IronTiger

Same demo company as the Houston Main Building/Prudential Center building. Thing always was ugly, and a real tragedy since it was built at the wrong place at the wrong time. The guy who built it is still alive and will be one of the people (along with the CoCS mayor Nancy Berry and publicity lover John Sharp) who will be imploding the thing.

Well, in terms of "after light rail", you could always do bus routes or heavy rail. Or do the (sigh) "Dallas" method and have the light rail function more like commuter rail in the suburbs.

And in Houston, the best ridership per mile is one of the best in America. Am I missing something?

Houston (and LA, which share a lot of qualities) is the True American City: a ruling city over dozens of suburbs and outlying cities, cobbling together a unique collection of neighborhoods. Doesn't matter if they're hippies, hipsters, rednecks, or don't even speak English. They both have a bunch of awesome mid-century buildings. A quote from Pleasant Family Shopping describes the LA version of these: "scads of them have been torn down over the years, but there’s still a lot to see - simply because so many were built there in the first place." And both LA and Houston were one of the forefront in creating a workable highway system, and the sprawl that results from it. (Another great quote is from Keep Houston Houston: "Los Angeles, San Antonio, Houston highway sprawl is interesting. For one thing, there’s a lot of it. There’s so much retail in those sprawly places that it becomes impossible to fill it with chain bullshit, so there’s a lot of independent businesses all over the ‘burban areas. You’re eating Mediterranean cuisine at this hole-in-the-wall on Dairy Ashford, or you’re having kebob in a stripmall that also houses a smokeshop, a lingerie place, and a swimming pool installation biz. Funky. And it comes right up to the highway, buildings and signs and dudes wearing sandwich boards are all right there. Driving Westheimer isn’t the same sort of urban experience as, say, walking 42nd Street in Manhattan, but it still feels urban.") The neighborhoods in Houston are what create it. I can't really say the same thing in College Station: sure, there's Northgate, there's Wellborn, and the Wolf Pen Creek District, and those are all different, but with Houston, the neighborhoods are so wildly different it's impossible to really pick one to define a city. Once you get out of the Museum District and really see the city: the ports, the neighborhoods southeast of town, Midtown, Medical District, Memorial, Montrose, Upper Kirby, The Heights...I've been through all of them. And it really is something. I can't even say the same thing for LA's neighborhoods (of course, I've never been to LA, so it's a bit hard to judge).

Globe was owned by Walgreens? Wow...I thought it was just a small local chain (though Globe never left Houston)

I think you mean Woolworth, not Walgreens.

Maybe resistance from nearby businesses caused it to go? I mean, there's was a recently opened "Jack's Carpet" that IIRC was in the ROW zone.

It looks like, based on Google Maps (it's between Lamar and McKinney) the CTRT was moved closer to the red building. Did they really tear up that section of bike trail and rebuild it, even though it hasn't even been five years yet?!

So, basically converting to US-290 into a toll road entirely and scrapping free main lanes, basically? That doesn't sound good.

Somewhere in that general area was an announcement for a new power center anchored by H-E-B. Given that the sign has been there since at least spring 2008 and one is quite faded, don't know if it will ever come to fruition...

I think there is a plan somewhere on here about it. Yes, it will be a full interchange. By the way, in terms of expanding 290, what was the little building that's currently being torn down in front of the NW Mall Macy's? I swear I remember it was CiCi's Pizza, but I'm not so sure now.

I was aware that the Texas Hall of Fame closed late last year, but I heard that part of it is already demolished. Has anyone seen this and checked it out??

In my dreams, Texas 249 would expand to a superhighway well beyond Navasota. Not only would it go to Navasota, but piggyback on Highway 6 and head west toward Austin. Not only would it be a full freeway to Interstate 45, it would have a full interchange with US-59, which would be re-signed as Interstate 69. A situation like that would almost certainly be a toll road, however.

So is the first one. Either way, even if it's not being said, it's implied. Even so, by using the term "equal rights", you implied that anyone who opposes that is anti-rights, which would fall into the second category. It is hard to have any middle ground on these types of these things. I once suggested at a forum that abortion should probably be legal, but without government funding. I was surprised (then) at the flak I got for that. Anyway, the right thing for the guy to do is just admit to whatever he was doing. Watching drag queens? Then just admit it. Just because you go against your beliefs on an off chance doesn't change the person you are...everyone makes mistakes. That's what makes us human.

I posted a similar topic (the exact same routes, same study) in another topic (Trains, I think: merge?) The Houston-Austin route is most economical, I suppose, but that would require new ROW for much of the way. Yes, there is abandoned ROW, but some of that is now part of US-290 (which was widened at some point in the past) and bypass Brenham (as well as College Station). But College Station, Texas A&M University in particular, wouldn't allow that to happen.

A "liberal conspiracy" is going too far, but it's pretty silly to have the "anti-gay, therefore closeted" argument. On an aside, have I ever said how I wish there was a larger middle ground between the extremist "Homosexuals are evil and must be destroyed" and equally extremist "Homosexuals are good and if you disagree with anything about them you're a hateful bigot"?

Great, this means Crazy Cajun's may not move out. A+ Tutoring has about half of its classrooms in the center, though: what will become of that? Also, that Albertsons has been vacant for about 15 years, so...

In my blog, I recently posted information about a book I found in the library (Houston Today) and scanned a few sections, particularly in the area where it discussed The Galleria and Town & Country Village (full directories are included). Check it out! Carbonizer: The Malls of Houston Today

Hmm, I didn't notice the second option would only go to Hempstead. Wasn't Metro planning a commuter rail that would go from Hempstead to Houston, though? (it would create an annoying transfer for sure)

Snagged this snippet from an article on the local paper that talks about passenger rail options (not high speed, but maximum of 93 MPH): http://www.theeagle.com/local/B-CS-eyed-for-rail-route--6973534 but I'd thought it'd be more relevant to Houston's interest. I see four problems with the potential routes: - Even the cheapest way (Houston to Austin) would probably take over some old right of way abandoned in the 1960s (Hempstead to Brenham) and 1980s (Brenham to Giddings). There is some trackage in Paige, Texas that has abandoned but not stripped, which will save on costs, but other parts of the ROW have been used for private driveways or highway expansion right of way. - Trackage does exist for the second option, which does have ROW (Austin to Giddings, Giddings to Bryan-College Station, Bryan-College Station to Navasota, Navasota to Hempstead, Hempstead to Houston) but it would go a bit out of the way for Austin-Houston commuters (like Caldwell. Who wants to stop at Caldwell?) - The third option won't work, because there's no direct line from Bryan-College Station and will take lots of ROW buying, not tot mention problems from the first option. - The fourth option uses existing ROW (except for the problems in Option 1) except Hempstead to Bryan College Station is a bit of a long way. GIven that this topic comes up once in a while, what do you think? Will TxDOT even pursue it? Is College Station-Bryan (which the article was about, admittedly) even worth it?

mfastx, where was that last picture taken? It looks like it was originally a real railroad a long time ago. Is it the Columbia Tap Rail Trail?

Texadelphia in Rice Village closed? Damn, that was one of my favorite places (heard they didn't have a deep fryer at that location, though). About 10 years ago or so, there was a Texadelphia in College Station (Northgate area), too, and they were a victim of high rents as well. I wish it was still around, I would eat there!

By the time it starts expanding, will they have completed the Grand Parkway from Interstate 10W to 290? Seems like they would, given the construction in the area.

In doing research on former discount stores of College Station on my blog (already covered: Target, Walmart, Kmart, and even Gibson's), I want to know about FedMart, the store located on University (where Chimney Hill Shopping Center is now, the current incarnation). I recall I saw a newspaper clipping as to when FedMart opened, but I forgot. Apparently this FedMart had a grocery department, but was not original to the chain (possibly original to the store). It closed in 1983 with the chain. Anyone have any more information/memories?