Scooping Up Land Along the Grand Parkway; Mapping Houston Renters

memorial-park

Photo of Memorial Park: Russell Hancock via Swamplot Flickr Pool

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  • The Schwencke map (“Where do Houston’s renters live?”) of population density is an annoying reminder of our city’s backwards transit development. Only politics could explain why one could look at that map and decide to spend valuable tax dollars to expand light rail to the north, east, and southeast of downtown.

  • Um, nice try Antone’s PR people, but you are far from having an “empire” in Houston. I live and dine frequently in the inner loop, and work downtown, and cannot name a single active Antone’s location right now. The only one I knew about was in Rice Village, but it closed several years ago. I wonder how much Antone’s paid the Chronicle for this hyped-up piece of advertising masked as journalism.

  • @Superdave “4520 San Felipe and 2724 West T.C. Jester” –existing locations as the article points out.

  • @ Superdave: I’d agree that the ‘article’ was just shy of requiring a ‘paid advertiser’ label on it. And, I had a good chuckle at the use of ’empire’ for Antone’s, which is a bit of a faded brand.
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    Using their logic, I have a personal land ’empire’ consisting of my current home with a plan to buy future homes at an unspecified future date in unspecified locations. Cue the Oprah giveaway voice: “You get an empire! And, you get an empire!”

  • Good show on the Yale “green corridor.” Other streets that ought to be added:
    Bayland between Studewood and Houston
    Kirby from Shepherd to Westheimer
    Bissonnet from 610 to Main
    Southmore from Main to Scott

  • Maybe it’s gotten better since 1995 which was the last time I entered an Antone’s. But, based on the stuff they sell at the grocery deli’s it does not appear so. Their sandwiches are literally just bread and meat. The style they seem to be going for is something that Jimmy Johns does 1000 times better. There is an antones by my house. Can’t imagine ever going there. Lol.

  • @slugline: so very true. Put a group of rich homeowners between the renters and their jobs, and any hope of getting effective transit in that area flies out the window.
    .
    I’m usually the most sympathetic person in a forum to the voice of NIMBYs. I think they usually have some valid concerns if you can cut through the chaff and BS to get to what really worries them. But certain NIMBYs, combined with inflexibility on the part of METRO, have blocked light rail from reaching areas with the most need in Houston. It’s infuriating.

  • I’ll be honest I know they aren’t the greatest quality but ever since I’ve lived in Houston I’ve always had a weakness for the Antone’s Tuna and the Super Original or whatever it’s called. When I’m in sort of a “I give up” mood I always go pick one of those up.

  • This fetish with light rail is ridiculous. For $150 million per mile, we could build a fleet of luxury buses, put wifi and air conditioning at every bus stop and *still* have money left over. But no, instead let’s rip up streets, close businesses during the years-long construction, wind up making traffic worse and build an inflexible system with high fixed costs. Because trains rule, and buses drool. Oh, light rail trains, with your sexy curves, the rhythmic thump-thump-thump of the wheels on the tracks, the pleasant ding of announcements, and only the occasional screeching halt when you run into someone turning left.

  • It’s easy for people to turn on light rail once their own neighborhoods have it, too. So, there’s that….

  • Westheimer needs an elevated rail. Let it run right above the medians.

  • @ jt: No, I reject your modest proposal. Westheimer needs transporters, you know like in Star Trek. That would be awesome. Houston should have transporters. This is very important. If Houston doesn’t acquire transporters then it will be totally uncool. Nobody will like it. It is important that we are liked. We should disregard all sane and ordinary financial constraints in order to acquire transporters. That would be so cool. Oh wait, did I repeat myself? No, that’s impossible, I’m totally coherent right now. Oh wait, did I repeat myself? No, that’s impossible, I’m totally coherent right now. Houston should have transporters. That would be so cool.

  • METRO is supposedly starting a study of BRT on Westheimer from Westchase to Post Oak Boulevard. Very exciting! Not a train, so you would hope it will be widely supported.

  • @Local Planner: is it true BRT, running in dedicated lanes and with raised Stops? Or will it just be dressed up express buses like the Quickline?
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    Not that the Quickline is bad, per se. It’s a step up from regular buses, and it’s on a very high demand route that makes the express worthwhile. But it’s not real BRT.

  • @ZAW: I don’t know, and don’t know if METRO does either. Quickline as you said is definitely not BRT, and I don’t think METRO would disagree. I am trying to find out more.