley, Houston’s only historic district that features midcentury modern and Ranch-style homes.

Sliding doors off the den, at the center of the home, lead out to a paved, southwest-facing patio tucked between the floor plan’s 2 legs. Beyond it is the back lawn. The kitchen has newer granite countertops and Viking brand stainless-steel appliances; it looks onto a breakfast room.

If this home sounds or looks intriguing to you, you’ll want to check out the photos and more extensive description on the property website. The property at the corner of Glenforest Ct. and Dover St. is listed for sale by Robert Searcy of Robert Searcy Homes.

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Sponsor of the Day
04/19/17 11:00am

SCENIC UPPER TEXAS COASTAL SWAMPS, BEACHES, PLANTATIONS A LITTLE CLOSER TO GOING NATIONAL Lone Star Coastal National Recreation Area Proposed MapJefferson County’s commissioners are the latest to give a formal thumbs up to a proposal for the Lone Star Coastal National Recreation Area, which would bundle together a patchwork of parks, historical sites, and variously refinery adjacent nature preserves from the Bolivar peninsula down to Matagorda Bay. The concept for a regional rec zone was developed shortly after Hurricane Ike’s big splash on the Texas coast in 2008: researchers noticed that some of those larger patches of undeveloped wetlands helped buffer storm surge damage, and started looking at whether keeping them around could be profitable in other ways. No new land would be scooped up for inclusion in the 4-county zone, unless it were offered voluntarily — but the whole region would be marketed under the National Parks Service’s banner as a package to birdwatchers, beachgoers, Strand-walkers, and the like. The proposed area would still need some level of National Parks Service staff, and approval from Congress — which is currently considering major cuts to the Department of the Interior’s budget. [Beaumont Enterprise; Houston Chronicle] Map of proposed Lone Star Coastal National Recreation Area: LSCNRA 

04/19/17 8:30am

jerry's-Artarama-april

Photo of Jerry’s Artarama: Ruben S. via Swamplot Flickr Pool

Headlines
04/18/17 3:45pm

COMMENT OF THE DAY: FOR WHOM THE TRAIN ROLLS Trains to Office Buildings“. . . The few large cities that you’re referring to, where central living expenses are far higher than Houston, all provide far more extensive mass transit options. I know I have multiple transit options after midnight in other large cities — not so for Houston. For those without reliable transportation and non-office hours, the availability of Park and Rides does not solve or address accessibility issues.” [joel, commenting on Grand Central Park’s Official Debut; Houston’s Not All Sprawl] Illustration: Lulu

04/18/17 2:30pm

WOULD IT BE EASIER TO BRING THE ‘HIGH OPPORTUNITY’ AREAS TO THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING, INSTEAD? Proposed Housing Development at 2640 Fountainview Dr., Briargrove, Houston, 77057Yesterday Mayor Turner announced a few more details of a plan to redirect federal and local money toward some of the city’s low-investment areas, starting with Acres Homes, Gulfton, Second Ward, Northside Village and Third Ward, writes Rebecca Elliott for the Chronicle. The “Complete Communities” plan, Elliott notes, was mentioned in the city’s response to the Department of Housing and Urban Development, which sent the city a letter in January finding that the nixing of that Briargrove mixed-income housing project was racially motivated. That letter instructed the city to move forward after all with the cancelled project (or one like it, in a different ‘high opportunity census tract’). A city lawyer wrote back, telling HUD that part of Houston’s plan to address the Department’s concerns is to “transform previously neglected neighborhoods into neighborhoods HUD would define as ‘high opportunity.’“ Yesterday’s details didn’t include a price tag or timeline; Turner did mention possible partnerships with private groups and developers.  [Houston Chronicle; previously on Swamplot] Image of previously proposed apartments at 2640 Fountainview Dr.: Houston Housing Authority

04/18/17 12:00pm

Dentler Building, 1809 Summer St., First Ward, Houston

Dentler Building, 1809 Summer St., First Ward, Houston

Our thanks today go to Preservation Houston, which is continuing this series to introduce the properties that will appear on the 2017 Good Brick Tour later this month. Swamplot appreciates the support!

It takes a certain kind of person to look at a derelict apartment house and see in it a potential family home. Fortunately, the Dentler Building found visionary new owners who rescued the crumbling brick building. It had been constructed in 1923 by food manufacturer George H. Dentler, best known for his Dentler Maid Potato Chips.

The painstaking rehabilitation of this building took a year and a half. What had been a termite-riddled eyesore is now an asset to the High First Ward Historic District; it also demonstrates how a historic building can serve a modern household.

The Dentler Building at 1809 Summer St. is one of 5 award-winning historic houses and buildings that will welcome visitors with guided tours from noon to 5 pm on both Saturday, April 29, and Sunday, April 30.

Purchase advance tickets to the 2017 Good Brick Tour online for $25 per person through Thursday, April 27. Tickets will be available for $30 per person at any tour location during the weekend. Tickets are valid both days of the tour and provide 1 admission to each location.

Preservation Houston has recognized all the properties on tour with Good Brick Awards for excellence in historic preservation. The other tour locations are:

  • 309 Sampson St., East End: A classic Victorian house (c. 1895) that shines with remarkably intact detailing and original art.
  • Fire Station No. 2, 317 Sampson St., East End: Up-to-date interior design transformed a turn-of-the-century fire station (1910) into a private home with brass fire poles intact.
  • Isabella Court, 1005 Isabella Ave. at Main St., Midtown. A spectacular courtyard and unique apartments distinguish this one-of-kind Spanish Colonial Revival-style building (1929). Three apartments and Isabella Court’s namesake courtyard will be open to visitors.
  • 2219 Kane St., Old Sixth Ward Historic District: A quaint Folk Victorian cottage (c. 1900) preserved as an architect’s office and guest house.

Show off your remodels — or models. Become a Swamplot Sponsor of the Day.

Sponsor of the Day
04/18/17 11:30am

Demo of Elysian St. Viaduct, Near Northside/Downtown, Houston, 77002

The rapidly disappearing elevated segment of Elysian St. pointing north out of Downtown is the latest aging roadway structure to be crumbled apart, though it won’t be the last. But death is a natural part of the Houston roadway cycle! And a healthier, brawnier replacement viaduct is planned to take its place along roughly the same right-of-way — this one with broad shoulders and a sidewalk. TxDOT spokesman Danny Perez told Houston Public Media‘s Gail DeLaughter last month that work on the new structure, which connects Downtown to Near Northside by funneling drivers over Buffalo Bayou and I-10, should start before the demo of the mile-and-a-half-long original wraps up.

A hunched excavator was spotted helping to bring the aging bridge down from above:

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Traffic Cycles in Near Northside
04/18/17 8:30am

sabine-street-bridge

Photo of the Sabine Street Bridge: BOldbury via Swamplot Flickr Pool

Headlines
04/14/17 6:00pm

THE EASTER BUNNY AND THE TAXMAN COMETH Amanda Parer's Intrude installation, 1600 Smith St., Downtown, Houston, 77002It doesn’t look like there’s too much rain on the schedule for Tax Day this time around, but Swamplot’ll be off Monday anyway, shoring up any potential leaks. Enjoy your weekend, whether it’s filled with hunts for Easter eggs or for that basketful of missing W-2s, and we’ll see you back here on Tuesday for the regular real estate tomfoolery. Photo of Amanda Parer’s Intrude installation: Swamplot inbox