COMMENT OF THE DAY: HOW TO SELECT A HOME, IN A CITY WITH NO ZONING “. . . I had specific criteria I tried to meet when I bought my house knowing that zoning is what it is in Houston. Made sure it was at least 3 blocks from any major street to avoid traffic and spillover parking from possible future commercial/residential development, within 1 block from a city park (less likelihood a park will turn into something I don’t like), within a block or two from a school (the city does restrict what can be built next to a school, so by default I am protecting myself from strip clubs and bars… and I guess landfills), I bought on a block that was a mix of new builds and old houses to minimize the risk of the whole block being torn down to build something new (which is a risk if you buy on a street of all old houses). I didn’t plan for crack houses being built because I don’t think those can be permitted with the city. I plan on staying in my house less than 10 years, so 20 years from now where I bought may be different. Was I able to meet all my criteria? No, but I came close enough that I was okay with it. Do I still run a risk of something being built, you bet, but I hopefully stacked the odds in my favor. . . .” [P-dawg, commenting on Jury Tells Ashby Highrise Developers To Pay Neighbors $1,661,993.62]
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For 10 years, you’ve known it as Houston’s only light-rail line, so what did it matter that we called the Main St. line? But in advance of 2 separate advance lines opening up next year, it’s got a color too: The Red Line. You can see workers installing signage with the “Red Line” designation in the photo above. When was that photo taken?
Metro’s New Colors
How long will it take a Katy worker to zoom past acres of newly paved prairie, over a now-uprooted prehistoric burial ground, and under EZ Tag toll sensors on a lunchtime jaunt to the outlet mall in Cypress? Maybe as quickly as 5 minutes, if the 200mph speed reached last week by driver John Hennessey in one of his company’s souped-up Corvettes on the 15-mile stretch of the Grand Parkway between I-10 and Hwy. 290 can be maintained. Of course, that might become a little more difficult once the new Prairie Tollway opens to slower-moving traffic for the first time this coming Saturday.
200mph from Mall to Mall
- Morgan Group To Start Work on New Pearl Woodlake Apartments in Westchase Next Year [Houston Business Journal]
- A House-by-House Breakdown of the $1,661,993.62 Damages Awarded in the Ashby Highrise Verdict [Prime Property; previously on Swamplot]
- Judge Emmett Directing Astrodome Reuse Proposals to Sports and Convention Corp. if They Don’t Have Money Attached [KUHF; previously on Swamplot]
- Ninja Ramen Opening in former Dubliner, Lava Rock Space on Washington Ave Next Year [Culturemap]
- Photos: Inside Rep. Steve Stockman’s Webster Campaign Office Shut Down for Safety Violations Last Month [TPM Muckraker]
- Bellaire Group Behind ‘Evelyn’s Park’ Meets $500K Fundraising Deadline for Former Teas Nursery [Houston Chronicle; previously on Swamplot]
- Concerned Storm Could Spread Dioxins, Riverfront Residents Demand More Thorough Cleanup of Polluted San Jacinto River [Houston Chronicle ($)]
- Residents of Scenic Wood Plaza Believe Dead Trees on Developer Land Pose Hazard to Power Lines [abc13]
Photo of 2929 Weslayan construction: Russell Hancock via Swamplot Flickr Pool
Headlines
After more than 6 hours of deliberation over 2 days, the jury in the Ashby Highrise trial came back with a verdict this afternoon, awarding damage claims to a subset of the neighbors who filed suit against the developers of the highrise apartment tower planned for 1717 Bissonnet, claiming that the development would cause harm to their property. Jurors who spoke afterward to Chronicle reporter Erin Mulvaney said they believed the development was “out of place” for the Southampton neighborhood it abuts. Expert witnesses for the plaintiffs in the month-long trial presented evidence that the 21-story tower would cause lower property values, structural problems, and increased traffic for its immediate neighbors. Total bill, ordered for 20 of the 30 neighborhood households that entered into the lawsuit: $1,661,993.62. Next up: a hearing before Judge Randy Wilson over whether the project should be allowed to go forward.
- Jury sides with residents in Ashby case [Prime Property]
- Ashby Highrise coverage [Swamplot]
Rendering: Buckhead Investment Partners
Surprise!?
Here it is, the official ballot for Neighborhood of the Year. It’s the next-to-last category for the 2013 Swamplot Awards for Houston Real Estate, and it all came together thanks to your nominations.
Just a note: This category is for neighborhood of the year. If we had wanted to name this category best neighborhood, we would have. For Neighborhood of the Year, you get to decide what the criteria are — and which nominee deserves the award. Of course, it sure helps if you explain your reasoning as you cast your vote.
Do that by leaving a comment below or contacting us via email, Facebook, or Twitter. You can vote all 4 ways, too, so long as you follow the voting rules.
And the nominees are:
The 2013 Swampies
HARRIS COUNTY’S NEW GAME ROOM GAME 
Among the new requirements for game rooms in Harris County just approved by commissioners this afternoon: A big sign outside that says “GAME ROOM.” And you’ll know there’ll be at least half a dozen “eight-liner” video poker machines inside, because they won’t be able to tint the windows anymore. New establishments will need to be at least 1,500 ft. away from schools, churches, or residential neighborhoods. “Charitable” bingo halls that fall under the ordinance won’t need to follow these new rules, but they will need to get a permit like other game rooms, pay a $1000 annual fee to the county, and shut down at 10 p.m. [Houston Chronicle ($); previously on Swamplot] Photo of recently shuttered game room on Monroe Rd. at Almeda Genoa: abc13
A slope, a staircase, and 3 floors of living space likely make an across-the-traffic bayou-view 1998 townhome on Allen Pkwy. east of Montrose Blvd. a bit of a workout as well as a place to rest. The end unit rising behind Buffalo Terrace is part of the 11-home Townes of Buffalo Bayou development, designed by Looney Ricks Kiss. It went up for sale Monday, with a $450,000 asking price.
A Home You’ve Driven By
- 19008 Harbor Side Blvd. [HAR]
A couple of renderings are out of the 2 office buildings in Hughes Landing ExxonMobil has signed up to lease as part of the oil company’s surprise second new Houston-area campus. And the one above shows a broad-ranging view of the Hughes Landing development — as the office buildings’ architects at Kirksey see it. Judging from the renderings and the Hughes Landing site plan posted on the Woodlands website (below), the 2 buildings will not sit directly on the Lake Woodlands waterfront but along Hughes Landing Blvd., 2 parking garages south of the previously announced Two Hughes Landing. The view out of the corner conference room shows off the overall development’s mixed-use cred: To the left is the 175-room hotel shown on the plan, fronting Hughes Landing Blvd. and a fountained inlet of Lake Woodlands; beyond and to the right of that is the 8-story, 390-unit apartment building that sits behind a row of inlet-side restaurants with dummy names. At the far right of the image is an 8-level parking garage with a waterside grill on the ground floor (somehow obscuring the expected view of the Two Hughes Landing office building). That’s quite a view, but it’s a well-chosen one.
Off the Waterfront
- Clumsy Butcher’s The Nightingale Room To Join Bars on 300 Block of Main in March 2014 [Culturemap]
- Real Estate Professionals Super Excited About New Segment of Grand Parkway [Houston Business Journal]
- HAR Data for November Will Show Single Family Homes at Lowest Inventory Since 2000, Sales Increase for 30th Straight Month [TomPlant.com]
- Attorneys Present Closing Arguments in Ashby Highrise Suit [Prime Property; previously on Swamplot]
- Residents Complain Proposed Stoplights Along TC Jester North of FM 1960 Would Hurt ‘Neighborhood Aesthetics,’ Increase Traffic [Cypress Creek Mirror]
- Slideshow: The Highlights of AIA Houston’s Gingerbread Build-Off, Including a Foley’s Demo-Inspired Piece [Houston Business Journal]
Photo of BNSF North Casey Yards: David Elizondo via Swamplot Flickr Pool
Headlines
COMMENT OF THE DAY: DOES THE NAME STICK? 
“I believe the name of the neighborhood is actually Uptown. The Galleria is a mall.” [Jonathan Hansen, commenting on Houston’s Most Recognizable Neighborhood: The Official 2013 Ballot] Illustration: Lulu
Parents and students connected to Eastwood’s Lantrip Elementary School are showing off a new mulch-covered running track, separate wheelchair-ready path, and set of 12 raised garden beds on a decomposed-granite pad built this fall by volunteers from materials purchased with a $20,000 grant the school won in July. The garden-bed installation, pictured above in front of an older campus greenhouse, will also serve as an outdoor classroom for the school at the northern reaches of Telephone Rd. Also newly installed: a set of 20 new fruit trees with irrigation equipment sent by the Fruit Tree Planting Foundation, in addition to the earlier grant from Keep America Beautiful and the Lowe’s Foundation.
An East End Greenbelt
