Preservation Houston’s Board of Directors has voted to fund a project to document the Arcola plantation sugar house, or purgery, in Fort Bend County. Site owner Johnson Development is considering the proposal. Pending the developer's approval, a team from Texas A&M University’s Center for Heritage Conservation will conduct the work in February.
Chevron's demolition of historic Shelor Motor Company Building downtown appears imminent
With permits in place and the site fenced off, Chevron is moving forward with the demolition of one of the last remnants of downtown Houston's automobile row of the 1920s. Architectural historian Stephen Fox has written an article for the Houston Chronicle's Gray Matters explaining why the energy corporation should preserve the former Shelor Motor Company (1928), 1621 Milam at Pease. Preservation Houston has contacted Chevron encouraging the company to halt the demolition.
Kirby Mansion in Midtown could be demolished
Preservation Houston has learned of a threat to the Kirby Mansion, 2006 Smith Street in Midtown. Reliable sources indicate the historic house is under contract and that the new owner does not intend to retain the building. Preservation Houston has been working behind the scenes to promote the restoration and repurposing of the historic property.
Continuing threats to historic River Oaks Shopping Center
Weingarten Realty Investors has submitted requests for certificates of appropriateness to demolish one portion and significantly alter another section of the historic River Oaks Shopping Center. The Art Deco complex is a designated City of Houston Landmark, so proposed changes to the buildings must go before the Houston Archaeological and Historical Commission (HAHC). The affected buildings at 1964 and 1973 West Gray Avenue (1948, Raymond H. Brogniez) were constructed during a post-World War II expansion and complemented the modernistic design of the original shopping center (1937, Nunn & McGinty).