HOUSTON | Development Thread II

[Urbannizer]

Skyhouse: by DrLan34



The Sovereign: by infinite_jim



Momentum Audi



BLVD Place & Hanover Post Oak

[DanielG425]

That Audi dealership is so nice! It'd be cool if one was built downtown

[Urbannizer]

2929 Weslayan: 12/26 by BaderJF

[Urbannizer]

The new Country Playhouse

I know that over the last few months (probably longer) there have been many rumors and speculation swirling around about what the future of our organization would be. Well, the wheels have been moving on what has turned out to be an extremely busy 2013. It can now officially be announced that Country Playhouse has entered into an agreement with Moody RambinInterests where they will acquire a portion of our current property. A new 10 story office complex called Town Center 1 is going to be built at the corner of Town and Country Boulevard and Queensbury Lane. Where our building currently sits will become a garage that will have parking for approximately 1500 cars. This means that our current building will be demolished sometime between the middle to end of August in order to facilitate this redevelopment.

As part of the agreement in this new development, Moody Rambin will be constructing a brand new 22,000 square foot top of the line theater for us. The new main stage will seat approximately 225-250 in a multi level seating arrangement. We will also have a black box performance space with seating for around 80. In addition to these two new performance spaces, we will have a full rehearsal hall, a conference room for design and production meetings, office space and full ADA compliance. The new location will be part of a new complex between where the current building is and Creme-de-la-Creme.The timeline for a project of this magnitude is somewhat of a work in progress, but tentatively we should be taking possession of our new facility sometime in the fall of 2014.

[Urbannizer]

Brazos Towers at Bayou Manor: 12/29 by larrydierker

[Urbannizer]

Local Art Scene Builds on Creativity

http://www.houstonchronicle.com/ente...cmpid=btfpm#/1

MATCH

Originally Posted by Houston Chronicle

Consultant Jill Jewett is optimistic about breaking ground on the long-planned Midtown Arts and Theater Center Houston within the first quarter of 2014. Her group has raised $17 million of the project's $25 million goal, and construction can begin once the $20 million mark is hit, she said.

The 59,000-square-foot complex at 3400 Main will be a self-sustaining hub of creative activity for Houston's small- and medium-size cultural organizations. Designed by Lake|Flato and Studio Red Architects, it will have theater and gallery spaces, rehearsal studios and classrooms, offices, and a coffee and wine bar.

Jewett is so confident about moving forward, she plans to begin the search for an executive director in January. "Every time there's an article in the paper, we're inundated with arts organizations wanting to know when they can sign leases," she said.

MFAH Expansion

Construction barricades that have created a traffic bottleneck on Montrose Boulevard in the Museum District are the earliest signs of progress coming to the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.

While the capital campaign for the museum's forthcoming expansion project - including a new building devoted to contemporary art - is still in the quiet phase, infrastructure work has begun on water mains and power lines in the area.

Some of the underground construction is "just necessary repairs" that will improve electricity in existing buildings, director Gary Tinterow said.

As for the new building coming from Steven Holl Architects, he said, "Everything is still Silly Putty at this point; still mutable as we test assumptions and look at the budget and materials."

Tinterow hopes to unveil plans for the new building by the end of 2014, "maybe early fall."

Menil Expansion

"This will be a very important year," Menil Collection director Josef Helfenstein said. "Some big projects we've been working on for a long time now will begin to unfold. There will be visible progress on the cafe and parking lot."

First up are changes designed to make the quiet museum complex a little bit less of a hidden gem.

Things are moving forward with Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates' "greening up" of the grounds to create a new gateway to the Menil campus from its Alabama Street parking lot. Visitors also will encounter a new cafe designed by Stern and Bucek Architects that will be owned and operated by Greg Martin, formerly of Taco Milagro and Cafe Express.

The museum held a naming contest for the new cafe this fall. About 400 entries were submitted, and the winner will be announced Jan. 8th

More long-term, Helfenstein and the Menil's board hope to release plans for the new Menil Drawing Institute later in the year. They hired a director for the institute, the Italian Allegra Pesenti, in September. Designed by Johnston Marklee, the building will be the first freestanding facility in the U.S. devoted to the study and exhibition of modern and contemporary drawings.

[toxteth o'grady]

Originally Posted by Urbannizer

The new Country Playhouse

That's sharp. It's going to make all the other community theatres jealous.

[Urbannizer]

Demolition on 3400 Montrose to Begin Next Month

Originally Posted by HAIF - Cityliving

3400 Montrose will be replaced with a 30-story highrise apartments/condos by the Hanover group. Demolition will start sometime in January 2014. It will not be imploded like the Macy's in downtown due to abestos removal. The architects are still working on the preliminary plans. The old shopping center on Weshimer and Montrose will also come down soon to make way for a hotel and mix-use development. Get ready, Montrose is going to change.

[Urbannizer]

Midtown Park Renovations

Rendering:



Progress:

[Austinlee]

This pisses me off; Audi brokers can build nice buildings like this one in other cities but where I live all the big companies build these shit Kmart big box style buildings.

[AviationGuy]

Originally Posted by Austinlee

This pisses me off; Audi brokers can build nice buildings like this one in other cities but where I live all the big companies build these shit Kmart big box style buildings.

But yours doesn't have a leaning telephone pole in front of it.

[photoLith]

Once I visit Houston again whenever that will be it will be completely different than the downtown and Heights I lived in and rode my bike around from 1996-2012. I cant believe how fast Mid town is changing. Its crazy, in a good way. Although Im sad that Montrose will not be the funky hipster/gay mecca it was while I lived there.

[Urbannizer]

Willowick Park




Birdsall Memorial

[Double L]

Originally Posted by photoLith

Although Im sad that Montrose will not be the funky hipster/gay mecca it was while I lived there.

Why would Montrose no longer be a funky hipster/gay mecca?

[toxteth o'grady]

Originally Posted by Double L

Why would Montrose no longer be a funky hipster/gay mecca?

I think it still has a certain amount of hipster funky gayness to it, but the neighborhood is starting to convert over to big-box structures like the ones all over Bellaire. Prices and rents are also going up, which is going to make the neighborhood less affordable to the bohemians who gave it its character for all those years.

[Urbannizer]

River Oaks District







2229 San Felipe





Hanover Post Oak: Working on the 23rd floor.







2929 Weslayan: Working on the 23rd floor











The Sovereign at Regent Square






All updates by BaderJF on HAIF

[Urbannizer]

20-Story apartment tower w/ 303-units proposed for Montrose:

http://www.houstonarchitecture.com/h...e/#entry444535

[Urbannizer]

Chevron has grabbed another block in downtown, for future growth (another tower/HQ relocation to Houston).

Originally Posted by Houston Chronicle

Chevron Purchases Downtown Block

Chevron Corp., which last month said it was putting plans to build a 50-story office tower downtown on-hold, had recently purchased another parcel nearby.

In late November, the oil and gas giant acquired the block bounded by Milam, Travis, Leeland and Pease. The property is used primarily as a surface parking lot, but it contains a low-rise office building at its southwest corner.


A Chevron spokesman said Friday that the acquisition is part of the company's "broader effort to support future growth in downtown Houston."

"This property acquisition simply gives us additional facilities flexibility as we expand downtown," Justin Higgs said in an emailed statement. "This transaction further underscores our commitment to building the previously announced urban campus facility and continuing to expand our employee base and overall presence in downtown Houston."

This southern end of downtown has seen some significant changes of late. Projects are under construction or in the works for residential developments and a new hotel project.

Chevron's new parcel is situated between the new Tellepsen Family Downtown YMCA and the Exxon Mobil building at 800 Bell. Exxon is planning to move out of its building and into a new campus north of town in 2015. The Irving-based oil company sold its building to San Francisco's Shorenstein Properties, which is planning a major renovation of the property.

"This block benefits from all of the development around it," Central Houston's Laura Van Ness said of Chevron's new land.

Chevron purchases downtown block - Houston Chronicle

[bobbyv]

Damn, Houston is on fire, soon it will look like Chicago from a distance.

[Urbannizer]

*bump*