LEADER LISTING The Leader • Saturday, June 22, 2019 • Page 1B
MANNA resale shop opens after long hiatus By Betsy Denson betsy@theleadernews.com It has been a long road for Ministry Assistance of the Near Northwest Alliance (MANNA) to reopen its resale shop after an arsonist destroyed it in September 2017. Now, after some detours, the shop has opened at a new location in the White Oak Bayou Village Shopping Center at 6760 Antoine Dr. MANNA executive director Nia Amuzie said the space in the plaza was formerly occupied by the nonprofit Love146, an organization that works toward the abolition of child trafficking and exploitation and funded its efforts with its own resale store called Reimagine. Because the group was looking to relocate back to Connecticut, MANNA acquired the rest of its lease and much of its inventory. The new space is 4,800 square feet and offers housewares, clothing, jewelry, shoes, toys, books and more. Amuzie said many people from the area stopped in during the last two weeks while MANNA volunteers were cleaning and preparing to open. And on the first day of business, people unfamiliar
Photo from Facebook
Nia Amuzie, the executive director for MANNA, showcases the organization’s new resale shop on Antoine Drive.
with MANNA and its mission were some of its first customers. “We had a lot of walk-ins,� Amuzie said.
Originally, MANNA had signed a five-year lease at 3425 Couch St., which used to house Paws Pet Resort. Amuzie said MANNA is using
that location for storage and hopes to use it as a furniture store at some point. Amuzie said the reason for the resale location change
was due to permitting issues. “The city requires 25 parking spaces for a retail shop, but the location only has 12,� Amuzie said.
This week marks one year since Bill Baldwin officially kicked off the Your Houston Political Action Committee (PAC). Many viewed the 2018 launch as Baldwin’s test of the waters for a 2019 run straight for City Hall, which he vehemently denied, claiming that the General Purpose PAC was not a campaign for public office. Instead, he asserted it was a vehicle for political education and advocacy that he could deploy on behalf of Houstonians while remaining focused on the growth of his real estate firm and portfolio of City causes as a full-time volunteer. Time would substantiate his claim, as when the candidacy announcements began to roll in this spring, he remained conspicuously absent, expressing his fullfledged support of Mayor Sylvester Turner’s bid for reelection and continued laser focus on Boulevard Realty, which has experienced record growth so far in 2019. “I am still asked on a daily basis, ‘When are you running for Mayor?’,� proclaims Baldwin, “The truth is that for right now the PAC has given me an incredible opportunity to make a difference for the widest number of Houstonians, focusing on quality of life, while continuing to make an impact in the private sector. Why would I give that up?� While it’s with the Turner Administration that he’s reached his highest official City position to date (as the Mayor’s very first appointment to the Planning Commission), Baldwin is no stranger to elected office. He ran for and won a seat on the Huntsville ISD School Board at 19 and remains among the youngest Texans to ever hold any elected office. When he took root in Houston in the 1990s, it wasn’t long be-
Submitted photo Boulevard Realty’s Bill Baldwin, left, poses with Texas State Rep. Jessica Farrar, center, and Your Houston PAC’s Mario Castillo.
fore he became known as the unofficial endorsement to seek for both the long influential Heights neighborhoods and a growing progressive segment of the real estate community. TREPAC, the PAC representing that community is among the most influential in the state and the Heights broker makes no secret that they’re often at odds. That, coupled with the fact that there were plenty of nonprofits and academic groups working to improve Houston’s quality of life, but with no political power behind them, is what motivated Baldwin to form Your Houston PAC. One year in, the PAC functions with a diverse, non-partisan Board of Directors (of which Baldwin is the Chair) consisting of local policy experts for direct advocacy and thought leadership in the areas of the arts, education, elections, health & wellness, housing, mobility & transportation, neighborhoods, parks & greenspace, and resilience, along with experienced Executive Director Mario Castillo.
“In all of my time working in politics and government, I have never met someone with such a high command of the issues and perspective as Bill,� explains Castillo. “His ability to balance priorities in what seems like a really no-nonsense way is what I believe has drawn in so many supporters and engaged members so far.� It has already been a busy year for the PAC. That includes the marathon 11 hours that Baldwin and Castillo spent at the State Capitol in April waiting to testify on a proposed bill to disclose a history of flooding to tenants, which ultimately failed to gain enough traction. “It doesn’t mean that it wasn’t a very worthy cause,� expresses Baldwin without defeat. “Which is why I’ll keep working until something like it passes.� Candidate screenings and education are well underway too, with Baldwin presenting weekly classes to educate Houstonians, candidates, and even current elected officials on flooding and flood resil-
ience and the city’s vast code of ordinances, many of which the PAC Board believes are out of date for a world-class 21st century city. Meanwhile, Castillo tackles other PAC priorities behind the scenes such as affordable housing through the Houston Land Bank. The rest of the Board is organized into work groups focusing on one or a small number of the organization’s key issues and is diligently working on white papers to educate all Houstonians and the current class of political hopefuls either for new office or reelection. The first papers to come out this summer will be on electric vehicle charging stations and other mobility causes like Vision Zero aiming for the elimination of all traffic fatalities and serious injuries. As with all things in Baldwin’s life, the work of the PAC revolves around his full-time calling as Broker-Owner of Boulevard Realty. In fact, Castillo offices right in Boulevard’s new office at 927 Studewood, where the Board and workgroups also meet. Baldwin relishes the opportunity to be so involved in the day-to-day operations of both Boulevard and the PAC. “We just moved into a brand new, state-of-the-art building and are on pace for our biggest year of sales ever here at Boulevard. This is something I couldn’t have even imagined when I acquired the firm 11 years ago,� Baldwin muses. “To be able to remain fully invested in Boulevard, all while having the increased impact that we are with the PAC, I’m very grateful. I’m right where I want to be.� This article is part of the Leader Experts series, where companies pay for editorial space on topics important to the community. If you’d like to be a Leader Expert, contact us at (713) 686-8494.
Real Estate Roundup.
Demolition permit denied for Yale houses By Betsy Denson betsy@theleadernews.com At a June 13 hearing, the Houston Archaeological and Historical Commission denied the Certificate of Appropriateness application for the demolition of three homes at 1235, 1239 and 1243 Yale St. The application was brought to the board by Rainey Richardson, who wanted to build singlefamily homes on the site on behalf of owner Virginia An-
germiller. A site visit by the city inspector to the homes was completed June 3, according to a report on the Houston Preservation Tracker website. A report about the homes said “based on the appraisals, inspection report, and condition photos, as well as the estimate for repairs, the (homes) had not deteriorated to an unstable state and were not beyond reSee Roundup P. 3B
Photo from Facebook The proposed demolition of this home on Yale Street was denied.
Local business is our business. Send your story of interest news@theleadernews.com
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Baldwin celebrates one year of education and advocacy through PAC By Boulevard Realty
Amuzie said there were other structural changes that would have been required by the city. She said the rules were less strict for a furniture store, although MANNA is still in negotiation with the city about requirements for a sidewalk addition. An added benefit of the While Oak location is its proximity to the MANNA food pantry, which opened across the street in January. “We are serving 800 to 900 people a month,� said Amuzie, whose organization gets food from the Houston Food Bank and Kroger. “People are excited that it’s not just canned food. It’s fresh vegetables, too.� Those wanting to donate goods to the resale shop can drop off at the Antoine location. For furniture or pick-up requests, donors should email houstonmanna@gmail. com. “We’re continuing to get the word out,� Amuzie said. Typical store hours will be Monday through Friday from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. and Saturday from 9 a.m.-5 p.m.
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In Memoriam Earl Philip Bruce, Jr. was born March 17, 1925 in Weatherford, Texas. He proudly served in the Navy during World War II in the Pacific. Earl Bruce was a Shepherd Forest resident since 1962 and worked at the Kroger Company in refrigeration for 38 years. He loved to fish, bowl, was an ace on the dance floor, a green thumb in the garden, always had a joke to share and an invitation to “the party�. “Daddy�, “Dad�, “Popo� was loved by his 3 children, 10 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren. He passed away peacefully in his home on May 17, 2019. A celebration of his life will be hosted by the family on July 6, 2019.
Page 2B • Saturday, June 22, 2019 • The Leader
Monthly Market Update.
Area housing market shows growth in May By Landan Kuhlmann landan@theleadernews.com A majority of markets showed substantial sales growth both locally and relative to the Greater Houston area in May, while year-overyear prices showcased fluctuating trends according to the latest report from the Houston Association of Realtors (HAR). Year-over-year sales in local markets rose by as much as 84 percent (western Garden Oaks/Oak Forest), and dipped as low as a 7.1 percent downturn (Greater Inwood/Acres Homes). Sales of single-family homes in Houston increased 2.8 percent in May, according to the latest monthly report, with 8,346 homes sold compared to 8,117 in May 2018. On a year-to-date basis, home sales are running 2.7 percent ahead of 2018’s record pace in Houston, while local markets matched – and often outstripped – Greater Houston trends. The prices of a singlefamily home reached historic highs in May. The median price (the figure at which half of the homes sold for more and half sold for less) rose 2.4 percent to $249,993 and the average price climbed 5.8 percent to $323,023. “We are seeing signs of a healthy and sustainable housing market throughout greater Houston, and that is due to a more plentiful supply of homes, continued low interest rates and a strong local economy,” said HAR Chair Shannon Cobb Evans with Heritage Texas Properties. For the full report, visit har.com. 77018 In Garden Oaks and Oak Forest, year-over-year home sales were up 5.6 percent last month, with 57 homes coming off the market as opposed
to 54 the previous year. However, on a year-to-date basis, the sales market is lagging 1.9 percent behind its 2018 pace – the only local area to experience such a trend. Home prices here also dropped on both fronts, one of two markets to do so. The average consumer paid $503,319 for a home in May, down 1.8 percent. Meanwhile, median prices dropped exactly 2 percent, down to $408,000. 77092 On the western edge of Garden Oaks/Oak Forest and extending slightly west of Highway 290, it was a banner month. Home sales jumped 84.2 percent, with 35 sales closing as opposed to just 19 the previous May. Year-todate, this area has also been the biggest riser – 123 homes came off the market compared to 89 last May. The 38.2 percent spike was the secondlargest in area markets. However, the area also experienced dipping prices last month. The average price of $284,990 represented a 4.7 percent drop from this time last year, while median prices for homes here dropped 6.7 percent down to $270,500. 77091 The zip code including Greater Inwood and Acres Homes was the only area market to see a year-overyear drop in home sales. Its 13 homes sold was only marginally down from the 14 sold the previous May – a 7.1 percent downturn. Despite that, the market remains 64.1 percent ahead of its 2018 pace. To date, 64 homes have been sold this year, compared to 39 during the same period last year. Average home prices here remained relatively flat, but did rise slightly (1.8 percent) to $227,130, while median home prices were up 6.5 percent to $229,000.
77008 Down in the Heights, homes sales were flat last month, with the 109 homes sold matching last year’s May total. Year-to-date, the Heights remains 4.1 percent ahead of last year’s pace despite the stagnant month, with 406 homes sold thus far in 2019 compared to 390 during the same time last year. Average price of a home in the Heights rose 6.5 percent (up to $566,852) this past May, while median price for a home was up more than 4 percent to $484,903. 77009 The zip code including Woodland Heights and Sunset Heights showed slight growth in home sales last month, with 65 sales closing – representing a 3.2 percent yearover-year rise from the previous May. Meanwhile, the area also sits 2.7 percent ahead of last year’s end-of-May pace, with 228 homes having been sold compared to 222 during the same period in 2018. Additionally, this was one of three local markets to experience declining home prices. The average buyer paid $495,703 for a home in May 2019, 4.3 percent yearover-year drop from $518,115 last year. Median home price came in at $418,000, a 5.5 percent dip from last May’s mark of $442,170. 77007 In Washington Heights/ Rice Military, 85 homes came off the market last month compared 78 the previous May. That 9 percent spike was the second-largest among local markets. Year-to-date sales have also been strong here, with the 330 homes sold putting them 24.1 percent ahead of last year’s pace. Average home prices in this market remained largely stagnant (up 0.2 percent) while coming in at $551,156, and median price rose 2.3 percent to $462,000.
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The Leader • Saturday, June 22, 2019 • Page 3B
Roundup from P. 1B
Photo from Facebook Mayweather Boxing + Fitness will open a location at the Shepherd Row development.
pair.” In addition, the HAHC said the owner inherited the properties but had not done anything to mitigate the current state of the homes, which had deteriorated due to the neglect of the previous owner. The report noted that a majority of the reported structural issues would be addressed during any proposed renovation and that termite infestation is treatable. The HAHC also noted that as a designated historic property, the homes qualify for city historic tax exemptions, discounted permit fees, exemptions from energy code compliance and reduced parking requirements – and that no investigation of how these incentives might be used to alleviate renovation costs had been made. The report also said there has been no inquiry into the possible reuse of the property for commercial use as has been done with other properties on Yale. “At the very least, the applicant should take immediate action to halt and prevent fur-
ther deterioration from neglect by the previous owner and vandalism,” stated the report. New 12-story apartments coming to Heights The Houston Chronicle reported that a 12-story apartment building at the corner of West 20th Street and Nicholson Street is being planned for the Heights. The project, across from Heights Waterworks, will have 152 one- and two-bedroom units ranging from 850 to 1,900 square feet. Greystar, the developer, recently began construction on an 11-story apartment building near Memorial Park. The developer already has the HiLine Heights Apartments at 145 Heights Blvd. New tenants at 33 1/3 Chris Hotze of Crescere Capital Management said two new tenants have signed on at the 33 1/3 development. Primp & Blow Salon is a blow dry bar with locations in West University and Baybrook. Its website says Primp
& Blow stylists wash, blow dry and style hair, but don’t cut or color it. Luce Avenue Coffee is the other new tenant. Luce is a specialty coffee roastery and cafe with another location on Richmond Avenue. Two fitness tenants for Braun developments Zach Wolf with Braun Enterprises said the developer has signed Mayweather Boxing + Fitness as a new tenant at its Shepherd Row development. Mayweather Boxing + Fitness was started by boxer Floyd Mayweather and in addition to boxing, the facility offers group fitness and functional training. Braun also has signed F45 Training at 2001 W. 34th St. F45 is a team-based workout in which no program is ever repeated, according to its marketing materials. The “45” comes from the 45-minute workout that offers high-speed functional exercises using multiple muscle groups.
Page 4B • Saturday, June 22, 2019 • The Leader
Neighbors: Sinclair’s Bayol receives achievement award ODC, one team was formed from both TSA and ODC players. Maddux said, “Daniel coordinated to play some games against TSA – and these were some super competitive games. We also played some in-season games against Heights/Norhill’s Pony league as well. At some point, we started talking about all-stars
By Elizabeth Villarreal elizasgarden@outlook.com Congratulations to Chloe Bayol, who became the 20th recipient of the Nell Baham Achievement Award at the fifth-grade promotion at Sinclair Elementary School on May 30. Chloe is the daughter of Christine Bayol and Domenico Catalano and was a student in Barbara Smith’s class. She was selected to receive this award based on her overall achievement. Chloe is an honor roll student, exhibits good citizenship traits and her teachers speak of her overall actions as outstanding. Students who receive this prestigious award must exhibit good citizenship traits, excel in academics and make worthy contributions to Sinclair and within the community. Chloe has done just that and has attended Sinclair since kindergarten. She will continue her education at Lanier Middle School in the fall. Nell Baham, a retired educator and our neighbor in Shepherd Forest, is pleased that this award, established in 1999 in her honor by thenPTA president Jill Hlavinka, is still a hallmark of achievement at Sinclair. It was established to recognize Baham’s dedication to the education of children for more than three decades. She taught at Sinclair for more than half that time. Baham received the 2008 Leader of the Year award, which is given by The Leader to someone in the community who makes a difference in the lives of others. She retired from the University of Houston in 2017 and continues to be involved in and dedicated to education, giving her time and talent volunteering in neighborhood schools and tutoring. Many of her UH students are now teachers in our neighborhood schools. Baham is an active member of St. Matthew’s United Methodist Church and makes many contributions to community service. She considers the Nell Baham Achievement Award a great honor and ranks it at the top of the list of the many awards she has received during her 60 years as an educator. Baham was the guest speaker at Sinclair’s promotion ceremony and presented the award to Chloe. Lee Mashburn, a former student of Baham’s, is the principal at Sinclair. For decades, area families have had two excellent choices regarding where their children have their first Little League Tee ball, baseball and softball experience. Timbergrove Sports Association and Oaks Dads Club both serve area youth and are chock full of volunteers determined to create safe, fun and competitive recreational opportunities for our community’s children and to teach valuable life skills such as teamwork, sportsmanship and skill development. This spring, Timbergrove Sports Association’s Mike Maddux (division director of 8U Softball, division director of Pony baseball and this spring, he was the coach for four teams, including the Pony Indians) and Oaks Dads Club’s Daniel De Los Santos (president of the baseball board
season and a plan. De Los Santos said, “We felt we were missing out on a lot of kids – and we wanted to bring more 13–15 year-old ballplayers back to the Pony field. We had this brilliant plan. We had the same idea. We didn’t care who they played for as long as they were willing to play and learn. If we can keep these kids away from things they shouldn’t be doing, help build them up, give them positive reinforcement and confidence within themselves, and hopefully help them make their high
the three Leagues - and what a game it was! Two all-star teams, full of teens who have played together on their Little League, middle and high school teams and some of whom have played together since they were in Tee ball, played their hearts out at the ODC Pony Field.
OUR VETERANS
Photo supplied Chloe Bayol, who became the 20th recipient of the Nell Baham Achievement Award
this last year as well as coach of the Pony Astros and coach of a minor league team this spring) were inspired. Both had noticed the numbers of players are shrinking at the Pony level, ages 13-15, and want to draw more young men into the community’s Pony leagues. At this age, boys are playing for traveling and select teams, their middle and high school teams and also exploring other extracurricular activities, and don’t always come back to their community’s Little League fields.
and mixing the teams. These two leagues came together so well – players, parents and coaches. The players had a blast and so did we.” The all-star exhibition game was played June 15 – the ODC/TSA team against the Heights/Norhill team drawn from its three Pony teams – a real collaboration between
The Heights, Garden Oaks, Oak Forest and North Houston
A Pictorial Book Coming This Fall The Leader is seeking photos of those e in our area who have served in our nation’s armed forces. These photos will be compiled into a handsome, fulll color hardback book to be published later this year. We are seeking all types of photos (headshots and snapshots) and military documents like maps, letters, draft cards, etc. For snapshots, we need a caption describing what is happening, where the photo was taken, and who is in it.
For headshots, we need: Name Branch of Service Dates served Rank Job (like Rifleman or Pilot) Where they served Accommodations (medals)
Photo supplied Timbergrove Sports Association’s Mike Maddux and and Oaks Dads Club’s Daniel De Los Santos are seeking more kids for Pony leagues
For years ODC and TSA have rotated back and forth – one always had more Pony league teams than the other. At this age group they’ve been dependent on each other to have someone else to play and these two leagues have been playing each other for years. For example, this spring there were enough boys registered to make up one Pony team at ODC: the Cardinals, who were coached by Joe Arguijo and Jason Holcombe. However, after the sign-up deadline, all of a sudden there were enough boys to create a second team, but no coaches available. De Los Santos and Rocky Castillo, both already committed to coaching younger teams, stepped up to coach the second ODC Pony team, the Astros, so the boys could play. De Los Santos said, “We decided we couldn’t tell these kids they can’t play.” Maddux added, “There are so many kids who are missing out on Pony league ball.” TSA’s Maddux and ODC’s De Los Santos both have a common denominator: “Let’s do this for the kids.” With two Pony teams out of ODC, one Pony team out of TSA and three Pony teams out of Heights/Norhill, they had a
school teams when they go to high school, that was it. Mike and I had the same passion. And of course, Rocky, Joe and Jason as well. We don’t need to have a relative or son on that team in order to coach and help build good character traits. At the end of the day, I think it helped me more than it helped them.” Once the spring season ended, the all-star team was formed and for the first time in anyone’s memory at TSA and
Deadline for photo submission is July 31. To send photos you can email them to: veterans@theleadernews.com or bring them to our office at 2020 North Loop West, Suite 220. Ask for Zarah or Lucy. You may also call 713-686-8494 for more information.
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