C2H Posted February 8, 2008 Share Posted February 8, 2008 (edited) main street is pedestrian friendly. just look at this. Cool find musicman. I feel like a bird going over downtown/midtown. WEEEEEE!!!! Although this thing is a little outdated, The Houston Pavilions and Discovery Green are still parking lots. Oh and thanks for the article lockmat Edited February 8, 2008 by C2H Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IHB2 Posted February 9, 2008 Share Posted February 9, 2008 http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/nb/hei...ws/5515506.htmlurban corridor planning meetings last week hosted by the city of Houston's Planning and Development Department...on Jan. 30-31 were the last of the planning process, which began in June 2006 with the intent to create city ordinances to shape land development in the corridors along the Metro rail lines.Information gathered will now be meshed with that from the other corridors to create ordinances to make them more pedestrian-friendly.I met no one (of the consulting firm/city bureaucrat moderators) at these meetings that had physically visited any of the points along the proposed line where high-impact aspects of the LRT, like stations and gated crossings, are currently located on METRO maps.Participants were told that locations of stations, elevated rails, and possible property takings were not open to discussion, that the planning sessions were for development along the line as shown on the METRO maps.There was no opportunity to discuss the corridors in the context of METRO's FEIS for the U Line.The sessions were, therefore, an exercise in "planning" along a rail alignment that METRO has neither finalized, nor even released an environmental impact statement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Houston19514 Posted February 9, 2008 Share Posted February 9, 2008 It doesn't help when METRO cuts deals with a landowner along the line to subsidize housing for the wealthy; that drives up land prices because developers start having expectations of subsidy, and the end result is the same pace of development, just with wealthier (former) landowners.Where was this done? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted February 9, 2008 Share Posted February 9, 2008 Where was this done?We've discussed it before on the forum. I don't remember the exact street intersection, but it was where METRO bought some land from someone who was granted the option to buy it back at the same price if he could make development work, thereby removing the tax burden from him (and tax revenues from every taxing jurisdiction in Midtown).Ring a bell? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musicman Posted February 9, 2008 Share Posted February 9, 2008 Ring a bell?isn't near elgin (either north or south)? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lockmat Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/nb/hei...ws/5524076.htmlCandidates can't agree on RichmondCould the location still be changed? I thought this was a done deal? I'm guessing this line will be one of the last to finish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidegate Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 Oh good Lord, how many times is this going to be revisited?? Is the race between these two going to be de facto another vote on this line? Even Culberson seems to have given up beating that drum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedScare Posted February 11, 2008 Share Posted February 11, 2008 Oh good Lord, how many times is this going to be revisited?? Is the race between these two going to be de facto another vote on this line? Even Culberson seems to have given up beating that drum.This is just Bacarisse's appeal to conservatives. He has to differentiate himself from Emmett somehow, and "anti-rail" shows his conservative bonafides. Harris County only has the power to appoint some of METRO's board members, not the power to stop the line. Houston still controls the majority of the board. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
totheskies Posted February 26, 2008 Share Posted February 26, 2008 (edited) http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/nb/hei...ws/5524076.htmlCandidates can't agree on RichmondCould the location still be changed? I thought this was a done deal? I'm guessing this line will be one of the last to finish.Ahh the joys of election years. The candidates could care less where the rail line goes, but one is just opposing it to get elected. How cheap can we be. I have seen the signs on wheeler, and have been checking out the newspaper comments and posts against the rail. It's a real shame that people have to be so selfish for their one little inconvenience. For a city that can be so positive, light rail has been terribly opposed and held up here. Edited February 26, 2008 by totheskies Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ricco67 Posted February 26, 2008 Author Share Posted February 26, 2008 I have been noticing a sudden of increases along richmond as well. Once I thought our favorite antagonist stopped posting, I figure construction would start in a month or two from now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
713 To 214 Posted February 29, 2008 Share Posted February 29, 2008 After 64 pages of commentary, can someone answer the following questions for me?1. Has the alignment for this line been determined yet?2. Has a date certain been announced for the groundbreaking of this line? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted February 29, 2008 Share Posted February 29, 2008 After 64 pages of commentary, can someone answer the following questions for me?1. Has the alignment for this line been determined yet?2. Has a date certain been announced for the groundbreaking of this line?Yes. No. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musicman Posted February 29, 2008 Share Posted February 29, 2008 Yes. No.great synopsis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CALMSP Posted February 29, 2008 Share Posted February 29, 2008 After 64 pages of commentary, can someone answer the following questions for me?1. Has the alignment for this line been determined yet?2. Has a date certain been announced for the groundbreaking of this line?1. Yes2. Not before our flying cars can take us places instead..............but on a serious note, this is getting ridiculous. Operationlly before 2012?? Ha..yeah right. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidegate Posted February 29, 2008 Share Posted February 29, 2008 Delay and Culberson did right by their oil company lobbyists, no wait that could never happen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H-Town Man Posted February 29, 2008 Share Posted February 29, 2008 Yep, high land prices not only forbid low-density development, but in this case they act to ration land only to those developers that can pull off very-high-density developments. But the higher the density, the greater the cost to build each unit. That means that only very wealthy people can afford it, and since Main Street is a high-crime corridor through Midtown, and since wealthy folks pretty much can decide to live anywhere throughout the region, it really narrows down the pool of prospective residents that is available for a redevelopment of Main Street.So the land prices are high because of light rail, but developers can't do pricey developments because of all the crime. But why doesn't the crime lower the land prices? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted February 29, 2008 Share Posted February 29, 2008 So the land prices are high because of light rail, but developers can't do pricey developments because of all the crime. But why doesn't the crime lower the land prices?I suspect that relative land pricing throughout Midtown are justified, and is just acting to prevent the under-development of Main Street until the surrounding area has developed more of a critical mass (and also fewer competitive developable sites), at which point we might finally expect to see market support for high density along Main--with or without the crime. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musicman Posted March 3, 2008 Share Posted March 3, 2008 So the land prices are high because of light rail, but developers can't do pricey developments because of all the crime. But why doesn't the crime lower the land prices?prices are high, however crime isn't a deterrent but the ability to make a buck is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidegate Posted March 28, 2008 Share Posted March 28, 2008 This line is only featured on the news when there's some sort of controversy, so coverage is patchy at best. Would some knowledgeable person pass on any information as to when there might be a prospect of breaking ground on this line? I would appreciate it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted March 28, 2008 Share Posted March 28, 2008 This line is only featured on the news when there's some sort of controversy, so coverage is patchy at best. Would some knowledgeable person pass on any information as to when there might be a prospect of breaking ground on this line? I would appreciate it.I don't believe that METRO is internally knowledgable enough that anybody that think that they knows anything can be counted as a reliable source. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musicman Posted March 28, 2008 Share Posted March 28, 2008 This line is only featured on the news when there's some sort of controversy, so coverage is patchy at best. Would some knowledgeable person pass on any information as to when there might be a prospect of breaking ground on this line? I would appreciate it.METRO doesn't even know. CDeb usually has the latest from the engineering side. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ricco67 Posted March 28, 2008 Author Share Posted March 28, 2008 I don't believe that METRO is internally knowledgeable enough that anybody that think that they knows anything can be counted as a reliable source.Believe me, getting information from Metro is like pulling teeth and I talk to a number of people that are involved in MetroRail. They have been rather vague on a number of questions I've asked, but for the sake of propriety I have to let it go and do what I do. Believe me, I grind my teeth every time I go there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roadrunner Posted March 28, 2008 Share Posted March 28, 2008 This line is only featured on the news when there's some sort of controversy, so coverage is patchy at best. Would some knowledgeable person pass on any information as to when there might be a prospect of breaking ground on this line? I would appreciate it.I'm going to go out on a limb and say sometime in 2009 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidegate Posted March 28, 2008 Share Posted March 28, 2008 I'm going to go out on a limb and say sometime in 2009I sure hope so! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musicman Posted July 24, 2008 Share Posted July 24, 2008 looks like it is official. line will no longer be on wheeler. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Houstonian in Iraq Posted July 25, 2008 Share Posted July 25, 2008 looks like it is official. line will no longer be on wheeler.Huh? Where will it be on? Any links? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musicman Posted July 25, 2008 Share Posted July 25, 2008 Huh? Where will it be on? Any links?they moved it over to alabama. 13 had a story on it at 6 with miya shay Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trae Posted July 25, 2008 Share Posted July 25, 2008 Any route maps? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musicman Posted July 25, 2008 Share Posted July 25, 2008 Any route maps?try this Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pumapayam Posted July 25, 2008 Share Posted July 25, 2008 try this A zoomed in comparison. 9 months to figure this stuff out, that some major $ right there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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