Welcome to The Heights Hub! Angie’s responds, the Studewood Bridge is OPEN, and is the Long Weekend lawsuit over?

The Heights Hub is officially here. 🎉

If you’ve been following my Heights coverage, you’ve probably seen me talking about it lightly on Instagram stories. But now that it’s actually launched, I want to explain what it is and, more importantly, why we built it 😊

So, what is The Hub?

Think of it as a home base for my Heights reporting.

If you’re wondering what’s happening in your neighborhood, my hope is that you can come here and find the answer.

Everything in one place.

My reporting. My videos. Updates on stories that I am still working on. A place to ask me questions. A forum where you can talk to your neighbors. And a place where you can send me something you think I should know about.

And yes, you can talk to me directly.

There’s a Forum where you can share your thoughts and talk with other people in the Heights, and I’ll be in there posting often, too. That’s where I’ll show you what I’m working on and some of the questions I’m trying to answer. Because sometimes you send me something and I don’t have an answer that day. That doesn’t necessarily mean I’m not looking into it. Sometimes getting the answer takes a little time and I am working in the background.

You’ll also find a “What You Missed” section for a quick catch-up on recent Heights news, plus all of my Heights videos in one place. There, you will sign up to be an “Insider” and NO we will not spam you with emails as an Insider! There, we gather a little information about you to give you a more personalized experience on your what you missed tab.

And, of course, there’s the newsletter you’re reading right now! ❤️

But here’s the really important part:

The Hub only works if you use it😜

You guys have helped shape this role from the beginning. I want it to be a place where the Heights community actually interacts, shares information and talks about what’s happening around us.

I’m still going to vet what comes in. I’m a journalist, after all! Just because someone posts something on the Forum or sends me a tip doesn’t mean I’m automatically going to report it as fact.

But I do want to hear from you.

You’ll find the crime stories, construction updates, neighborhood headaches and accountability reporting here.

But you’ll also find the new businesses, neighborhood wins, things to celebrate and the little things that make the Heights the Heights. We’re even talking about potentially an “events” tab?

So go check it out, join the conversation and send me something. Tell me what you think - what else would you like to see on the page?

The Hub is yours, too.

The Studewood Bridge is FINALLY fully open! 🎉

Remember this one?

So many of you were telling me the cones and lane closure on the Studewood Bridge were driving you absolutely crazy.

Well, good news: the bridge is now completely open and fully operational.

I did a story on this earlier this year after many of you asked me what was going on. We eventually learned that a construction company, Webber, had damaged part of the bridge during construction, which was why a lane had been closed.

Well, the cones are gone.

Rejoice. 😂

One less Heights traffic headache to deal with.

Angie’s Pizza: We finally heard from the owners

This was probably one of the biggest conversations happening around the Heights last week.

If you missed my story, residents living along Lawrence and Alexander Streets behind Angie’s Pizza told me they had been dealing with two ongoing issues: noise from the restaurant’s HVAC system and parking problems during dinner hours.

Residents described the HVAC noise as being loud enough to hear inside their homes, including overnight. They also said restaurant customers were sometimes parking along Lawrence Street, blocking driveways and making the street difficult to navigate.

HPD confirmed officers had responded to the property at least three times and that several citations had been issued.

At the time I published the story, Angie’s had not responded to my requests for comment.

I reached back out after hearing the restaurant HPD had been out once again, because I wanted to give the owners an opportunity to explain what they were doing to address the concerns.

And they did respond!

The owners say the HVAC system has been the only major issue they’ve encountered since opening and that they invested about $120,000 in the system.

They say they installed sound-dampening blankets around the compressor, reached out to multiple firms for possible solutions and, within the last two weeks, hired an expert sound engineer to evaluate the issue.

As for parking, the owners say Angie’s offers complimentary valet service, has 50 parking spaces for its 72-seat restaurant and encourages customers to use valet rather than street parking.

Most importantly, the owners say they are continuing to work on the noise issue and hope to begin implementing another solution in the coming weeks.

I have not yet been told exactly what that new solution will be, but I’ll let you know when I learn more.

And I actually think this is an important part of community reporting.

There was a lot of conversation about this story online last week. That’s okay! People are going to have different opinions about neighborhood businesses, noise, parking and what is or isn’t reasonable.

I just ask that we keep the conversation respectful.

We all have issues in our neighborhoods that matter deeply to us, even if they’re not issues that bother everyone else.

And now, for the first time, you have the restaurant’s perspective, too.

I’ll keep following it.

So, what’s the latest at Long Weekend?!

I’ve been keeping my eye on this one.

Neighbor Richard Fontenot filed a lawsuit in April challenging aspects of Long Weekend’s elevated playground and other structures, raising concerns about things including the structures’ proximity to his property.

A judge denied his request for a temporary restraining order in June, while the broader litigation continued.

But just last week, Fontenot voluntarily nonsuited all of his claims without prejudice. Why?

I reached out to Fontenot and attorneys for both sides to find out what was behind the decision.

Fontenot’s attorney told me the case was nonsuited strategically, in part because of timing and because they want to incorporate the noise citations into the lawsuit.

His attorney said they plan to refile the case, potentially in the spring, after those issues have developed further.

So, this isn’t over.

And there’s another piece to this.

I recently received a message from another neighbor who sent me photos and video of what appears to be CenterPoint work in the street near Long Weekend. The neighbor described seeing drilling and gas-line work and raised questions about whether it could be connected to the property, along with concerns that some gas mains may have been built over by the restaurant.

So I’m checking with CenterPoint, too, to find out exactly what’s happening and whether it has anything to do with Long Weekend.

Expect more on this this week.

🎰 A $40,000 night for the neighborhood?

I had the honor of emceeing the Houston Heights Association’s Casino Night in the Heights on Friday at the old fire station. And WOW. The turnout, y’all.

The goal was to raise $40,000 for the Association, with the money going right back into the community and the programs that help make living in the Heights so special. Essentially, the money raised supports things neighbors actually see and use, including the boulevard, parks, constable patrol, the Heights Home Tour and the small grants the Association awards each spring.

More than 150 residents and guests came out for the event!

I’m still waiting to hear whether HHA hit that $40,000 goal.

I’ll keep you posted! ❤️

That’s it for today, folks.

aaannnd, please get familiar with the hub!

Send me the weird thing you noticed on your street. Post the photo. Drop a question in the Forum. Tell me what you’re hearing. Or just come say hi.

The whole point of this is to make Heights news easier to find, easier to follow and more connected to the people who actually live here.❤️