Stars over Kirby

You know that Kirby Drive Storm Sewer Relief Project that is slowly making its way north like an invading army? Via Houstonist, I see that it will have an aesthetic component to it as well.

Prominent Texas-star inlays at eight Kirby Drive intersections are the major aesthetic components of the first phase of the "All-Stars" initiative announced by the Kirby Coalition on Dec. 4 at IBC Bank, 5615 Kirby Drive.

The initiative will use private funds to add amenities to the city of Houston's flood relief project. The city's project will provide newly paved streets and storm sewer reconstruction along Kirby Drive from Reliant Arena, 1 Reliant Park, to the Central Business District.

"There is an urgency because the city's construction will take three to four years," said Jamie Brewster, co-chair of the coalition. "If we act now it will be less of an inconvenience for residents and more cost-effective."

Plans for the first phase include installing paved Texas stars at the intersections of Kirby Drive and Westheimer Road, West Alabama and Bissonnet streets, Richmond Avenue, and Sunset, Rice, University and Holcombe boulevards. Other planned streetscape elements are brick crosswalks, traffic lights on poles instead of wires, benches and landscaping.

I guess if you're ever going to do something like this, the time is now when Kirby is going to be all torn up anyway. They're working on the intersection at Holcombe at this time, so we'll know what this will look like shortly. On the down side, I had thought that the sewer project only extended as far as US59. If it's going all the way to San Felipe, all I can say is "Ugh".

Oh, and to answer Houstonist's question about traffic flow on Kirby: Short of something like this which (for good reasons) ain't gonna happen, there's not much you can do about it. Well, there's my light rail shuttle idea for Kirby, but that ain't gonna happen, either. So get used to it. Sorry!

Posted by Charles Kuffner on December 09, 2006 to Elsewhere in Houston | TrackBack