brian0123

Thanks for the info. We were woken up by the helicopter but couldn't figure out where it was at. It was so friggin loud.

I live in a townhouse near Austin and Anita (walking distance to the rail, but still far enough away) and love it. I bought my townhouse over others within the loop because of it's proximity to the rail. Not sure if it's valued any higher... but it definitely played a factor in my purchasing of the house. My wife and I love the area, and we know some people that live in renovated older homes right near your townhouse (and they love the area as well).

I met one of the owners of Big Woodrows about two months ago and she mentioned they were moving to this location. I told her I was excited because I live a couple blocks away, and she said that's why they want to move to the area... "So your friends and you can walk over and have drinks... then walk home." She was a very sweet lady and said they were going to start major renovations on the building soon.

If joining the police is an option... why not HPD? They are actively hiring for a lot of different positions. The city also has various job postings that you might want to look into... http://agency.governmentjobs.com/houston/default.cfm If you need part-time work, I understand that the census is trying to hire anyone w/out a criminal background right now.

Perfectly stated. I wish Obama would have rammed what he wanted down everyone's throats from the beginning instead of trying to find middle ground. For some reason he wanted to be fair... so he extended an olive branch to a bunch of neocon children who had no intention of being statesmen. Instead of trying to bring about legitamate solutions to a pressing problem that our nation faces, they just scream at the top of their lungs like a child in a store... making the parent look like an idiot.

The problem is not with people like you and me who have so so plans, but it's with the millions of uninsured (and the burden they place on our system), pre-existing conditions, and the rising costs our system will continue to produce on its own. People fail to realize that in all this freaking out... in-action will have far worse consequences.

I understand the need to consolidate, but why such a strange location? I-45 is already a mess. I would hate being an Exxon employee that has to get to work at this location (especially w/out a park-n-ride/hov system, etc. leading to it).

That's awesome news! If it's the lot I'm thinking of (along McGowen between La Branch and Austin)... I met the developer (http://parradesigngroup.com/) for this last year who said he was going to build it in 2010. He said it would have retail on the bottom w/ residential and office on the second floor w/ balconies looking down onto McGowen. The sidewalk was widened along there during the McGowen rebuild to work with the development so it will look really nice once it's built. I'll have to go check out the rendering today. Here's the old meeting on it (La Plaza de Midtown, first thing talked about in section D)... HTV

There was an article in the Chronicle today outlining some new developments in the Midtown area that sound incredible... Houston Chronicle In short: 1. Big white mansion at Elgin @ Austin will be renovated ($3 million cost) into a new upscale restaurant, lounge, and event center 2. Old Boy Scouts of America building at Bagby and Victor: Work on the Boy Scouts building will begin in February. The $20 million project will include Moor's Restaurant and Tapas Lounge, serving mainly Moroccan and Spanish cuisine and be leased and operated by Hicham Naffaa and Ali Bendella, owners of Coco's Crepes, Cava American Bistro and Cielo Mexican Bistro. The building, scheduled to open in October, will also have banquet space and Chopra's offices. 3. Parking garage w/ retail: Across the street, Chopra owns land on which he plans to build a seven-story public garage with street-level retail. (NOTE: I believe this is the lot at Bagby and Victor across the street from Christian's Tailgate) Here's a Google view of the areas being talked about: Old Mansion Boy Scout building and new garage w/ retail across street

Exactly. People need to read the link I posted earlier. They have already hidden a bomb in the colon: The concealment of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) in rectal cavities Excerpt: On 27 August 2009, at about 23:30 hours (local time), in Jeddah (Saudi Arabia) a suicide bomber tried to assassinate the Assistant Interior Minister of Saudi Arabia, Prince Muhammad bin Nayef. Muhammad, who is also the son of the country's Interior Minister, was lightly injured in the attack. According to several media worldwide, the suicide bomber had hidden the improvised explosive device (IED) in his rectum and activated it once close to the Prince.

Agreed. The scanner is worthless and a waste of money. They will just put it inside and go to the bathroom. http://www.strategyp...talcavities.pdf

Yes, the antique store is open. There are no apartments above the store (I think you're referring to the ones above the Continental Club). Regardless, I'm talking about the lots next to the Continental Club. If you draw a rectangle on a map around Main, Winbern, Travis, Stuart... those four blocks. Then, include the Ensemble Theatre on the other side of Main, along with HCC's central campus two blocks away (about to undergo a lot of improvements to make it their flagship campus).

Yeah, this area is going to be booming in a couple years. It's going to get really interesting once the city soon sells their lots where the code enforcement building is at.

That's the problem. Our government can do as much as they want with TSA screeners on US soil... but this was a breakdown at another country's airport. Those screeners are non americans. I remember flying into the US from Belize and being amazed at how little their security officials screened us.

I worked for a defense subcontractor awhile back and saw a device similar. I'm not familiar with the technology behind the device you are mentioning... but the devices I got to play with were more designed for detecting airborne biological attacks. That said, I don't think they would be able to easily detect a sugar type substance packaged away in someone's pants.

I live in Midtown and drive across these tracks daily. Sure, you wait for it... but not nearly as long as you would if it were just another cross street. The light turns red, the train crosses, and it turns green. Simple, easy, and I spend less time at the light than I would if it was a typical road.

Supposedly the Brewery Tap in Downtown. My band was playing a show there one night and a bunch of ladies came in with "ghost detecting equipment" and took photos of "orbs". Needless to say, they looked pretty foolish. The only scary thing I encountered there was the urinal.

It was actually very interesting and exciting. Here are my Cliff's notes version of it... 1. The studied area of Midtown (Elgin to Bagby to HCC), is three main districts: the area near the mix, the Ensemble Theatre area, and the HCC Central campus... but each are separated by a couple blocks. Each area already has stuff going on, but the key is to tie these three areas together (through street improvements, etc.) to promote further walkability and growth so all three can grow off eachother. 2. The area near the Mix will continue to grow, and apparently Crosspoint is waiting for the economy to turn. Once it does, they plan to build a 6 story building on the empty lot across the street from the Mix, w/ retail on bottom and lots of office space on top. 3. The Ensemble area has the Continental Club owner looking to develop two blocks w/ parking garage and retail (not sure if they said residential), and the city is about to sell two blocks where the code enforcement building is at. There are apparantely developers ready and willing to develop this. They plan on making like an arts district here w/ a performance hall, galleries, rehearsal studios, office space, etc. The goal of this area would be to become like the artsy entertainment hub of Houston w/ live music, theatre companies, and ad agencies in the area. 4. The HCC area is going to be revitalized when HCC develops a plaza in the front of their space (already in the works). They are also looking to add student apartments across the street, where cheaper retail places to eat will pop up to serve more of the students that would move in.

I think it might be the parking garage for the apts. I read somewhere that the garage will have a walkway over Bagby to the apts.

I'll be attending and thought others might want to as well... There is a Public Meeting for the H-GAC Livable Centers Study of the Ensemble/HCC Station area in Midtown. This project will capitalize on the momentum generated by previous planning efforts such as the market study, “Building Houston’s Competitive Edge: Transit-Oriented Development for the Ensemble/HCC Station” and the work of the City of Houston’s “Mixed Use/Transit Corridor Planning Commission Subcommittee.” December 10th at Trinity Episcopal Church. 1015 Holman Street at Main 7pm-8pm.

Any updates? Does anyone know if this thing sold?

I'm not sure what there is "to do". The fact is that we live in the most walkable, easily accessible neighborhood in America's fourth largest city. We have the best access to mass transit and freeways. You cannot have a walkable neighborhood in the middle of everything and not have people walking around. Yes, I'd love to see something done about the flophouses... but Houston has no zoning.

Only a weenie truck? I just bought an 18-wheeler for my commuter vehicle, loaded it up with bricks to reduce gas mileage even more, and tailgate anyone in a vehicle smaller than mine because I have an inferiority complex. In all seriousness, I drive a more fuel efficient car (or ride my bike on less polluted days), pay more money for green technology, wind power, etc... not because I think I'm smarter than you... but because I have asthma and care about air quality. I (along with everyone else... including you) has to breathe the crap that is put into the air. The difference between you and me is that I actually do something that benefits both of us... while you seem to only care about yourself. Why not just go down to the local ER where a kid is having an asthma attack and rev your engine outside their window to put some more exhaust fumes in their room for good measure?

I think our discussion has veered too far into the food aspect of the article. I posted it because, as Roadrunner states above, "A lot of people here love to hate on Midtown, and I never understand why." To me, the more interesting aspect of it is how he touches on the history of Midtown... and where we are now. As the author states... "It’s not an artificial tourist trap". To me, that's what is so great about Midtown. It is probably one of the most "real" places in this city... and is a testament to the past and future of Houston. From being the River Oaks of Houston at the very beginning, to degrading to run down buildings, to becoming isolated by the construction of the freeways, to the exodus of people for suburbia from those freeways, to tearing down a lot of the former mansions and selling sewage rights for development of downtown, to the barren wasteland of empty lots and homeless and drug dealers (*save for those few businesses that formed then like Specs), to the formation of a tirz, to the redevelopment of a couple blocks, to the gradual development of other blocks, then to the explosion of growth in a matter of ten years ... which has led to now a huge mixture of things to do, nice townhouses, parks, businesses, and a place you can take your kids for a stroll in the evening. With all that said, Midtown is still growing and changing every day. People like to complain that it hasn't come far enough. We just need to keep in mind where it has come from in such a short time.

Because we are a civilized society. Also, you already pay for them indirectly when they go to an ER. You also pay for the added police where they are clumped together. Then, when they are arrested for trespassing, you pay for them in our jail system. If we spread them out and had more breathing room for them, it wouldn't put as much of a strain on our resources.