CITY TRACKING DOWN THE LEAD IN CITY HALL’S DRINKING FOUNTAINS, EYEING OTHER DOWNTOWN FAUCETS 
The city is planning to check in on the water at other buildings downtown, Scott Noll reports, in the wake of those lead tests KHOU did on drinking water from just City Hall and the City Hall Annex buildings last week. Those tests turned up lead levels so high above federal limits in at least 1 fountain that the city has shut them all off (and cleaned out the ice machines) while more extensive testing is done on the system. City spokesperson Janice Evans says city testing a few years ago didn’t show concern-worthy lead levels, but the fountains will stay off while the source of the current problem is traced out: “Is it the pipes? Is it the drinking fountains? Is it water coming into the building? It could be [any of the 3] options. There’s a lot of deferred maintenance in this building.”  [KHOU; previously on Swamplot] Photo of City Hall: City of Houston
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Tag: City Hall
The house at 230 Blalock is back on the market this week for just under $2.2 million — more than half a million more than what the city of Piney Point accepted for the house in 2008 (eating a $60,000 loss). The city purchased the 5-bedroom house to use as City Hall back in aught-7, after being kicked out of the Houston strip mall it was using at 7721 San Felipe St.
The city council was subsequently told that no, they couldn’t keep it, and the house went back up for sale, with some debate about whether or not to update the interiors before flipping the property. The most recent owner, however, decided to go for the upgrades. Here’s a few before-and-after shots:
Piney Point
The Art Guys are in there somewhere: On Friday the mischievous duo executed Good Fences Make Good Neighbors, the latest of their yearlong series of 12, umm, performances. Cocooning themselves in these 6-ft. sections of privacy fencing, Jack Massing and Michael Galbreth proceeded to spend 2 hours publicly scuttling about the reflecting pool and Hermann Square in front of the Joseph Finger-designed City Hall.
We have a winner! The house at 230 Blalock, which the City of Piney Point Village bought last year — with the intention of using as its first-ever inside-city-limits city hall — has at last been sold . . . at a $60,000 loss, excluding commissions. The buyer, according to the Memorial Examiner, is U.K. resident Edward L. Solari.
The home had been on the market since last summer, when city council gave into pressure from Piney Point residents opposed to housing their city hall in a $1.53 million party pad . . . in a residential neighborhood.
After the jump, one last longing look inside the City Hall That Might Have Been!
Remember the $1.53 million party house the City of Piney Point Village bought back in April? The one it wanted to use as City Hall, because City Hall was being kicked out of a strip center outside city limits? Remember how Mayor Carol Fox was all excited about it, and didn’t think they’d even need to redecorate? And how local residents were all upset about a City Hall in a Party Pad moving into a quiet residential neighborhood and having visitors park in a church lot across the street? Sure, the place looked cool, but what would it be like holding police court in the pool room?
Well, it didn’t work out. The mayor backed down, City Hall moved to a third-floor suite in an office building on Woodway, and the house was put back out on the market for bids, which are due today. There were 30 showings, but only three bids had come in by Monday. How will Piney Point Village do on its city hall flip? Stay tuned!
Most of the fun throughout this adventure, of course, has been eavesdropping on politicians trying to play the housing market:
Councilmember John Ebling asked the council to allocate about $3,500 for painting and minor repairs to make the house more attractive to potential buyers. Councilmember Susan Jones objected, saying that most buyers want to do their own painting.
- Council opening bid Friday for Piney Point house [Memorial Examiner]
- Kicked Out of Strip Center, City Hall To Move to Area House, Spook Neighbors [Swamplot]
- 230 Blalock [HAR]
Piney Point Village’s City Hall is moving . . . to a party house! And a pretty swank one, too: It’s got five bedrooms plus a den and a game room; six full bathrooms; huge windows and vaulted ceilings; a large kitchen with Corian countertops, stainless-steel appliances, and a Sub-Zero refrigerator; a three-car garage and a storage shed; a circular driveway; a 60-foot-long granite swimming pool, an in-ground hot tub, and a giant rock waterfall. Plus, the master suite
is very large, with coffered ceilings, extra sitting room, atrium access, skylight and large master bath featuring his and hers sides/vanities, separate closet space, jetted tub with separate shower and separate water closets.
Bet that’ll be pretty exciting for the mayor, huh? “We won’t have to do a thing to it,” Mayor Carol Fox told the Memorial Examiner. And it only cost $1.53 million!
Why move to a residential neighborhood? That’s easy: City hall is getting booted from the strip center it was occupying, on San Felipe in Houston, because the center’s owners have decided they want to tear it down. And here’s a benefit of having city hall right in the neighborhood, Fox says: It’ll now be legal to hold elections and police court there. Wonder which lovely room they’ll choose.
- Piney Point buys home to use as city hall [Memorial Examiner]
- 230 Blalock [HAR.com]
