MAKING IT FANCY WITH MORE TO GO!
I was riding along the Katy Freeway on Tuesday when a building caught my attention. It crawled into the sky and the top of the structure appeared to be a crown. It's the expansion and new building for Memorial Hermann in Center City or the Town and Country area. I'm not quite sure what's the name of that part of town off the Katy Freeway. Anyway, the building is large and elaborate with more new construction along side of it. It reminded me of something I saw while growing up in Louisiana and other places I've lived. No matter what the current economic climate is hospitals are always expanding. I guess the business of sick people never really hits a slump. No matter how poor or underpaid you get, we all still have to go to the hospital. It seems Memorial sunk a lot of cash into this fancy structure. Have you seen it and what do you think?
And it's ugly, too! The "crown" part on top doesn't really match the rest of the building - it just looks like it was stuck on top of an otherwise ordinary building.
ReplyDeleteSee it up close every day, as I work there. Remember that Houston's population is growing, which means more sick people. And since there's no more room to expand in the Medical Center area, hospitals are expanding to different parts of town.
ReplyDeleteIt is in the 'Memorial Area' neighborhood, and I actually like the 'crown,' which consists of a couple of floors of corporate offices.
I would term it within the Memorial City (TIRZ) mall area.
ReplyDeleteWere you using both eyes? I can just imagine you wearing an eye patch.
Royko
That area is called Memorial City. That entire area around Memorial City Mall is apart of I think a Billion dollar mixed use development. The tower without the crown I think is supposed to be a hotel.
ReplyDeleteJust down the street from there where Town & Country Mall use to be is also a new mixed use development called City Centre. That is coming along to be a really nice development.
I just had my tonsils taken out at Memorial last Thursday. The facilities were really nice and clean, and suprisingly even the hospital menu looked real good although I could only spring for ice cream, lol. I think that when it's all said and done and they are done with all of the construction it will really help revitalize that area....keep in mind that they've made major improvements to Memorial City mall and the surrounding shopping areas...I'm expecting big things.
ReplyDeleteThose buildings are the epitome of architecture in Houston over the past 15 years as a whole....do whatever is cheapest, despite how it looks.
ReplyDeleteThose buildings were such an opportunity, but it was wasted with those HORRIBLE designs. I know they are hospitals but those buildings could have been sooooo much better. Shame on whomever designed them.
I agree. Hideous architecture. Why spend so much on a high rise and not a little more for a real architect. I gotta look at that beige pile of (bleep) every day now.
ReplyDeleteI heard that stupid looking "throwing star" on top of that one building is the new offices of Metro National, the developer of all the new Memorial City/Town & Country stuff.
Memorial laid off and fired so many people at the southeast hospital location that they now have plenty of money to waste on this office space. Is this really needed? This building is for all the executives to be side by side in one building. I'm not sure if all the egos are going to fit under that crown. Memorial Hermann should use the money more wisely. The hospital system says they are non-profit. Yeah Right!
ReplyDeleteThe property and building are owned and operated by Metro National. Memorial Hermann only leases the space from them.
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