COMMENT OF THE DAY: IT’S DRIVE-THRUS, NOT APARTMENTS, THAT ARE THE REAL TRAFFIC-CAUSING MENACE 
“Feared traffic density related to construction of highrise apt/condo buildings is severely overestimated. Traffic flow in and out of the garages is spread out throughout the course of the day, so the increased number of cars will be mostly unnoticed at any point in time on any given day. There are more traffic concerns associated with a drive thru at Starbucks when the line backs up onto the street, thereby interfering with cars which are trying to get around the line. People do crazy things with their cars when trying to get in line for their coffee.” [Escout, commenting on Construction Work Has Begun on the Ashby Highrise] Illustration: Lulu
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Tag: Drive-Thrus
Guatemalan fast-food chain Pollo Campero‘s new-prototype restaurant (pictured above) will soon become the fourth standalone drive-thru in a row along a section of the south side of Washington Ave. Driving east from the corner of Durham, you’ll find the W Grill (at left, featuring 2 drive-thru windows), then a Jack in the Box on the corner of Shepherd. After El Rey Taqueria comes the future Pollo Campero site at 4701 Washington Ave., slated to be the company’s next-in-line location — a new one is about to open at 702 W. Bay Area Blvd. in Webster, and another is planned for Missouri City. Any room for this burgeoning Washington Ave drive-thru scene to grow? That small building wedged between the W Grill and the Jack-in-the-Box could start to look hungry.
- Pollo Campero chain expands reach [Houston Business Journal]
Images: Pollo Campero and W Grill
A Fuddruckers Express has taken over a portion of the Luby’s Cafeteria on the I-10 East feeder between Federal Rd. and Maxey. The 1,500-sq.-ft. hamburger joint was carved out of the former Luby’s takeout area and drive-thru, but the 2 restaurants share a kitchen in the 12,200-sq.-ft. freestanding building. Luby’s bought out the Fuddruckers chain last year.
- Previously on Swamplot: Dawn of a Pad Site Conglomerate
Photo: Luby’s
Moving into the site of the 7-story Compass Bank building demolished a year and a half ago at 2200 Post Oak Blvd., a block north of the Galleria: the bank’s new corporate parent, BBVA Compass. The subsidiary of Spanish banking giant BBVA will be leasing at least 6 floors of a new 20-story tower being developed on that location by the Redstone Companies and Stream Realty Partners. Not officially announced but still apparently planned for the northern portion of the same 6-and-a-half-acre parcel (the grassy area in the foreground of the rendering above, along Guilford Ct.): a second office building, hotel, and more structured parking. Redstone and Stream Realty had previously been marketing the mixed-use property as The Perennial.
The longtime owners of the now-shuttered original Otto’s Bar B Que and Hamburgers on Memorial Dr. filed suit on Tuesday against their former broker, Cushman & Wakefield executive director David Cook, claiming that he failed to let them know about several offers to buy their property. As a result, the lawsuit claims, the owners ended up selling their real-estate holdings for — and settling into retirement with — only a third of the money they might have otherwise received. Marcus and June Sofka originally listed their restaurant at 5502 Memorial Dr. and some adjacent property with Cook in August 2007. Two months later, according to the suit, the Ponderosa Land Development Co. submitted a written offer for the land to Cook for $105 a sq. ft. But the Sofkas claim they didn’t hear about that offer until much later. Why wouldn’t Cook have given them such good news?
COMMENT OF THE DAY: DONUT RUSH HOUR IN OAK FOREST 
“That Shipley’s must draw folks from miles around. Theres almost always a long line of cars, often extending out onto Ella. I am always amazed too at the long lines late at night…who eats donuts at 11pm? I guess they’re night shift workers.
Yep, they need to re-do that whole shopping plaza and center it around that Shipleys, providing tons of drive-thru space :)” [JRo, commenting on Daily Demolition Report: The Ella Square Deal] Photo of Shipley’s Donuts, 3410 Ella Blvd.: Chad & Susan Harris
Video: emill
No, that’s not valet parking being offered along the ramp at the Timmons side of Lakewood Church in Greenway Plaza. It’s a new drive-thru healing service offered by Pastor Joel Osteen’s mother, Dodie Osteen:
She conducts a traditional healing service each month, recently adding one for children with medical issues. The drive[-through] service is for anyone too ill to attend those. . . .
The first drive through service was advertised by word of mouth. Though small by Lakewood standards, it seems small though it will grow. Yet it did what was intended by creating hope where there might have been none. Dodie Osteen will tell you she’s a living example
“You know what, I can come to them. And I’m perfectly willing to do that. If I have to crawl out there to them, I’ll do that,” said Dodie.
Mrs. Osteen plans to schedule more of the drive-through healing services when the weather improves. The cold temperatures and rain aren’t good for people with health issues.
Photo: Paul Duron
CHURCH OF THE SHEPHERD DRIVE-THRU “The Christian non-denominational Succeed in Life Center near Shepherd and Tidwell has been offering drive-thru prayer service to members and non-members alike a couple of Saturdays a month since October, and pastor Damien Jackson tells Hair Balls the event has garnered praise from participants. ‘The reaction has been great. The people who drive by say everything from, “I’ve never heard of this, this is such a need idea, this is so helpful,”’ says Jackson, adding they regularly see between 20 and 30 cars an hour. Jackson explains that participants drive up to a window and fill out a request sheet, then drive to another window where they receive the prayer and a ‘quick word of encouragement’ from a pastor.” [Hair Balls]
[youtube:http://youtube.com/watch?v=2O53kp1Te2M 400 330]
Are you an architectural renderer struggling to bring life to yet another vast Houston shopping-center parking lot in the drawings developers have commissioned you to create? This video should bring you inspiration! Go ahead and draw in that parade — that street festival — that touching moment of parking-lot excitement. You won’t be faking anything!
Today’s baton-twirling parking-lot-parade marshal was photographed by Jason of the Around Town Houston blog — as he waited in the drive-thru at Burger King on Westheimer, just east of Highway 6, just around the corner from the West Oaks Mall.
Practice makes perfect!
- Dude Twirling [YouTube]
- He’s Back [Around Town Houston]
- Homeless Twirler??? [Around Town Houston]
- Heights Village: Parking Lots Are the New Main Street! [Swamplot]