THE HOUSTON ZIP CODE WHERE THE KIDS DON’T LEAVE HOME 
New number crunching from the Pew Research Center suggests that around 57 percent of the folks between 18 and 34 in the 77045 Zip Code may be living with their parents. (77045 includes both residential areas and the salt-dome-adjacent industrial hodgepodge between Holmes and Almeda roads, southwest of that recycling plant that smoked out the Med Center last year). That figure compares to a 28.2 percent boomerang rate across most of Houston, which falls below the current-ish 32 percent national average, writes Maggie Gordon (who notes that the “new” numbers are based on the organization’s 2014 data). What’s responsible for the anomalously high numbers in South Main, which shoots well past even the Great Depression’s 35 percent? The difference, Gordon writes, may be rooted not only in the area’s low average wages, but also in the lower rate of folks actively pursuing college (which Gordon says is connected to low wages); the study also notes that some of the difference might reflect the smaller proportion of the Zip Code’s Millennals living with a romantic partner (which, Gordon notes, might be easier to meet in college these days). [Houston Chronicle] Photo of 3414 Ebbtide Dr., 77045: HAR
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An essential addition to the growing list of guides for Houstonians on where not to go this weekend: the above map of road closures around the George R. Brown Convention Center district. Both red shading and cross-hatching mark the temporary carless zones, while a dashed black line shows the location of the perimeter fence for area events. Meanwhile, miles away at actual Super Bowl location NRG Stadium, other street closures were planned to go into effect yesterday evening (and are scheduled to last through Monday morning):
Lines of Scrimmage
- Zillow: Houston Homebuyers Break Even in Just Under 2 Years [Houston Chronicle; report]
- Houston’s Retail Sector Has Shown Little to No Ill Effect from the Energy Downturn, Finds Weitzman Report [Realty News Report]
- The Most Expensive Houston Rental on HomeAway for This Weekend Is $10,000 [Houstonia]
- Downtown Hotels Running on Average $650 a Night for the Super Bowl, Finds Orbitz [HBJ]
- Typical Super Bowl Booking in Houston on Airbnb Is $150 Per Night [Houston Chronicle]
- A Breakdown of the Houston-Dallas Bullet Train’s Economic Impact [HBJ]
- In Texas, Houston Dominates the Most-Congested Roads List [The Urban Edge]
- Drake Opening Pop-Up Houston Strip Club The Ballet for Super Bowl Weekend [Houston Chronicle]
- How the Super Bowl Served as a Peacemaker Between Uber and Houston [AP]
- Was It Really Super Bowl LI That Brought About All These Improvements to Houston’s Landscape? [Houston Public Media]
- Highlights from the Forthcoming ‘Handbook of Houston’ Featuring Historic Bayou City Dwellers and Events [Houstonia]
- Why the NFL’s Super Bowl Economic Impact Studies Are So ‘Blatantly Dishonest’ [Bisnow]
- The Home of Super Bowl 2017 Is Also a Haven for Refugees [SB Nation]
- More Ways To Pretend the Super Bowl Isn’t Happening [Texas Monthly; previously on Swamplot]
Photo of US-59 Bridges: Marc Longoria via Swamplot Flickr Pool
Headlines
Swamplot’s Daily Demolition Report lists buildings that received City of Houston demolition permits the previous weekday.
Tomorrow, so I hear, the houses will disappear; the door to happiness will open wide.
- 3930 Windswept Dr. [HAR]
CLUB NOMADIC SHOWS OFF LATEST TRENDS IN JUST-IN-TIME NIGHTCLUB DELIVERY 
Temporary 3-story nightclub and performance venue Club Nomadic has received its final checks and OKs from the city for tonight’s 9pm opening — with just over 6 hours to spare, if the time a city rep gave to St. John Barnard-Smith and Mike Morris is correct. Both Club Nomadic’s owner and folks at the city permitting office say it’s totally normal for a temporary event structure like this one to cut the permitting process close; the temporary nature of the project also means on-site parking is not required for the 9,000-or-so visitors expected, and organizers are stressing that tow trucks will be on the prowl. The Club is currently selling parking passes for the 1600 Smith St. garage, with plans to shuttle guests between the garage and the club site at 2121 Edwards St.; other enterprising Houstonians appear to be getting in on the action as well. [Houston Chronicle; previously on Swamplot] Photo of 2121 Edwards St.: Club Nomadic
More knocking down and dragging out has been going on around the handful of blocks between Genesee and Taft streets now being prepped for the area’s Fairview District redo. The 1930s-ish apartment building at the corner of Genesee and Fargo St. (next to previously-shattered Meteor Lounge) is as of yesterday mostly out of the picture (as, uh . . . pictured above), freeing up the lot for the 5-story parking garage planned on the east end of the block. A reader snapped a few final looks at and into the structure last Thursday, following the issuance of the building’s Inauguration day demo permits:
Fargo Away
Today Swamplot’s sponsor is Loam Agronomics — to promote the company’s new CSA program for Houston. Thanks for the support!
Houston residents have already begun signing up for Loam Agronomics’ brand-new CSA program, which means they’ll start receiving weekly deliveries of fresh, locally grown vegetables in March! (CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture.) If you’ve been looking for a way to get a regular supply of fresh-from-the-local-farm produce for your household, or if you like the idea of eating food that hasn’t been shipped thousands of miles, but is picked at peak ripeness nearby and available to you in 48 hours or less, then this program is for you.
The first crops are growing now on a 40-acre portion of a 288-acre agricultural site the company has acquired in Richmond. And you can participate! When you become a member of the Loam Agronomics CSA, you’re purchasing a weekly “share†of vegetables from the company and supporting the production of local food in your community.
Loam Agronomics is a project of the same people behind Edible Earth Resources, the local gardening firm that’s been transforming some high-profile urban lots in Houston into attractive edible gardens. Loam Agronomics will serve much of the same community, but at a larger scale.
If you’ve got questions about the CSA program or the operation and standards of the farm, take a look at the answers to the FAQ posted on the brand-spanking-new Loam Agronomics website.
Loam Agronomics offers:
- Drop sites across Houston
- Pickups on Thursdays and Saturdays
- Signups available any time
- Cooking and storing tips
- Community events
. . . all for just $30 per week.
To join other families who’ve been signing up, all you need to do is select a convenient drop site; fill out a member information profile; and choose a payment plan (4-, 12-, 26-, and 52-week plans are available, some with discounted rates) — all of which you can do from this page on the Loam Agronomics website.
Some cool local businesses are popping up as Swamplot sponsors. Is it time your business joined in? Find out here.
Sponsor of the Day
Some of the intermediate developmental stages of the pointy new hill between the Pierce Elevated and the old Mr. Peeples spot raised a few questions in the mind of a nearby reader (chief among them: whether the Midtown Redevelopment Authority was constructing an ark.) A few photos from last week (including the top shot above) showed what appear to be wooden forms heralding the pouring of a concrete landscaping wall. A set of new shots from this morning paint a more complete picture of the site, showing a cargo of several new trees now settled in place in the gentle concave curve behind the structured hill’s prow (as seen in the second shot above). Beyond the wall, the other side of the mound appears to have been dotted with ornamental grass:
Piling It On Off Bagby
HOUSTON PARKS BOARD RELEASES FLOCK OF BAYOU GREENWAY SIGHTSEEING SUGGESTIONS 
Not to be left out of the Super Bowl LI frenzy, the Houston Parks Board has been publishing weekly additions to what’s now a list of 51 “super” Bayou Greenways-accessible attractions — ranging in scope and scale from Buffalo Bayou Park to the Orange Show to a pair of nesting eagles somebody spotted near Greens Bayou. The list is broken up by watershed, with each bayou getting a separate map of sites along its existing or planned bike trails (though tour by kayak is also recommended in some places). Other entries on the list include the Watonga Blvd. bridge bat colony (on White Oak Bayou, south of Pinemont Dr., shown here), Parkwood Park in Riverside Terrance (off Brays Bayou and these days billed as Beyoncé’s childhood park), David Adickes’ Mount Rush Hour statue grouping in American Statesman Park (fringing the Downtown confluence tangle of I-10, I-45, and White Oak and Buffalo bayous), and NRG stadium itself, with a nod to the nearby Astrodome. [Houston Parks Board; previously on Swamplot] Photo of Watonga Blvd. bats: Houston Parks Board
- David Kline Acquires Mixed-Use Art Square Center in Midtown [Realty News Report;Â previously on Swamplot]
- Still No Movement on Groundbreaking of Downtown Office Tower 6 Houston Center [Realty News Report; previously on Swamplot]
- Houston Marriott Westchase Wraps Up $20M Renovation [HBJ]
- Dining, Entertaining Options on the Rise in Lake Houston Area [Community Impact Newspaper]
- Houston Real Estate Expert: ‘The $200,000 House Is Going To Be Gone’ [HBJ]
- Will Houston Beef Up Its Flood Control Rules? [Houston Chronicle]
- National Construction Boom Exposes Shortage of Skilled Tradesmen, Threatening Homebuilding [Curbed]
- Club Nomadic Receives Necessary Permits for Inspections To Get Certificate of Occupancy by Later Today [Houston Chronicle; previously on Swamplot]
- A Look Inside Super Bowl Live’s Nightly Light Show in Discovery Green [abc13]
- The Best Places To Avoid During Super Bowl Week in Houston [Houston Chronicle; previously on Swamplot]
- ‘Be Someone’ Graffiti Is Now Back to Saying ‘Be Someone’ [Houston Chronicle; previously on Swamplot]
Photo: Ruben S. via Swamplot Flickr Pool
Headlines
Swamplot’s Daily Demolition Report lists buildings that received City of Houston demolition permits the previous weekday.
Dissolve thee not, O vanish not; but haply cometh the excavator hither.
The newly LED-equipped crossings over US-59 between Shepherd Dr. and Midtown should be getting officially flipped on around 8 pm tomorrow, after a few weeks of on-and-off testing. The 2 Gandys of Gandy² Lighting Design tell Swamplot that the lights will likely run from sunset to sunrise; the tentative plan in the leadup to the Super Bowl is for the bridges to show off the competitors’ team colors. The Patriots’ red-white-and-blue are demoed above, but here are some shots of what else the new fixtures can do, now that all the tuning up is largely finished:
Getting Turned On
STEERING CLEAR OF THE SUPER BOWL CROWDS, WHETHER THEY SHOW UP OR NOT 
Steve Jansen of the Houston Press runs through some numbers this week for the impending Super Bowl LI — many of which depend on the wide range of visitor estimates put forth by booster groups and analysts. The Super Bowl Host Committee claimed to expect over a million visitors back in 2014 (though that number appears to include local folks stopping by all of the week’s lead-up events); more recently, a consulting firm hired by the committee offered an estimate of 138,000 non-local visitors. Jansen writes that “there will certainly be fewer football fans in town since the Houston Texans and the Dallas Cowboys aren’t playing in the grand finale. But it doesn’t matter a heck of a lot, because the phenomenon of ‘the Super Bowl is awful, I’m getting the hell out of here’ — called the crowding-out effect in economic parlance — is going to happen no matter what . . .” [Houston Press; previously on Swamplot] Photo of George R. Brown Convention Center remodeling and Super Bowl signage: Jesus Jimenez via Swamplot Flickr Pool
