A reader writes in with the latest potential future scenario for the Hot Bagel Shop on S. Shepherd south of Welch: “I’m not sure if this has already been reported on, but [earlier this week] at Hot Bagel Shop, I was told that the lot next door is being scraped for the first half of a new strip center, which the bagel-ers and the nail people will move into once it’s complete. The gold retailer will not be renewing his lease. Afterwards they’ll knock down the existing building and construct the other half of the new building.”
This design for a strip center at 2015 S. Shepherd is featured on the website of Houston’s Dang La Architecture:
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- Shepherd Commons [LoopNet]
- The Hot Bagel Shop [Webstarts]
- Previously on Swamplot: Hot Bagel Shop: Not Going Too Far Away
Photo: Rodrigo Flores. Rendering: Dang La Architecture
That looks ridiculous.
Is it a little out-of-date to include a travel agent office in your rendering?
Typical Houston architecture. Way to much square footage for to few parking spaces.
Exhibit A – the building across Elmen Street from Empire Cafe. Has any business moved into that space yet.
Sure the Bagel shop and Nail Salon will move in, but not anyone else when they see no free parking spaces available.
Lol, I noticed the travel agency as well, I mean is that even a profession anymore? As for the building, it’s not bad, that’s doesn’t mean it’s good, but I’ve seen much worse lately.
@ #3: Get used to it – the urban core is growing too dense and high-priced to build the usual one-story something occupying 1/4 of the land while the rest is a bunch of free surface parking spaces. I think we’ll adjust quite well, all other great cities seem to.
I sincerely hope the owners don’t move Hot Bagel in, and then jack up the rent on them. Nice folks, and far and away the best bagels in the city.
Needs more Bork.
That was a good tip! I was wondering what was happening next to Chipotle. But seriously, Shepherd needs to have either protected left turns, or figure out a way to squeeze in a turn lane here and there. It is virtually impossible to go down that street these days. And don’t get me started on Kirby. Since the Upper Kirby District spent millions on the streetscape, I get to spend a ton of time sitting in my car and staring at it. The lights are improperly sequenced, and way too long on Kirby. Sometimes it takes 5 lights to go through an intersection.
I’m with Local Planner on this one. Spread-out suburban-style density in the city’s core is unsustainable as population grows. If you want to be able to get around and keep businesses alive, make it easier to get around without having to drive and park so much.
Besides, plenty of businesses survive inner loop life with minimal parking because people want to go bad enough they’ll figure it out. Maybe reduced parking just helps weed out sucky businesses.
What happened to Volare Pizzeria that was supposed to open there almost a year ago? Photos were posted last December of a pizza oven moving in, I saw their sign is up but nothing every happened?!
The traffic lights on Kirby desperately need to be properly synced from Inwood to the SW Fwy. Traffic congestion has increased significantly just in the last year. Now Hines Interests wants to build a 17 story office building on a single family, postage stamp size lot on San Felipe a few blocks off of Kirby….just what the area needs, 400 employees cutting through the neighborhood to avoid the traffic congestion.
P.s. I forgot to mention that Dang La Architecture’s design above is hideous.
Local Planner,
Other great cities have the infrastructure to reduce the need for parking spaces. Subways, light rail, greater accommodation for cyclists etc.
What’s our plan here?