Tag: Redevelopment

East End
05/08/14 1:15pm

Where 173 New Homes Are Going in the East End, Next to the Railroad Tracks

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Homebuilding, Proposed Developments, Redevelopment, Simms Woods
34 Comments

Simms Woods Homesites, 5401 Lawndale St., Simms Woods, Houston

Simms Woods Homesites, 5401 Lawndale St., Simms Woods, HoustonDevelopers are planning to put in a 173-home subdivision on the 11.93-acre former site of the All Woods Schroeder (and later, Woodlands Mill Work) warehouse adjacent to the HB&T rail line near the intersection of Jefferson and Hackney in the Simms Woods subdivision, west of Idylwood. The official address of the not-just-yet-subdivided property is 5401 Lawndale St., but only a small leg of the land fronts Lawndale — between Telephone Rd. and Wayside Dr., across from the KIPP Explore Academy. Demolition permits for portions of the former warehouse buildings were approved back in 2011 and 2013, but a reader reports that the last structure was cleared just recently (see photos).

On May 15th, the city’s planning commission is set to consider the layout for the new subdivision, which includes 11 new streets, 173 new homesites, and 25 “reserves” — to be used for guest parking and bits of open space. Here’s the proposed layout:

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Clearing Simms Woods
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Apartments
05/08/14 10:45am

Yes, the Josephine Apartments Will Be Coming Down

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Boulevard Oaks, Demolitions, Redevelopment
8 Comments

Josephine Apartments, 1744-1748 Bolsover St., Boulevard Oaks, Houston

After hearing news that a homebuilder bought the 8-unit 1939 brick-and-glass-block Josephine Apartments 2 blocks north of Rice University in Boulevard Oaks, it may not come as much of a surprise to learn that the building’s new owner plans to tear them down. But today a source provides confirmation that demolition and new construction is in the cards: Tricon Homes has informed residents that they will need to vacate the property by mid July.

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Tricon Conquers Boulevard Oaks
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Demolitions
05/07/14 10:30am

The Art of Disappearance at 3400 Montrose

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Montrose, Redevelopment
14 Comments

Demolition of 3400 Montrose Blvd., Montrose, Houston

Demolition of 3400 Montrose Blvd., Montrose, HoustonIs it Houston’s own temporary Flatiron building? Or just a bunch of soon-to-be-flattened steel? Readers passing by the continuing takedown of the 61-year-old 10-story office building across from Kroger at the corner of Montrose Blvd. and Hawthorne St. that used to house Scott Gertner’s Skybar have been sending Swamplot their photo impressions of the scene, which has been changing — and disappearing — daily.

Here’s a bit of what a few Swamplot readers have seen and captured over the past week or 2:

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Skybar Takeaway
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Apartments
05/01/14 10:30am

Is This the End for the Josephine? Classic Boulevard Oaks Apartment Building Sold to Homebuilder

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Boulevard Oaks, Buying and Selling, Redevelopment
42 Comments

Josephine Apartments, 1744-1748 Bolsover St., Boulevard Oaks, Houston

Josephine Apartments, 1744-1748 Bolsover St., Boulevard Oaks, HoustonThe 75-year-old Josephine Apartments just north of Rice University have been sold — to homebuilder Tricon Homes. The distinctive two-tone-brick Art Deco structure was built in 1939 from a design by architect F. Perry Johnston. It sits at the corner of Bolsover and Ashby St., a block north of Rice University, just east of Southampton Place, and 3 blocks south of the site of the planned Ashby Highrise. The U-shaped 2-story building with glass block and steel windows consists of 8 single-bedroom units, some of them with sunrooms.

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Good Night, Josephine
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Apartments
04/29/14 11:00am

New JLB Apartments Will Replace Warehouse Buildings at Nicholson and 24th St. in the Heights

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Houston Heights, Proposed Developments, Redevelopment
4 Comments

Fencing, 2401 Nicholson St., Houston Heights

Chain-link fencing has gone up around the warehouse buildings at 2401 Nicholson St. in the Heights, a reader reports. There’s a total 139,126 sq. ft. of building space on the large alley-divided block surrounded by Nicholson, 24th, 25th, and Lawrence St., on 3.6 acres. JLB Partners doesn’t appear to have announced the new apartment building it’s planning for the site, but its builders received a couple of permits for a parking garage and an apartment building at 525 W. 24th St. late last year. And a TCEQ notice for the construction — identified as the Heights Block 39 Apartments, at 525 W. 25th St. — has gone up at the site as well. The block is catty-corner to the cleared National Flame & Forge site on the other side of Nicholson.

Photo: Swamplot inbox

Block 39
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Apartments
04/28/14 12:45pm

Where Another Pearl Is Headed, on Washington Ave

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Demolitions, Proposed Developments, Redevelopment, Washington Ave, Westwood Grove
7 Comments

Site of Future Pearl Washington Ave Apartments, 5424 Washington Ave at T.C. Jester, Houston

Here’s the scene at the northeast corner of Washington Ave and T.C. Jester this weekend (the view is from Schuler St., to the north), where lots are being cleared for a new apartment complex. It’ll be called the Pearl Washington Ave, after the other Pearl-brand apartments the Morgan Group has developed around town, but not necessarily after Washington Ave’s Pearl Bar. Permits filed with the city don’t yet indicate the size of the project, but the newly assembled parcel at 5424 Washington Ave measures 3.1 acres and extends all the way to Detering St. And commenters on HAIF are noting that it’s expected to be 8 stories tall — and may include some sort of retail space. Buildings currently on the site, including Gary Fruge Automotive, are being removed.

Photo: Swamplot inbox

8 Story Apartments, with Retail?
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Condos
04/16/14 11:00am

Developer Says Proposed Garage Wall Streetfront for 3615 Montrose Condo Tower Will Be Green or Arty, Not Blank

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Development Regulations, Montrose, Proposed Developments, Streetscapes
24 Comments

Rendering of Proposed 3615 Montrose Condo Tower with Green Garage Wall

A representative of Riverway Properties, the developer proposing a 7-story condo tower on the vacant former site of the River Cafe in Montrose, says a rendering submitted as part of an application for a variance from the city isn’t an entirely accurate representation of the garage wall the company wants to build in front of the sidewalks on Montrose Blvd. and Marshall St. The rendering of the 3615 Montrose building featured on Swamplot earlier this week showed a blank wall at the base surrounding a single-level parking garage on the ground floor, punctured only by a driveway entrance with an overhead door along Montrose. But Riverway Properties partner Michael Carroll says his company is planning either a “green wall system” or an installation by an artist for the wall.

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Montrose Street Life
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Avondale
04/14/14 10:30am

After Lovett Blvd. Demo, Bulletin Board at Vacant Bullock–City Federation Mansion Site Asks for Comments

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Demolitions, Houston History, Montrose, Real Estate Marketing, Redevelopment
10 Comments

Vacant Lot at 411 Lovett Blvd., Former Site of Bullock-City Federation Mansion, Montrose, Houston

Demolition of 411 Lovett Blvd., Avondale, Montrose, HoustonA bulletin board with a request for “comments” went up last week on the fence fronting the now-vacant site at 411 Lovett Blvd. in Avondale, where the 1906 Bullock–City Federation Mansion was torn down earlier this year (see photo at right). Yes, the metal fence along Lovett Blvd. is still standing. Passers-by have been adding their thoughts.

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Suggestion Box
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Demolitions
04/10/14 10:15am

Demolition of 3400 Montrose Building Reaches the Skybar Removal Phase

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Montrose, Office Buildings, Redevelopment
3 Comments

Demolition of 3400 Montrose Blvd., Montrose, Houston

Demolition of 3400 Montrose Blvd., Montrose, HoustonThe top-down demo of the 10-story building at 3400 Montrose has reached its moment of smooth-jazzy truth. Having taken care of the parking garage in back, demo crews are now hard at work dismantling the 10th-floor portion of the building, which formerly housed Scott Gertner’s Skybar — and before that, Cody’s. These views from across Montrose Blvd. and Hawthorne St. taken yesterday by a Swamplot reader show the south and west portions of the top floor are already gone, and come-aparts are headed for the corner. Hanover is planning to build a significantly taller apartment tower on the site once the 1953 stone-clad structure is gone.

Photo: polyester

The Cody’s, Scott Gertner Liftoff
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David Crockett
04/09/14 10:00am

The Jazzy New Bouquet of Towers Meant To Replace 4 Bars in 3 Buildings on a Kirby Block

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Mixed Use, Proposed Developments, Redevelopment, Upper Kirby
24 Comments

Rendering of the Proposed Collection on Kirby, 3200 Kirby Dr., Upper Kirby, Houston

The website of New York real estate firm Thor Equities has switched out the renderings for the full-block Kirby Collection mixed-use development it’s been threatening to build on the west side of Kirby Dr. between Colquitt and W. Main St. for almost 6 years now. And the new Collection drawing collection does look pretty whizzy. It appears to show 2 levels of retail facing Kirby, a dozen-or-so-story office tower along Colquitt, and a taller squashed-cylinder-shaped residential tower on top of a parking-garage base hanging back toward Lake St.:

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The Kirby Collection
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Downtown
03/26/14 3:30pm

New Mod Downtown Highrise Hotel Alessandra Will Slam Dunk Former Yao Ming Spot at GreenStreet

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Hotels, Mixed Use, Proposed Developments, Redevelopment
18 Comments

Proposed Hotel Alessandra, Dallas and Fannin Streets, GreenStreet, Downtown Houston

The lobby for the new 25-story luxury Downtown hotel announced yesterday — an add-on for the GreenStreet conversion of the former Houston Pavilions — will be on its top floor. A pool and bar will sit above it on the roof level. Its highlighted contours tracing a giant question mark, the sleek modern 225-room tower will be planted on top of the remains of former Houston Rockets center Yao Ming‘s flopped restaurant. It’ll sit back from Main St., behind XXI Forever, hugging Fannin on the block also bounded by Polk and Dallas. But the Hotel Alessandra isn’t meant to spike the retail flow in the failed-mixed-use redo project — instead, it’ll include 7,000 sq. ft. of retail and restaurant space on its bottom floors, and connect to the project’s Main St. shops and Fannin skybridge.

Here’s a view from Main St., looking southeast along Dallas:

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25 Stories
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Featured Posts
03/24/14 10:00am

Raising Cane’s Putting Its Chicken Fingers on Westheimer Again, This Time at Hazard

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Montrose, New Construction, Restaurants
39 Comments

Construction of New Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers Restaurant, 1900 Westheimer Rd., Montrose, Houston

Opposite the pedestrian-friendly Winlow Westheimer shopping center at the corner of Westheimer and Hazard St. that includes the recently de-Firkinized Phoenix bar, a new Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers fast-food joint is about to go up — on a 35,000-sq.-ft. lot that’s been vacant since the 2-story pushed-to-the-street building once home to Martha Turner Properties was torn down on the site almost 6 years ago. The reader who sent in the photo above reports that a construction supervisor on site claimed the new chicken joint will be alive and kicking within 3 or 4 months.

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Montrose Drive-Thru
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Featured Posts
03/20/14 10:15am

Your Steel-Framed McDonald’s Is Going Up on Studemont Now

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Redevelopment, Restaurants, Retail, Sixth Ward, Sprawl
31 Comments

Construction of McDonald's and Capital One Bank, 1510 Studemont St., Sixth Ward, Houston

Construction of McDonald's and Capital One Bank, 1510 Studemont St., Sixth Ward, HoustonReader Debnil Chowdhury sends in these pics, taken yesterday, of the steel-framed structure that’s appeared over the last month just north of the new Studemont Kroger gas station in the formerly industrial district just south of I-10 that Swamplot readers have dubbed ‘Katyville’ — in honor of the suburban-style developments rapidly going in there, a mere 2 miles northwest of Downtown. And these latest additions do appear to be pad-site-alicious: Directly north of the McDonald’s going up at 1510 Studemont St. (and pictured here), there’s a sign announcing a new Capital One Bank. There’s no indication yet whether the bank building will have a drive-thru as well, but the signs look good.

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The Drive-Thrus of Katyville
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Featured Posts
03/14/14 10:30am

Houston’s Nastiest Buildings, Mapped and Tagged

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Public Safety, Redevelopment
20 Comments

Following his report earlier this week on a newly proposed city program that would provide tax incentives for the redevelopment of dilapidated properties, the Chronicle‘s Mike Morris put together a couple of maps identifying all Houston structures with existing “repair, demolish, or secure” orders issued by the city’s Buildings and Standards Commission. The zoomable and clickable map of commercial properties — including apartment buildings of 4 or more units — is shown above. Properties marked with the pin-shaped tags had orders filed in 2013 or 2014. That means redevelopment of those properties would be more likely to qualify for the city’s new tax break — because in order to be accepted into the program, applications would have to be filed within a year of the property receiving a repair-or-demolish order. (The intent is “to prevent slumlords who have sat on shoddy buildings for years from qualifying,” Morris explains.)

The tax-break program isn’t intended to cover residential properties tagged with orders to raze, secure, or bring up to code, but Morris put together a second map showing residences of 3 or fewer units that had received the same kinds of notices from the city:

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Repair or Demolish
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Demolitions
03/10/14 1:00pm

How the Montrose ‘Skybar’ Building Demo Is Going Down

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Montrose, Nightlife, Office Buildings, Redevelopment
14 Comments

Demolition of Office Building at 3400 Montrose Blvd., Montrose, Houston

If it doesn’t look like much of the 10-story building at 3400 Montrose Blvd. has been taken down yet, that’s because you’re looking at it (in the above photo, at least) from the front. Come around to the back side of the boulevard-facing office tower that featured Cody’s and later Scott Gertner’s Skybar on its top floor to see how far the demo has come along:

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From the Rear
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