I suppose 37 years of operation would indeed be a failure to some.

With regard to Fame City, yes it has changed names, and yes Fame City WaterWorks was torn down, however the fact it is still open after almost 25 years is not a complete failure in my eyes.

I personally am very excited about EarthQuest. It has potential that AstroWorld did not. Who knows this may be a opportunity for Houston to have it's very first out and back coaster. I say bring it on.

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Astroworld was not that great of a park. But it didn't fail because of how boring it was. It failed because Six Flags as an operation sucks. I think Earthquest can and will work. Different type of theme park.

towards the end astroworld got trashy which is a turn off to many people mainly because six flags did a piss poor job of managing the park. fame city/funplex started out OK but also got trashy. earthquest is going to have to be very careful.

Some of us are still hanging around...Just not posting as often. Plus, there hasn't been much new information as of late.

On the EarthQuest topic though, I think it'll be a success. Astroworld failed because the management was terrible. I remember avoiding the place just because of how dirty the place was and how there were always at least 3 broken down coasters EVERY time I went. I would rather drive to Fiesta Texas than deal with the crap at AstroWorld. Splashtown is the same, run terribly. If a park would come in and make a good impression, I don't think it would have a problem taking off.

^^ Astroworld was in the city, which nowadays is rare for a major theme park. I think EarthQuest will be ok too, just b/c it's going to be the "only game in town" for that area of Montgomery County. It's gonna the largest economic engine north of the Airport and east of The Woodlands. The people will make sure to keep it going properly.

I want earthquest to fail and fail miserably. I grew up bird watching in and around those woods in that part of montgomery county and Id hate to see it all get turned into banal urban sprawl and parking lots. In fact, my avatar which is a Prothonotary Warbler is found in the woods in that area and it will yet again, be losing more habitat to this huge park. The area where this park is going in was once known as the little thicket and at one time was considered to become part of the the big thicket national preserve. Too late for that and one of the last great stretches of forest in the houston area will fall to bland houses and soccer moms. uhg The only thing that will remain once the storm of craptastic sprawl rolls through will be the land protected through the ongoing acquisition of land for the Spring Creek Greenway Project, which when completed will only protect about 2-3000 acres of the 16,000 acres that is slowly getting turned into crap.

http://www.springcreekgreenway.org/the_latest.htm

I can't wait to see Earthquest succeed. Astroworld wasn't really boring. They always had new rides/features until after the 1999 season. That's when it started really going down.

You can't see the difference, especially with Astroworld? Astroworld is in the middle Houston. Earthquest is going to be on the outskirts. Astroworld had like 80 acres of land (including Waterworld and parking). Earthquest has 250+ acres. Earthquest is going to have museums, a waterpark, and resort hotel. Big differences between the two.

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The new Houston Ballet is now Under Construction but no on knows which design was chosen.
http://www.e-architect.co.uk/america...es281108_1.jpg

http://www.e-architect.co.uk/america...es281108_2.jpg
Swamplot

eh... neither one of the puts a smile on my face...

Really? I like the top design, seems to fit what a dance rehearsal building should look like.

I like the top design too, but the bottom one, not so much, but hey, a building is better than a parking lot. Can someone show on a map where this is, Im not exactly sure which lot its going on.

I like the top one, it looks great. It reminds me of the new YMCA being built on the other side of DT.

:tup:

idk how to put a map up, but it's like two blocks down from the bank of America bldg .. I think :P

It's at Preston and Louisiana...

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&sour...12,305.32,,0,5

This used to be a drive-thru bank, but was used most of the time as a ridiculous parking lot. I'm glad to see anything but parking here.

Another parking lot bites the dust.

Design #2 was choosen.
Chron

Also Novare Group based in Atlanta has bought land near the new Ballet Center! They done 360 in Austin and The Atlantic in Atlanta. :banana:

novaregroup.com

More renders! Courtesy of Swamplot

"'. . . the architects . . . envisioned the granite like a proscenium stage, framing views from the street through windows on several floors of the north and west facades.'

Those windows, [Gensler managing principal James] Furr added, are like a “billboard for dance,” enabling passersby to see classes and rehearsals.

Furr spoke to the Chronicle’s Molly Glentzer, and Gensler provided more-up-to-date images of the 115,000-sq.-ft. facility, which will be clad in black granite on one portion and “a light plaster” on the other"

http://swamplot.com/wp-content/uploa...view-smith.jpg

http://swamplot.com/wp-content/uploa...ge-wortham.jpg

http://swamplot.com/wp-content/uploa...et-granite.jpg

http://swamplot.com/wp-content/uploa...proscenium.jpg

http://swamplot.com/wp-content/uploa...t-interior.jpg

I wouldn't get too excited. The same article you quoted mentioned that Novare Group has already put it back on the market. It might be a while til we see anything in that space, but I'm fine with the Ballet center at the moment.