Near Northsider – Houston

Nope, that’s not a photoshopped image. There’s a Target Store being built at I-10 and Taylor. Taylor intersects and becomes Sawyer as Sawyer goes to Washington Ave. Anyway, so this Target is part of what will be a larger development between the Sixth Ward and the Heights, but it looks like us Northsiders can take advantage of this consumer opportunity, as well. Just a walk past Studewood Park and we have access to slightly cheaper consumer goods that used to be only available to suburbanites. there might even be a Starbucks there! (if you sense some sarcasm there it’s half-hearted – I think there’s really a turning point in the history of the Northside if there’s a Starbucks that close to the hood).

We got 10 inches of Rain yesterday morning in like 2 hours! much of the city was flooded and many people on the southeast side of town had major damage to their cars and homes. Much of the Northside is fortunatley in a 100 flood zone, which means that we should expect damaging floods only in extreme cases like Tropical Storm Alison. Nonetheless, the bayous around us were high and some of the lower streets were flooded over and some were blocked off by Police. In the photos below, those aren’t rivers running through Houston and those aren;t the normal levels of the bayous – that’s flooding!

           

This blog is now being written using the new MacBook. I attended the opening of the new Apple Store at Memorial City Mall and was in the market for a new computer anyway. I was sold! This is my first Mac in maybe 7 years and I’m enjoying it. I used windows so long because it was practical – it was business standard and it was usually cheaper. Windows machines are still cheaper, but I’m more impressed with the compatibility of this machine so far. We needed a new computer anyway (the old one had some problems), but now let’s see if I can actually justify it with increased personal productivity.

The meeting at Ketelsen Elementary seemed to go well. These “meetings” are usually just a presetnation of illustration boards demonstrating plans for whatever project is being proposed. The purpose of the meeting is to get input from the community. There seems to be some interest by the community, but it seems to be mostly people who are worried that these new projects would mean that they would be in the path of eminent domain. A reasonable fear for a community that already feels somewhat powerless.

Many of the residents who own homes in this neighborhood probably bought their home when prices were relatively low – something they could afford. Even though fair price on thier property might be more than they paid, it still wouldn’t be enough to try and purchase another property in the same neighborhod if they chose to stay. If anyone has any anecdotal info on how this might affect them or maybe even some hard numbers, I’d like to know.

It’s all going to happen, weather the neighborhood wants it to or not. The neighborhood just happens to be in this prime place near downtown (kinda like midtown and the Sixth Ward) with lots of old, potentially historic victorian homes and commercial buildings. The infrastructure is already fairly urban and could probably support much more townhome-style residencies. I think the larger issue will be how the northside decides to react to the change. I think we have the opportunity to take advantage of regentrification before it takes advantage of us.

Intermodal Terminal Public Meeting

Date: Thursday, June 8, 2006 Time: 5:30 – 7:30 p.m.

Location: Ketelsen Elementary School

Address: 600 Quitman St.

METRO is proposing to build a new Intermodal Terminal, which would be located near the intersection of Main and Burnett streets, just north of Downtown Houston. The meeting is being held tonight! This facility is planned for that area that’s now an abandoned rail yard just south of the Poppa Burger and Casa de Amigos. It’s intended for buses, rail, commuter trains, and taxis. That’s a lot of traffic going to that one hub, considereing on of the only pedestrian passageways from the Northside to Downtown is what everyone calls the “poop tunnel” – that pedestrian underpass below the old railroad tracks; the one that people seem to use as more of a toilet than a pedestrian tunnel.