The site for the proposed Walmart is off Yale Street between I-10 and Washington Avenue, and could be an urban transitional node between Montrose and the Heights. Photo by Sharon Steinmann.
Houston city council passed a $6 million incentive for the new Washington Heights shopping center to include “landscaping, a bike trail, and widening, repaving and improving drainage.” The center, which is anchored by a Walmart, has stirred up an unusual degree of controversy and reveals the forces shaping (or intentionally not shaping) the city’s evolution without zoning. OffCite will examine Washington Heights in a series of posts. This first one will look at the development critically from the standpoint of opponents.
Opposition to the new Washington Heights development argues that it is a troubling and regressive chapter in the development of Houston’s urban core. Instead of high-density, mixed-use, neighborhood-scaled planning that would strengthen the character of the city, Washington Heights represents the low-density, box-and-strip retail that dominates and defines suburbia.
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Houston Market Square Park, designed by Lauren Griffith Associates and Ray + Hollington Architects, featuring James Surls's "Points of View." Photo by Hank Hancock.
Visitors to the new Market Square Park in the past couple of weeks have seen significant changes, and many are distinctly hopeful about what it all means for Downtown. Designed by Lauren Griffith Associates with help from Ray + Hollington Architects, the new park retains all the artwork from Diverseworks’ 1992 redesign of the park, most notably James Surls’ monumental “Points of View,” though this sculpture no longer enjoys its former position as the centerpiece of the park.
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Don Lessem, aka "Dino Don," explains the park's development. All images courtesy of Patricia Hernandez.
During an information session at Kirksey Architects on Wednesday, September 8, a team including former Disney “imagineer” Chris Brown, developer Don Lessem (aka Dino Don), and scientist Dr. Matt Gardner presented plans for EarthQuest.
The 1,600-acre resort and learning institute is set to break ground at an undisclosed date in New Caney, Texas. The facility would teach “green living” and “re-engage the public with what’s real,” according to Brown, who is president of Contour Entertainment. Houston was a strategic choice. As the fourth largest metropolitan area in the country, Brown said that an estimated 18 million people live within a few hours drive of the potential park. This, along with Houston’s position as an energy capital, and the city’s lack of a theme park since the demise of Astroworld, make its location prime real estate.
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