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Teas will close historic Bellaire nursery to develop homesites
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| Edward 'Papa' Teas, founder of the business. |
By CHARLOTTE AGUILAR
Teas Nursery — the Houston area’s oldest nursery and Bellaire’s oldest business — will be leaving the location it has occupied since 1910 and may be closing altogether.
A longtime associate of the business confirmed Saturday that Teas intends to develop its five-acre nursery at 4400 Bellaire Blvd. into potential luxury homesites that it will market to builders beginning in January.
“Everyone is heartbroken,” he said. “They tell us there’s a possibility the (nursery) business could be moved somewhere else or sold, but there’s a lot of history with Teas and Bellaire, and it’s disappearing.”
He said the landscaping part of Teas will continue to be operated by some current employees.
John Teas, the public face of the business and head of its garden center, died in August. “A lot of us felt like that was the beginning of the end of the nursery,” the associate said. “He was the one who had the passion for this part of the business.”
John Teas had grown up in the family business and marked his 50th anniversary with Teas in 2007.
Tom Teas, his brother, is president of the company and heads up the landscaping branch.
In 2002, Teas sold the five acres at the rear of the property to Lovett Homes, which developed a block of high-end single family residences. At that time, Lovett owner Frank Liu indicated he had an option to buy the remaining five acres. The Lovett office was closed over the weekend, but reports indicated Cushman Wakefield, the same firm involved in the sale to Lovett, was working with Tom Teas on the redevelopment of the property.
The associate said the Lovett option was for five years and had expired.
Tom pursued a suit for three years on behalf of the nursery against the city of Bellaire and its Planning & Zoning Commission after Teas was denied a replat in June 2002. The city invoked a then-new city ordinance defining the lot size for single family homes that Teas claimed went into effect after its request and did not allow Teas to develop the property to its maximum financial potential. The case was settled out of court in 2005.
The city and parks advocates attempted in 2002 to acquire all or part of the 10-acre property for green space, but Tom Teas indicated he would pursue residential development of the land instead.
The Teas business has been in the family for six generations, starting in 1843 in Indiana and later relocating to Missouri. Edward “Papa” Teas, a nationally known horticulturist, was persuaded by Bellaire’s developer, W.W. Baldwin, first to help plant what was originally bald prairie then to bring his landscaping business to Bellaire in 1910.
The elder Teas built the family home on the site, which runs the entire length of the 4400 block of Bellaire Boulevard, in 1916. It’s been used for many years as the landscape business offices, and the site bears a Texas Historical Commission marker.
Even with its greenhouse, enclosed store with seeds, bulbs and a florist business, Teas is still renowned for its landscaping. “Papa” Teas is credited with the landscaping of Rice University and River Oaks, and is said to be responsible for the planning of one million trees in the Houston area.
A longtime associate of the business confirmed Saturday that Teas intends to develop its five-acre nursery at 4400 Bellaire Blvd. into potential luxury homesites that it will market to builders beginning in January.
“Everyone is heartbroken,” he said. “They tell us there’s a possibility the (nursery) business could be moved somewhere else or sold, but there’s a lot of history with Teas and Bellaire, and it’s disappearing.”
He said the landscaping part of Teas will continue to be operated by some current employees.
John Teas, the public face of the business and head of its garden center, died in August. “A lot of us felt like that was the beginning of the end of the nursery,” the associate said. “He was the one who had the passion for this part of the business.”
John Teas had grown up in the family business and marked his 50th anniversary with Teas in 2007.
Tom Teas, his brother, is president of the company and heads up the landscaping branch.
In 2002, Teas sold the five acres at the rear of the property to Lovett Homes, which developed a block of high-end single family residences. At that time, Lovett owner Frank Liu indicated he had an option to buy the remaining five acres. The Lovett office was closed over the weekend, but reports indicated Cushman Wakefield, the same firm involved in the sale to Lovett, was working with Tom Teas on the redevelopment of the property.
The associate said the Lovett option was for five years and had expired.
Tom pursued a suit for three years on behalf of the nursery against the city of Bellaire and its Planning & Zoning Commission after Teas was denied a replat in June 2002. The city invoked a then-new city ordinance defining the lot size for single family homes that Teas claimed went into effect after its request and did not allow Teas to develop the property to its maximum financial potential. The case was settled out of court in 2005.
The city and parks advocates attempted in 2002 to acquire all or part of the 10-acre property for green space, but Tom Teas indicated he would pursue residential development of the land instead.
The Teas business has been in the family for six generations, starting in 1843 in Indiana and later relocating to Missouri. Edward “Papa” Teas, a nationally known horticulturist, was persuaded by Bellaire’s developer, W.W. Baldwin, first to help plant what was originally bald prairie then to bring his landscaping business to Bellaire in 1910.
The elder Teas built the family home on the site, which runs the entire length of the 4400 block of Bellaire Boulevard, in 1916. It’s been used for many years as the landscape business offices, and the site bears a Texas Historical Commission marker.
Even with its greenhouse, enclosed store with seeds, bulbs and a florist business, Teas is still renowned for its landscaping. “Papa” Teas is credited with the landscaping of Rice University and River Oaks, and is said to be responsible for the planning of one million trees in the Houston area.
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Reader Comments
pookie wrote on Nov 8, 2009 9:58 PM:
" The city of Bellaire realized that they could get more tax revenue with high-priced homes instead of the taxes paid by Tea's Nursery.
Goodbye history...hello greed. "
Goodbye history...hello greed. "
Aokaze wrote on Nov 9, 2009 8:01 AM:
" Um... not too sure about your logic here. The city of Bellaire has no bearing on who Teas sells their land to. Additionally, comparing Houston to cities on the east coast and especially Europe is like comparing apples to oranges. Houston is barely 150 years old (ok, fine 165 or something) and really didn't start to become anything until the 20th century with booming oil and railroad business.
I'm sure this was purely a business decision and maybe a litle thumbing the nose at Bellaire's zoning commission. Still, I'm sure the millions made by the Teas family on the deal is an adequate stop-gap for potential lost business. "
I'm sure this was purely a business decision and maybe a litle thumbing the nose at Bellaire's zoning commission. Still, I'm sure the millions made by the Teas family on the deal is an adequate stop-gap for potential lost business. "
pookie wrote on Nov 9, 2009 9:52 AM:
" Uh yeah they do. Did you read the article in detail and understand the policies the city of Bellaire was enforcing? The passing of the owner plus the denial of replatting the land made it an easy decision for the city. Why receive $16-20,000 per year in taxes from one property when it can be developed into 50 luxury townhomes selling at $500K for $12K each (est. $6 million in tax revenue)?
Follow the money and your will find out why people do what they do. "
Follow the money and your will find out why people do what they do. "
howsmybaby wrote on Nov 9, 2009 2:01 PM:
" Pookie is right. Teas will be sorely missed. How very sad, especially right before the holidays. Our family has enjoyed an annual tradition of selecting our beautiful Christmas trees and trimmings from Teas for years. John Teas and his employees have always helped make this a wonderful time. We've created our own Dept. 56 village, based on the the advice from the Teas staff and umpteen trips to their magically displayed "village" every season. A wonderful holiday tradition no more.
Now, I guess we'll make a sterile trip to a "box" store for a dried out tree and shop online for our Dept. 56 village, without the benefit and pleasure of the kind advice from people who love these holiday traditions as we do.
It just won't be the same. "
Now, I guess we'll make a sterile trip to a "box" store for a dried out tree and shop online for our Dept. 56 village, without the benefit and pleasure of the kind advice from people who love these holiday traditions as we do.
It just won't be the same. "
Natesmom wrote on Nov 14, 2009 4:14 PM:
" I agree with the comments about Bellaire being greedy. The original charm of Bellaire is fast disappearing and it is sad. Teas nursery helped to create Bellaire's charm. It is a shame to see Bellaire repaying Teas in this manner. It is true that Houston and the surrounding areas do not appreciate what they have and usually go for the gold, not for the value of history. My father was one of the early architects in Houston and he often said we had made a grave mistake for not having zoning and honoring our history. John Teas was a nice person and I'm sure he is turning over in his grave to see this happening! All the work he did to educate the public and it is coming to this. The person who commented on the amount of the sale of the land being just compensation, should be ashamed because the Teas family is not known for greed. The family has shown their love of history all along, or they could not have lasted for so long! For shame Bellaire. "
U-No wrote on Nov 8, 2009 9:36 PM: