Intown march 2014 low

intown Ma rc h / April 2014

Gator Dynasty

intown 2

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CONTENTS 5

Editorial 10 - 11

An interview with

Larry Dierker

28-30

12

The Buzz

10-11

13- 22

Intown’s Real Estate 23

The Buzz

13-22 intown

26 - 27

Can you stop investing when you retire?

Mar c h / Apr i l 2 0 1 4

Gator Dynasty

On cover

28 - 30

GATOR DYNASTY

Mike Kuykendahl Tejas Custom Boots, born on the bayou

intown www.houstonintown.com MARCH/APRIL 2014

PUBLISHER M.A. Haines EDITOR Lisa June

Born on the bayou

PRODUCTION Web Design: Melaroo Layout & Graphic Design: Cristian Paris Photographer: Wells Brown

CONTRIBUTORS Lindsay Mowad Buddy Bailey William Hanover John Granato Sean Pendergast Nicholas Chiosa Evelyn Hurtado

For advertising rates and information: 713.525.8607 intownmagazine@gmail.com Space reservation deadline is 15 days prior to publication.

Intown Magazine is published bi-monthly by SNS Media. Articles are welcome and will be given careful consideration for possible publication. Intown Magazine des not assume any responsibility for unsolicited materials.

Materials submitted will be returned if accompanied by a stamped, self-addressed envelope. Box 980757 Houston, TX 77098.

You can also e-mail intownmagazine@gmail.com Copyright 2014 by Intown Magazine. All rights reserved. Content may not be reprinted or reproduced with permission from Intown magazine.

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EDITORIAL Boomtown, USA

H

ouston is rapidly changing its appearance and affordability as our housing needs evolve. The communities that we review in this issue and that are considered to be “intown” have undergone the greatest transfor-

mation and appreciation this past year. According to the Institute for Luxury Home Marketing, the bottom of the top 10% of Houston’s market has moved up for 2014 from $500,000 to $600,000. We are experiencing a feeding frenzy where buyers are clamoring over each other to purchase the better properties – many paying above list price after a bidding war, even when the list price is above recent market pricing. This has caused inventories to reach a historic low of only 2.6 months, according to the Houston Association of Realtors (HAR).

After all the numbers were in for 2013, HAR reported: “Surging home sales throughout Greater Houston were largely driven by the addition of more than 86,000 jobs that drew buyers and renters from all around the country and the world. December marked the 31st straight month of positive home sales and housing inventory shrunk to new record lows.” The single-family home average price rose 10.3% year-over-year to $265,017 while the median price rose 10.9% to $188,500.

It’s a great time to be a seller in Houston, and a great time to be a realtor.

by David Michael Young, REALTOR, CLHMS, CNE, GREEN Vice President of the Greater Houston Luxury Home Connection

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MAJOR EVENTS CALENDAR Mardi Gras Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo Azalea Trail by River Oaks Garden Club Miley Cyrus Bangerz Tour Spring Break Cher Dressed To Kill Tour Bayou City Art Festival Opening Day Minute Maid Park Astros vs Yankees Shell Houston Open Easter Sunday

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4 March 4-23 March 7-9 March 16 March 17-21 March 20 March 28-30 March 1 April 3-6 April 20 April

OPENING DAY

New York Yankees captain, Derek Jeter returns for his last series to be played in Houston's Minute Maid Park.

Arts

George S. Zimbel, Marilyn Monroe and Billy Wilder, “The Seven Year Itch,” New York, 1954, gelatin silver print, printed 1993, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Museum purchase funded by Jonathan and Cynthia King. © George S. Zimbel

Geoff Winningham, Lamé Pants, from the series Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, 1973, gelatin silver print, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, gift of Texas Monthly and the artist. © Geoff Winningham

Made for Magazines:

Iconic 20th Century Photographs Museums Museum Of Fine Arts Houston Roads of Arabia: Archaeology and History of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Ongoing through March 9 The Age of Impressionism: Great French Paintings from the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute Ongoing - March 23 Jan Banning : Bureaucratics Ongoing through March 23 Pattern Repeat: Wallpaper Then and Now Ongoing through March 23 Eye on Houston: High School Documentary Photography Ongoing through April 20

Made for Magazines: Iconic 20th Century Photographs Ongoing through May 4 Georges Braque: A Retrospective Opens Ongoing through May 11 Beyond Craft: Decorative Arts from the Leatrice S. and Melvin B. Eagle Collection Ongoing through May 26 Arts of Islamic Lands: Selections from The al-Sabah Collection, Kuwait Ongoing through August 31 John Singer Sargent: The Watercolors Opens March 2 through May 26 Contemporary Arts Museum Houston ART ON THE LAWN: JOSEPH HAVEL Ongoing – April 30, 2014

OUTSIDE THE LINES Ongoing – March 23, 2014 Melanie Smith March 22 through June 15 Trenton Doyle Hancock: Skin & Bones, 20 years of Drawing - April 26 - July 20 Holocaust Museum Houston “The Wartime Escape: Margret and H. A. Rey’s Journey from France” Ongoing through June 15 “The Rescuers:Picturing Moral Courage March 28 through August 31 The Menil Collection Lee Bontecou: Drawn Worlds Ongoing through May 11

Magritte: The Mystery of the Ordinary 1926 - 1930 Ongoing through June 1 Memories of a Voyage: The Late Work of Houston Museum Of Natural Science From The Stone Age: The Cave Paintings Of Lascaux - Ongoing – March 23, 2014 Magna Carta Ongoing through August 17 Music Houston Symphony Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody - March 1 - 2 Tchaikovsky’s Serenade - March 6 - 9 Vivaldi’s Four Seasons - March 14 - 15 Beethoven’s Mass March 22 - 23 100 years of Broadway - March 25 - 30

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Tchaikovsky’s Romeo and Juliet April 10- 13 Bronfman Plays Beethoven - April 18 - 19

Championship March 23 RodeoHouston Super Shootout North America’s Championship

Chris Botti - April 25 - 27

Sports Houston Astros Minute Maid Park April 1-3 Yankees April 4-7 Angels April 15-17 Royals April 24-27 Athletics April 29-30 Nationals

Theater A. D. Players Theater The Diary of Anne Frank - Ongoing through March 9 The Magician’s Nephew - March 18 through April 5 Alley Theater Other Desert Cities Preview January 10 Opens January 15 through February 2 Freud’s Last Session Previews January 24 Opens January 29 through February 23 Main Street Theater Macbeth Ongoing through March 9 Time Stands Still March 27 through April 19 Broadway Across America American Idiot March 21 through 23 The Hobby Center For Performing Arts Wind Sync March 7 Time In Motion March 22 A Legend: Sai Jin Hua - April 12

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Blake Shelton

The Music Box Theater Natalie Weiss - April 4 - 5 “I Love You,You’re Perfect, Now Change Houston Ballet Aladdin - March 1- 2 Young Person’s Guide To The Orchestra March 6 through 16 Houston Ballet’s Ben Stevenson Academy April 25 - 26 Events Reliant Park/Reliant Stadium Rodeo Entertainers March 4 - Brad Paisley March 5 - Eli Young Band March 6 - Reba

Selena Gomez

March 7 - Usher March 8 - Chris Young March 9 - Gomez March 10 - REO Speedwagon March 11 - Jason Aldean March 12 - Jake Owen March 13 - Maroon 5 March 14 - Keith Urban March 15 - Hunter Hayes March 16 - Pesado March 16 - Banda MS March 17 - Luke Bryan March 18 - Robin Thicke March 19 - Florida Georgia Line March 20 - Blake Shelton March 21 - Easton Corbin March 22 - The Band Perry March 23 - Zac Brown Band March 22 RodeoHouston BP Super Series

Houston Dynamo BBVA Compass Stadium March 8 New England Revolution March 15 Montreal Impact April 5 FC Dallas April 27 Portland Timber Houston Rockets Home games - Toyota Center Mar. 1 - Detroit Mar. 4 - Miami Mar. 7 - Indiana Mar. 9 - Portland Mar. 17 - Utah Mar. 20 - Minnesota Mar. 27 - Philadelphia Mar. 29 - Los Angeles Apr. 4 - Oklahoma City Apr. 6 - Denver Apr. 12 - New Orleans Apr. 14 - San Antonio

Travel

Beijing or Bust Longing for a trip to view the centuries old opulent temples and palaces of a land far away, you are in luck.

of the United States,” Dr. Zhihang Chi, Air China’s Vice President for North America, stated.

China’s exclusive national flag carrier, Air China will begin daily service to Beijing on March 30.

Air China’s offers first, business and economy seats. First and business class cabins feature 180-degree flat-bed seats.

All cabins have individual entertainment system with audio-video-on-demand and in-seat USB port.

“This flight connects two of the most dynamic cities found anywhere in the world and the arrival of daily service will make that connection even stronger moving forward,” said Houston Mayor Annise Parker.

Air China is the world’s largest airline by market capitalization and operates a fleet of 461 Airbus and Boeing aircraft throughout Asia, the Middle East, “Strong demand from business Europe, South and North America and leisure travelers to China and from its main hub in Beijing. A Star destinations in Asia has accelerated the Alliance member, Air China has 1,329 implementation of our growth strategy destinations in 194 countries. Visit for Houston and the south central region www.airchina.us

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Dr. Randy Mitchmore, Owner of LifeS miles at 1722 W. Alabama, with Charlie Norris, President of Trad ition Bank ’s Plaza Banking Center.

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713-666-2511 TraditionBank.com

The Game

AN INTERVIEW with

LARRY DIERKER Astros legendary pitcher, manager, broadcaster and author weighs in on his former team

By John Granato

1560: Do you find people asking questions about moves that the Astros make?

Larry: No, I think people understand what the Astros are doing. I think trading for Dexter Fowler was a good move.

I liked Jordan Lyles and I think he was “recoverable.” I wish I could have spoken with him but it just didn’t look like he was making any great strides over the last few years. Fowler has well above average power and speed.

Hopefully, he plays as well for us as he did against us.

These are the kind of guys we’re looking for, but once you get them, you have to wait a couple of years for them to become established in the league.

1560: What would you have said to Jordan Lyles?

Larry: I would’ve told him that he threw the ball well enough and it’s not that hard. “You look like you’re struggling out there and that almost every single out is almost impossible to get. Throw it in there and let them make an out.” That’s what batters do 60% of the time.

It’s not as hard as some make it. Just relax and hit your spots. If your offense scores runs, you win. If not, you can’t control that.

1560: Some people are concerned that bringing in Fowler may retard the growth of George Springer.

Larry: It’s a very tough call and I know the team took heat for not bringing him up from the minors last year.

It’s no secret that contract arbitration plays a role in when intown 10

guys get brought up. From the team standpoint, that is a sensible move.

Sometimes there is a benefit in showing fans that there may be something exciting coming down the line. If he gets called up to the majors and has the same kind of success as his move from AA to AAA, it may cause a buzz with the fans. You don’t want to hold

movement on their fastballs. Just watching the pitching in the postseason last year gave me a pretty clear understanding of the challenge we have in Houston to get back into that company of teams.

Listen to John Granato and Sean Salisbury weekdays 3-7pm on 1560 AM, flagship home of Yahoo! Sports Radio.

him down too long. I don’t think adding

Dierker pitched his first game for the Astros on his 18th birthday

another centerfielder would be a conflict because they could also use a corner outfielder with centerfielder speed.

1560: How would you assess the organization’s pitchers, not just at the major league level, but as a whole?

Larry: I think it’s a mess right now. The biggest challenge is identifying which guys are the starters of the future and which guys will be relief pitchers. At times, they had 6 starters last year so I haven’t seen clarity in which guys are starters and relievers. The delineation usually is “relievers” are guys that have two outstanding pitches that can’t seem to come up with an off-speed pitch (or something similar). “Starters” are the guys that are a little bit better at changing speeds which allows them to face the same batter multiple times in a game, but still give the hitter a different “look” each time. A guy like Billy Wagner had great stuff but, as a starter, would tire by the sixth inning, and was hittable. When you put him in there for an inning or two, no one could hit his stuff.

1560: It looks like this team could eventually have a good foundation of “big” arms.

Larry: Of the teams that were good enough to get into the playoffs last year, almost all of them had “power” arms in the rotation and at the end of the bullpen.

The pitchers that didn’t have power arms had good off-speed stuff and good

This sunday 11-3 p.m. $35 Five-course brunch menu available, plus a-lacarte Featuring musicians Kim Prevost & Bill Solley

The

BUZZ

By Lindsay Mowad

Adam and Rosie Nightingale, Grace and Rocky Holmes Gail and Willie Wood, Julia Wood

Frank and Carolyn Grese, Jan Carson and Tim Connolly

Dr. Aashish Shah and Roseann Rogers

Emcee Deborah Duncan David Cordúa and Sylia Gallegos, Lucia and Michael Cordúa

HEART BALL BY LEXUS RAISES $1.1 MILLION FOR AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION

Terrance and Diedra Fontaine, Michael and Ileana Trevino

More than 580 business leaders, professionals, philanthropists, and other community members gathered at the Hobby Center for Performing Arts to raise over $1 million in funds to fight heart disease and stroke. The annual fundraising gala, chaired this year by Frank and Carolyn Grese of Group One Automotive, recognized community, corporate and medical honorees including: Jan Carson and Tim Connolly (Community), Marathon Oil Corporation (Corporate) and Dr. Igor Gregoric (Medical). Following the event, the American Heart Association’s Young at Heart young professionals group –chaired by the fashionable trio of Lauren Baughman, Ali Gray and Elizabeth Suffield – danced the night away in Artista with a live performance by Jimmie Vaughan and the Tilt-a-Whirl Band.

Anita and Gerald Smith

PHOTOS: Alexander’s Fine Portrait Design

Doug and Brooke Coughlan Medical Honoree, Dr. Igor Gregoric Lauren Baughman, Ali Gray and Elizabeth Suffield

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Marathon Oil Corporation CEO Lee and Ty Tillman

Intown's Real Estate Focus includes Bellaire, Memorial, Montrose/Museum District, River Oaks/Upper Kirby, Tanglewood, Washington Corridor/West End and West University.

Cheri Fama President and Chief Operating Officer John Daugherty Realtors

W

hat are the driving forces behind the buying frenzy and the run up in prices over the last year or so?

People are positive about the economy in Houston. There are huge cranes on construction sites everywhere building amazing things that are changing the profile of our city. The buying frenzy was here in 2013 but there is much less inventory on the market so the frenzy has escalated. In some cases this is causing multiple offers and a sales price that is higher than the list price.

Is it realistic to believe this trend will continue and if so for how long?

We have listened to numerous economic forecasts and presentations since the beginning of the year and they have indicated that the current conditions may continue for the next 5 years or longer. Of course, no one has a crystal ball but the outlook is positive.

What are some of the hottest or most sought after areas in Houston?

Believe it or not... some of the areas that have not been considered “hot” for many years are booming as older areas are being redeveloped with new housing and retail. The entire inner city has incredible demand in the well established upper end neighborhoods as well as the diverse older neighborhoods. The demand in all of the suburban areas is also staggering with all of the current expansion of many businesses and the relocation of corporate headquarters to the thriving suburbs.

What effect has the Internet had on the residential brokerage business?

I love listening to John Daugherty as he talks about the fear of the internet when it first debuted. All of us were concerned about how it would affect our business but there is no doubt that we all concur that it has been one of the best things to happen for real estate professionals and our buyers and sellers.

Everyone is more informed and things are more transparent.

What role does the relocation business play in your overall strategy?

Our firm had a strong focus on relocation with the establishment of a corporate relocation department in the 70’s. This focus expanded as we joined forces with Leading Real Estate Companies of the World, the largest network of independently owned brokerages.

Our focus now includes Corporate Relocation, Broker to Broker relocation for relocating individuals and families . We are involved in new business development of this type on a daily basis.

What trends do you see in rental properties and future development overall?

The frenzy in the rental market is just as wild as the “for

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sale” market. The professionals in our leasing department are pounding the pavement as fiercely as our sales professionals.

The inventory is extremely limited and the prices are edging up. There are thousands of new apartments currently under construction and units will be coming to the market in stages but be prepared... prices are rising.

One of your favorite charities is Dress For Success Houston. What can you tell us about your involvement with that organization?

I am so proud to officially be associated with Dress for Success as an Advisory Board member. I have personally promoted this organization for over a decade as they have grown in their amazing efforts to change the lives of many women. There are so many high profile corporations that have recognized the importance of Dress for Success to our community and they are investing significant funds and volunteer hours to the cause. Our company has jumped in this year to promote “Send a Suit” week to our fellow real estate professionals as well as many of our clients.

What advice would you give to young people wanting to get involved in real estate?

Real Estate is a great career for young people but they need to enter the field with a great deal of patience. Success does not happen overnight.

Many people think it is a cool job because you make your own hours etc. Trust me, there will not be success if you do not “suit up and show up” like a regular job every day. You must learn the business slowly and steadily and success will come. Make sure you commit yourself to constant training and learning and realize that your company is making an investment in you to contribute to your success and you must commit to do the same, I could actually sound like a broken record when talking about this.

As a long time Houstonian, what advice as a sports fan would you give the Texans on the upcoming NFL draft?

Houstonians love our sports teams and we are fortunate to have the Texans. I am a bit partial to college football as I graduated from Texas A&M and the Aggies have been really exciting over the last few years. Our daughter is at Baylor and it has been exciting to watch the Bears also.

I am not sure how everyone else feels but I will be just fine if the Texans add “Johnny Football” to their roster.

intown REAL ESTATE Bellaire Founded in the early 1900’s on what was originally William Marsh Rice’s (Rice University founder) ranch, Bellaire was originally an agricultural trading center. It soon became a residential area and was connected to Main Street in Downtown by a trolley.

The Bellaire High School baseball team has seven Texas high School Baseball Championships to their credit. Major League players Jose Cruz, Bubba Crosby and Chris Young were all Cardinal graduates.

This now highly populated residential area just south of the Galleria and west of the Medical Center, has four parks and is made up of the neighborhoods of Bellaire Place, Bellaire Oaks, Pin Oak Estates, Mulberry Manor, Southdale and Westmoreland Farms to name a few. There are three private schools and the public schools are in the Houston Independent School District. Bellaire’s government is made up of a mayor and six city council members.

The population is around 20,000 and over 60% of their residents are married with children living at home.

The average age of the population is a 29. The average home is 41 years old, but with all of the new construction being built that number is rapidly decreasing. The average home price was valued at $232,900 for 2012, according to the Houston Association of Realtors. They also show 72 properties available in 77401 as of our press deadline and 32 were listed for more than a million asking price, so that average property price is sure to rise.

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intown REAL ESTATE The Heights The Heights is home to many of Houston’s oldest homes built in the 1800’s. Many have been torn down, but some of the architecture from that century can still be seen in the new houses being built. The Heights officially began in 1892 with a streetcar

This property is located at 5713 Arabelle Ct and islisted at by Janice Murphy with Martha Turner/ Sotheby’s Realty at 559,000

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linking it to downtown Houston. In 1917 the Heights was annexed by the City of Houston.

The Heights is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and boasts over 100 structures on their list. Many of the Houston’s historic districts are there including the Houston Heights South, East and West Historic Districts.

On the har.com website there is a tool to help locate these districts.

The Houston Heights Association was formed in the seventies and created the Lights in the Heights annual celebration along with a permanent Victorian rose garden. The Heights has been arguably the most active and sought out markets for homebuyers and builders.

Consequently, prices have increased dramatically in the last few years.

Memorial Area The Memorial area has 3 distinct components – Close In Memorial (Chimney Rock to 610), the Memorial Villages (Hunters Creek, Piney Point, Bunker Hill and Hedwig), and West Memorial (Gessner west to Hwy 6).

Close In Memorial and the Villages have some of Houston’s finest and most expensive homes, mostly on half acre to one acre lots with mature trees. This is a major draw for Houston’s professionals, executives and athletes and their families, who prefer schools in the Spring Branch ISD. The pricing in these areas of Memorial in 2013 ranged from $600,000 to $5 million, with an average price of $1,690,000 ($327/ SF) for a 4/3, 5,200 SF house on over a half acre lot. Construction started in

intown REAL ESTATE the mid 1950s, but new construction has remained strong over the years due to the rapid appreciation and large lot sizes. Memorial area sales have been bolstered by the expansion of the nearby Energy Corridor and explosion of high paying jobs in the area.

River Oaks/ Upper Kirby In the heart of Houston is one of its most beautiful and opulent neighborhoods.

River Oaks is a relatively small area of around 1,300 homes, anchored by Houston’s most exclusive country club.

There are estates priced as high as $14 million and homes are priced in the $400/ sq ft range depending on the size of the lots. Established in the 1920’s, this is the

Montrose/ Museum District Considered one of the most interesting areas of Houston, Montrose is an eclectic arrangement of tattoo parlors, tarot readers, churches, cafes, nice restaurants, coffee shops, junk shops and vintage clothing boutiques. It is in many ways the core of the inner city of Houston. The neighborhood abuts the sprawling Museum District now home to a dozen museums with The Holocaust and The Asia Center Texas being the newest additions to this thriving cultural arts scene. Only a hop and a skip from the Museum District lies the Texas Medical Center, the world’s largest, which houses the famed Texas Children’s Hospital and MD Anderson Cancer Center.

The Metro light rail runs through the Museum District and connects with downtown Houston and the Medical Center and Reliant Park. With the proximity

of

all

these

important

and interesting landmarks and the divergence of cultures this area has become one of the most desirable for newcomers to the city. Prices in this area have been on the rise due to new townhomes, custom building and commercial real estate development.

SHARON BRIER Everyone deserves a good home GREENWOOD KING

PROPERTIES greenwoodking.com

713.882.9800 / cosmicsher@gmail.com intown 19

intown REAL ESTATE neighborhoods are Lamar High School and the private St. John’s School as well as the venerable River Oaks Country Club and The Briar Club. Also home to the magnificent four acre Rienzi, part of

West End / Washington Corridor

the Museum of Fine Arts. This area also

Many modern homes are being built such as this one by Allen Bianchi Architects

hosts the annual Azalea Trail sponsored

The West End has been a designated

by the River Oaks Garden Club. Upper

area of Houston since the early

Kirby abuts River Oaks and provides

1900s, referring to the areas west of

some of Houston’s finest dining and shopping to accommodate the taste of

most expensive neighborhood in Texas

River Oaks’ wealthy residents. Upper

and one of the richest in the US. Situated

Kirby is going through a facelift, with

in the center of Houston, equal distance

power lines being buried under ground

to the Galleria, the Medical Center and

and roads being reworked to bear the

downtown, its neighborhoods include

heavier traffic due to the high end

Avalon Place, Royden Oaks, Kettering

townhomes and hi-rise condos and

Oaks, Afton Oaks, Oak Estates and

apartments that have sprouted up in

Highland Village. In the center of these

recent years.

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Downtown out to Memorial Park, along what we now call the Washington Corridor.

Rice Military has become

the centerpiece of this area, but other neighborhoods include Camp Logan, Crestwood, Glen Cove, Woodcrest, Cottage

Grove,

Magnolia

Grove,

Memorial Heights, Sawyer Heights (First Ward) and the Sixth Ward.

In

the 1980s, builders started purchasing

dilapidated homes in the Rice Military area that were the remnants of Army barracks for enlisted troops in the WWI era, when the Army trained in what is now Memorial Park. their

place

rose

townhome

In after

townhome, starting gentrification of the Washington Corridor, which now hosts high end properties ranging from $400,000 to $6 million. Tucked up against Memorial Park, Camp Logan – the previous location of the Army’s officer’s homes – hosts the higher end townhomes, while Crestwood and Glen Cove rival Houston’s finest neighborhoods with pricing in the $1-6 million range. The average price for an average 2,500 SF townhome built 1980+ in the West End in 2013 was $475,000 ($185/SF). This include sales from the high end Spanish village inspired community of Caceres, where prices exceed $1 million.

Tanglewood Not to be outclassed by neighboring River

Oaks,

this

relatively

newer

neighborhood was started in the 1940’s on rural farmland. With the sparkling shopping mecca, the Galleria in their backyard, the roughly 1,200 Tanglewood homeowners can claim a median appraised value at just over a one million dollars. Lots range in size from 8,000 sq ft to two plus acres and many still have the ranch style homes. As to be expected during the recent boom, many of the older ranch homes have been replaced by new larger Mediterranean or contemporary homes.

Some

of

the

nearby

subdivisions include Briargrove, Pine Shadows, Briarcroft, Indian Trail, Lamar Terrace and Larchmont. intown 21

intown REAL ESTATE West University Founded in 1912, the City of West University is a city within the City of Houston that has its own unique appeal and amenities, including a fabulous recreation center only for West U residents. With roughly a mix of approximately 1,200 older and newer homes, the average price of a home sold in 2013 was $800,000 or $300/sq ft. Good schools, strong neighborhood associations, and proximity to the Medical Center, Rice University and Rice Village are some of the draws for the residents of West U, which includes the neighborhoods of Pemberton Place, Belle Court, Monticello, Virginia Court, College View, College Court and Sunset Terrace.

A River Oaks oasis at just under 17 million is Intown's most expensive home for sale

Marcelina Gogol of Cullen Realty is listing this property located at 2611 Helena for $474,500

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The

BUZZ Julie and David Shannon

Stef and Jay Levy

Vanessa Sendukas, Rosemary Schatzman

Melanie Gray, Elizabeth DeLuca

Kathryn and Ian Fay

June Christensen, Tom Glanville

Society for the Performing Arts (SPA), is pleased to announce the 2014 gala, chaired by Elizabeth and Tim Vail with Rosemary Schatzman and Vanessa Sendukas serving as honorary chairs, will be held Saturday, March 29, at 7 p.m. in the Wortham Center’s Grand Foyer. Themed Forever Paris, the Grand Foyer will be transformed into a post-World War I carefree Paris. This year’s gala will honor longtime SPA board member Karl Kilian.

Elizabeth and Anthony DeLuca, recently hosted the kick off party in their beautiful River Oaks home.

Photos: Priscilla Dixon

Elizabeth and Anthony DeLuca

Honoree Karl Kilian

Karla Gutierrez, Islara Rodriguez

Omar Mejia, Willie D

Dr. Crystal Wright, Ting Bresnahan and Katie Flaherty

Gabriella Pawelek in BCBG by Max Azria Kim Padgett, Jeff Shell Colleen Fenton, Cindy Castaneda

Jenny Berry, Amy Dixon and Allie Danziger

Mardi Gras Ball Fashion Preview at Saks Lace, sequins and mermaid hems were major trends on the runway at this year’s Mardi Gras Ball Fashion Preview. Hosted by the Galveston Island Convention & Visitors Bureau the Mardi Gras makeovers by Laura Mercier and a fabulous fashion show at Saks Fifth Avenue in Houston. Notable attendees included Dress for Success Houston President and Co-Founder Nancy Levicki, Houston Chronicle Fashion Editor Joy Sewing and rapper Willie D.The event benefitted Women of Wardrobe– a fundraising branch of Dress for Success Houston.

Hollie Wells, Karen Lix, Emily Cotton

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intown 24

When choosing cabinets, there are different grades of hardwood, softwood veneers and composites. Three common varieties of panel materials are typically used as kitchen cabinet cores.

Once the decision has been made to remodel your kitchen, the next decision is how much to spend.

Since most homeowners spend an inordinate amount of time in their kitchen, it follows that selection and detailing are paramount. Once the budget is set, it is decision time on one of if not the most important part of the home- your cabinetry.

Plywood – Some manufacturers offer plywood as standard or as an upgraded cabinet construction.

Plywood is typically made from layers of thin wood veneers, laid crossways and glued together under pressure. Plywood is the strongest material for a cabinet case, and qualifies as an “all wood” cabinet. Expect plywood construction to be a significant cost addition.

The cabinetry will set the tone for the entire design and feel of the home. The owner must choose between a wide variety of styles, materials, mouldings and hardware. First and foremost will be who will build your cabinets and or install them.

If you choose custom cabinetry, it may be done by a “local guy”, or a state of the art facility of a large cabinet builder.

Medium-density fiberboard (MDF) is made of very fine wood fibers that are glued and compressed under great pressure. It has a very smooth surface and has greater screw-holding power than particleboard, the other composite material. The smooth surface is also an ideal surface for application of wood veneers, plastic

poggen pohl

Call Bob for an appointment to demo the mattress

With options and pricing at dizzying levels, it is important to note your plans for the home in the long term. Whether you will be there for the long haul, or are you planning to move in the near future must be considered. Most importantly, plan for what you want now, functionality and quality wise. If it does what you want now, chances are good that others will agree with your choices, should you need to sell your home.

frederickbuilders.net laminates and melamines. It is less expensive than plywood, but more expensive than particleboard.

Particleboard is a combination of wood chips, shavings, fibers, and adhesives. It differs from medium-density fiberboard in appearance, since its larger wood chips are in the core, and smaller, finer chips are on the surface. It’s heavier than plywood, but not as strong structurally.

When choosing “custom cabinetry” know that it is built to particular specifications from plans and drawings. In addition to the integrity of the construction - the outer finish of a cabinet is what truly distinguishes its value and longevity. Finishes can be simple 2 to 3 top coat applications, or sophisticated, multi step operations; applied in a controlled environment.

Cabinetry has to endure a lot of wear and tear in a typical home and the durability of the finish is no trivial matter. The finish itself can tell you a lot about the expected lifespan of the most significant home improvement investment you will ever make.

Generally, the better the warranty given with a set of cabinets, the better, and more durable the finish will be. for more go to www.houstonintown.com Rick Beckham is a designer at Cabinets and Designs located at 4200 Westheimer p. 713-627-8970

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Modern History by Wood-Mode

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FINANCIAL FOCUS

Can you stop inve$ting when you retire?

Evans Attwell Senior Vice President Frost Private Banking

T

ime was, you worked hard for 30 or 40 years.

Your company funded your pension plan, and you likely managed to save some money on your own. Then, at 65 or so, you said goodbye

to the working world. At that point, you could look forward to enjoying life without worrying too much about money. After all, those Social Security and pension checks arrived in your mailbox promptly every month, and if you needed something more, you just dipped into your savings.

Somewhere along the way, however, the dynamics of retirement changed so radically that today Americans continue to struggle with the “new realities” of life after work.

Those realities, for the most part, no longer include pensions, which have all but disappeared. Nor do they depend on the guarantee of Social Security payments. Instead, they underscore the financial challenges that come with increased longevity and the necessity to be more proactive and selfreliant in preparing for and living in retirement.

Unfortunately, outdated notions of retirement can get in the way of planning for retirement in the 21st century. The mindset of most people is still about getting to retirement, but they haven’t given much thought to what really happens during retirement.

Evans Attwell

Enough to make it through retirement That could cause real problems in the future. These days, many people spend their time and energy trying to grow assets for retirement, but it’s not as easy as cashing out those assets on the day they retire and living on them happily ever after. Instead, when they get to retirement, they will have to focus on managing the income stream that those assets produce as well as continuing to grow the assets so they will have enough money to live on for the rest of their retirement.

With a longer life expectancy these days, some retirees could live as much as a third of their life in retirement. If assets don’t continue to grow while income is drawn off of them, they aren’t likely to last as long as retirees will need them; they will run out of money during retirement.

Clearly then, investing can't end at retirement. In fact, many of the familiar investing challenges remain—balancing investments and managing taxes, as examples—while new ones appear.

One of the biggest challenges: no new earned money coming in to invest unless you go back to work. So the only growth that occurs is from the rate of return your assets earn. And the room for error narrows in retirement because you don’t have time to make up for investing mistakes and losses.

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Steps to take now Rather than fear the possibilities of the future, however, you can take steps to help your assets last and ensure your investing activities work for you in retirement. Much of it goes back to what you do before you retire. If you plan properly leading up to retirement, you should know exactly what your retirement will look like. Of all the activities you can and should take to prepare for retirement, three are critical.

Calculate your need for income in retirement and how much of that will need to come from investments. If you know what your income need is and you know what your other sources of income are, such as Social Security or something else, then you can determine the gap you need to fill from investments.

How aggressive or conservative you can be as an investor is somewhat determined by how much income you’ll need. You can back into the calculation by determining how much you already have in assets, how much income you’ll need to generate from those assets every year and how many years you’ll need that income to keep coming.

Pay off debts before you retire, even if it means working longer to do so. Whether debt includes liabilities from a business, credit card balances, a mortgage or something else, get it out of the way before retirement to minimize the drain on your retirement funds.

Get professional help. Choose someone who understands your situation, is trusted and has the knowledge and experience to help you—both as you prepare for retirement and later as you live in retirement.

Contact Evans at 713.388.1367 or evans.attwell@frostbank.com.

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Gator

Dynasty

by Marene Gustin

It’s before dawn, somewhere along the Texas/Louisiana border, deep in bayou country, during the month of September.

As dawn breaks, Mike Kuykendahl sets his baited hooks on line in the murky bayou water and waits.

Waits for a nice seven- to eight-foot alligator to shoot up out of the water and grab the bait.

“I grew up here,” says the native Texan, “I started hunting alligators as a teenager and I know where to find them.”

What started as a young boy’s sport is now a dynasty. Kuykendahl, whose Tejas Custom Boots has been a feature along Westheimer Road since 1984, is an alligator hunter who fills his quota every fall and uses the skins to make exquisite custom cowboy boots. intown 28

The American alligator was, for a time, a protected species, but was taken off the list in 1978. Today hunters can harvest them during the state’s season, usually 30 days in September, according to limits and restricted areas that are set by Texas and Louisiana. Kuykendahl hunts alligators every year for his custom boot business, trying to get enough skins for his business.

“With the right size alligator I can get two pair of custom boots,” says Kuykendahl.

“You can use remainder of the skin for belts and accessories.”

After the kill, Kuykendahl brings the alligator back to the dock, skins them and prepares to send the skins off to

a tannery where they will be tanned and dyed, ready to be made into handmade boots. Kuykendahl donates the meat to orphanages and charities.

The hunting is a labor of love, one that is fast disappearing in this age of factory made boots from skins bought from around the world. Kuykendahl says young people today just aren’t interested in going into the custom boot business. “It’s

hard work,” he admits. And few of the custom boot makers in Texas actually hunt their own animals for the exotic skins used in the boots. Kuykendahl is one of a dying breed.

Tejas Custom Boots began in a small store on Westheimer, but last April moved into a larger store at 415 Westheimer Road, where he still offers handcrafted boots for cowboys and cowgirls, as well as wallets, belts, shoes and purses. He does use other exotic skins, such as ostrich, shark, lizard as well as cowhide, that he buys, to make his one-of-a-kind creations, but his real love is the alligator skins he hunts himself.

His shop turns out everything from the Houston Police Department motorcycle boots to stingray humidors for Snoop Dog.

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Why a Custom Boot?

Proper Fit - Most people have a difficult time finding ready-made boots that fit well. To accommodate a high arch, flat feet, very wide or narrow feet or slender heels, custom boots offer a solution.

Quality of Materials and Construction - Tejas uses only prime leather, metal shanks and wooden pegs and takes time to hand produce the highest quality. There is care and attention to detail such as the individual patterning and skiving (feathering the layers at the edges of the hides), manually.

Individualized Appeal - Custom boots are created with years of experience in creating individualized footwear not only for size, but also color, style, height, toe and heel design, including patterns of stitching or inlays of personal initials, brands or logos.

Customer satisfaction - After wearing a custom boot, most customers agree that no shelf boot fits them as well as a custom made boot. Tejas offers customers excellent service for repairs, resole and reheel all with the same quality as the original boot.

Tejas Custom Boots, born on the bayou 415 Westheimer Rd. 713-524-9860 TejasCustomBoots.com

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