In This Issue
Preparations Begin For Bike/Skate Rally
Heights Fun Run
It’s time for the 22nd annual Houston Heights 5K Fun Run on Saturday, June 2. Start time for the main race will be 7:30 AM. Walkers start at 7:35 AM, and the kids’ 1K follows at 8:30 AM. The main course will start on Heights Blvd. at 18th Street heading south to 5th Street, then back north to Marmion Park, where the post-race party will begin. Plan to celebrate with food, juice, and music while awards are announced and door prizes are given!
The entry fee for the 5K Run and Walk is $20 until May 31, then $25 on June 1 and 2. The fee for the kids’ 1K is $10, then $15.
Overall Open, Master Male, and Master Female winners will each receive a $50 Luke’s Locker gift certificate. Awards go to the top three males and top three females in each age group.
Packet pick-up will be at Luke’s Locker (1953 West Gray) on Thursday, May 31 and Friday, June 1 from 10:00 AM to 7:00 PM, then at Marmion Park on Saturday, June 2 (Race Day) from 6:15 to 7:15 AM. Credit cards will be accepted at packet pick-up and registration. No refunds will be made. Each entrant will receive a commemorative T-shirt at packet pick-up.
For more information, check our website www.houstonheights.org/funrun.htm.
General Meeting
The presentation at the June General Meeting will be about people restoring their own historic properties. Lynn Edmundson of Historic Houston will have a slide presentation about a workshop they held for those who wanted to learn the hands-on, do-it-yourself method. The class restored a shotgun house.
Lynn will go through the process they followed and talk about the next workshop, scheduled for the fall of this year. She will also discuss Historic Houston’s Salvage Warehouse.
Please join us at the Fire Station, 7:00 PM on June 11.
Coming up in July: the history of the Fire Station.
New Members
Please welcome the following new or returning members to the Houston Heights Association.
Monique DeLeon & Brent Mahler
Josh Fernandez
Donations
Our thanks to the following for their generous support of the programs of the Houston Heights Association.
Julie Adams & Paul Anderson
Mrs. Allen C. Key
Belinca & Mark Mundey - Parks Maintenance
Stuart & Joanne Murray - Boulevard Maintenance
William & Deborah Schroeter - Boulevard Maintenance
Platinum Sponsors
The Houston Heights Association is proud to have the following 2007 Platinum sponsors:
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Preparations Begin For Bicycle/Skate Rally
The Second Annual Heights Bicycle & Skate Rally will be held on Sunday, October 7, from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Please save the date.
This year, there will be two courses. The shorter course will be 16 miles long, passing through River Oaks, West End, Timbergrove, and the Heights. The extended course will be 25 miles long, continuing through Oak Forest before returning to the Heights. As last year, the rally will start and end at the Fire Station.
There will again be a scavenger hunt in conjunction with the rally; participants can win prizes by using clues to find places and things along the route. All finishers will be eligible for prizes. There will be special awards for best costume and for oldest and youngest unassisted finishers.
This year’s entry fee will be $15.00 (pre-registration on line) and $20.00 on the day of the event. All proceeds benefit the Heights Boulevard Beautification Fund.
The first bike rally committee meeting will be held June 12 at 6:30 PM at the Fire Station. There are many volunteer opportunities available for the rally, both during the months leading up to the event and on the day of the event. More information will be available in next month’s newsletter. If you can be a volunteer for the event, please contact Chairman Paul Carr at 713-869-0505 or TortureT@aol.com, Genie Mims - Publicity at geniemims@yahoo.com, or Martin Piké - Scavenger Hunt at martinpike@sbcglobal.com.
Holiday Tour Homes Sought
The Heights Holiday Home Tour Committee is looking for beautiful homes dressed for the holidays to include in the tour, which is scheduled for November 30 and December 1. If you are interested in volunteering your home for this fundraiser, please contact Marianne at 713-703-7658.
Musicians Wanted
The Heights Holiday Home Tour Committee is seeking musicians of all kinds to add a little Holiday Cheer to the porches of our tour homes. If you are interested in performing, please call Marianne at 713-703-7658.
Restoration/Historical
The next Houston Heights Restoration /Historical Committee Meeting will be held on Thursday, June 21 from 7:30 to 9:30 PM at 1312 Cortlandt St. This 1920 bungalow property was completely renovated in 1993 with pool and pool house subsequent to a complete facelift. This property has many fine finishing touches added by the owners, making it a very warm and comfortable home.
Everything from landscaping to redesign and addition of the pool and pool house will be discussed with the remodeling builder at this meeting for those attendees considering any or all of these projects. Everyone attending will benefit from discussing how to attack and execute a renovation project and can see “before” pictures as well the finished product.
Houston Heights Restoration/Historical Committee meetings are open to the public monthly to learn about history and restoration in keeping with the neighborhood. Please let Committee Chairman Dean Swanson know if you have a restoration project, historical structure, or historical information or photos pertaining to the Houston Heights to share at future meeting sites and to better spread the neighborhood historical knowledge. Contact him at restoration@houstonheights.org or telephone him at 713-880-2832.
Silver Sponsors
The Houston Heights Association is proud to have the following Summer 2007 Silver Sponsor:
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Heights Trees Count! - Rescheduled
Did you know that our street trees belong to everyone - and that these trees are the foundation of our Heights Urban Forest? The Heights has the most Champion and magnificent 100-year-old trees in Houston. Enjoy an early morning walk to appreciate our rare neighborhood treasure.
Join us for a working walk through our Heights Urban Forest with the City of Houston’s Urban Forester Victor Cordoba and the San Jacinto Council Girl Scouts! Volunteers are invited to help Victor update our Heights Street Tree Inventory.
Our Heights Urban Forest is a remarkable natural resource. Trees provide natural pollution mitigation, are natural sources for flood control, and supply a habitat for wild birds. A Champion Tree can reduce scorching summer heat by 30 degrees - so protecting our urban forest is a natural!
Enjoy refreshments from Starbuck’s at 610 & Nicholson. Participants will receive tree brochures, and information will be available for everyone.
This family fun day in the Heights Urban Forest begins at the Fire Station at 7:30 AM on Sunday, July 29. Pick up your four-block assignment and return the completed form to the Fire Station by 11:00 AM.
This time around, we’ll be counting trees on the west side of the HHA area from White Oak to 20th, from Yale to Nicholson. (See map.) The third phase of the count will be held on October 6, counting trees on the north end. The start and end point will again be the Fire Station.
Sign up now! Contact adewree@earthlink.net.
April 16 Board Summary
President Jim Potter calls the meeting to order at 6:35 PM. The minutes from the previous meeting are approved. Treasurer Jim DePitts gives the financial report, and the board votes an increase in the budget for the 2007 Holiday Market and Home Tour. Jim and Donna Bennett attended the Park People Awards Dinner and accepted an award on behalf of the Association.
Suzanne LaBarthe gives a report on decorative traffic poles that could be purchased and erected during the TxDOT project that involves the I-10 expansion at Heights Boulevard and Yale. Revisions to the Sponsorship Policy in the Policy Manual are discussed.
Paul Carr addresses the Board on concerns he has and with ideas he has with regard to the some of the projects of the Houston Heights Association. David Beale would like the Board to consider hosting a reception for the Spring Home Tour Committee. David Beale, Sharie Beale, and Janice Evans-Davis give a report on the Historic District project. Future General Meetings are discussed. The meeting adjourns at 8:30 PM.
Bronze Sponsors
The Houston Heights Association is proud to have the following Summer 2007 Bronze Sponsors:
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History for Sale
This month’s offerings include a house that is a City of Houston Historic Landmark and listed on the National Register of Historic Places (marked CL/NRHP below). All of the properties listed below are considered historic, meaning they are at least 51 years old. HHA began listing properties for sale in its newsletter in hopes of encouraging renovation instead of demolition.
Here is a sampling of the properties currently for sale in the Heights and their approximate construction dates. Most have been updated for the 21st Century. Several are prime candidates for renovation.
- 801 Allston - 1930
- 803 Allston - 1930
- 916 Allston - 1925
- 1230 Allston - 1913
- 1433 Allston - 1900
- 1520 Allston - 1920
- 1244 Arlington - 1900
- 1122 Columbia - 1920
- 2043 Columbia - 1940
- 2052 Columbia - 1941
- 1844 Columbia - 1920
- 941 Cortlandt - 1920
- 1218 Cortlandt - 1920
- 1445 Cortlandt - 1920
- 2036 Cortlandt - 1946
- 1115 Harvard - 1920
- 1342 Harvard - 1910
- 1346 Harvard - 1935
- 1313 Herkimer - 1940
- 1011 Heights Blvd. - 1907
- 1101 Heights Blvd. - 1903 - CL/NRHP
- 1204 Heights Blvd. - 1920
- 1214 Heights Blvd. - 1930
- 1229 Heights Blvd. - 1896
- 1421 Heights Blvd. - 1930
- 1407 Oxford - 1920
- 1910 Oxford - 1920
- 1019 Rutland - 1925
- 1516 Rutland - 1920
- 1114 Waverly - 1930
- 3510 White Oak - 1920
- 1409 Yale - 1930
- 107 E 9th St. - 1920
- 108 W 10 1/2th St. - 1920
- 411 W. 11th St. - 1920
- 320 W 15th St. - 1920
- 235 W. 18th St. - 1908
- 611 E 21st St. - 1920
- 407 W 23rd St. - 1925
- 602 W 28th St. - 1920
Demo Watch
Demolition activity has picked up again in Houston Heights. According to information supplied by the Code Enforcement Division of the City of Houston Public Works Department, there were 13 demolitions or relocations in Houston Heights between April 16 and May 21. This brings to 249 the number of demolitions in the last 23 months. Several of the properties we lost this time were considered important structures in the proposed Heights Historic Districts.
Establishing historic districts is the only legal way to deter demolition and relocation of our historic housing stock, the reason many of us choose to buy homes here. If you live within the boundaries of the proposed districts and have not yet signed the blue petition page, now is the time to do so. The longer it takes to gather signatures of support from the required 51 percent of the property owners within the proposed districts, the more houses we will lose. The petition and other information about the historic districts are available at http://www.houstonheights.org/historicdistrictmaps.htm.
Here is the list of the latest demolitions and approximate construction dates.
533 Arlington - 1905
2220 Arlington 1940
1217 Columbia - 1930
945 Harvard - 1910
443 Heights Blvd. - 1905
1222 Nicholson - 1925
337 Oxford - 1930
1405 Tulane - 1910
301 W. 11th St. - The old H.E.B., torn down to make way for a new Regions Bank.
450 W. 16th St. - 1920
628 W. 21st St. - 1950
714 W. 22nd St. - 1935
219 W. 27th St. - 1930
Calendar of Events for June-July 2007
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Sunday |
Monday |
Tuesday |
Wednesday |
Thursday |
Friday |
Saturday |
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June 1 |
2 Heights 1st Saturday Heights Fun Run, 7:30 AM, Marmion Park; see article. |
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3 |
4 HHA Land Use meeting, 6:30 PM, Fire Station |
5 HHA Urban Forestry Group meeting, 6:30 PM, Fire Station |
6 |
7 |
8 Deadline for next newsletter |
9 |
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10 |
11 - recycling HHA General Meeting “Restore It Yourself,” 7:00 PM, Fire Station |
12 Bike & Skate Rally meeting, 6:30 PM, Fire Station |
13 |
14 Flag Day |
15 |
16 |
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17 Father’s Day |
18 HHA Board Meeting, 6:30 PM, Fire Station |
19 |
20 |
21 |
22 |
23 |
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24 |
25 - recycling HHA Education Committee, 7:00 PM, Fire Station |
26 |
27 PIP meeting, 6:30 PM, 1602 State Street |
28 |
29 |
30 |
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July 1 |
2 HHA Land Use Committee, 6:30 PM, Fire Station |
2 HHA Urban Forestry Group, 6:30 PM, Fire Station |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 Heights 1st Saturday |
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8 |
9 - recycling HHA General Meeting - Topic TBA, 7:00 PM, Fire Station |
10 Bike & Skate Rally meeting, 6:30 PM, Fire Station |
11 |
12 |
13 Deadline for next newsletter |
14 |
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15 |
16 HHA Board Meeting, 6:30 PM, Fire Station |
17 |
18 |
19 |
20 |
21 |
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22 |
23 - recycling HHA Education Committee, 6:30 PM, Fire Station |
24 |
25 PIP Meeting, 7:00 PM, 1602 State Street |
26 |
27 |
28 |
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29 |
30 |
31 |
HHA headquarters: The Fire Station is on the corner of Yale and 12th Streets.
Community Calendar
June 1, Opera in the Heights presents their Bravissimo Dinner Concert at The Houston Club, 811 Rusk. Reception at 6:30, dinner at 7:15, concert at 8:30. Tickets available through Opera in the Heights at 713-861-5303.
June 10, 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM, Classy Chassis Vintage Auto Show at Reliant Stadium, benefitting United Cerebral Palsy of Greater Houston. More information at www.classychassis.org.
June and July, various dates and locations, United Cerebral Palsy of Greater Houston offers Camp Buckeroo, a week-long day camp tailored to children with all types of disabilities.
July 1-6, United Cerebral Palsy offers Camp Smiles, a week-long overnight camp for children with cerebral palsy. For more information on either UCP program, contact Erin Houder, 713-838-9050 x309 or ehauder@ucphouston.org.
Future History
October 7, Bicycle/Skate Rally
November 30 - December 1, Holiday Home Tour
February 24, 2008, Awards Dinner
April 4 - 6, Spring Home Tour
June 7, Fun Run
Copyright and Submissions
The Heights is published monthly by the Houston Heights Association. Its purpose is to acknowledge achievements and to inform HHA members of events.
Copyright 2007, the Houston Heights Association and/or the authors unless otherwise noted.
Newsletter inquiries, suggestions, or submissions should be directed to:
Editor, The Heights, P.O. Box 70735, Houston, TX 77270-0735;
email editor@houstonheights.org; or leave a message on 713-861-4002.
Staff and Contributors
Editor: Mark R. Williamson
Assistant Editor: Kathleen S. Williamson
June contributors:
Sharie Beale, Janet Buchheit, Paul Carr, Angela DeWree, Janice Evans-Davis, Lauriel Hindman, Jim Potter, Marianne Sulser, Dean Swanson.