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Examining the neighborhoods
  
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A look at some of the to stories from nearby communities ...
Hedwig Village opens City Hall
The new Hedwig Village City Hall, located at 955 Piney Point Road, opened for business last week amid finishing touches of construction.
The modern, two-story building will replace the old brick structure, which has been in use since the 1970s and remodeled twice. Plans for the new building started in 2005.
It was time for a change, said Mayor Sue Speck. The old building was built as a residential building, not a commercial one.
"(The old building) was getting pretty run down," she said. “The ceiling fell in the jury assembly room, we constantly had problems with our computers and space was tight, especially for visitors.”
Creating comfortable public areas was one of the main design goals of the new building.
“We have a lot of visitors,” she said. “The public areas are what we’re most proud of. We’ll have the ability for people to be comfortable when they come.”
With high ceilings, multiple conference rooms, spacious offices and two kitchens, the 11,000 square foot building offers a clean-cut, efficient work space, Speck said.
Residents can look through windows from the entrance hall into the city council chamber, which will double as the municipal court room that can be divided into two separate areas. A private jury room will serve as the executive session room.
“In the old one we had to tell people to leave the council room for executive session,” she said. “Now they can stay put.”
TVs will let the audience follow along with the council meetings and a large projector can be lowered down from the ceiling.
The new building, which cost about $2 million, has "more high-tech capabilities." Security cameras will monitor public spaces and the parking lot and there is a better wiring system for the computers, Speck said.
Holes in the window blinds let light in and help conserve energy, tact-board walls will showcase public displays and a kitchen area will allow for easy catering — compared to the old building where the mayor’s office was used to store the food, Speck said.
The new building will use the same chairs from the old building, but the rest of the old furniture will be put up for auction. The Texas Department of Correction provided most of the new furniture.
“The cost of this stuff was unbelievable compared to what it would have cost in retail,” Speck said. “They build it and they come in and install it. It’s a great value.”
The old city hall will be torn down Sept. 2 to make way for a parking lot. There will be a ribbon cutting and open house when the parking lot is finished.
Construction, which had been delayed due to bad weather, will finish in the next few weeks. Until then, city employees may be “working out of boxes” but they’ll be ready to open up the building for its first city council meeting Sept. 11.
With windows overlooking the Memorial High School baseball field and a screen to catch any stray balls, the new city hall will “blend in” with the surrounding community, Speck said.
“I think our citizens will be really proud of it,” Speck said.
Reported by Kirsten Salyer
ksalyer@hcnonline.com
Southside may use eminent domain
The city of Southside Place will pay $400,000 for the property at 3631 University Blvd., or exercise its right of eminent domain, to build a new City Hall.
Three commissioners appointed by a Harris County District judge approved the city’s price recently.
The property, which is owned by the Hirdler family, will be used for the city of Southside Place’s new 13,000-square-foot municipal complex.
Southside Place City Manager David Moss said there were no representatives of the family in attendance at meeting of the three commissioners last week.
The $400,000 will be placed in “a registry of the court,” Moss said, to be paid to the property owners. They do have a right to appeal the price, but the Southside Place City Council has approved a resolution exercising its right of eminent domain to take ownership of the property.
The building currently has two tenants, insurance agent Stacey Speier and portrait artist Mallory Agerton. They will have to move out of the building, because the city plans to start construction of its new complex early next year, Moss said.
“The construction of the new city hall will begin in the first few months of 2009,” Moss said.
The new municipal complex is planned to accommodate the city’s administration, court, police and fire departments, Moss said.
“We are working on the design details with Jackson-Ryan architects. And in the next few weeks, we will hire a general contractor,” Moss said.
“Sometime toward the last part of this year, the Hirdler building will be demolished,” Moss said.
Examiner staff report
Hedwig Village opens City Hall
The new Hedwig Village City Hall, located at 955 Piney Point Road, opened for business last week amid finishing touches of construction.
The modern, two-story building will replace the old brick structure, which has been in use since the 1970s and remodeled twice. Plans for the new building started in 2005.
It was time for a change, said Mayor Sue Speck. The old building was built as a residential building, not a commercial one.
"(The old building) was getting pretty run down," she said. “The ceiling fell in the jury assembly room, we constantly had problems with our computers and space was tight, especially for visitors.”
Creating comfortable public areas was one of the main design goals of the new building.
“We have a lot of visitors,” she said. “The public areas are what we’re most proud of. We’ll have the ability for people to be comfortable when they come.”
With high ceilings, multiple conference rooms, spacious offices and two kitchens, the 11,000 square foot building offers a clean-cut, efficient work space, Speck said.
Residents can look through windows from the entrance hall into the city council chamber, which will double as the municipal court room that can be divided into two separate areas. A private jury room will serve as the executive session room.
“In the old one we had to tell people to leave the council room for executive session,” she said. “Now they can stay put.”
TVs will let the audience follow along with the council meetings and a large projector can be lowered down from the ceiling.
The new building, which cost about $2 million, has "more high-tech capabilities." Security cameras will monitor public spaces and the parking lot and there is a better wiring system for the computers, Speck said.
Holes in the window blinds let light in and help conserve energy, tact-board walls will showcase public displays and a kitchen area will allow for easy catering — compared to the old building where the mayor’s office was used to store the food, Speck said.
The new building will use the same chairs from the old building, but the rest of the old furniture will be put up for auction. The Texas Department of Correction provided most of the new furniture.
“The cost of this stuff was unbelievable compared to what it would have cost in retail,” Speck said. “They build it and they come in and install it. It’s a great value.”
The old city hall will be torn down Sept. 2 to make way for a parking lot. There will be a ribbon cutting and open house when the parking lot is finished.
Construction, which had been delayed due to bad weather, will finish in the next few weeks. Until then, city employees may be “working out of boxes” but they’ll be ready to open up the building for its first city council meeting Sept. 11.
With windows overlooking the Memorial High School baseball field and a screen to catch any stray balls, the new city hall will “blend in” with the surrounding community, Speck said.
“I think our citizens will be really proud of it,” Speck said.
Reported by Kirsten Salyer
ksalyer@hcnonline.com
Southside may use eminent domain
The city of Southside Place will pay $400,000 for the property at 3631 University Blvd., or exercise its right of eminent domain, to build a new City Hall.
Three commissioners appointed by a Harris County District judge approved the city’s price recently.
The property, which is owned by the Hirdler family, will be used for the city of Southside Place’s new 13,000-square-foot municipal complex.
Southside Place City Manager David Moss said there were no representatives of the family in attendance at meeting of the three commissioners last week.
The $400,000 will be placed in “a registry of the court,” Moss said, to be paid to the property owners. They do have a right to appeal the price, but the Southside Place City Council has approved a resolution exercising its right of eminent domain to take ownership of the property.
The building currently has two tenants, insurance agent Stacey Speier and portrait artist Mallory Agerton. They will have to move out of the building, because the city plans to start construction of its new complex early next year, Moss said.
“The construction of the new city hall will begin in the first few months of 2009,” Moss said.
The new municipal complex is planned to accommodate the city’s administration, court, police and fire departments, Moss said.
“We are working on the design details with Jackson-Ryan architects. And in the next few weeks, we will hire a general contractor,” Moss said.
“Sometime toward the last part of this year, the Hirdler building will be demolished,” Moss said.
Examiner staff report
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