- 19027 E. Kahala Dr. [HAR]
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Tag: 77554
- 22032 Frio Dr. [HAR]
- 1330 Coral Way [HAR]
Open water is one lot away from this 1996 resort-style contemporary home on one of Tiki Island’s knuckle-ended land nubs that protect the tiny coastal community’s interior canals. That gives the peninsula property a vista beyond (and at) neighbors across the pond. The home has double-decker vantage points and 170 ft. of waterfront. But boats aren’t the only amenity floating around the property.
Route Canal
- 13415 Jibstay Ct. [HAR]
- 25111 Intrepid Ln. [HAR]
- 16510 Trinidad Way [HAR]
Pelicans are symbols of self-sacrifice, said to pierce their own breast with their own beak to feed their young their blood. But the birds also have real big gullets — fitting, then, as the name of this 4,000-sq.-ft. restaurant under construction at 7819 Broadway in Galveston.
But the restaurant is just one part of the Pelican Rest Marina project developed by Harry Schulz. Across Offatts Bayou from Moody Gardens, the marina’s already operating as a fuel dock and weigh station. And construction is expected to begin soon on seaside condos:
- 13918 Grambo Blvd. [HAR]
If you squint, this house sort of puts a party face on its facade, what with the eyeball windows, nose-like roof above the landing, and unfurled tongue of stairs. The 2-story-over-garage quay-side property is on tiny Tiki Island, which, at less than 1.5 sq. miles in size, is more canal than actual land. It’s just off Galveston’s West Bay and has 91 ft. of canal frontage plus 2 boat lifts. It listed in July at $564,500. The entertainment-in-mind layout includes 2 living areas, decks at 2 levels, screened porches, and a pool with hot tub off a covered patio. Inside the 1993 home by the bay, you’ll find more than earth tones:
Yes, there’s a mini seawall wrapped around the base of this Ostermeyer Rd. winner in Baybridge Estates in Galveston — and it “protected the home” from Hurricane Ike, according to the listing. Other Galvestonian touches to this 4-bedroom, 4-bath house on a hill, constructed in 2005 by Rawlins Residential Builders: Rough-textured travertine tile at the front entrance, and a big first-floor washroom suitable for summertime sandy swimsuit removal operations. The 1.3-acre lot includes a long driveway entrance across a pond and other only occasionally submerged terrain. And then you get to this:
Houston ranks 5th — below Long Island, Miami, Virginia Beach, New Orleans, and Tampa — in potential property damage from storm surges, according to an annual report from Corelogic. The company figures the resulting storm surge from a Category 5 Hurricane here would likely produce $20 billion in property loss — well behind Long Island’s $99 billion score. Can’t this city do a little better? We’ve got the high-hurricane-risk and low-lying-properties parts down cold. If we can just boost the property values a bit in those areas, we’ll be rolling with the high-stakes big boys next time.
The top at-risk area Zip Codes, according to the company’s report: 77573, 77554, 77059, 77571, 77062, 77566, 77586, 77539, 77546, and 77521. Locally, League City leads the way!
- 2011 Storm Surge Report [CoreLogic]
Image: Corelogic
Following up on this shocking reader-submitted photo of a TxDOT electronic sign spotted Friday morning from the northbound Gulf Freeway near the Galveston Causeway, a local investigative news team springs into action: “At last check, FOX 26 News was not able to locate any zombies on the mainland.” Keep tuned for updates.
- Hacked Sign in Galveston Reads ‘Zombies on Mainland’ [MyFox Houston, via Hair Balls]
Photo: Fox26 Viewer Amy
TEXAS SUPREME COURT: PRIVATE PROPERTIES CAN ERODE PUBLIC BEACHES The state’s high court ruled today in favor of Californian Carol Severance, whose rent house on Kennedy Dr. in West Galveston found itself in front of the vegetation line after Hurricane Rita hit in 2006. The Texas Supreme Court ruled that the state can’t claim an easement on her property — but if the same topography had resulted over a longer period of time, the easement would be okay: “Texas law allows anyone to place a blanket on the beach, right up to the vegetation line, even if it’s an intrusion on the privacy of a seaside home. But in a split decision, the court found that the state’s policy of ‘rolling easements’ — the ever-shifting border between public and private land — does not apply when it’s moved by a storm. At the same time, the court held that policy is justifiable in cases of erosion, which is gradual.” [Houston Chronicle; decision; previously on Swamplot]